(Emily Mesner / ADN file)
I am sure you have seen the statements that Alaska is warming three times faster than the rest of the country. Really? You could fool me.
Oh, hold on. I know it is true. The only thing you need to win an argument about global warming is to point out our growing season is on the way to tripling in length over the past 100 years or so.
It seems to me that the parody weather map of Alaska, the one indicating the whole state is a bastion of different densities of rain, is a much more accurate depiction of the weather’s state of affairs this season. Add in a bit of cold wind to complete the picture.
Rain makes gardening here a real bummer. It isn’t warm water. I don’t know anyone who takes off their shirt and continues to garden in the rain as they would in, say, Florida or Texas. And while our mosquito population is down these days, rain tends to bring them out. Unfortunately, it does not stop the delphinium defoliators, the aphids, the gooseberry and currant sawflies and more from doing their things.
There is no question rain makes mowing the lawn difficult, and it makes the grass and clover grow faster so it needs mowing more often. Moreover, it can interrupt the ability to mow when the grass needs it, resulting in too-long grass that clumps as you mow or the inability to mow the lawn’s dandelion crop at the right time, before they open.
Still, with all the rain, our lawns are very green. Look, Ma! No extra fertilizer needed. And rain is how yard trees and bushes get watered. Who needs to water them with all the rain we get?
Unfortunately, we still need hoses, quick connectors and even a sprinkler or two just in case it stops raining long enough to require watering the gardens. Wouldn’t it be nice if you had warm water to use on them? They have been in cold shock all season.
One plant that thrives in rain is chickweed. It is growing fast these days and flowering despite the lack of warmth and sunshine. Sure, it is raining, but you need to get out there and pull it before you end up with so much chickweed that it smothers everything else. While you are out there, it is never too early to pull those butter and egg plants. Right now they don’t have flowers so you can leave them where you pull them.
And when it rains, it becomes especially important for you to become a pollinator as insects may have trouble flying to your plants. Tomatoes will benefit from vibrating flower stems with an electric toothbrush. This is much more effective than the old paintbrush from flower-to-flower method. Don’t forget that peppers, corn and other greenhouse fare need help as well.
Fruit trees may need a little help if they get little sunshine while in bloom. Don’t forget kiwi vines, as they are male or female. Be a bee.
I think I read somewhere that the high temp for the state was 71 degrees. Take me there! Oh for another one of those 90-degrees days like we had a few Fourth of Julys back. Maybe this year it will happen again. After all, we are warming up three times faster than the Lower 48.
Jeff’s Alaska Garden Calendar
Alaska Botanical Garden: Please do yourself a big favor and join. Visit yourself and send Uncle Bob and Aunt Sally and all your visitors. They won’t mind the rain. Member or not, there is a Picnic Concert in the Garden on Sunday, June 15, from 4 to 6 p.m.
Radish, beets, carrots, leaf lettuces: Thin.
Lawns: Let’s get those patterns on! Coordinate with your neighbors. Send pictures. I feel a contest brewing.