The plants are growing well - some of the vines are about 5-6 feet long - and it looks like the pollinators have been doing their thing because it looks like baby gourds are coming!  I'm hoping that all the babies thrive and don't start shriveling and dropping off.  The one in the photo on the right in the middle row looks bad - it's turning yellow and kind of shrinking, so I'm sure it's not going to survive.  I'm not sure what the problem is - I'll have to do some research on that.  Anybody out there have any ideas??  The healthy looking babies are so cute because they are already taking the shape that they will be when fully developed.  

With temps in the high 90's and into the 100's every day, I have to make sure to check the soil for moisture at least twice a week.  The mulch is such a great help to keeping the moisture content up.  

I'm still fighting the aphids (photo bottom row, left) particularly on 2 of the hills.  I applied some insecticidal soap spray to these plants.  It kills soft bodied insects like the aphids, but won't harm the predatory insects, like the ladybugs.  It is cool to see that the ladybugs are showing up to help control the aphids  - I saw several of them on the plants.  Unfortunately I also saw a few striped cucumber beetles. (photo bottom row, center) These pests feed on the plants - the larvae eat the roots and the adults will munch on leaves, blossoms, and even stems - not good.  They can also assist in spreading bacterial wilt - again not good.  I was able to catch one and just squish it (yuk - that grosses me out) but they are pretty fast and hard to catch.  I need to research what else I can do about these critters without resorting to chemicals.

As you can see from the upper photos, the plants are growing well.  All the transplants have thrived except for one, which never seemed to do very well and didn't grow more than 4 or 5 leaves.  I had to remove the netting barriers because the plants outgrew them and even started to go through them. Summer is definitely here, and temps are reaching into the upper 90's and even a couple days over 100 degrees.  The important thing is to keep the plants watered, and with the combination of the clay soil and the mulch, this isn't too difficult.  The diatomaceous earth I applied a couple weeks ago helped keep the pesky ants and aphids from taking over, but it's time for another application.  I may also try some insecticidal soap if needed.  It's ecologically safe with no bad residual effects.  The photo on the lower left shows some aphids on the underside of a leaf.  A few don't hurt much, but too many can be a real problem.  

The photo in the lower center shows a female flower, with a baby gourd forming.  Gourd plants have both male and female flowers, and if the female flowers aren't pollinated, then the baby gourd just withers and falls off.  So, here's hoping that the bees or other pollinators make their appearance, and do the pollinating thing.  I also read that I can take a little paintbrush and do some hand pollinating.  The photo on the lower right is husband Gary and our gorgeous granddaughter Delilah.