After returning home from our fishing trip Zachary and I went to the back yard to check out the progress of the garden. Specifically I wanted to see how close the roma tomato was to ripening.

Over the past week we’ve been noticing small holes around the base of our tomato and pepper plants. Initially I chalked it up to birds but when the small holes got larger and more aggressive it became obvious that something else was the culprit. All along the clues were there, exposed roots and exposed onion bulbs.

Thursday evening my neighbor stopped by to chat a while. I smiled when I saw him carrying an owl statue in his hand. After exchanging salutations he offered the owl and I accepted with no reservations. I hoped the owl would help to keep the critter at bay. After two days it looked like the owl was pulling its weight. Today however, to my surprise the tomato was riddled with small teeth marks and a gaping hole. My blood pressure immediately spiked as I tried to figure out what had ruined my harvest.

Fueled with the anger of a mother bear protecting her cubs I sat around the garden waiting to get a glance of the trouble maker. I was not disappointed. Shortly after getting situated I observed a chipmunk dart under the fence and confidently gallop into the garden. Half way into the garden the chipmunk noticed me and froze in its tracks. It was too late. I yelled at the top of my lungs and it darted back under the fence and ran into my neighbor’s yard.

Now that I know the source of my frustration how do I remedy it? I’ve posted an article on the square foot garden forum in hopes that more experienced gardeners will be able to provide advice. While waiting on the response I’m also going to check out the world wide web. In the end I’ll probably buy another whiskey barrel and transplant the tomato but that won’t address the root cause. I guess it’s time to put my 2-3/4 dove shells to use (LOL).

Over the past two weeks we’ve had a storm pass through which snapped a sweet gum tree almost in half and dumped much needed rain. The snapped tree provided firewood that I’ll burn throughout the summer while the rains provided complementary watering for the garden. As a result we’ve noticed measureable progress.

The lettuce, cilantro, basil, radish and beets have almost doubled in size while the squash has started to sprawl. Today was somewhat of a milestone for us. We harvested our first jalapeno pepper and cherry tomato. We also noticed that some of the flowers on the bean plants have fallen making way for our first green beans. Even in the limited sunlight the carrots, watermelon and cantaloupe seem to be doing well also.

The flowers on the bell peppers have withered and the unmistakable green buds of bell peppers have taken their place. Right now the only thing that concerns me a bit is the fact that the garden is not getting as much sunlight as I had originally hoped. The thick canopy of oaks, maple, sweet gum and poplar trees have shaded the garden for the majority of the day. I kind of figured this first year would be a learning experience and so far I’ve taken plenty of notes.