November 1, 1998
We got another 2+7/10 inches of rain today. It was a very gloomy day and the winds were rather cool. We were going to till up the garden this weekend, but it has been too wet. Maybe it will be dry enough next weekend. It seems a shame to think of pulling up all the petunias and marigolds that are looking so pretty right now, anyway. *G*
November 4, 1998
We got about 1/8 inch of rain yesterday. Temps got down to the 30's last night. It's supposed to get up into the 50's today, but I'm not too sure it will. It just got up to 40 degrees around 11 am this morning. There is a breeze out of the north of about 5 - 15 mph and it's cloudy.
November 8, 1998
YUCK!!! The past few days have been c-c-o-l-d!! Temps have been in the 40's daytime and often lower at night. Yesterday, we got another 1+3/5 inches of rain. Today, it actually got back into the 50's. Tomorrow, they say possibly 60's with storms. At this rate, we'll never be able to get out in the garden and till it!
November 9, 1998
Well, it was much nicer today, other than the strong winds that picked up later in the afternoon. Then, tonight we had storms with strong winds at the front of them. Temps jumped from around the mid-50's up to 70 degrees in just a few minutes. We got 1+1/2 inches of rain before midnight. Of all that rain, about 1+1/4 inches fell in about 20 minutes. The winds got up to around 60-80 mph during the storms. The ground temp for the past week has been about 55 degrees and steady, regardless of the above - ground temps.
November 19, 1998
The weather over the past week or so was great (60's and 70's), until now. The lower temps we have had these past couple of days have been down into the 40's and 'maybe' around 50. The ground temp is hovering around 52-55 degrees. The wind today was pretty constant and bitter cold.
I have spent some of the last few days pulling up some of the remaining plants in the garden. I have removed the bell peppers and most of the tomato plants. I started on the butterbean vines, but was shocked to see how many "ripe" beans there were on the vines. I have picked about 15 gallons (in the shells) of butterbeans already, and have much more to go! Remember - the way I calculate a gallon is using a one gallon Ziplock Freezer Bag. These would be full as they can get and still be "zipped". I have been working on them as much as possible in my spare time. After I pick the rest of the beans, we will probably pull up everything and till the ground. We couldn't till it yet, due to the rains we were receiving for the past couple of weekends.
The marigolds and petunias have been looking almost too good to take out of the garden so we can till it, so we have decided to remove them last.
November 29, 1998
The past week or so has been really nice. The day temps have been in the 70's and the past few nights have been in the 60's. We haven't had any rain in a while, now. Until tonight. We had about 2+1/2 inches of rain this evening before midnight. It is now after midnight, and it is still coming down, but much lighter. The ground temp is staying steady at 55 degrees.
The butterbeans have continued to mature, so I left the rest of them up, since the weather has been so nice. They needed the rain. I was about to tear down all the cherry tomato plants last week, when our grandson decided he liked cherry tomatoes and kept wanting more. I decided to leave them up until it grows too cold for them to survive.
The petunias in Gene's flower bed look beautiful. The greenery has come back into full growth. The petunias, marigolds, and white geraniums in the garden are doing quite well, also. I guess we will wait to till up the whole garden. There is just something "dirty" about tearing down plants that are enjoying life so much.
December 8, 1998
We had temps in the 70's for highs and 40's to 60's for lows for a while......until a couple of days ago. The daytime highs dropped to the 40's and the nighttime lows dropped into the 20's and 30's. Tonight, it is almost midnight and the temp is already down to about 22 degrees F.
The beans were continuing to grow, and the cherry tomatoes were doing great. Tomorrow, though, they will probably be ruined. I didn't cover anything. I usually do, but this year, I haven't had the time or energy. The petunias were doing okay yesterday, but I haven't seen them today, as I had to be gone all day. I will check them out tomorrow.
December 23, 1998
The past three days have been continuously below freezing, with the past two days being less than 20 degrees. We got about 2+2/5 inches of rain to start the cooler temps, then we received lots of freezing drizzle and some snow to add to the conditions. The ground temp has managed to drop from around 45-47 degrees to 39-40 degrees.
The petunias are about the only things that still look alive, and I think that is just because they have that velvety look. I have pulled up all the bean plants, but the dead tomato vines are still standing. It has remained too wet to work in the garden, or we have been going in circles when it was dry enough to.
This will probably be my last journal update for 1998. You guys have a VERY, Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year! If Angelfire will allow me to, I will continue my journal into 1999. I look forward to your visits.
