Hydrangeas Blue

Mid-summer is The Time For Bug Pests

Mid-summer is the time for pesky pests to show up in the vegetable garden. It’s also the time to search for beneficial bugs that will hopefully take care of some of the problems.

In July I noticed that there were a lot more unwanted bugs on flowers and veggies in the garden.

The seashell cosmos are full of aphids. I saw one ladybug on the cosmos, but she didn’t seem interested in removing the aphids. Or maybe there were just too many. Yup, ants and aphids actually help each other out… Read this article at Gardening Know How.

I have since sprayed water on the ants and most of the aphids to get them off these flowers. Some stems were cut back to remove the infestation.

Cosmos stems covered in aphids and ants. — Ants and aphids

Cosmos and eggplant are covered in ants also. And a black, fuzzy caterpillar showed up to eat the eggplant leaves.

fuzzy black caterpillar — Giant Leopard moth caterpillar

The black caterpillar turns into the Giant Leopard moth, from what I’ve discovered. I had three of these caterpillars on my eggplants, but now they are all gone. I was really hoping to see them become moths.

Along with weird and unwanted things, I was happy to find some ladybug larvae on one of my largest eggplant plants. Lizards were also crawling all over the place, so these may disappear. I hope not.

Get Rid of Fire Ants Naturally, Will This Work?

As for one of the worst Florida pests ever, the fire ant, I’ve been looking for a good way to rid the garden of them.

I’ve tried pouring vinegar on the mound. It kills all the grass, but the fire ants just move. I’ve sprinkled Diatomaceous Earth all over the hill, and it seems to do nothing. I was going to set Terro traps but I was afraid the raccoons would try to eat the stuff.

Now, I’ve come across a video by Elise Pickett from The Urban Harvest with advice on naturally killing fire ants. The mixture to try contains orange oil, dawn detergent and water. Watch the video here for more info.

I absolutely plan to try this as soon as the ingredients arrive.

Beetles and Worms

I don’t know what this little green beetle is, but he was happily crawling on the eggplant. Looks like a stink bug, except green. Maybe he is a juvenile.

These little black bugs were found on the Ground Cherry plants, which grow wild along the edge of the yard. Are they good bugs? They seemed harmless, and sure enough, they are soldier beetles which are BENEFICIAL and important for pollination.

Each morning I am picking little green worms off the tops of my Suyo Long cucumber plants. Most likely the Pickleworm. I will continue to hand-pick the worms and hopefully rid the plants of them.

After reading this article by IFAS, it seems that the best practice for avoiding this worm problem is to plant cucumbers early in the season to beat the invasion. I will look into this further.

Finally, My Sweet Potato Slips Are Here!

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Native Milkweed That Survived the Freeze

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No Cukes in the Garden, But Making Pickles

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Losses and New Growth, Gardening As Always

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So Long For Now

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Time to Harvest the Roselle Hibiscus For Tea

11/04/2025

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Growing the Seminole Pumpkin First Year

The Seminole pumpkin is perfect for us Florida gardeners as they are native. This is my first year growing them.

I had high hopes for growing the Seminole pumpkin. After all, it’s a Florida native. I had watched videos where people told of their bounty of pumpkins. The vines filled their yards and pumpkins were everywhere. For me, this was not the case.

My yard is small and the garden area is even smaller so I planted the seeds in one little section near the side of an empty, overgrown lot.

I had pumpkin vines trailing down the entire side of my yard, but only one pumpkin growing. Others began, but then dropped off the vine. It was disappointing. Maybe I planted too late in the season.

This new vine was headed off into the wilderness and it had two little pumpkins growing. Sadly, one of them did not make it. The other one is doing well.

Seminole pumpkin babies on the vine — New baby pumpkins

Of the two pumpkins shown above, only the one on the left continued to grow. So now I will have two pumpkins total by the end of summer.

Seminole pumpkin growing in the vine — New little Seminole pumpkin

Planting and Growing

I planted my pumpkin seeds – purchased from The Urban Harvest – in pots, then transplanted two plants to the garden. I could have planted sooner, but my garden was not ready.

Later I transplanted Seminole pumpkin plants, started from seeds in pots, into the ground, and they did not grow well. So, next time I’ll put seeds directly into the ground.

From my limited experience I have noticed: All the leaves near the place the seeds came up have turned yellow and dropped off.

The vines are easy to direct. I have all my vines coming down the edge of the yard. The vines will root into the ground along the way!

Seminole pumpkin on the vine — Seminole Pumpkin on the vine

I’m watching this pumpkin grow and was wondering when I should cut it off the vine. Apparently the stem will turn brown and begin to die, then cut the pumpkin leaving a long stem (see more info in the link below). This type of pumpkin can be stored for months – even up to a year – if conditions are right.

On August 25th I cut the pumpkin from the vine. It has been growing for months and I figured it must be ready. I left a nice long stem, as was suggested by someone doing a video.

I was hoping to have numerous pumpkins from these two plants, but it looks like I will have only two.

If you have a small yard, like I do, maybe consider planting near the edge of the property and direct the vines along the perimeter. I’ll definitely plant more Seminole Pumpkins in Spring.

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Adding Buckets to the Backyard Crop Growing System

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End of Summer Garden Clean Up

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Digging the Sweet Potatoes and Learning a Lesson

08/27/2025

The Year I Began The Gardens

From a barren yard to gardens being dug, I’m learning to be a successful Florida gardener.

In 2016 my son and I bought a house in Florida near the east coast. It is a modest home with a small yard. At the time, on both sides we had natural habitats in uncleared lots.

Here’s a photo of the backyard that was posted on the listing, and then nearly 7 years later.

House backyard in 2016
Our backyard, August 2023

Our house sits lengthwise with the garage at the front, so this “backyard” area in the photos is really on the southern side of the house.

This photo from 2018 shows the big banana trees and elephant ear plants in the back corner. Also the yard is mostly grass and not weeds. You can see the hibiscus planted near the house.

Our back corner of the yard looks a bit more open thanks to the numerous hurricanes that have come through since we moved in. The tall pine was taken down when a new house was built.

In 2023 I decided to create some gardens and began digging up the grass. I’d been container gardening, but I’ve always believed that plants do better in the ground.

I bought a rototiller and had my son till up a patch of ground. I removed the grass and some pieces of cement that were buried and began to get the dirt ready for growing vegetables.

I have a Hot Frog tumbling composter which I’d been using for about a year to make compost.

Backyard before second garden — 2023 -Changing from grass to garden area

When my watermelon, peppers, okra, pumpkin, and eggplant began growing so well, I expanded to another smaller garden next to the shed. Because it was June, and summer is tough for growing vegetables in Florida, I planted cucumbers (Suyo Long), one tomato plant, and more okra (the rest of the seeds from the packet).

This is also where I planted the blueberry bush I bought at the Farmer’s Market on a whim.

June Florida backyard garden — June garden extension

Gardening is an ongoing experiment. There is always something to do and / or see while walking through the garden. Each morning I pull weeds until the mosquitoes find me.

I’m keeping track of what grows well in this summer heat, and am already thinking about Fall planting.

My First Moringa Tree Drumstick Bean

Two Moringa trees are growing in my backyard. I’m in Central Florida and the trees grow great all summer, but slow down the remainder of the year. Hurricanes, or strong wind, will knock these trees over. I had to cut mine last year because it fell over the garden. New stalks have grown and I…

by Pam 08/25/2025

Good News From the Garden, A New Butterfly is In the World!

Finally, a caterpillar makes it into a chrysalis and then becomes a gorgeous Black Swallowtail butterfly.

by Pam 08/06/2025

Mid-summer Update on the Vegega Raised Beds

It’s mid-summer and here in my Florida backyard I have mostly flowers growing. I’ve used my three Vegega raised beds to hold some things and some are doing better than others. More amendments for Fall will be needed.

by Pam 08/05/2025

Easy Healthy Camping Food in Foil Packets

Here’s how to bring along vegetable packets for grilling on a camping trip.

Each time we get read to go camping in our trailer, I create vegetable foil packets to take along.

My son like to grill, so he takes care of bringing the meat. I’m not a big meat-eater, but I always have a small amount. My main dish consists of vegetables.

Paper plate with meat, baked beans and vegetables cooked in foil

Creating the Packets

Close to the camping dates, I shop for fresh vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, carrots, potatoes, and onions. I don’t buy all of these, just what looks freshest and is affordable. (I skipped the asparagus as the price was ridiculous!)

The day before we leave the vegetables are rinsed, chopped and wrapped. Potatoes and carrots will take the longest to cook and need to be cut very small. I add butter and seasoning, like dried parsley and garlic powder. We add our own salt, if needed, after cooking.

chopped carrots broccoli potato — Chopping vegetables

carrots and broccoli chopped in strainer — Chopping vegetables

Use heavy duty foil, and place a mix of vegetables in the center of a large piece of foil. About a big handful size. Or, separate out the vegetables according to who likes what.

Top with butter, sprinkle with seasonings you like. Wrap the top first by placing the long ends together and folding over and over to the food. Fold each end in like wrapping a gift.

wrapping vegetables in foil — Tightly wrapped

Vegetables in foil packets — Tightly wrapped

I bought a head of cauliflower, four red potatoes, one onion, and about 5 carrots to make 8 packets to take with us.

We grill the foil food for about 30 minutes.

We ate four packets our first night when my son grilled chicken. We cooked the other four packets the second night, and ended up bringing two back home the next day. So, we had plenty.

I almost forgot to get a photo of the meal! It’s not ready for a food magazine, but you get the idea.

This is a simple way to continue eating healthy away from home. Camping food doesn’t have to be all bread and cheese and pancakes! I don’t eat like that at home, and I won’t while away.

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Beautiful Zinnia Flowers Are Useful to Bees

Zinnias are bright and beautiful flowers that also serve as a shelter for honey bees.

This summer I am growing zinnias from seeds. I’ve come to love seeing the new blooms pop out in this mix. Their colors have been stunningly bright. Some blooms have a more flattened appearance and others are very puffy and full.

I grew these from seeds that were planted a few months ago in my new little flower garden.

Zinnias Growing in My Yard

I have done nothing to these photos, the colors are exactly as they really are!

light pink zinnia flower — Beautiful magenta

The Perfect Flowers for Sleeping Bees

The petals of the zinnia also serve as a shelter for sleeping bees. Each morning I see them tucked among the pink petals of this one flower.

This magenta zinnia, which has a fading bloom, seems to be a favorite for little bees. They look like honey bees, and they crawl way up under the petals toward the center of the flower. I counted four bees, but I believe there were more.

I’ve also caught tiny tree frogs in the petals, but they hop away as soon as I get close.

Zinnias are not the only flowers that make tired bees happy. I’ve seen them within the curl of marigold flowers too. We get accustomed to watching bees gather nectar and usually never think about where they go when they need to rest. Why, a zinnia hotel, of course!

Keep reading…

Ordering Seeds For Florida Fall Planting

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One Summer Morning

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Good Morning, or Is It?

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Surprising Success: Growing Dahlias from Seeds in Florida

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Monitoring Native Milkweed Growth For Florida’s Monarchs

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Wins and Fails This Summer in the Garden

It’s July and gardening in Florida has slowed, but some things are obvious wins and some are fails.

My first time seriously trying to grow vegetables and annuals through a Florida summer. I’ve purchase plants and seeds, and transplanted seedlings. A lot of work has gone into my garden area. Some things have done very well, and others are fails and best to be forgotten!

Some things I am still up in the air about.

First, The Wins

Watermelon is at the top of my list for wins. I have harvested three, edible melons. They grew from direct planting and I would have had four, except that the raccoons got one. The vines had no problems, even though I wished I’d had more space for them. These were Strawberry Watermelons which are good for growing in southern locations.

Watermelon

I picked the melons the end of June, and now, mid-July, I have another tiny melon on one of the old vines. Also, new vines are sprouting from the original, so I’ll see what happens.

watermelon next to foot — Garden watermelon

Eggplant

I’ve grown eggplant for a few years now. I had one plant that grew and grew and seldom ever gave me eggplants to eat! Eventually I cut it down. Now I have about five plants growing in various locations and have been eating eggplant regularly.

The small, Japanese eggplants are eaten fried in a pan. The larger eggplants are usually baked. *By the end of July, eggplants have pretty much stopped producing.

Eggplants
Okra and eggplant
Shade for the eggplant
Layering the casserole
Spikes on eggplant flower
Lady Bug on Eggplant Flower
My eggplant!
Eggplant

Okra

I planted okra seeds into the garden and then thinned them once they began to grow. They grew fast, have had no problems, and are hardy. The flowers are very pretty, but don’t seem to attract butterflies or bees. The problem is, I’ve discovered I don’t really like okra!

I was picking a few okras a day and slicing them to fry and eat with lunch. But the slimy, sticky okra just turns me off.🤮. I want to grow food I like, and I don’t like okra. I’ve begun cutting the plants down to add to the composter. But, I’m letting a few okra pods get big and dry out for seeds. A friend wants them.

Okra plants
Okra flower
Okra and eggplant

Moringa Trees Looking Good

Two Moringa trees grown from seed are planted in the back corner of the garden and look good. I love their lacy leaves.

Moringa tree small — The Moringa is growing well

Flowering plants – Good and Bad

orange cosmos — New cosmos from original yellow

New to the yard this year are the yellow cosmos, zinnias, Rudbeckia, Gaillardia, seashell cosmos, nasturtiums, and Amaranth. Marigolds also grew again, and they are always dependable, but *did begin to fall over and split by July.

A delightful reader of this blog was kind enough to tell me the name of the yellow-flowering plant above. It is a Melapodium, and it grows well in hot climates.

Of all of these flowers, the Zinnias are an absolute win.

magenta zinnia flower — Beautiful magenta

Rudbeckia did great for a while, but the heat brought bugs and I had to cut the plant way down.

The yellow cosmos, which has very different leaves from the frilly leaved cosmos, didn’t do well, but the seeds I collected from it, and threw into other gardens, grew great! So, maybe the original plant was not in a good spot. Now I have lots of new little plants growing. One of them is producing orange flowers. This flower has a remnant of its original yellow as a stripe on one petal. See the original plant in the slide show below.

orange cosmos flower — Orange flower, from yellow plant seeds

Borage hates the sun and heat, so I have covered it. Nasturtiums did horrible. Amaranth has done nothing, so I’m not sure yet if it’s a win or fail.

Rudbeckia began great, then had to be cut back
Zinnia
Zinnia
Yellow cosmos – original plant
Seed from yellow cosmos
Marigolds doing great
Borage is not happy
Unknown

Now For the Fails

My vegetable fails for summer were tomatoes and Swiss chard. I had grown a bunch of cherry tomatoes, but really wanted big tomatoes. I KNOW they don’t like the extreme heat. But, I had one plant already growing so I planted it. The plant is looking great, but no fruit is forming. I’m going to let it grow and maybe it will get tomatoes in a couple of months.

Here’s the tomato plant behind a couple of sunflowers. Tomatoes are suppose to be planted in February here, I believe. That way they are all done by the time the real heat arrives.