today’s harvest
I picked my first ears of popcorn today. The variety is Calico, the same as I grew two years ago. That crop would never pop for me but was very pretty. I’m leaving the ears on the stalk longer this year – until the husk is fully dried. And I’m hoping it will pop. I also pulled a bunch of shell beans – Black Turtle Soup. I’ll hang them til they dry, then shell them. I have a lot more still waiting for harvest. And I picked all of…
Charley and my potatoes
I dug a bushel of potatoes this year. Pretty good for me. I had three rows about 6 feet each. Probably 18 plants. I grew only two varieties this year. I dug one row of La Ratte fingerlings early and we’ve eaten them all already. These are Green Mountain. A great producer, storage, and all purpose cooking. They are delicious baked, fried, or sauteed. Charley likes them a lot!!
butternut squash portrait
All my butternuts got together for a family portrait. It’s been a good year. Eleven big squash from four plants.
fruit harvest
My fruit harvests this year, in addition to a couple cups of blueberries early this summer: 25 (wohoo!) apples, 2 peaches, 2-3 cups of red raspberries a week (they’ll produce for about 4 weeks), and about 20 lbs of pears. I was very disappointed that about half my pear harvest “disappeared this year. No signs of deer, raccoons or other wildlife. Since my two espaliered trees are in my plot at a busy community garden, I have to think they were stolen. All the pears from the lower two…
wet weather harvest
Today I spent a hour or so at my community garden plot. Tasks: Pick red raspberries Harvest 4 big butternut squash Pick ripe tomatoes, eggplant, peppers Pull and compost dead tomatoes plants Pull and compost spent summer squash vines Weed escarole bed with my Dutch hoe Sow seeds for Daikon, salad radish, and spinach to replace a row of escarole eaten by chipmunks The good part was I didn’t need to water the garden. Bad part, I got soaked by the rain (tropical storm Jose) that we’ve had a couple…
today’s harvest
That’s a big head of Murdoc cabbage. Almost 5 lbs. Its the third I picked this year – and a first year for me trying this. It’s an excellent variety. Tender and mild. Perfect for coleslaw, fried rice, and stir fries. I’m looking forward to making sauerkraut with it. I dug a few small horseradish roots. I love the smell. So did Charley. He loves everything from the garden – even enjoyed eating a piece of the horseradish. I had to shoo him away from the harvest bucket after that.…
This is a journal of my vegetable gardens. Skippy thinks the garden is his, even though I do all the work. We're located near Boston, in USDA zone 6. I have bees, chickens, fruit trees and berry bushes, too. I use all sustainable organic methods and strive to grow all of my family's vegetables myself. -Kathy
weeks and counting until my last spring frost
My mom’s garden this week
Skippy’s vegetable of the month – Spinach!
