Planting in August...and my Granny Square Afghan

July is done with.

Vacation is done with.

August is here and it is time to plant.....To me this is the very best time to plant in our area.  It's been extremely humid.  The rest of the country is in drought and we're slogging around the yard.  The driveway is sopping and I almost got stuck today when I drove slightly off the rocks.

One worry is the lack of water coming down the Mississippi.  Plaquemines has actually declared a "state of emergency".  Whatever that means...because salt water is intruding up the river and has came further than the drinking water intake.   They're now barging in fresh water.

Maybe there isn't enough water up river...but here there's too much.  On vacation we felt as if we were dragging around a rain cloud.  Everywhere we went it rained...these aren't places known for their rain.  When we were at the Chaco Culture World Heritage Site in New Mexico...It rained!  It was an amazing sight to see.  The water cascaded over the edge of the mesa in multiple water falls.  They only receive 8 to 10 inches of water a year and it rained while we were there!  Here we've received eight inches of rain in one hour before.  Yet thousands of people once lived in Chaco.  Amazing.

I've started pulling out the seeds I am going to plant.  Here is a list of what to plant now if you are in the New Orleans area.

Irish Potatoes - Plant whole small potatoes.

Tomatoes, peppers and eggplants - Plant transplants.  (You're eggplants may look good still.  Mine do.)

Plant the following in small pots or soil squares:  Broccoli, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, cauliflower.

Plant the following straight in the garden:  Swiss chard, collards, cucumbers squash, beans, mustard, green beans, southern peas, turnips.

This year in the spring my neighbor planted Camellia Red beans in her garden as a cover crop.  They produced well and she gave me a bag.   Fresh red beans are awesome!  I never really thought much of red beans and rice.  It was nice occasionally, but nothing I craved.  Fresh red beans are totally different!  They are so much better than the dried ones.  Soooo I bought a bag today and I am going to plant some in my fall garden.  I certainly will plant some in February as well.  I'm impressed.

Here is what I have done with the granny squares I recently started making with remnants of bright cotton yarn.  I did most of these while traveling in the car on vacation.  Umm that's a moon and stars melon in the bowl (my centerpiece).  Love my little piece of the 70's.

It was so much fun to make and easy...and the colors are a lot more fun than the mauve and blue ones all matchy I remember hating as a child.....it's still drafty....I remember hating that as a child to....but if I ever get that VW van...I'll have the perfect cover for the loft bed.....

If you wanna learn here is a link to a cool tutorial...

Good tutorial on how to make a basic granny square. Lots of pics...