The Sun is missing from this Sunday. It's Day 11 of uninterrupted rain and clouds.
Every morning, I visit my Tower Garden and every morning, I discover new growth! Even with the absence of direct sunlight, things are happening. The tomatoes are especially active, and this brings me to a quandary.
To Prune or Not...?
With dirt farming, the standard procedure is to snip the suckers that branch off from the main tomato plant stems to encourage robust growth. I am not sure if this standard carries over to hydroponic farming. But I'm finding bud development on the suckers! I've come to the conclusion that there is plenty enough circulating nutrients to feed the suckers. So I'm snipping conservatively. My focus is to prevent rampant growth that might interfere with productivity. I'm also clipping where I see heavy overlap to prevent any rotting leaves.
Quandary solved.
Tropical Storm Beryl hammered through NE Florida last night with wind gusts up to 70mph and sustained winds of 55mph along with heavy rain.
I was worried but I'm happy to report that my Tower Garden made it through the storm!
It's bedraggled and water-logged but as soon as the sun comes through, it should perk up.
The tomatoes are most affected, mostly because I had not added additional cages for support. The two-week old seedlings look good - and of course, this is a view through the rain!
I'm assuming the 20-gallon reservoir is what kept the Tower standing as it is in an open area and unprotected.
The neighbor was not so fortunate!
I heard a heavy bang! last night as the storm was in full swing, looked outside with a flashlight but saw nothing.
This morning, I see the cause of the Big Bang - a large limb from an ancient oak that couldn't withstand the wind.
It's hard to tell from the photo that this tree limb stretches a good 12-15 feet in length. You can see that it dwarfs the shed. That big bundle of vine is likely what weakened the tree.
BABY CUCUMBER. Looks a little like Prickly Pear.
THERE'S SOMETHING NEW EVERY DAY!
Today my friend spotted a baby cuke. After searching under the wide leaves, we found six more with a bunch of buds ready to become baby cukes by morning!
HERE'S A VIEW OF MY TOWER GARDEN THIS MORNING.
The Tower Garden fits in a small square of my patio, and contains a variety of growing vegetables including two varieties of tomato, three varieties of lettuce, basil, kale and cucumbers.
Beautiful Bibb lettuce.
Red and green lettuce in foreground.
I love how the cukes and tomatoes share space.
[LEFT] An empty slot waiting for a new seedling. Basil to the left.
[RIGHT] Close-up of the water filtration system.
I love watching the cucumbers develop!
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Tim Blank talks about what inspired him to create the Tower Garden, including his experience at the Epcot Center's The Land.
This morning, I plucked a few fresh basil leaves from my Tower Garden and presented them to Stormy and Dunkin.
Immediate Love!
This is also a perfect way to strengthen my bond with jittery Dunkin!
Meanwhile, Stormy, who ate three leaves, smells like sweet basil.