Had a bit of a hailstorm last night. Only lasted for about five minutes, rained for ten, then everything went away. We just barely got the tail end of a big storm. Unfortunately, that's usually what seems to happen to us! We could really use the rain right now.

Cooler today, with a high of 86F. Going to harvest the potatoes today, since they're pretty much all dying anyway from this one bug I've never seen before: red and black, super fat, moves like a caterpillar, and eats all my potato leaves. Before I knew it, I now have hundreds all over my plants, and they're just shredding everything. I was looking at some potato pests, and I'm pretty sure they're Colorado Potato Beetles.

Ugh, Johannian - it sounds like the beetle larvae that you're seeing . They really can demolish the potato plants, I had a terrible time with them a few years ago. I've started planting later (mid June - still way more than enough time for the potatoes to grow) and haven't seen one since then.

We were very fortunate to have the storm that went through here yesterday divide and miss us by a short distance to both the north and south (I had no idea I was living in such a charmed area!). Not too far away there was 1-inch hail, and I hate to think what that would have done to my garden - to say nothing of our Camry that is outdoors for the summer...

Colorado Potato beetle larvae, I squish the larvae and beetles by hand.
Look under the leaves for yellow orange eggs and smash them or it will get worse.
Some have taken a hose set the nozzle for high pressure and tried to blow them off.
I used Sevin but unless you get under the leaves a waste of time.

I had them this year when the potatoes were only a foot tall and for two weeks I was crushing beetles and smashing eggs by hand.
They know when you are coming for them after you get smashed beetle juice on your hands as some would drop off of a leaf while I was reaching for them.
For once I won the battle.

They burrow under ground and come up in the spring; killing the beetle before they mate or smashing eggs before they hatch is the only real way to beat them.

Colorado potato beetles, very nasty things! Sorry your plants have been affected @Johannian. It is truly heartbreaking when your potatoes that are coming along nicely, looking healthy one day, start looking ratty the next day and you discover the leaves are being eaten. @RpR, glad you have been victorious over those creepy crawlies. I had them one year and spent so much time inspecting every bush, squashing any bugs and eggs I found but still didn't win the battle. Can't remember if I had planted in early or late June that year but have read in a post as to which is the better time (early or late) but of course cannot remember which it should be. I always just planted whenever I got around to doing it timewise. I think someone mentioned they read that in the Farmers' Almanac? If the beetles burrow into the ground would they not get frozen since it gets so cold in winter? I am going to check on my potato bushes later. Gardening is such a struggle but reaping a successful harvest is just like striking gold (to me anyway).

Yup, just been battling them and giving them death by squishing. But I think unfortunately, I already let them populate so much that this year is probably just not going to be a potato year for me.

Warmer today already than it was yesterday. Gonna be high 80s, so not super hot compared to what we've been having.

Johannian said: Yup, just been battling them and giving them death by squishing. But I think unfortunately, I already let them populate so much that this year is probably just not going to be a potato year for me.

Warmer today already than it was yesterday. Gonna be high 80s, so not super hot compared to what we've been having.

On a second thought, Last year I did apply Sevin multiple times in the South garden.
Did not stop destruction, but this year I have no beetles in the South garden.
Maybe they chowed down and then fell over dead.

I used Ma's ancient, older than me, rose duster so I got under he leaves to a point.
Don't like that stuff, but I do enjoys listening to it go PFFT, PFFT, PFFT....

Don't give up on your potatoes too quickly, Johannian; those beetles got ahead of me that one year - it seemed like we were hand-picking thousands of them every day with no noticeable decrease in their numbers - and the plants looked terrible, but I still got a good harvest of potatoes.

Yeah, I dug up one of the 'Red Norland' plants, and even after two months of growing, it had absolutely no potatoes whatsoever. I dug up a russet plant and it had a couple of potatoes on it. So, looks like I might still get something from the russets, but not the Red Norlands.

Bought a new sprinkler, as the one we have had for a long time works, but if you handle it to roughly, you have to readust it to make a full sweep.
New one works well, it is the cheap version of Gadena I got at a thrift store for a little over 20 bucks.

Watered the garden yesterday for the first time all summer, as it is hot and where we had a goodly amount of rain up to a month ago, now it is spotty.
Will water again tomorrow before I head home to actually start on painting the garage, and do some garden and yard work.

Went home to work on the garage and garden and actually got painting the garage started.
I was not going to do a heavy weeding of the garden but it was so weedy , could not ignore it.
Left 80 percent of the Purslane, but pulled all the grasses, quick weed and other nasties that cannot be ignored.
Over filled one of those large canisters that garbage trucks go around to empty.
Spent 8 hours on my hand and knees, and buttocks.
Fertilized some of the corn, onions and two chiles plants and two tomatoes that came up from a free gift packette from Seeds Savers that I had just cast on in one spot.
Watered the garden for two hours before I left.
I could see the storm clouds up North , and just before I left Sharon called to tell me it had rained very hard up there.
When I got back up North , I found one-half of the garden flat, corn was not leaning it was flat, sunflowers flat, broccoli laying on its side.
Fizzbin.

Well, between Sharon getting bitten by the new cat with a nasty reaction; my left calf deciding to make walking miserable; things have not been too bad.

Have not gotten home to finish the one side of the garage between my leg annoyance and taking Sharon to see doctors.
I have a doctors appointment Friday at home but will be working on the garagea again starting tomorrow.
We went to the large vintage farm show at Albany, Mn, their 50th Anniversary and had a good time.
We did not go up to the huge Flea Market as the place was very crowed and while I can walk I had no real reason to go to the Flea Market; I did buy 4 small banana bread loaves at the so called general store they have there and two jars of Choke Cherry jelly.
It was a warm day but there was a cloud cover with a breeze so it was a good day.

Right now it is 80 degree with a 67 percent humidity and I will go out and mow lawn in a bit.
The North garden is doing real well with tomato plants still producing a lot of fruit.
One half of he potatoes are still in the ground along with carrots and winter squash that loves this weather.
South garden still has seven or eight potato plants to be dug up and the corn should be pulled and shocked to chopped and turned over into the garden.
I should have a lot of ripe Concord Grapes when I get there and will have to decide what to do with them.

Right now with Smokey gone to kitty heaven, Sammy and the new boy Ram are not buddies but get along OK.
Sammy does not sleep on the sofa any more with Smokey gone, and still shows signs that he misses Smokey, but he and Ram , while not buddies, will touch noses .
It has been an odd but generally good summer and we will be going up to Brainerd to celebrate her nieces birthday this weekend, so it will be a kinda-sorta end of Summer celebration.
5 days till end of Summer with 80s coming to an end but 70s forecast till Mid-October.

79 right now, IF, one can believe weather forecast, low to mid-eighties till Sunday the 29th of Sept.
Time to head home soon and get the South Side of the garage finished.

The garage South side is done, and from the Weather Service, up to next Tues. temps. in the sixties and seventies then all will be in the fifties and forties for the rest of the Month of Oct.

Will mow lawn today, as it has not been done for two weeks and is rather long.
Time to pick the squash out of the garden and finish with the still standing corn stalks.
Still holding off on pulling the tomatoes.

Tomato pulling time today, which also means wrapping green ones in newspaper and putting in the basement.
More lawn mowing today also; with no true winter type weather forecast till mid-November, I may be doing more mowing very late in the season.

I got 8 nice squash out of the garden and have one so called Elephant Garlic still in the ground.
IF I were canning cucumbers a lot of fresh Dill in the garden right now.

69 degrees at this moment, so this will be the last day of 70 degrees for this year, I will continue to wear shorts for a while as I need to toughen up.

It is 41 degrees right now and this is the last day with temp. not in the Thirties.
Supposed light snow tomorrow, so, I had better go out in the garden and snip a little fresh dill to put in a bag in the fridge.

I still have an Elephant Garlic in the garden that will come inside tomorrow.
I have put leaves on both rose gardens and surprisingly had one rose down south with a fresh bloom.
Mowed lawn three days ago, but decided to not do the boulevard hill though I may throw some seed on the hill as last years drought hit parts of it really hard and now it is wet.
Fall is ending and winter is arriving.

First day of Fall where the temperature never hits even the thirties.
Brought out a Lot of Christmas decorations yesterday, most we have had inside in six or seven years.
Sharon does not remember a lot of the stuff I brough down out of the attic.
I am going to go up there and arrange the Stuff up there as there are a LOT of old bed comforter sets in plastic bags that take up space.
Time to arrange Stuff in compartments rather that willy-nilly.

I may surprise her with a real Christmas tree which will cause hell fire.
There is a LOT of Christmas stuff down stairs including multiple fake trees; I will decide whether or not to send them to fake tree heaven as they have not been used in decades, OR, put them in the attic where they are easier to access.

You've made me feel better about the amount of Christmas stuff I've accumulated, RpR!

We have a fake Christmas Tree, 60+ years old, still in the original box.

crawgarden said: We have a fake Christmas Tree, 60+ years old, still in the original box.

Was the box ever opened?

Every year, that's the problem, the re taping and re twinning.