Heirloom tomatos, melons, pumpkins, and pole beans

I got a gift yesterday from my wife's coworker who passed along a couple of tomato seedlings (Pruden's Purple and Powers Heirloom) . She took home my extra asparagus crowns that wouldn't fit in our garden. Good trade. They're resting inside right now but will be going to the garden soon.

I'm getting a late start on seedlings for melons and pumpkins but I just got enough room under the grow light to get them going. The melons are two varieties: Earlisweet hybrid and Athena. I planted the Earlisweet last year but a very wet May and the cucumber beetles did them in and I didn't replant. The Athena is a new variety to me but a local organic grower of note, Anthony Flacovento recommended them in his newspaper column and I thought I'd give them a try.

The pumpkin is a Dill's Atlantic Giant. This is the the variety that all world record holders have been grown from for the past ten years or more. A new record was set last year, just over 1500 lbs. I'm planning to tend it well but nothing like the love they get from the world class growers. I just want a giant pumpkin for my kids at Halloween. I'm betting I can get to 200 lbs. or better. We'll see.

Finally, I set out some pole beans, Blue Lake F1 variety. I soaked them briefly in innoculant slurry and direct seeded them to the garden after cutting a hole in the black plastic around the already-installed climbing trellis.