Summer harvests are slow but keep coming

 We are really eating from the garden even in the heat. The trick is to make great stuff with the vegetables that are coming to harvest and rotate in the ones that I put into the freezer. We are getting better at this after having tomatoes at night for weeks--George is not complaining. As the heat has increased we are seeing a lot more eggplants setting fruit. The weird rains  in July though meant the tomatoes are all having some blossom rot again. Black-eye peas are coming on and so is the malabar spinach--finally found a lettuce from Nevada that might be able to survive in the shade and give us some leaves. Just when I thought the greens were dying down the kale has gone nuts from the rain (it should be dead) and we are doing kale chips. Celery is growing well and actually looks like little stalks. Doing rainwater only on the property is a bit tough some days. Hopefully next year I can get an irrigation system of some kind to work off the barrels.
All of the onions and garlic are now in the house in keeping. Garlic tastes great and smells so good. Red onions are not sweet but are terrific--now if they just have the same kind this fall! Only one more meal of potatoes and they are all gone. Asparagus though is thriving so maybe next spring we'll have a good harvest.

Winter crops coming along

Seemed like such a long time since I planted the cabbage and the cauliflower and broccoli in the beats. All of a sudden all of them are getting ready to harvest. We have been eating beets now for several weeks, both the cauliflower and the broccoli have small heads on them and the brussels sprouts are taking off and putting on lots of their small heads on each stem. The spinach didn't fare too well this winter but we are getting a smattering. The bok choy keeps bolting because of the warm weather however is the flowers are absolutely covered by bees every day. They have put on nice large leaves which I'm harvesting individually. Even the lettuce is finally beginning to produce. I have two different kinds of P is growing and the ones that only get about 2 feet tall are producing well the other ones finally are blooming but they're getting mildew on them so we'll see how they do.

Going inside the greenhouse makes me smile. I have four different kinds of peppers in there and two different kinds of tomatoes as well as basil and one eggplant. All of the peppers are producing nicely and one of my tomatoes given to me by a friend is covered with small tomatoes that we have been able to ripen every few days. I am using the shelf to bring along the tomato seedlings  until I can plant them in March. I have had to move most of the herbs out of the greenhouse and put them in the ground as they're big enough and have tolerated the transplanting.

Fall gardening into full swing with brassicas and root crops

I couldn't wait for fall so I could replace the under-performing plants that lived through the heat with the broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and beets/carrots that we seem to be able to grow in great profusion. I started all of the plants except cabbage from seed and am spending time fine tuning the soil with my little test kit and transplanting the little seedlings into the garden. I am also looking closely at companion plantings. The cool mornings are enticing me from many other tasks but the rewards are going to be many.

I found an interesting lettuce tower on Pinterest and got it made up with a few sprigs of red sails lettuce. should be fun if nothing else. I am trying fall green beans and peas to see if they do better. Seems that last fall the green beans did pretty well. I have a new really short season variety to try. 

The herbs are going strong compelling me to find recipes to utilize all of them. Sage stuffed pork roast was terrific, the Thai basil and garlic parsley butters are great on bread, potatoes, rice --the list goes on and on. I have  dozens of packets pesto in the freezer waiting to be  spread on pasta, bread, crackers and more. The lemon basil has appeared on chicken and on a zucchini torte.  George is using a lot more mint in his tea too. I haven't tried out rosemary dishes but will go there next. Garlic cloves are on their way from the grower so next year we should have really tasty garlic to use too. 

I participated in a few plant swaps in the last few weeks and have added a number of perennials to the beds and bringing in new color and textures. I got half a dozen coleus plants of various leaf types and rooted most of them to double or triple the plantings. Looks pretty good out there even with all the heat.

Tim wows the garden guild with fall prep and planting information

 The room was full and Tim Pfluger ( Green 'n Growing) was in high gear talking about how to get a new or old garden ready for planting and what plants and seeds to put into in in the fall. He talked about out clay soils and how to amend them using a variety of organic products which he whipped out of his bag to show us so everyone could examine them and ask about them. He says he starts with a good application of compost (about 1 cu.ft/ 12 sq. ft of garden--double for new beds) each time and mixes in  a bit of green sand which provides iron for the plants and some of the rock phosphate or alpha meal, then spreads this over the area he is planting and digs it in with a garden fork. He says the alpha meal is a natural growth stimulator. He also may add dried molasses to stimulate the micro-organisms in the compost. 


For seed starting he showed up a product to add that stimulates growth called mycorrhizal Fungi (at right) apparently does not need a lot to get things going. 

He also showed a couple of products to use once the plants are established that aid bloom and fruit production pictures below. Both contain a mixture of minerals and other nutrients. Each is a different blend and can be used as a side dressing about once a month.   He also mentioned Lady Bug flower power. Questions were asked about MG and the nitrogen content is way to high to promote fruiting but green growth is enhanced. 


 Tim referred us to the county extension chart for planting and discussed serial plantings so that not all the production is at one time. It is too late to see the brassicas but not to put in transplants. Great time for seeding lots of vegetable that will take a light frost or be ready to harvest within 60 days. Good time for lettuce, spinach, carrots, beets, radish, kale, chard, bush beans, snap peas and even summer squash.  Onion sets get planted in November for harvest in last spring.  It was a great meeting and good information. 

Our first seed/plant exchange had lots of items switching hands. 

Tricking the squirrels out of the seedlings

Not too pretty but it is being effective in keeping the squirrels from eating all the lettuce and spinace before we can. Each seedling is getting transplanted into a plastic collar made from 1/3 of a 2 liter soda bottle or used styrofoam cups with the bottoms cut out. The nicest side effect is they are acting like mini-terrariums so the seedlings are growing well. I have moved any trays of starters inside to keep them growing until I can transplant them (now if the cats will leave them alone!)
I have tried interplanting the lettuce with the carrots in their bins too and so far, so good.
The spinach, chard, broccoli, and caulifower are growing great and not being attacked. None of the peppers or tomatoes are being targeted either so we are slowly picking those.
I need to plant a bed of peas soon, just need to figure out which place to put them. I hope to use them as both a food and cover crop this year. We will see. It is still not very cool and it is mid November.
We will get enough NZ spinach for a quiche today--next year I will plant 2-3 times as much of this as it has been a real producer!