That's great, Steve! Never thought of doing that. May have to employ your tactics next year.

My cuke plants are wonderful, even after a beating by ice marbles, but the pollinators are just not out on that side of the house. So I'm going out with a paintbrush tomorrow morning. While I'm doing this, I should probably make a buzzing sound so the plants know what the heck I'm up to, huh?

Jali, I think you can just take it as it comes . . .

I am always trying to adjust and adapt. There I go, mixing my metaphors but there just has to be a silver lining . . .

Anyway!! If you are plagued some year by a cool, warm-season-plant-unfriendly spring -- pat your surviving plants on the head, find a patch of ground and sow some more seed a week or 2 into summer. Over the next few weeks, your survivors may be plodding while your youngsters are sprinting!

Steve

I have been having a rough time with cucumbers these last few years, but I do have one plant that's doing well now - planted in early July as well.

Still haven't picked a cucumber off of it yet, though.

My pole beans do much better if planted in early July. The ground is warm and they miss the flea beetles.

Those leaves look so beautifully green and healthy!
Congratulations!

This summer has been one of the worst for vegetable gardens. Summer was later arriving and then the nights stayed so cool that I thought the seeds were going to rot before they sprouted. The day temps did return to normal but the nights stayed cool. My cukes are less than 18 inches tall but they are producing now, same with the green beans. Great weather for carrots and chard though. If next year is the same I will try planning more in the beginning of summer. Maybe I'll have the same luck you did.

The early plants didn't suffer quite as much this year as in some of the years past. They are all producing now! I've got sooo many cukes and zucchini! It's okay. There is no reason to walk past them on the day that they are prime. If they cannot be used, the chicken like them and the compost is always hungry. (That's my philosophy! ;o)

I have had warm-season plants like melons die during June. Just die! The peppers this year are amounting to very, very little because of June . . . I'm surprised that I've already harvested eggplant and they are almost okay - another mortality, some Junes . . . There have been years when a cucumber vine has produced like 1 cucumber for the season. That is mostly June but also a mistake of variety on my part. I grow Lemon Cukes and they run a bit late in production. (Only now are a few to be found amongst the rambunctious vines.) Some years, they will be so delayed that they will run right up against the 1st frost.

Did I already say it? It might be quite possible to have the early and the late plantings coming into production at the same time! Maybe 6 weeks difference in planting dates but, ya know . . . having a cucumber to go with a nice ripe tomato, sliced sweet onions, and fresh-from-the-garden sweet corn is pretty special whether it is in August or September.

This year, I've just harvested my 2nd Passport Galia melon - color me happy!

Steve

I'm always working on succession too. I just can't let a bed stay empty for more than a few days. 2 different onion beds were followed by peas, carrots and beets and the other bed got rutabaga, turnips, kale, spinach and carrots. Hopefully the flea beetles are done for now.

I followed lettuce with zucchini, garlic beds were followed by strawberries, the other garlic area has buckwheat now and will go back to garlic.

Some of my bush beans are almost done. Not sure what's going to take their place yet. Maybe some lettuces, radishes or more kale.

My cucumbers are just going wild again this year. We've even been juicing some to try to keep up. I think I'm going to remove the bush cucumbers soon even though they are still producing just don't need them.

You can always give extras to local food banks. They are usually happy to have fresh produce.