The catch, of course, is that said “rewards” usually involve spending money on things one wouldn’t really spend money on anyway: think $10 gift cards to Walmart, coupons for Fancy Feast, BOGO deals on Coke…you get the picture.

And so, POD’s Recyclebank balance balloons. Until recently, that is! Help the LoMo Civic Association out by donating points to their South Philly High Orchard Project. Now that sounds like a win to POD.

Got a problem with that?

Those of us here at Plants on Deck feel it’s important to apply all that theory into real-world experience. And so, to that end, a certain hurricane put an end to the loopers devouring the last of POD’s chard.

Hours in the day have been shrinking since early June (despite 4 a.m. tornado-siren wake-ups from a certain little hurricane), and what plants are on deck have been utterly and entirely neglected since their September 18 seeding.

So it’s a happy surprise that tonight’s dinner consists of a nice green salad, peppered with happy little radishes.

What does a toddler’s discharge have to do with the health and well-being of the little blue deck? Everything, it seems. It’s like the deck doesn’t exist, let alone the computer upon which the deck is rendered public. All that matters is saline solution, honey, vomit dodging, and sleeping. This morning, though, despite a shocking lack of sleep and an abundance of the aforementioned symptoms, the deck’s disarray was too much for this sniffling gardener to handle. So while little Ms. Typhoid and her similarly afflicted father departed for the store and the playground, the deck got some half-assed love.

The final tomatoes were plucked and sad, tired plants were bagged. A smattering of cucumber beetles got smushed, just for the heck of it, and the C. Borealis (AKA french orange hybrid melon) upon which they were feasting gave up its last fruit.

What containers remain have been haphazardly scatter-seeded with lettuce, winter cress (AKA creasy creens courtesy of Bartram’s Garden), radishes, kale, and kohlrabi (courtesy of Startin Yer Garten).

It shames this gardener to admit it, but nearly a dozen White Wonder cucumbers got composted after slowing deflating in the crisper into a gushy goo and a half dozen others are still withering away in the office fridge (come on, colleagues, eat up!). Over 40 cucumbers, all told, were harvested from a single vine. And, despite early reports of a dry, squashy texture and flavor, later-season fruits weren’t too bad.

And it was with great delight that over 15 pounds of tomatoes were plucked. Fret not, none of those went to waste. They weren’t the prettiest girls at the party (as you can see above), but we’re firm believers here at POD that it’s what’s under the pock-marked skin that matters. And these particular ladies were pretty dreamy in this simple, no-frills sauce.

Still, you’ll hear no complaints here. This has been a great summer for POD and with any luck, those vacated pots will be seeded with peas, chard and lettuce before the weekend is out.

The cucumbers are still pouring in — at last count: Spacemaster: 14, Adam F1: 13 (RIP), White Wonder: 32. That’s not a typo, people. Nearly nine pounds of tomatoes and counting!  Not to mention 20 adorable (and strangely hot) little poblanos, gobs of basil, herbs, chard, and two delightful C. Borealis melons.

Squirrels? They suck, but they’ve sucked much less this year than usual. See that tomato on the railing (squint, you’ll see it, top right)? You’d think the least the greedy SOB could do is finish the thing.

Fortunately or not, things never really die online, they just require a little more dedicated Googling. A little gift from POD to the gardeners of Philadelphia:

SEED CHART (All plants are from seeds unless noted)

Mid-March to Mid-April: Peas, Onions, Leeks, Garlic, White Potatoes, Turnips, Cabbage, Greens, (Collard, Kale, Mustard)

Late March to Mid-May: Lettuce**, Radishes**, Beets**, Carrots**

Late March to late April: Shallots, Spinach**, Bok choy, Parsley (Plants: Leeks, Onions, Cabbage, Broccoli, Greens)

Early April to mid-June: Swiss chard, beets

Mid April to mid-May: Celery

Early May to mid-June: Watermelons, Melons, Winter squash, Summer squash, Cucumbers, Pumpkins (Plants: Sweet Potato)

Mid May to late June: Okra, Chinese cabbage, Corn, Peanuts, Lima beans

Mid May to mid-July: Beans (bush, pole, shell, dried)**

Mid May to late June: Black eyed peas (Plants: Eggplant, Peppers, Basil, Tomato)

Mid June to early July: Collards, Cabbage family, Celery

Early July to mid-August: Carrots, Beets, Swiss chard, (Plants: Cabbage, Broccoli, Greens)

Mid July to September: Radish**, Spinach**

Early August to September: Salad greens**, Greens (Mustard, etc.), Peas

Early September to early October: Garlic (For spring harvest)

** To extend harvest, plant every two weeks.

Hello, delicious.

]]> http://plantsondeck.com/2011/08/11/oh-august-oh-melon/feed/ 0 plantsondeck C. Borealis, French hybrid