The Victory Garden Thread - June, 2026

June 1, 2026 | Diana in WI/Greeneyes in Memoriam

[Diana in Wisconsin]

The MONTHLY Victory Garden Thread is a gathering of folks that love soil, seeds and plants of all kinds. From complete newbies that are looking to start that first potted plant, to gardeners with some acreage, to Master Gardener level and beyond, we would love to hear from you.

If you have specific question about a plant/problem you are having, please remember to state the Growing Zone where you are located.

This thread is a non-political respite. No matter what, you won’t be flamed, and the only dumb question is the one that isn’t asked.

It is impossible to hijack the Victory Garden Thread. Planting, Harvest to Table Recipes, Preserving, Good Living - there is no telling where it will go - and that is part of the fun and interest. Jump in and join us! Send a Private Message to Diana in Wisconsin if you'd like to be added to/removed from our New & Improved Ping List.

NOTE: This is a once a MONTH Ping List, but we DO post to the thread all throughout the month. Links to related articles and discussions which might be of interest to Gardeners are welcomed any time.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I know we poke fun at the Global Warming PANIC being sold to us, but this upcoming Holiday week/end looks like a doozie!

Two heat domes combine to form big US heatwave next week

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Next week looks to be sweltering for the Great Plains, Ohio Valley, Great Lakes, and Southeastern U.S. Two small heat domes, one across the deep southwest and another in the subtropical Atlantic, will collide over the Eastern U.S., making for one large heat dome next week.

The current set up is shown below.

But by the middle of next week, both of these domes will have moved toward each other, combining to form one big heat dome over the middle of the nation.

The result will be several days with heat index values between 100 and 110 from the Gulf Coast to the Southern Great Lakes. Places like Chicago and Detroit may see heat index numbers over 100, and some parts of the Mississippi Valley could peak at 115.

Pictured below are forecasted feels like temperatures on Tuesday afternoon.

The heatwave looks to last all week long, and even into the weekend in the southeast. Dozens of record hot days and record warming mornings will likely be challenged.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Beau loves sun dried tomatoes. I plant ‘Juliet’ tomato, a large cherry-type, on the years I plan on dehydrating.

This year he is getting his choice of three cherry types for snacking. Bumblebee, Valentine and Black Cherry. :)

[PGalt]

Thanks Diana. Bracing for the heat wave heading this way next week. Going to keep a cool head.

[MomwithHope]

I use paste type tomatoes to dehydrate. Scoop out the small amount of seeds and wet guts. Toss generously in olive oil and generous with dry herbs. Then they go in the dehydrator. When ready I let cool and pack in airtight quart freezer bags. Sometimes I chop up first.

This heat wave will be a doozy, only the tomato plants will love it.

[PGalt]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bjPKcbKBT2s&ra=m

[Qiviut]

I watched a couple videos - good stuff ... thanks! I love her Jersey cows.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Glad you liked Inga. She’s a gem. Sort of a, ‘Midwest Martha Stewart,’ LOL!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Excellent addition! ‘Heatwave.’

I’ve always liked the Linda Ronstadt version of that song, too. :)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

‘Juliet’ is a small paste-type, but larger than a cherry-type.

Oven Roasted Tomatoes with Garlic and Fresh Herbs is also a winner - for sauce on top of pasta or just for eating right out of the pan! :)

[MomwithHope]

I still have a leftover almost quart bag from last year. I used to put leftovers in a blender with a bottle of ranch dressing. Heavy on the tomatoes, so the final is a deep orange. Great tomato flavor. But I lost the flavor for ranch and I got rid of my heavy blender and bought an immersion stick. Took some the other day and blended with a little ranch dressing. Yummy.

[ApplegateRanch]

Good morning!

No garden this year; I was supposed to get a shoulder replaced in May. Blood pressure tanked when they administered anesthesia, and had to cancel. Waiting now to be rescheduled, with an all new set of clearances in place.

Meanwhile, not as young as I used to be, so the new engine & the tiller got taken to the shop for installation; picking it up next week. Last time, I was able to do it myself.

The winter & spring were horrible: cold & dry, dry, dry. Barely any snow, either.

One of my two domestic apricots I raised from seed 12 years ago didn’t make it; and the other trees are damaged. Peach is on it’s last legs: Over 90% dead. Some of my Carmen Jewel bush cherries also succumbed. The Mongolian windbreak apricots didn’t bloom at all, and are heavily damaged.

The lilacs, nor most of the bulbs & iris, ever bloomed. Even the well over 50 YO Pioneer Rose hardly bloomed, and has damage.

The apples, wild plums, & chokecherries only put out blossoms half-heartedly.

None of my asparagus & very few of the rhubarb even sprouted, after we did finally get some rain in late May, and and maybe 3” so far in June.

Naturally, none of that affected the weeds.

All I can say is that the garden was more than a dozen years over due for its Old Testament 7th year rest.

No fishing this year, either; the local reservoir is about half empty.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

That is a great idea! I have some cherry tomatoes in the freezer - they’d make a great blended salad dressing.

Thanks! :)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Tomatoes and peppers will LOVE the upcoming heat. Mine really need a kick in the pants!

So HAPPY that my garden stays shaded until 11am. If I start on the west side and work towards the east I should be able to get a lot done in the mornings, even with the heat.

Grover and Midnight leave either Sunday or Monday. I am SO looking forward to having my porch back, as well as having NO HELP from them in the garden! Is that wrong of me? LOL!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Sorry for all those troubles/losses, but I like your attitude, for sure. :)

A Seven Year Rest is sometimes what is needed. Hope your upcoming surgery goes well, too. Keep us posted, Please!

[goodnesswins]

Good morning...I laugh...y’all be getting the heat wave we had this last week. Seems we send our weather east but it builds up bigger and badder on the way. (We don’t get tornadoes, etc here, generally.) Stay cool, everyone.

[Qiviut]

Rainy day today. I have been watching the radar & looking for a gap to get outside & plant the 2 ‘insurance’ jalapeños I bought at Walmart the other day. Perfect timing - it started raining as I was tying the last piece of anti-deer protective fencing back in place.

The raised bed dirt is between moist & wet as deep as I was digging my holes. The dirt I originally bought for filling the raised beds has more clay in it than I would like. I mixed what came out of the holes with some potting soil & worked out the clumps & dried the soil out a bit which made a better mix for filling in around the plants. I did water them in, but since more rain is coming, I didn’t water as much as I would usually do.

Some good news: my deer damaged jalapeños have decided to live & grow! They have really put leaves on up the bare stalks that were left after the deer ate the top half. If I didn’t know better, I wouldn’t be able to tell they were formerly half a plant!

[metmom]

The garden is doing great.

So are the weeds, the jumping worms, the slugs........

Ugh.

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Diana; I bet you are somewhere in one of Inga's YouTubes!

(I will not ask which! :)

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

"Dakota land, Dakota land, upon your highest butte I stand...I stare away across the plains, I wonder why it never rains.."

A.R. So sad to hear about this!

An absolutely disastrous year from your health to the lack of water and effect on your plantings! I hope that it...and you... get better after a year of rest.