What’s Growing in mid-July in the Mid-Atlantic

I am astonished that the lettuce (Burpee gourmet blend) has not bolted in this prolonged heat near Washington, D.C. I was planning on using the space for tomatoes when it opened up. It’s going strong and I don’t have the heart to pull it out. I have planted the tomatoes among the lettuce as it gets taller and taller. Mind you, the arugula and the spicy lettuce mix bolted weeks ago.

Clockwise from top left: Pumpkin, lettuce, mouse melon, tomato

I was able to collect mouse melon at a seed swap in February. Two plants survived from seedling and they are growing like mad. Must like the heat! They have tiny tiny flowers now and I am excited to see the fruits develop.

I got a couple of heirloom tomato varieties (German Johnson and Rinon Rippled Delight) at the seed swap and also grape variety. I had not started tomatoes from seed before but I was up for the challenge so I was seeking tomato seeds at the swap. I do not use lights or other contraptions, except for the light from the windows, and I was able to grow about 12 seedlings and get them in the ground in mid-May. Most survived – I have birds that really enjoy snapping seedlings in half in the spring and they found a couple of tomatoes and marigolds to decapitate. Because heirloom varieties can tend to grow very slowly and not bear much fruit, I also bought a couple of hybrid plants a few weeks ago to ensure a good harvest this year.

Stuttgart onions were set on St. Patrick’s Day and are going strong. That will be an empty area at the end of the summer in the raised bed. Beets? Spinach?

Green and wax beans are being planted in succession which means as space, any space, opens I put some seeds in the ground. I will continue that through the summer, curious to see how late I can plants seeds and see them through to fruit. I suspect the daylight will determine that. Bean freeze really well so I try to grow as much as possible.

Surprise, it’s a pumpkin growing in the backyard. It must have come from the jack-o'-lantern carcass I threw out there last November. I grew pumpkins intentionally last year, although I don’t think they were pumpkins at all, and they did not survive. Stay tuned!