Rainy Evening

We got some rain at last, this evening. It came dramatically, though, as it sometimes does in Kansas. I drove home from work through a heavy downpour, with a bit of hail. When it started pounding on the windshield of my car, I did wonder how big they'd have to be, and how hard they'd have to hit, to break the glass. Then the tornado sirens went off.

But at least we did get over an inch of rain. It came so quickly it probably didn't soak in as well as a nice slow shower, but I'm still grateful for the moisture. This should help the garden keep going.

Compost

I'm just back in from adding my rabbit's daily contributions to the compost bin for today. Earlier this summer I replaced my disintegrating compost bin made from wooden pallets with a new closed plastic one. This is in addition to the rotating composter. The rotating bin produces compost much faster than a static bin, but you can't keep adding new material throughout the process. So I put the new stuff daily into the static bin, and then as each batch in the rotating composter is finished and removed, I move a new batch from the static bin into the rotating one.

August Heat

We finally got a little rain; in fact, twice in the last two weeks. It's been such a relief. I've had to water every day, and even then some of the things I planted this spring don't look like they'll make it. The two hydrangeas are completely withered, and look quite dead. I don't know whether to hope they'll come back out of it or not. I'd like to think they went into an early dormancy, but that may be hopelessly optimistic.

On the other hand, the veggie garden is still going along fairly well. It hasn't been my best year for tomatoes, since the raised bed they were rotated to this year is the one nearest the neighbors' trees, and is the shadiest of the six beds. But the peppers and cantaloupe are doing great, and the cucumbers were as well. Now the cukes are struggling a bit with fungus. I've sprayed them and hope they'll keep going. I sure love the fresh veggies!

Update: Two days after posting this, one of the dead-looking hydrangeas has put out a few new leaves at its base. What a relief! I'll keep hoping for some of the other plants.