July 17

In the Northern hemisphere, the Summer solstice has come and gone. In North Carolina, where we are located, the heat of summer and the humidity is making it uncomfortable to go outside in the afternoons.  This heat benefits the plants that like it hot, like the sweet potatoes and peppers and some herbs.  But other plants are finding the going tough.  Some tomatoes won't set fruit in this heat and any plants which have been compromised are dying or sickly.

This is the time to take stock in the garden.  It is a good time to clear out the plants that are sick or failing.  They are likely to attract pests that in turn will look next door and attack the plants adjacent.  It is better to have a small gap in your row of tomatoes - because you've cut off one of the plants at the base - than a large gap, because the entire row has been attacked from those failing plants.

It is also a time to think ahead to the Fall.  Early harvest beds will be ready for preparation and getting them ready for planting for the Fall.  Don't leave this too late. 

Popular culture has in the past written of the height of summer as an idyllic time.  While it is true that the long days made for a productive time when countries were largely rural, in today's world where we are tied to our electronics, the height of summer is for many just a time when their air conditioning works harder.  The garden - and the weather - teaches us that to work with nature we must choose our time of engagement.  Instead of being outdoors in the hottest part of the day when temperatures exceed 30C and 70% humidity, the mornings are kinder.  It is also a good time of year to mow - lawns are productive in the summer and the lawn clippings provide for a good base for making compost.  If you turn your compost regularly, it will be ready in time for use in your beds in Fall plantings.  I mow by hand, not on a ride-on. I always think of mowing as harvesting for compost and great aerobic exercise.

So too, with life. At times when we have a lot of light in our lives and the seeds we planted earlier in our lives are coming to fruition, the temptation is to coast.  We should be appreciative of what we have. Walk in the garden and love it. Enjoy the dappled light on the leaves, the rich variety of life. The birds able to find food easily, the sounds of frogs ribbiting in the undergrowth. Unless we enjoy what we have, life becomes drudgery.  But it is not enough to coast. We need to be readying ourselves for the Fall planting so that Winter is not barren.  We should be setting aside the capital for the projects we wish to take on when the garden is growing more slowly - perhaps that greenhouse - or putting in new beds ahead of the Spring.  The heat of Summer will also expose the areas in our lives that need attention.  Clear out what's failing so that the productive areas of our lives can continue unencumbered.  For some, this means dealing with our baggage. For others, it may mean cutting out soda and reducing how much sugar we consume.  Without attention to these areas, what's healthy in our lives will be negatively affected and instead of that energy going into blooming and fruit, will be consumed with parrying the loads imposed on it.