Hurricane Ike Devastates My Garden

The remnants of Hurricane Ike dumped 6.64 inches of rain - the all-time record here for a single calendar day - right on my lovely garden. On Sept. 14, the bean plants were still producing a quart bag of beans every 7-10 days and the tomatoes were in full production mode.

The pictures show the aftermath. Within 2 days of the downpour, the beans and their leaves were wilting despite ample sun. The tomatoes remained plump, but the leaves withered and the fruit stayed the same size. I can only guess that the plants drowned in the water-logged clay soil that couldn't drain it away soon enough.

This photo was taken yesterday (2 weeks later). Note that the hardy kale plants right next to the bean poles are still a healthy green! The first frost is still probably a few weeks away, but this garden is mostly history. I'll pull the rest of the beets and keep cutting Swiss chard and kale as long as we can. Free food!