Harvest Monday....... July 1, 2013 & Harvest Totals to Date

We had two big harvests this week, a lot of the Broccoli and the Garlic. Some of you may have seen my Big Broccoli Harvest here. Well that wasn't all of it for the week. I harvested a few heads earlier in the week and a few more on Sunday. Sorry, no pics of those.

Sunday I went to the plots and pulled the remaining peas. The peas in the home garden were pulled last week. It's just too hot for the peas and they were about finished. After I finished with the peas. I thought that I better check the garlic. Well, it was ready to be pulled. I pulled all the garlic and brought it home.

Since we are in constant threat of thunderstorms lately, I had to put it under the covered part of the back porch. Now I can barely get out the back door!

38 Heads of Music (Hardneck Variety)

 

and.... 

 a total of 56 heads of Silverskin (Softneck Variety)

more of the Silverskin

 

The garlic heads are a good size and I'm quite pleased with the harvest. I think we will have enough for us and my son's household. Later this week I will hang the garlic and let it cure for storage.

 

Since I have been a bit busy and haven't participated in Harvest Monday this year, I thought I would post my year to date weighed harvest totals.

  



Baby Choi - 3.25 lbs.
Asparagus - 3.3 lbs.
Strawberries - 20.8 lbs
Broccoli - 16.8 lbs.
Garlic - 94 Heads (will be weighed once they are cured)
Greens & Lettuce - 3 lbs. (I haven't been weighing most of these)
Onions - 8 oz,
Peas - 11.2 lbs.
Peppers - 1 oz. (1 hot pepper)
Spinach - 5 lbs
Tomatoes - 3 Sungolds (not weighed)

Year to date Total - 62.45 lbs.

 

Hop on over to Daphne's Dandelions, our host of Harvest Monday to see what's going on in gardens around the globe!

Garden Update......busy, busy, busy!!!

Spring is just around the corner! We were blessed with two nice warm days over the weekend. Do you believe it was 62 on Saturday and the mid 50's on Sunday?? So....I went over to the plots to get some work done. This is the best weather for doing this type of work.

I took down 4 of the 5 trellises and laid them on the beds where they will be this year. I forgot the drill-driver both days. So, I couldn't move the last one. I also turned over about half of one of the big beds. I am pleased to report that there are lots of worms!!!

I turned over the one end of this bed where the broccoli will be planted. The garlic is at the other end of this bed.

  

I removed most of the straw from the garlic bed.

 

The bed in the middle was also turned over. This is where I will plant some cauliflower. The two end beds is where the asparagus is planted. No signs of grow yet.

 

As you can see (click on any picture to enlarge), the top of the soil is quite dry for this time of the year.

The raspberries were pruned. I totally forgot to cut them back in the late fall!

I added some additional bunny protection to the fencing. It was too low and we had a bunny living in the garden last year. I managed to get about half of the perimeter finished. Hopefully I will be able to finish it next weekend.

  

There is one full table of starts in the basement. I am in the process of pre-sprouting the peppers and eggplant. By the end of the week, there will be another table going!

 

The greens and lettuce and doing well and......

 

I think it's time to thin the celery!

 

How's your garden prepping coming along???

Thursday's Kitchen Cupboard..........7/19/2012

This past week a fellow gardener at the plots gave me a nice head of cabbage. Since we are out of Sauerkraut and I have yet to harvest any cabbage of my own, I decided to start a small batch.

I make my Sauerkraut the old fashioned way. It's really simple. You just slice the cabbage, sprinkle with salt, pack it down, then weight it down and cover it. After  few weeks....you have Sauerkraut! I have posted about it in the past here and here. Note: Some people leave the sauerkraut in the crock or jar and don't process it.

Here's my first small batch of sauerkraut in the making.

We were also out of Paprika Powder. I harvested the first two small paprika peppers last week. So, I decided to dry them in the oven on low and grind them up. I usually hang them to dry and grind them when I have a lot of dried peppers.

A little bit of Paprika Powder.

I also sorted through the garlic from last year. This garlic will be dried and made in to garlic powder and/or minced garlic. 

You can read more about making your own Paprika Powder, Garlic Powder and Minced Garlic here and here.

What's been going in or out of you Kitchen Cupboard lately???

Harvest Monday............06/25/2012

The harvests are starting to pick up a bit around here. The spring broccoli, cauliflower & cabbage were started a bit late since I didn't think the plots would be ready. In spite of the late start, the broccoli is doing well. I planted 3 varieties. So far, the Premium Crop has produced the biggest heads. Four varieties of cauliflower were planted. To date, only one variety has produced heads. This was the Silver Cup, which is a 45 day variety. As you can see from the picture below, the heads started to bolt on the first day of our heat wave this past week. It still tasted wonderful though! Since the temps have dropped significantly, maybe the rest of the plants will be able to produce something.

This is a drawer in the kitchen refrigerator. We are so so happy to have some broccoli and cauliflower this year!

The strawberries are trickling in a little at a time. Some of them do make it back to the house.

I pulled a Walla Walla onion the other day for dinner. It wasn't ready, but we had no onions left from last year.

This is the Silverskin softneck garlic.It was pulled on the 21st since it was completely lying on the ground. The heads are a nice size and it it now hanging to cure.

The Music hardneck variety was pulled on the 22nd. As you can see from the picture, the bunch to the left is bigger then the rest. This bunch was planted in a different bed. I guess it liked the soil better in that bed. All of the garlic is at least 2 weeks early this year. It will be weighed once it is finished curing.

I snuck a few more potatoes for dinner the other day. These are Kennebecs. It looks like we will have more potatoes this year then we can possibly use. I'm sure my in-laws will be happy about that!

Hop on over to Daphne's Dandelions, our host of Harvest Monday to see what's going on in Veggie Gardens around the globe!

Harvest Monday............06/18/2012

I can't believe the last time I did a Harvest Monday post was on April 23! I have been weighing most of my harvests, but not all of them. Of course, a lot of the strawberries end up not making it to the house.

I started harvesting broccoli this past week. I am extremely happy with the broccoli so far. I really didn't think I would have the plots ready for spring broccoli....so, they had a late start. Last year my broccoli was a bust due to the weather.

The first head of broccoli from the home garden with some garlic scapes.

All of the scapes have been harvested weighing in at 8 oz total.

This is the first head of broccoli from the plots and a few new potatoes that I snitched for dinner. I planted 4 different varieties of broccoli this year. So far the Premium Crop is doing the best.

The first carrots harvested this year. These were in the big container which I started inside in the basement. They aren't the prettiest.....but, they sure did taste good!

I've been harvesting some strawberries at the plots. Most of them get eaten there. The few that have made it home to get weighed have weighed in at 1.5 lbs. total. Surprisingly the new strawberry roots are producing way more then the transplanted plants. I think the transplants were moved at the wrong time. But, I had no choice in that. I really like the Jewel variety the best so far. They are really sweet and much bigger then the other varieties.

I planted a different variety of shelling peas this spring. The variety is Alderman. They get really tall, about 7'. I'm really not thrilled with the flavor though. I like Little Marvels much better. So, far the shelling peas weigh 1 lb. 10 oz. shelled. There will be a little more to harvest and then the vines will be pulled. I am planning to sow a fall crop of peas. Hopefully, I can get them in early enough to produce a harvest. 

Hop on over to Daphne's Dandelions, our host of Harvest Monday to see what's going on in Veggie Gardens around the globe!

The Home Garden Mid-June

The home garden is looking pretty messy right now. I guess that it's just going through a transition from spring crops to summer. All of the rain and heat we had for several weeks didn't help much either Warning, lots of pics

Click on any pic to enlarge.

The Left Cold Frame Bed has been pretty much cleaned out. Most of the lettuce and all of the Collards, Kale & Asian Greens bolted from the heat. There are a couple of celery plants in the back and still a little bit of lettuce. I decided to plant some dry beans in this bed. They are the little sprouts you can see coming up. Later in the season, I will plant this bed with carrots.

The Right Cold Frame Bed is filled mostly with carrots. The Kale in the back is still doing well. It was planted last fall. I wonder how long it will last? There's also a little lettuce under the kale in the back and some recently planted carrots under the boards.

The Herb Garden really took a hit from all the rain. I had several newly planted herbs that just died. As you can see, the oregano was recently trimmed back. It was huge! In a few weeks it will be huge again. There's Miss Banana on the back corner of the deck. She follows me everywhere.....instead of cleaning out the bunny nests like she did when she was younger!

The back section of the Herb Garden.

This is where many of the newly planted herbs died. The Spaghetti Squash are coming up along the fence. This past week, I planted a few new herbs here...Marjoram, Curry and Variegated Thyme.

My Sage Bush is looking pretty good. It got hit late last season with a ton of rain. It used to be at least twice this size.

Some Slicing Cucs for "The Italian" are coming up along the edge of the Garlic Bed.

I don't know what is going on with the Soft Neck Garlic. It's all leaning. The Hard Neck Variety isn't doing this. Anyone know???

The four early tomatoes with a few carrots and marigolds planted here and there. My early tomatoes are usually way ahead of the later ones. Not this year. I think some of the later maters at the plots are doing much better. 

The Sungold is fruiting.

Thanks for the seeds Dave! We can't wait to taste them!

This is supposed to be an Eva's Purple Ball. It really looks like a Cherokee Purple to me. Time will tell!

This is Bed #1. It looks like a hot mess to me!

I pulled all of the Snap Peas on both ends. Those really tall leaning peas are a different variety of shelling peas. They are at least 7' tall. I like the Little Marvels much better. So, I'm going to plant a fall crop at the plots. All of the spinach and lettuce was pulled. The early broccoli is done. Right now there are a few celery plants, some dried beans, carrots under the boards, a couple of cabbage plants and the balance of the hard neck garlic at the far end.

This is one of the broccoli heads I cut a few days ago.

The Perennial Beds are very lush right now. There isn't a lot of color though. They too are going through a transition. You can see Miss Banana following me around!

We do have some bright blossoms here and.....

there!

Here's Alvin....my Flower Child. 

He sleeps all day among the plants. Occasionally he gets a vole too!

Thursday's Kitchen Cupboard................06/14/2012

This past week I have been harvesting the garlic scapes here at the home garden. Even though I have been a very bad blogger lately and haven't taken many (hardly any) pics of my harvests, I have taken some. Daphne, I promise I will join in on Harvest Monday this coming week!!!

I just love the look of the scapes! 

Since scapes are a once a year treat, I like to make something special with them. Last year I found a recipe for Garlic Scape Jelly. I did post this recipe last year. Because the jelly is just so wonderful, I am going to post it again for those of you who missed it.

Garlic Scape Jelly

•  2/3 cup Garlic scapes, washed, with tops trimmed off
• 2 sweet Bell peppers, washed and cut into chunks
• 1 cup white vinegar
• 5 cups sugar
• 1 bottle liquid Pectin

1. Cut the scapes into 1-inch sections and use processor or food grinder to finely mince the scapes.
2. Remove the scapes from processor and place in stainless jelly pot.
3. Process the Bell peppers until finely minced, then add them, with any liquid, to the scapes in the jelly pot.
4. Add vinegar and sugar to the minced scapes and peppers. Stir until well blended. Slowly boil mixture for 10 minutes. Add liquid pectin and boil hard for 1 minute.
5. Remove from heat and pour into sterilized half-pint or Jelly jars, to within 1/2-inch of top. Add sterilized caps and screw rings on. Process in water-bath canner for 5 minutes.

Yield: about 5 half-pints.

This batch made 5 1/2 half-pints 

One jar was given to our friends Jody, Belle & the little ones at Spring Garden Acre, who came to visit with us on Monday.

What's been going in or out of your Cupboard lately???

The Home Garden at the beginning of May

I haven't posted much about the Home Garden lately since I've been so busy with the Community Garden move. The garden is growing well...but it's pretty messy around here!

This is the Left Cold Frame Bed

All of the overwintered Kale & Collards have been removed in the back of the bed. I planted some Celery and Baby Choi in their place. Do you think that we have enough lettuce growing???? Maybe somebody needs to harvest some!

This is the Right Cold Frame Bed

The overwintered Kale in the back of this bed is still doing well. It does look a bit funny since I just harvested most of the leaves. There is also some lettuce in the back that definitely needs to be harvested. Maybe Miss Banana will take care of that for me today! The mid section of this bed has carrots growing in it. I am keeping the bird netting on to deter those darn squirrels and birds!

Look at all those little carrots!

The Garlic is growing like crazy!

And so are the Snow Peas behind it! 

I know that they are not supposed to be friends....but, I have growing peas and garlic next to each other for years and they do just fine. Look at those boards just laying there....what a mess!

There are 4 Early Tomatoes growing in Kozy Koats in this bed with carrots in between. The pill bugs were so bad under the boards that I had to remove them. I decided to put the shade cloth over them for awhile so they could get a little bigger.

This is Bed #1

There are two different varieties of Snap Peas growing on each end and Shelling Peas along the long side.

Bed #1

Garlic growing at one end.

Bed #1

Some Pak Choi, Lettuce and Spinach at the other end

Bed #1

I also planted a few Broccoli Plants, Chinese Cabbage and I think a couple of regular Cabbage plants in the middle

One end of the messy deck. The cushions and table tops need to be brought out of the basement and put on the furniture. Someone also needs to replace 4 boards on the deck and then power wash and stain it!

My new little Dwarf Carmine Jewel Cherry Tree is in it's pot.

The Herb Garden definitely needs a little cleaning up!

This is the part of the Herb Garden behind the messy patio furniture.

That's a bunch of self seeded Cilantro, weeds and greens from the daffodils!

There is one flower pot that is looking good!

I planted perennials in some of the pots last year and this one doesn't need a thing added to it!

My new Dwarf Tophat Blueberry bush and some weeds in the stone pathway in the background.

The Carrots that I started in this pot in the basement were very happy until I took them outside. I'm sure they will perk up and green up once they get used to being outside. I also have three more large pots that need carrots planted in. That will have to wait until after vacation. And there's that dirty deck again!

Not the best color in this pic.

Here are the Tomatoes, Peppers, Eggplants and some herbs hardening off on the back porch waiting to to planted......

Here!! Yes, the beds at the plots are finished!!! Yippee!!

Well, it's going to be a busy week! Today I will be baking for the graduation picnic tomorrow. "The Italian's" daughter is graduating from college tomorrow. We will be leaving early in the AM. Then her graduation dinner here (not at our house) on Sunday....then the plots must be planted before vacation next week!