What makes a trip unforgettable

We looked pretty cheerful at the beginning of the ride, didn't we?

Several factors came into play which made the Roaming Riders' Monday ride this year's unforgettable cycle ride:

• The drive to Aylmer, Ontario was just under 95 kms., about one hour, 15 minutes to the meeting place.
• I brought my camera..but no batteries! Cliff, one of the members who brought his own camera had "spares".
  
• The ride was approx. 52 kms. long- the longest we have ever ridden this year.
  
• The temperature reached 28 degrees Celsius with the Humidex at least at 40 degrees! Probably the hottest riding day.
  
• There were several hills, all sizes, crossing the same creek along the route during the second half of the ride when the sun must had been at its highest and hottest.
  
• The vista through the small towns of Sparta and Jaffa were interesting if the sweat off one's brows haven't clouded one's vision.
• A beautiful beach at Port Bruce to have a nice rest.
  
• A country folk art store called "Winter Wheat" is a whimsically unique place but Marianne and I got separated somehow. So we totally missed the opportunity for this interesting stop.
• The plans for lunch changed without our knowledge (we got separated, remember?). I did have a copy of the map route so we went straight to the parking lot where we were to meet at the end of the ride.
• Nobody was there so we rode to Tim Horton's to replenish our zapped energy level.
  
• Bob and Michael came to the rescue.
• We loaded the bikes and went to the Pinecroft Green Frog Tea Room where the rest of the group were already halfway through their lunch. A very nice location but I was either having a near heat stroke or a hypoglycemic episode by that time that my perception to the surroundings were greatly affected. The proprietor is a potter who sells her pottery ware onsite so I was able to appreciate that after I had some nourishment.
  

These factors certainly made this trip a very memorable one indeed.

Sometimes, TLC is not enough

The fate of tomato plants are not entirely up to the gardener, I found out.

I chose to grow some heritage tomatoes which are supposedly both hardy and very tasty. Half of them got frost bitten despite wrapping them in plastic bags. Then, my friend Ed, a fellow gardener and our fearless Roaming Rider coordinator gave me some tomatoes he grew from seeds as well. Despite the mole-proof, safe-from-the-Walnut-wilt raised bed, the triple mix soil, the organic fertilizer, the straw mulch, the companion planting technique(inter planted with basil and marigolds to fend off nasty bugs), it is heart breaking to see them die one by one.

First, the case of tomato wilt (Fusarium or Verticillium- it doesn't matter). I was hoping that it was just the heat so I gave them water even though the soil looked moist. But even after the heavy rains, they were still as limp as rag dolls. I uprooted 2 plants: did a post mortem which confirmed that the vascular stems were "plugged" as the fungal disease set in. (This tomato plant in this photo is one of the first ones to go).

Second, the case of too much water. Yes, we've had a lot of it. Just as the leaves started to perk up again, the lower leaves turned yellow, the branches were getting snapped off because of the weight.

Third, the case of blossom-end rot which describes what it looks like rather the process. This is apparently caused by wet conditions as well.

Fourth, the case of early blight. Just click on the link if you care to know what blight is all about..or not. Nothing like learning all the tomato disorders in one season!

What this means is that I probably won't have to worry about harvesting any tomato this year! But this was a great learning opportunity which, hopefully, I will tuck away for the future.

Like an experienced parent, I fretted for a while but I got over it. I haveto keep in mind that despite all the TLC, there is no dealing with the natural elements when it comes to plants.