Sara takes the kids to the fair, I become chief gardener

Sara and the kids are staying with some friends in Vancouver for a few days, largely to visit the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) that takes place for two weeks prior to the unofficial end of summer, Labor Day Weekend.

Hedgehog loves the Hellevator, and Jim is a Roller Coaster fanatic. The former lifts you up in an open seat and then drops you at breakneck speed, while the latter used to be my favorite ride when I was younger.

The kids also love the animal exhibits and usually return with digital photos of chicks hatching and huge pigs snoring. The dog show is a family favorite, with the super smart canines astounding the audience with their shenanigans.

Them being away, means that yours truly is in charge of not only the vegetable garden, but Sara’s flower garden, as well. I rise early each morning and spend a meditative half an hour communing with the canopy of Anemones and the still flourishing Clematis.

We’ve had several days of hot sunny ones in a row, so I can’t skip the watering regimen as I’m tempted to do on overcast and sprinkly days. The super tall Sunflowers are the first to feel the lack of water, and there is nothing worse looking in a garden than droopy Sunflowers.

The pastel shades of Phlox continue to thrive, while the occasional Gladiolus has made an unexpected reappearance. The Hybrid Tea Rose Black Magic has opened a magnificent bloom, after a long hiatus.

As if not to be outdone, the climbing Rose All Ablaze has offered a prolific series of blooms in clusters. The Stainless Steel Rose has also come out of its rain-induced hibernation, and is gracing us with its metallic, exquisitely formed petals.

The Black Eyed Susans and the occasional Yellow Daisy provide color contrast to the Pinks and Purples and Blues of the Phlox and Cone Flowers, some of which are Double Decker ones.

Sara is pleased with her Flower Garden, and I am doing my utmost to make sure that it is still thriving when they return. The Vegetable Garden looks different, what with the first harvest of Snow Peas and the removal of the plants, while we await the second growth, provided September proves to be warm enough for the new crop.

The numerous rainy days have postponed the Tomato harvest, although several clusters of large, Beefsteak Tomatoes are beginning to assume a distinctly pinkish hue.

We also planted some Cherry Tomatoes, some of which we already picked and had with our breakfast eggs. As we did with our Hungarian Banana Peppers, some of which are mild, while others are very hot.

I sprayed with Scorpion Juice last Sunday, in order to make sure that the induced systemic resistance is keeping those pests and pathogens at bay.

Aside from the occasional Black Spot on the generic Pink Rose plant, some of the Phlox vegetation has developed brown spots. Nothing to get concerned about, Phlox stems and leaves don’t like to be sprayed with water, and I’m just as guilty doing that, as is Sara.

This weekend I’m spraying with Colossal Bud Blast in order to maximize the size of our flowers, and fertilizing most of both gardens with Iguana Juice Bloom. I say most, because I have to make sure that some of our leafy vegetables get only Iguana Juice Grow, to keep them from bolting.

In addition to the Iguana Juice, I pre-mix a nutrient solution the night before, adding Barricade, Humic and Fulvic Acids, Organic B, Carbo Load Powder, Sensi Zym, and Granndma Enggy’s Seaweed Extract.

Sara dragged me to a Health Food Shop one day and made me drink some green concoction which is supposed to give you energy and at the same time, cleanse your system. Whenever I add Seaweed Extract to my organic nutrient solution, I always think of that green drink.

It didn’t taste bad, and it did pep me up for a few days. I imagine our plants getting this stuff as part of their regular diet and receiving the natural hormones, vitamins, and organic antibiotics that it contains.

I see on the Advanced Nutrients website that the company is introducing a new 100% organic product, called Nirvana. We could all use a bit of Nirvana, just about now!

All joking aside, I am going to order some and see if I can increase the proliferation of flowers through Sara’s garden, as well as the size of the individual blooms.

Nirvana can be administered either as a foliar spray, or straight into the root zone. It has eliminated the offensive smell of some of its competition, and it contains carbohydrates, vitamins, amino acids, minerals, humic acid, growth enhancers, guano and seaweed.

Some more of that healthy green stuff that I should be drinking every day. Don’t tell Sara I said that…