Garden Bounty!!

Queen Bee · #1 07/26/08, 12:03 AM

Tell us all about you garden! Compare it to other yrs., what var. you have planted and what ones have been a 'bust' or great!

Our garden has been great this yr ! We are so thankful that we have been able to share with lots of people. Our corn (Silver Queen and Kandy Korn) is beautiful--very few pests (we don't use ANY chemicals). Pulled over 400ears yesterday and over 300ears today. Our peas(purple hull crowders and 6week-pink eye) have been plentiful and no stings, spots- perfect pods! We are picking at least 10 bushels every day. Green beans (Blue Lake and 1/2 runners) are hanging on the vines--canning and freezing just can't keep up. Okra is just starting. Small green limas will be ready next week and I am happy to say they are full of lush, green pods--almost ready, The tomatoes have been somewhat of a disappointment several var. aren't doing well, others are doing ok but none have done really well. Second planting of squash, cukes and zucc are going in tomorrow. QB

MWG · #2 07/26/08, 12:27 AM

Squash was a dud this year. Out of 10 plants we got 1 squash. They turned yellow and died.

Corn was very sweet however the ears are small. I think I need more nitrogen. The first planting yielded small stalks, the second is taller and the third is even taller than the second.

I have cucumbers coming out of my ears. I have pickled over 200 jars on a 20 foot row. I am strongly considering bush hogging the plants!

This is on top of the laundry baskets I have fed to the goats and the chickens.

Beans have done well. Canning them again tomorrow.

Tomatoes? They are HUGE! But they are still green. I picked a total of 6 red ones so far. I think there are about 300+ green ones behind them.

Watermelon are taking over everthing. I have tripped over two trying to get to the corn. The runners are in the neighbors yard. He thanked me tonight for the watermelon. Haven't picked any yet, but they are everywhere.

Brussel sprouts are small. I recall last year they didn't take off until the fall. I didn't get any last year because the alpacas broke in and ate them all. Hopefully I will get some this year.

Swiss chard has gone to seed as well as the lettuce.

Beets are doing well. Canned and pickled most of them but there are still some out in the garden. I left them to get a little bigger.

My cannibus is also doing well. Large sprouts and not many seeds. For some reason my dog won't leave the garden, (OK, just seeing who read all the way down here! I don't have any pot planted, nor will I ever!

)

With the rain this has been a great year for a garden in NC!

MelissaW · #3 07/26/08, 06:46 AM

Sheesh, MWG, my jaw just hit the keyboard! You got our attention, that's for sure!

We are just coming in to the garden harvest. Salad greens and bok choy are done for now. We'll put in a second crop after the heat slackens off. I've started freezing beans. For some reason, the purple ones are making the best show this year. Last year it was the wax. We are drowning in zuchinni and pattypan squash, despite the heavy squash beetle population. We've had only 3 cukes. That's my fault, as I got them in late. Ate the first eggplants last night. These are the long skinny variety. The black beauties take longer. The only thing that looks like it's not going to make it is the green peppers. It almost looks like they have a virus, with large brown patches on the leaves. The chili's are doing fine though. Tomatoes are loaded, but it'll be another month til those ripen. The apple trees are also loaded, but again, we have a long wait ahead. I'm pretty sure the corn will reach the clouds soon! All in all, it's been an excellent garden year with plenty of rain, sun, and heat.

TxCloverAngel · #4 07/26/08, 07:43 AM

dont wanna talk about it.

dreaming of next years garden...

Hey! I DID get a few BLT's made before the drought and heat killed everything!
and I have peppers in a pot.

Mutti · #5 07/26/08, 08:40 AM

This is a major brag....my garden is the best since we moved to MO. Stuck happily in the rain several days a week system and everything has gone crazy. Been canning tomatoes for two weeks...this usually happens in August,not July. Never had enough beets before to do 24 pints and the new patch is doing just as good. We've been lucky to be able to share with our neighbors; many in their 80's who aren't able to garden much anymore. Our Hickory King corn is 11 feet high...yes, it is. If I knew how to post a picture I would! My frozen-out lilies I mourned last year came back bigger and more glorious than ever...have really enjoyed taking them to the nursing home....getting the usual comments of who died? Seems that is the only time they see fresh flowers around there,sad. I'll try to take flowers every week ...last year no one believed you could put sunflowers in a vase like the newer pollen-free types. Our strawberries were super prolific,the fruit trees are heavily laden and the grapes will be ready to pick soon if our little fox doesn't find them first! Happy gardening to all....DEE

Mostie · #6 07/26/08, 08:49 AM

Well, I can make everyone have a good laugh- we started where we live now, in just a few small planters (like...5 to be exact) just to 'try our hand' at growing, since we haven't really done it before- all we have at the moment, are banana peppers (which seem to almost grow bigger overnight, shocks me), bell peppers, which are like little miniatures, and growing well- and 2 types of tomatoes (Mr. Stripey, and something else I can't recall right now, Belgium something-or-other), and the plants are growing tall, blossoming, but no tomatoes until next month, I believe-we just wanted to see if we would be able to actually grow some things (without killing them, haha), and find out how many plants produce how much, and decide if we would be starving next year (when we move up North, and put in the 'real' garden)-

All in all, it's pretty neat to come home from work, pop out back, and see things doing so well~

mpillow · #7 07/26/08, 08:57 AM

Rain and heat.....but everything is doing great.

My back hurts from picking bush beans....about 50 pounds just this week, canned 7 Q have another 7Q needing to be done.

Summer squash and cukes...oH my! However, my children are doing a good number on eating these. I made a small batch of relish this week.

Tomatoes have set on well have lots of heirlooms and hope to save seed....heart shaped heirlooms are so pretty!

Our early sweet corn is just starting to form ears....and my winter squash (jahardale?) is setting on pretty good...I've been hand pollinating just to make sure! I also have some acorn squash that I havent had time to mess with but looks good and some blue hubbard and sweet potatoes at my brothers place....pumpkins only seem to make male flowers

We've eaten a few pounds of red potatoes....YUMMY! Lots more reds and kennebecs still in the ground! A few small sweet green peppers too but I don't think the peppers will produce much this year....bummer.

Its been so rainy hot and sticky this month that gardening seems like so much more work.... trying to grin and bear with it! You know-- everything all at once and canning on a hot day.....on top of all the other household/animal chores...

Mid Tn Mama · #8 07/26/08, 08:59 AM

Mostie: go ahead and relish what you have! I remember babying three cabbages once!

Our garden is unproductive due to a perfect storm of drought, busyness and poor varieties.

We love the taste of the heirloom pole italian beans, but they have not been productive.

I garden organically--and that works best if you can pay attention to the garden. And I have, except for the odd three days here and there where it all went to h*ll in a handbag.

With the drought conditions, it makes weeding almost impossible in our clay soil. Once the weeds are up, the bugs are hidden and prolific. Lost all the squash and zukes to SVB.

What has done well is watermelon--which I have ignored and NEVER had produce in previous years.

It's strange how some years certain things do well and then the next they don't. Goes to show that you should can as much as you can to last two years. I won't get even one pepper plant this year (family keeps stepping on them).

Yet.... hope springs eternal. I planted new squash and zukes that should make before frost--the svb;'s should be gone by the time they come up. Planted some emergency bush beans too.

Mutti · #9 07/26/08, 01:32 PM

mpillow....this year my DH got me something I've wanted for ages...one of those kneeler/flip over to become a seat for the garden....it is the bomb! I have huge rows of beans and I can plop down on this and pick without being crippled. $30 well spent and don't know why I didn't get one sooner. My personal testimony....and if you have trouble getting up from sitting it is so sturdy you can push up on the arms. Plus it folds for storage...now I sound like a TV commercial...he got it thru Farm and Ranch living magazine with free shipping.......DEE

mpillow · #10 07/26/08, 02:07 PM

Sounds great DEE but I'm afraid the three rows all grew into one low hedge....which is why my kids are not helping me pick! They would be stepping on the plants instead of making room to step and pick!
I tie the plastic bag to my belt loop which adds to the agony but it frees up both hands....
the wild blue berries are near due too and another low bush to deal with....SIGH! but the girls will help and the kids bought me blueberry rakes for Mother's day!
(I'm ashamed of my complaining....I went and picked more beans at the garden I have at a neighbors and dug more potatoes, 4 SSquash and 1 jalapeno and 1 sweet green.)

Time to snap some beans! (sit and rest my back LOL)

manygoatsnmore · #11 07/26/08, 03:18 PM

MY garden was looking great before the attack of the chickens! Now I have romaine ribs without leaves, they've eaten the corn as it sprouted, as well as the oats and wheat, and they are scratching potatoes right out of the hills. Now that I've finished building my high-security chicken jail, I think the lettuce and carrots will come back okay (they even ate the carrot foliage), and I'm replanting what I can. The strawberries and currants did well other than chicken damage, and the raspberry patch is loaded. After fertilizing, the rhubarb is putting on more stalks and they are good and thick. Seems I'm better at small fruits than vegies this year. The tomatoes are late due to an unseasonably cold spring, but they are growing fast and starting to set fruit now. I'm really hoping for a good tomato crop - I'm tired of eating spaghetti sauce from the store. We've been eating new potatoes for quite a while now. Yum! Overall, a mixed bag this year.

tinda · #12 07/26/08, 04:09 PM

Peas and beans are doing great.
I planted four rows of corn. I got three ---- plants, that is,
The zuks are having a bumper crop (when don't they?)
The gophers love the lettuce, dill, chard & beet greens.
Tomatoes are producing like crazy.

Next year I will try again, after all, this is "next year country" The frost free season is about three months here so there's no second planting.

tinda
I told my DH I wanted to go someplace expensive.
He took me to the gas station.

SquashNut · #13 07/26/08, 05:16 PM

This year looks to be a good one. We have eaten our share of lettuce, kale and chard. The garlic is harvested and that bed is replanted with broccolli. i shreaded a 5 gallon crock of cabbage today for kraut and the onions will be harvested next week.
The bean plants are just now flowering as i opted to have them as second crops after spinich and mustard greens. The spinich and greens frozen or canned total 65 quarts so far. I'll can more if I have jars later in the fall.
By the looks of it I'll get at least 1 more 5 gallon crock of kraut before i'm done.
Tomatoes are just now setting some small fruit on my late plants, But my early ones look like I might get some ripe ones here pretty quick.
Those are the best cuke and summer squash plants I've seen, but there's along way from getting fruit.

mpillow · #14 07/26/08, 06:57 PM

Found my first turning red tomato(a stressed Brandywine...the goat stressed it by eating half the plant!)......SHHHHHHH....its a secret because I'm keeping it all for myself!

Callieslamb · #15 07/26/08, 07:34 PM

Okay, I will try to be brief, but it is hard when you have so much bragging to do.....

Squash- zucchini - did poorly. Trombonica - is still rampaging all over the garden. When I see a new shoot - I cut it back now. the thing is like kudzu! It is good for both summer and winter squash - taste very good too. I like them better than zucchinis. But not well enough to keep up with the production!

beans - didn't do as well this year, but I planted new varities. I will put in about 40 more feet in Aug and see what they do for me. I will not to Black Valentine again - too difficult to find the beans! McCaslan is a great heirloom pole. I think Ky Blue out produced it though.

Tomatoes- I planted too many of the smaller varieties. I love Sioux, Belgian Ox Heart, Illinois Beauty, Jersey Giant, Black cherry, Purple russian, Hawaiian Pineapple, Delicious, Extreme bush. But, my absolute favorite is Big Mama, though - not an heirloom but such a good producer of huge paste tomatoes! i can't find the Amish paste. Coyote tastes a bit sweeter than I am used to. It was okay, but I doubt I will give it more space in teh garden. good for eating while out there working, but squishes easily in a bowl.

Blackberries are coming in a few at a time - I made two batches of jam and will freeze the rest for pies!

Melons- I think my bees have helped greatly here. I must have 50 melons out there where as before the bees- I would only get 10 or so. Unfortunately, it rained last night so they will now probably all taste watery. Alas. I Lost my Amish pie squash.

I planted a hybrid corn and it tastes so good. I planted AMbrosia and though the kernals are smaller, it has a wonderful flavor. I will let the next ears go a bit longer too. No ear worms yet!

Peppers are now ripening. somehow, I have an abundance of yellows rather than red. They are very good at any rate. Golden treasure is huge. But not 4 lobed, more like a green chili. Asti Rosa, didn't do a thing for me. Asti Gallo - is producing a ton. Ca Wonder, always the staple is going gang busters for me also. I have had a bit of trouble with rot on my peppers, I think due to sun scald.

Lettuce was a waste - we were gone when it was at its best. But I have seeds! Broccoli didn't do a think either. The nappa cabbages all went to the chickens - we were gone when they were edible. I hope to do more this fall. Onions are huge this year. And the carrots are delicious. I have never eaten a good home grown carrot before. I will always have them in my garden now. It didn't matter what variety - they were all good. Leeks are still going. I hope to carry them over the winter.

I lost the grapes, but hope with appropriate sprays next year, I will again have huge clusters of them.

I have really enjoyed my garden this year for a change.

tinda · #16 07/26/08, 07:43 PM

I posted earlier. No sooner had I finished when it started! The HAIL.
It looked like about moth ball size and flattened everything that wasn't sheltered.
The planters with the flowers are completely finished for sure. I will wait till tomorrow to see just how much damage was done. Most looks pretty sorry right now but it may perk up.We'll see.
A mile down the road was clear. They didn't get any hail.

tinda

MelissaW · #17 07/27/08, 05:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mostie

Well, I can make everyone have a good laugh- we started where we live now, in just a few small planters (like...5 to be exact) just to 'try our hand' at growing, since we haven't really done it before- all we have at the moment, are banana peppers (which seem to almost grow bigger overnight, shocks me), bell peppers, which are like little miniatures, and growing well- and 2 types of tomatoes (Mr. Stripey, and something else I can't recall right now, Belgium something-or-other), and the plants are growing tall, blossoming, but no tomatoes until next month, I believe-we just wanted to see if we would be able to actually grow some things (without killing them, haha), and find out how many plants produce how much, and decide if we would be starving next year (when we move up North, and put in the 'real' garden)-

All in all, it's pretty neat to come home from work, pop out back, and see things doing so well~

That's how it starts! Just you wait, in a few years, you'll be hauling in bushel baskets full of produce like the rest of us. It's addictive!

Tinda, I hope that everything recovers. What a shame.

**Terri** · #18 07/27/08, 07:55 AM

I had to replant this year, due to too much water.

I have been eating onions and zucchini: the rest of the plants are tiny. They might bear, they might not!

1/4acre · #19 07/28/08, 03:40 PM

Peppers are going gangbusters- chilies, jalepeno,cayanne, hot bananna and sweet bananna.

Squash not to good. Butternut ok but zukes and summer squash I put in late aren't doing to good.

Cherry tomatoes are great. the sweetest I have ever had.Big boys are huge but green still so are the better boy's. Early girls are starting to ripen cuz of the heat this week and the romas are getting some size on them too.

Pickeling cukes are a dud

but the straight eights are doing good.

Strawberries are done and I put up 18 half pints of jam with them.

Not enough raspberries to put up but they sure were tasty- we get a small second crop in sept.

Didn't plant beans this year. To many bean beetles last year thought I would pass this year.

Cutting broccoli like crazy this week, sure am glad it's one of the family favorites.
Lots of bee activity this spring and summer.Pollination was/ is good.

fretti · #20 07/28/08, 06:13 PM

It was a learning year for me. I planted a lot from seed, which I've never done before.

Good performers - so far:
Garlic (bulbs from www.wegrowgarlic.com) - excellent crop harvested last week
Potatoes - Yukon gold and German Butterball were good. Next year, I want to try the Caribe that DoubleD mentioned as being superb.
Leeks - bulbing up nicely and will provide good flavor all winter
Onions (Yellow and Walla Walla) - good bulbs. Last year I didn't add enough nitrogen and didn't get a crop. This year is way better with organic fertilizer.
Strawberries - HUGE crop. I mowed down the crowns and fertilized last year. I'm going to take out the oldest plants and replant with two varieties I'm coaxing into providing new starts.
Marionberries - I've gotten untold number of gallons off my 6 plants and every time I go out, there are more to be harvested. My are they good too!

Bust:
Nantes carrots - were really some sort of tomato variety. I have lots.

And I've since planted more carrots that are just sprouting.
"Red Rubine Brussel Sprouts" starts (from nursery) - turned out to be some variety of red cabbage
Head lettuce - slugs ate them
Parsnips - none sprouted
Leaf lettuce mix - hubby wouldn't eat - "too bitter"

Too early to tell:
Eggplant - finally have some blossoms
Squash (I have 1 Delicata and about 6 of unknown variety that took over the compost pile with nice green fruit forming - but what variety?)
Peppers - very few fruits so far
Tomatoes - I don't have a lot of green tomatoes although I have tons of blossoms. None are even close to being ripe.

I give myself an "A" for effort this year with more learning to come ....