The garden is good with some drawbacks.

The zucchini have fruit but now the female flowers are dying and falling off before they even get big enough to open.

I’ve taken the rose off the watering can so I can stick the end under the leaves and avoid overhead watering, and nowhere else seems to be suffering anything that looks fungal. I don’t think it’s overwatering especially in pots with no wetting agents, reservoirs, or mulch. (I’m not using the plastic bottles as ollas because too lazy to fix initial botched effort.) It could very likely be heat stress.

The plants and fruit aren’t large, or prolific. Someone else on another block already has huge plants growing ridiculously large marrows.

They’re also really pale being the Lebanese ‘white’ zucchini. Oops. I initially thought something was wrong. If I donate them I might put labels explaining that as they don’t look like the ones from the supermarket and could be confused for a cucumber.

The cherry tomatoes look good and are setting fruit but one single plant is quite stunted and very affected by black spot. I’ll give it another spray tomorrow evening or even spray all of them. Thinking if I should move it away from the others but there’s not a lot of space.

The golden nugget pumpkin I planted in ground is still alive. I thought the invasive grass I can’t get rid of might kill it but fingers crossed. Let’s see when I have the energy to plant the rest.

Only two of the ten Jack be little pumpkin seeds have sprouted.

As for the dust bowl. There are only two marigolds still alive. Something ate the others. The nasturtiums are wilting in the dryness and heat but the sunflowers are being absolute troopers. Some alyssum might be coming up but not many, only where the other plants are being watered. The Californian poppies I’m trying to start in a foil pan don’t seem to be taking off. Probably keep drying out.

I think when these are done that spot is best suited for low maintenance Australian natives. The stuff I got is allegedly drought tolerant but that spot is absolutely brutal and it being so publicly accessible = I don’t like spending heaps of time out there.

Harvested my Sugar Baby Watermelons just after Christmas. Now trying to decide what to plant next.

My zucchinis are still playing funny buggers with the ratio of male to female flowers and I’m having to hand pollinate. There’s a couple of fruits though 🤞

The golden gem pumpkins have sprouted and the seedlings are getting bigger. The jack be little pumpkins are more reluctant.

The cherry tomatoes are growing bigger and fruiting but one is stunted with black spot so everything got some organic fungicide spray.

The annual flowers I’m growing for pollinators are a mixed bag but drought tolerant once they get going so hopefully a few survive.

I wish I had more space and had better accommodation to offer than some slightly too small unmulched plastic pots but it is what it is :(