The Blog of an Impatient and Cheap Gardener

A place where I can document my garden's development from seeds in my apartment, to fruiting plants in a community garden plot. An amateur gardener with big dreams, but limited to small-scale. Zone 5b.

[worrywart-gardening]

2026 Garden - Week 15

I haven't had much time for gardening this week, and not too much is going on. I spread a lot of mulch in the communities areas. I've started tearing out the cucumber plants, and I planted some marigold seeds in between them.

Some tomatoes are splitting because I haven't been good about watering. I depend too much on the rain. I really didn't have time tonight to water.

The corn tassels have released their pollen! I really didn't try to do any seed saving this year, except for the dill and mustard. I'm certain no one else has planted those, so the seeds should be fine. I think next week I'll start trimming the dill.

I really wasn't prepared tonight when I visited the garden. I had a big event at work and I'm still disappointed that the whole house thing fell through (one lender confirmed the property cannot be sold without a source of heat, so either the mysterious seller installs propane tanks, or someone with over $100,000 in cash comes along).

I did take home some onions, though! And earlier in the week, I had a couple of grasshoppers move in. There was one chirping in the bed tonight, but I couldn't find them.

[thememedaddy]

[worrywart-gardening]

Hi fellow gardeners! I found a house with 2 acres for a reasonable price. The floor plan of the house is terrible and it's a longer commute to work, but the land looks in good shape, is surrounded by trees for natural privacy, has an overgrown garden and shed already, and has plenty of room for growth. Unfortunately, I'm not allowed to get a closer look with a realtor until I am pre-approved for a mortgage.

I have already made a blunder. I applied for a mortgage through my credit union and didn't realize that they don't offer the USDA loan. The credit union doesn't sound promising. So I applied with a bank that does offer the USDA loan, meaning my credit report will be run twice in two days.

I could still get approved, and I could finally go stand in the house and decide it's too terrible to invest in. Both banks could say no. A house inspector could find a major problem that would end the deal. The price is suspiciously low and the house has been on the market for a few months. the realtor is eager to get rid of it.

I wasn't planning to buy a house until next summer when my student loans should be paid off, but this might be an opportunity and I can adjust my budgeting. The market is very competitive in this area for affordable property. I could extend student loan payments over the next two or three years, then refinance the house to have work done.

Does anyone have any advice about the process? Anyone use the USDA loan to purchase their first home?

[worrywart-gardening]

Got preapproved through the second bank that offers the USDA loan! Now to get a showing with the realtor... And maybe take an extra pair of eyes that knows something about home renovations.

[worrywart-gardening]

After the realtor had me sign the exclusive buyer agreement, she told me the property lacks a heating source, so no loan will clear on it. That's why it hasn't sold. It has to be a cash sale.

So that's the end of that.

Now she'll send me properties that won't fit my interests through December.

[worrywart-gardening]

Hi fellow gardeners! I found a house with 2 acres for a reasonable price. The floor plan of the house is terrible and it's a longer commute to work, but the land looks in good shape, is surrounded by trees for natural privacy, has an overgrown garden and shed already, and has plenty of room for growth. Unfortunately, I'm not allowed to get a closer look with a realtor until I am pre-approved for a mortgage.

I have already made a blunder. I applied for a mortgage through my credit union and didn't realize that they don't offer the USDA loan. The credit union doesn't sound promising. So I applied with a bank that does offer the USDA loan, meaning my credit report will be run twice in two days.

I could still get approved, and I could finally go stand in the house and decide it's too terrible to invest in. Both banks could say no. A house inspector could find a major problem that would end the deal. The price is suspiciously low and the house has been on the market for a few months. the realtor is eager to get rid of it.

I wasn't planning to buy a house until next summer when my student loans should be paid off, but this might be an opportunity and I can adjust my budgeting. The market is very competitive in this area for affordable property. I could extend student loan payments over the next two or three years, then refinance the house to have work done.

Does anyone have any advice about the process? Anyone use the USDA loan to purchase their first home?

[worrywart-gardening]

Got preapproved through the second bank that offers the USDA loan! Now to get a showing with the realtor... And maybe take an extra pair of eyes that knows something about home renovations.

[worrywart-gardening]

Hi fellow gardeners! I found a house with 2 acres for a reasonable price. The floor plan of the house is terrible and it's a longer commute to work, but the land looks in good shape, is surrounded by trees for natural privacy, has an overgrown garden and shed already, and has plenty of room for growth. Unfortunately, I'm not allowed to get a closer look with a realtor until I am pre-approved for a mortgage.

I have already made a blunder. I applied for a mortgage through my credit union and didn't realize that they don't offer the USDA loan. The credit union doesn't sound promising. So I applied with a bank that does offer the USDA loan, meaning my credit report will be run twice in two days.

I could still get approved, and I could finally go stand in the house and decide it's too terrible to invest in. Both banks could say no. A house inspector could find a major problem that would end the deal. The price is suspiciously low and the house has been on the market for a few months. the realtor is eager to get rid of it.

I wasn't planning to buy a house until next summer when my student loans should be paid off, but this might be an opportunity and I can adjust my budgeting. The market is very competitive in this area for affordable property. I could extend student loan payments over the next two or three years, then refinance the house to have work done.

Does anyone have any advice about the process? Anyone use the USDA loan to purchase their first home?

[worrywart-gardening]

2026 Garden Week 14

I was so busy last night that I forgot to post anything! One side of the garden is clearly past its prime of the season. I think I made more jars of pickles than last year, at least.

There's a couple cucumbers on the vines, but I don't think any more will be produced and I'll rip the plants out in a couple weeks.

The tomatoes are getting bigger on their plants! So maybe I'll get a decent harvest to make tomato sauce this year. I have seen a couple splitting. Both the tomato and cucumber plants have been hit hard with disease now after we got so much rain. The onions are struggling to dry out.

One dill head is starting to dry and go to seed! More to come. The mustard seed pods are still super green, and they're falling all over the place, which makes it difficult to search for carrots and weeds.

The corn is making progress! All three have tassled and have little ears. Sadly, it looks like the older squash plant has withered. Hopefully I get something from the younger one, but it looks so small yet.

The basils are putting on more flower stalks. Hopefully I can get some seeds before the frost.

The harvest was underwhelming. One of the carrots was woody when I picked it. This morning when I went to clean them off, I noticed both had black gashes near their tops. What kind of pest does that and how do I get rid of them? I threw the woody carrot away and salvaged the offshoots of the second one for dinner tonight. I'll have the cucumbers as a side. The herbs are drying on my dining table.

[worrywart-gardening]

I think it's gotten a little taller, the stem a little thicker. It's becoming more brown like bark.

I put it under my desktop lamp because I can adjust the height more. Also, the bonsai tree that had been there had died.

[worrywart-gardening]

So far this weekend, I have:

Dried herbs

Prepared vegetables for dinner (sheet pan chicken and veggies)

Froze carrots

Roasted (and burned) canary melon seeds

Chopped up watermelon to freeze (ongoing)

Made simple stovetop Mac and cheese (no more box stuff!)

Made pickles (with less swearing this week)

Still to do:

Make breakfast

Make pasta salad for lunch

[worrywart-gardening]

2026 Garden

May

[worrywart-gardening]

June

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July

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2026 Garden

May

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June

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2026 Garden

May

[worrywart-gardening]

2026 Garden - Week 13

It rained all week. I could not get to the garden today, and it was drenched this morning. There were slugs everywhere. But also, there was a lot of growth!

The cucumber and tomato plants had quite a bit of disease on them, so I did a lot of pruning tonight.

It's sad how much I had to remove, but hopefully the plants bounce back. They're supposed to get fertilized this weekend, but it's supposed to start raining again.

I was really excited by three large cucumbers on the vine this morning. Looks like I'll be making more pickles this weekend! And the pepper plant finally has a baby pepper on it. The third tomato plant has also bounced back and is getting ready to make tomatoes.

The problem with so much rain is the onions are supposed to be drying out right now. I won't have to water for awhile.

The bean plants are getting higher on the corn stalks, which two have tassled! The squash plants are growing slowly, though.

The seed pods are so big on the mustard plants. I can't wait for them to start drying. The plants are kind of annoying to work around. They hide a lot.

Even with the mess of the mustard plants and fallen onion leaves, I found a bunch of carrots to pull! I'm really happy with how they turned out. Even one onion was ready to be pulled and cured. And there were more cucumbers ready on the vine. Lots of pickles this weekend!

The dill plants are also starting to form seed pods. I planted more this afternoon, as well as a couple more carrots wherever I could squeeze them in.

Also, this little guy has a hole outside of my office window.

[pnwgardenbuddiesneoly]

[worrywart-gardening]

Some men will scream every swear they know while working on vehicles. I do it while canning.

[worrywart-gardening]

2026 Garden - Week 12

At this point, an update once a week is enough. I'm way too busy to do more than that, and the growth is slowing down a little bit. I wish the beans and squash would pick up the pace though.

I have been really good at removing any leaves with the smallest sign of disease on the tomatoes and cucumbers, and I think it's really making a difference! I'm still kicking myself for not fertilizing in all of May and June. I feel like the plants are behind. The pepper plant has no fruit on it yet, and its flowers are gone.

I'm excited by the mustard seed pods. Some stalks have fallen over and the leaves are turning yellow. The onions are starting to drop their leaves too. I have to be very careful about where and how I water the bed.

I had a few cucumbers and carrots tonight! Way more than I was expecting. I'm still worried I won't get such a good harvest like I did two years ago. It's enough to make a small batch of pickles this weekend (I received two more from a farmshare). There aren't many little tomatoes on the vines. If I want to make sauces, I'm going to need to plant more.

Maybe in a couple more weeks, I'll have an abundance of harvest. I'm going to try to plant more carrots this weekend, as the last chance to do so for the season.

[worrywart-gardening]

What are some good stories about gardening? Or good non-fiction books about gardening? I'm looking to add to my TBR list on Goodreads. I haven't read many books where characters did much gardening. I can only recall three: two were fantasy about witches where one was really good and the other meh, and The Secret Garden with the bratty kids.

I'm finally starting to read Barbara Kingsolver this summer because I heard her writing often features plants and farming, while focusing on heavier everyday themes.

I recommend The Bean Trees. It's very surprising how a book set in the 1980s is so relevant in 2026. The larger themes deal with refugees and belonging, what makes a good mother, why raise kids in this burning world at all. All the while, there's a cute three-year-old who usually only talks about vegetables, if she talks at all. And a widow in Arizona running a tire shop with a massive vegetable garden in the back.

I just finished reading the sequel, Pigs in Heaven. There is less focus on gardening, but plants are always mentioned as the characters navigate the Indian Child Welfare Act.

[worrywart-gardening]

More babies! I hope this doesn't mean the parent plant is thinking about dying. Its own parent lived much longer.