Last Haul

We finally found time to pay attention to our struggling garden.

This year, it just doesn't seem to be doing very well at all.

Last year we had produce all over the place- 

so much I couldn't keep up with preserving it all.

Not this year.

I blame the late spring start,

the cooler than normal temps

and lack of fertilization.

So our next step is to fertilize the heck out of the garden.

While we were hacking down the jungle growth weeding

I came across this fat Eastern American Toad

hiding in the soil beneath what was supposed to be my cabbage plants.

(they were plants, they just never gave me cabbage)

He was pretty fat.

Big E yelled at me to stop playing with the toad and start 

wielding my machete helping him weed.

The squash bugs are one of the few things that are growing well.

The ground was moving with them. 

So we ripped out most of the squash and zucchini and pumpkins

and I sprayed the area with Neem oil hoping to kill them off.

 

This probably the last large haul from the garden this year.

Carrots and beets did well.

I'll be canning those this week.

The tomatoes are doing ok,

hopefully I'll continue to get some so I have enough for pasta sauce.

Busy Weekend

It was a busy and productive weekend around here

for a change.

There was an abundance of produce on the counter that needed some attention.

And by abundance I mean

there was stuff on the counter.

Our harvests this year have been nothing like last year

and that's disappointing.

But I digress.

We have bugs decimating our cucumber plants

so I made sure I used the ones I managed to harvest.

I made 1 quart and 3 pints of refrigerator pickles.

Sadly, these won't last long.

You can find the recipe here.

Then I had a bunch of beets to contend with,

so I pickled them.

We'll see how they taste,

but at least they look pretty.

I also managed to can 2 quarts of green beans.

Hoping to save the cucumbers,

and hoping that the tomatoes on the vine

ripen soon.

Garden of Weedin

We finally had some time to work in the garden this weekend.

It's no longer the "Garden of Weedin'"

Our corn is growing- sort of.

Some didn't come up at all.

We staggered the plantings-

2 rows, then planted 2 more rows 2 weeks later, etc.

Hoping this allows us to use what we harvest rather than

having 50+ ears to deal with all at once.

The pumpkins are growing like crazy.

Unfortunately, I discovered some squash bugs in the garden.

These things are my nemesis.

They single handedly killed the pumpkins and most of the zucchini and squash last year.
I have a plan though.

Here is one of our 3 potato plants.

I don't recommending deciding to order potatoes

and wanting to make a potato tower 2 weeks before your wedding.

We just planted them in the ground, so I don't have too much hope of potatoes this year.

The beans love the trellis.

I have green beans and black beans growing here.

The cucumbers needed a little help with the trellis.

For the future, I plan to use strips of wood to make more climbing area

for the vines.

The peas are doing well. 

We harvested a bagful.

And I ate several pods.

The zucchini has been producing for a couple of weeks now.

It's delicious.

The squash bugs think so too,

unfortunately.

We pulled beets, zucchini, squash and peas.

This photo doesn't show the huge bucket full

of squash and zucchini.

There was one tomato, but those mother cluckers got to it before I did.

 

Bertha was checking out the produce being offered.

She and Martha Stewart got to the one ripening tomato before I could.

 I have tons of green tomatoes.

I'm thinking of trying to fry some up- something I've never cooked or eaten.

Bring on Fall

I managed to get all those new falls seeds planted this week.

(Not all by myself- Big E manned the tiller and 

pulled some weeds and 

took care of wedding photographer details. 

I know, he's awesome)

Just in time for some steady rain rain today.

Hoping to can some beets and sauerkraut later this fall.

New Fall Seeds

I received my latest order of seeds yesterday and can't wait to get them in the ground. Because I've managed to use my canner and not blow anyone up, I've become adventurous and plan on attempting to make my own sauerkraut. So I have 2 varieties of cabbage to try. I also have Autumn King carrots, Dwarf Curled Scotch Kale, Siberian Dwarf Kale and a beet blend. All these were ordered through Annie's Heirloom Seeds. I wasn't too impressed with the germination of the kale and cabbage seeds I got from Seed Savers so I'm giving this new company a try. Now to talk Big E into building a couple of poly tunnels...