tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62614948490470251612024-03-16T05:00:36.584-04:00Budding and BloomingJuliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.comBlogger221125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-90981614241656109242017-05-21T20:44:00.000-04:002017-05-21T20:44:40.419-04:00Turnips, Peas and Strawberry ShortcakeIt is officially summer vacation for me. Actually I've been on vacation for a week. I made detailed lists of stuff I planned to do with all my extra time, but that first week I was utterly lethargic. Hopefully this week will be more productive. At least the garden has been productive even when I'm not!<br />
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I had my first turnip harvest of the year this week. Those aphids that covered my peas several weeks ago have now moved on to the turnips. Hopefully since they are mostly mature, the aphids won't have a big impact. These turnips went on to get cooked (in my Instant Pot, which was way faster than boiling them on the stove top) and then mashed with some butter and salt.<br />
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I've also been harvesting plenty of greens. Salads are being eaten at multiple meals a day here. I need to get some summer lettuce started soon, since I have a feeling the spring lettuce is going to begin bolting.<br />
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I've also been picking and eating kale and Swiss chard. I made a quiche with some greens and also some greens and cheese hand pies. They end up in my breakfast every morning with eggs.<br />
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Peas have been abundant this week. I only took a picture of some of the snowpeas, but there were lots of shelling peas as well. We eat these raw out of the shell. I keep thinking I'll have enough to freeze, but every day we end up eating all of the tasty, fat peas. <br />
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As for the snowpeas, they ended up in a tofu stir fry. Yum!<br />
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The strawberries seem to be on the end of their spring production. This will probably be the last big harvest for the year. It was delicious while it lasted and I'm pretty sure I made up my investment in building a bed and buying strawberry plants in the first year. <br />
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For the strawberries last hurrah, I made strawberry shortcakes. They were delicious and also quite photogenic!<br />
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It has been raining almost all day and the week is looking very wet. I need to take advantage of all the rain to do lots and lots of weeding and also get peanuts planted.<br />
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres</a>.Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-90963578992832151602017-05-08T09:23:00.001-04:002017-05-08T09:23:50.306-04:00More Strawberries!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This week has been filled with spring goodies. The harvest basket below sums up what's been going on in the garden this week: </div>
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I love the color combinations of red and green with a little pop of purple! On the bottom of the basket is a pile of oregano. My oregano has been growing and growing, so I trimmed it back before it started to flower. I dried the oregano for using later.<br />
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I have never tried eating chive flowers, so that was a new culinary adventure this week. I tried them in my breakfast with greens and eggs. They definitely add a nice kick tasting somewhere between garlic and onions. They also make my breakfast much prettier. If you start the day eating flowers, it's going to be a good day!<br />
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The peas are producing a bit more now. I do think the aphid population has decreased, so I'm going to claim victory for me, the ladybugs and dragonflies! The peas that were covered with aphids are looking sickly, but the rest of the pea patch seems to be doing well. We love to snack on raw peas, so I haven't made any dishes with them.<br />
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Of course the star harvest continues to be the strawberries. This week brought in 6 1/2 lbs of strawberries! Besides just popping them in our mouths while picking them, my snack of the week has been yogurt with strawberries.<br />
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I also dipped them in chocolate. Delicious and very easy!<br />
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We've also been eating plenty of strawberries in smoothies. I froze some of this week's strawberries to be used later in smoothies. I've thought about making some strawberry jam, but it hasn't happened yet. Freezing strawberries it so much easier than breaking out the canning stuff!<br />
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Besides all the strawberries, I've had a bit of greens from the garden this week. The spinach is beginning to bolt, so I harvested most of them. I also thinned my Swiss chard seedlings. This year I'm growing Perpetual Swiss Chard for the first time, so I'm hoping it does well. Swiss Chard is usually my reliable year round green. The mesclun mix salad has been cut this week, so we are eating salads daily. We had a decent amount of rain and cooler temperatures this week, which has made the spring crops happy. Unfortunately it has also made the weeds happy too!<br />
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres</a>.Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-46609440846388456082017-04-30T20:06:00.000-04:002017-04-30T20:06:53.144-04:00Strawberries, Peas and GreensI had my first big strawberry harvest this week with 2 lbs, 12 oz of delicious berries! We had a lot of rain last week, 3 1/2 inches over two days, so I was worried about my strawberries rotting, but most of them were fine. The slugs and snails have definitely been snacking as well, but so far the damage hasn't been excessive. <br />
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With all the strawberries, I had to make a delicious spring desert: <a href="http://sanguinaria-budding.blogspot.com/2012/04/thursdays-kitchen-cupboard-angel-food.html" target="_blank">angel food cake with strawberry sauce and homemade whipped cream</a>. Yum!<br />
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If you can pry your eyes away from the strawberry shortcake, the rest of the garden is growing rapidly. The peas are flowering profusely and look lovely.<br />
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But if you look closer you'll see lots of tiny problems, they are covered with aphids.<br />
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The good news is that I have some helpers. I spotted some ladybugs having an aphid buffet. I'm not confident that there are enough ladybugs to battle the amount of aphids.<br />
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I also spotted a dragonfly next to the peas. Perhaps he is joining the aphid feast with the ladybugs. I hope combined they can keep the aphid population under control.<br />
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I did harvest some fat pea pods, so at least I got some peas in case the aphids destroy them. Unfortunately we ate them before they were photographed or weighed.<br />
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The rest of this week's harvests were forms of green: cabbage, Chinese cabbage, spinach, lettuce and Swiss chard. I've religiously weighed everything for the past three years and as much as I love having all the data, it has become too tedious. My goal was to grow 1,000 lbs of veggies and I reached that goal last year, so the motivation to weigh harvests has faded. The harvests that I dislike weighing the most are greens. 2017 is the year of sporadic weighing. I'm weighing things that strike my fancy, like strawberries. <br />
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We had a delicious garden stir fry with the cabbage, Chinese cabbage, carrots, and the first peas. I've also been eating lots of spring salads and veggie wraps. The garden is feeding me well right now.<br />
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres</a>.Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-71322603819123982732017-04-24T19:56:00.000-04:002017-04-24T19:56:43.045-04:00Spring HarvestsGarden harvests have picked up this week as spring progresses. It's wonderful to have more veggie variety. I dug up the last of the overwintering carrots (5 lbs 10 oz) to make room for more summer crops. Winter carrots are by far the sweetest and most delicious of the carrots! I've been eating large quantities of carrot sticks with <a href="http://allrecipes.com/recipe/230466/savory-pumpkin-hummus/" target="_blank">pumpkin hummus</a> from my autumn harvest.<br />
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I've also been harvesting loads of lettuce (9.8 oz). This was the last of the overwintering All Star mix. They have begun to bolt and were standing in the way of pepper planting. My spring lettuce is also ready for harvest, so I've been eating lots of salads. My latest favorite dressing recipe is this <a href="http://allrecipes.com/recipe/49923/asian-ginger-dressing/" target="_blank">Asian Ginger Dressing</a> one. I like that it uses rice vinegar, which I find much milder than other vinegars.<br />
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I also harvested the rest of the overwintering Swiss chard (2 lbs 6.6 oz). I've been cooking it with eggs for breakfast and yesterday I made a<a href="http://ifoodreal.com/parmesan-pumpkin-and-spinach-quinoa-recipe/" target="_blank"> pumpkin, chard, parmesan and quinoa dish</a>.<br />
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I harvested my spring planted Cherry Belle radishes. They also went into my salads and were eaten with hummus. I took a vegetable tray to a coworker's retirement party last week and the carrots, radishes and pumpkin hummus made a public debut. There was another veggie tray, so the party game became taste testing my carrots versus the store bought ones. Mine won, but it may have been biased, since it was not a double blind study!<br />
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The show stopper this week is my first strawberry! I planted them last year, so this is the first strawberry I've harvested since we've lived here, which has been three and a half years. Needless to say it was a special strawberry and got its portrait taken before being carefully cut in half and savored. I went on to harvest 10.5 ounces later on during the week and we devoured them before I could take a picture. <br />
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres</a>.<br />
<br />Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-65058071932760496112017-04-16T10:51:00.002-04:002017-04-16T10:51:35.247-04:00Trust Issues in the GardenThe last average frost date has passed here, which means I've been busy planting. I've planted tomato, winter squash, summer squash and melon seedlings along with massive amounts of bean seeds: black and pinto beans for dried beans, soy beans and pole green beans. <br />
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However, it you take a look at my garden you may begin to notice I have trust issues, or perhaps an obsession with row covers.<br />
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It all started innocently with row covers for my brassicas. The cabbage moths made me start. I tried picking them off and spraying Bt, but it seemed to always rain the day after spraying. I put up my first row cover using rebar and pipe for the frame and Agribon AG-15 for the covers. The cabbage moths no longer destroyed my broccoli and cabbage.<br />
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My spring potatoes get attacked by potato beetles. After trying concoctions of hot peppers, garlic and neem oil, I resorted to handpicking them. Then the light bulb moment, potatoes don't need pollination and up went another row cover.<br />
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Last spring my turnip leaves were mangled by harlequin beetles and they had no energy left to produce turnips, so this spring, up went a row cover. The beets and carrots and radishes just happened to be next to the turnips, so why not cover them as well?<br />
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Before I knew it row covers popped up everywhere.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7pnmVUcDeoZdGeCicEiH4oTQVS8c4bySTAi2tEnIbDo7FgEDzxMTy6B_847TDaKQbNKsx3j2b18e4EcrkoQT7Oi5bh5D-H6lkAPNU6u5Ol7F0Ww3HwQkofUgqZ-p4Mw-ln1qnFDsRKc8/s1600/P4162649a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7pnmVUcDeoZdGeCicEiH4oTQVS8c4bySTAi2tEnIbDo7FgEDzxMTy6B_847TDaKQbNKsx3j2b18e4EcrkoQT7Oi5bh5D-H6lkAPNU6u5Ol7F0Ww3HwQkofUgqZ-p4Mw-ln1qnFDsRKc8/s640/P4162649a.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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They may not be the most attractive garden additions, but what they lack in aesthetics, they make up for in easy pest control- no spraying, no handpicking. Simple, effective and low maintenance- row covers won me over.<br />
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Of course there are crops that need pollinators or are simply too large to fit under a row cover. Last spring something kept destroying my tomato seedlings. I broke out the row cover material and my sewing machine and made mini row covers for seedlings.<br />
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They are about 18 inches wide and 24 inches tall. I anchor them down with rocks and the drip hose. Of course the tomatoes can not grow in these mini covers forever, but it gives them time to get established before being exposed to whatever bugs want to munch on them. I do the same for my eggplants. Flea beetles will decimate young seedlings here, so they get a little cover too.<br />
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I have an ongoing war with squash vine borers. I have not resorted to keeping my squash completely under row covers because that would require hand pollination. I do put the mini covers over the squash seedlings and try to keep the covers on until they begin to flower in hopes that perhaps the vine borers will miss my squash or at least have a bit later start. <br />
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There are some downfalls to row covers: wind, rips and excess moisture. It seems that we have had a spring filled with gusts of wind. I use bricks to anchor my large row covers and sometime the wind blows them free. Imagine a 50 foot kite and that's what it is like wrestling a loose row cover in the wind. This can lead to the second problem, which are rips. This material is flimsy, so it tears easily. I usually either sew up the rips or break out the duct tape, which does not improve my garden aesthetics. The third problem can be too much moisture and humidity causing fungal problems. I haven't experienced this, probably because of those excessive winds, but it is a potential problem.<br />
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For me, the negatives of row covers are outweighed by the positives. I will take a garden that looks decorated for Halloween than to have to wage the spraying and picking battle with the bugs!<br />
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<br />Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-39888979494028557042017-04-09T16:20:00.001-04:002017-04-09T16:20:46.058-04:00Budding Fruit Trees and Blooming Flowers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Spring is in full force here with bright green leaves and blooming flowers. That also means insects have started snacking on those fresh, green leaves. My little orchard with three plum trees, three peaches, three pears and five apples has sprouted back to life. Well, except for one apple tree that refuses to leaf out. It does not feel brittle and dead, so I'm hoping he's just a late bloomer. I planted all the fruit trees last year, except for three of the apples. Most of the orchard has arrived at its second growing season, so I'm not expecting an abundant crop. The three oldest apple trees are starting their fourth growing season, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that maybe we will harvest our first apple this year. These three apple trees have begun to flower.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhigh8mCUneA2YKJBl_rmrClbLfYoZOAUPgkc_yskA6UHL502ABIQ-FVVsSZgNWJtmY0mFhvz8m4yCvPBUg3w3IKCTe_xv3khrLp91Z0V9SLm0qPAW10Xwk7TqP4wFSRgplBc-wyPuL3oQ/s1600/P4092624a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhigh8mCUneA2YKJBl_rmrClbLfYoZOAUPgkc_yskA6UHL502ABIQ-FVVsSZgNWJtmY0mFhvz8m4yCvPBUg3w3IKCTe_xv3khrLp91Z0V9SLm0qPAW10Xwk7TqP4wFSRgplBc-wyPuL3oQ/s640/P4092624a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black Twig Apple Tree Flower Buds</td></tr>
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As the flowers bud and emerge, so do the insects that love to snack on the apple leaves and blossoms. Little green caterpillars that I always called inch worms do much of the damage. They are also called cankerworms here. I sprayed the fruit trees with Bt (<i>Bacillus thuringiensis</i>), a bacteria that kills caterpillars. I need to try banding my fruit trees in the fall with a sticky barrier that prevents the female moths from laying eggs in the trees. Hopefully these caterpillars won't do enough damage to prevent me from getting a few apples this year.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgASSjoLgXjKaK85QUQGahAZCh3pCgU_HvyG-fKNoVaZlFasIF11TvVOu9aBi4q6Zt_fO3bMmEPjZXgH-Z90iBqBQjAKMbGGYHI47zjiCjysfmZuIoptT3OgJKPmWwrAKYdmie00AWzd6g/s1600/P4092623a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgASSjoLgXjKaK85QUQGahAZCh3pCgU_HvyG-fKNoVaZlFasIF11TvVOu9aBi4q6Zt_fO3bMmEPjZXgH-Z90iBqBQjAKMbGGYHI47zjiCjysfmZuIoptT3OgJKPmWwrAKYdmie00AWzd6g/s640/P4092623a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black Twig Apple Tree Blossoms</td></tr>
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The caterpillars also eat the plum tree leaves, which have leafed out. They did not produce any flowers this year.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwwsQqedOEJmNnnh8XYbuEzvM9ISoRatz_tJw749hvb1PgmQw1niLXSBjBeiebPyIpBGyx6gky136GzB6RsOmH7s0oNYJ90_zUtPYHbX2Su4aQFsVM22wHuNJtCgbmCs6Mprb8F8sksU8/s1600/P4092622a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwwsQqedOEJmNnnh8XYbuEzvM9ISoRatz_tJw749hvb1PgmQw1niLXSBjBeiebPyIpBGyx6gky136GzB6RsOmH7s0oNYJ90_zUtPYHbX2Su4aQFsVM22wHuNJtCgbmCs6Mprb8F8sksU8/s640/P4092622a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rosa Plum</td></tr>
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The apple trees were the last to flower, which was a good thing due to our crazy warm winter. We had an extremely warm February that caused many of the fruit trees to blossom early, only to be met with a hard freeze in March. The peach trees flowered and the frost destroyed almost all of the blossoms. However, it appears that at least one flower survived and got pollinated. Maybe, just maybe I will have one, delicious, juicy peach this summer! Although note that as I took this picture, a tiny insect landed on the little peach. I have I feeling I'm not the only one that wants a juicy piece of peach!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB09ReECZQh2-MMiWG3i0m-bTQ1E34T3pMhcDa1J5CShy3N_Mxz4vLPV-Am6_eaFt_i23VwvovKpcDZfB0QsfgiOGENPbP-dC1HmJIDpwLjHF2YywfDa9VJ07HQS5_w8FbnxIp1bcca_g/s1600/P4092620a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB09ReECZQh2-MMiWG3i0m-bTQ1E34T3pMhcDa1J5CShy3N_Mxz4vLPV-Am6_eaFt_i23VwvovKpcDZfB0QsfgiOGENPbP-dC1HmJIDpwLjHF2YywfDa9VJ07HQS5_w8FbnxIp1bcca_g/s640/P4092620a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A tiny Julyprince peach</td></tr>
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I'm also awaiting my first strawberry harvest. The Seascape strawberries are small and green at this point. I stalk them often, just in case they suddenly ripen and I need to beat the squirrels to a delicious berry.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJh_DoNo2jEEcDieaiZixI23u5o3KH85xIoty6TaTcyO8W1vPwwzLVgzmLyFzpZ5ZBfz5aTw_q0SS6qeWrE6TCVR_4GzTPLudPFE2K7DFYC5fWKGbM7CUoCS0tlDoWtinX36L3tPjNtDQ/s1600/P4092630a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJh_DoNo2jEEcDieaiZixI23u5o3KH85xIoty6TaTcyO8W1vPwwzLVgzmLyFzpZ5ZBfz5aTw_q0SS6qeWrE6TCVR_4GzTPLudPFE2K7DFYC5fWKGbM7CUoCS0tlDoWtinX36L3tPjNtDQ/s640/P4092630a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seascape Strawberries</td></tr>
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Dianthus, phlox, clematis and hellebore make up the spring show in my front flower bed with bright pink and purple blooms. I need to continue to fill the space. I tend to neglect the ornamentals in my landscape for the edible plants.<br /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhypyUM5E9HH2fJExr7IjiKXurfXMnzSUtBWRxXj3OBnfkaOn4VbcwOxnnskFMmcIl70YkXNRgI31MZCFIbnCJyQoO31toe1U9unp2t3RGt2ZhIlwRD0TcM0O-Vmj0b-DmtKkp8BeEs3ZE/s1600/P4092627a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhypyUM5E9HH2fJExr7IjiKXurfXMnzSUtBWRxXj3OBnfkaOn4VbcwOxnnskFMmcIl70YkXNRgI31MZCFIbnCJyQoO31toe1U9unp2t3RGt2ZhIlwRD0TcM0O-Vmj0b-DmtKkp8BeEs3ZE/s640/P4092627a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Front Flower Bed</td></tr>
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Another ornamental beginning to bloom is the Cherokee Brave dogwood.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm_gU1oWb_l_rzOBYnwCUYGMMQ35tN8eNGKERWPGtVZV3nyxk1IhOS3GVquHo25Gp0Q_W1dvJx3-WLC7hEMm1j8jD3DJbDT5PirkmGW_cb9-_FoS2jNYAa08d5Z7VMZcQI-89dMMeuLTI/s1600/P4092625a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm_gU1oWb_l_rzOBYnwCUYGMMQ35tN8eNGKERWPGtVZV3nyxk1IhOS3GVquHo25Gp0Q_W1dvJx3-WLC7hEMm1j8jD3DJbDT5PirkmGW_cb9-_FoS2jNYAa08d5Z7VMZcQI-89dMMeuLTI/s640/P4092625a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cherokee Brave Dogwood</td></tr>
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The beneficial bug wildflower bed next to the vegetable garden has flowering clovers, Siberian wallflower and baby blue eyes. I discovered the downfall of planting wildflowers next to the vegetable garden is that the seeds disperse all over the beds. I think the black-eyed susans could easily colonize the entire garden!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_lu94uNwPwAiGPKPfKNOwNbZNwjZeVyfJbPJwNUVIHoyNJCJ889KujAeCmxePTKZgrsQldK7dRUXL0MgQcX-rxTpAQqxE10-_egkYn5ls57GjZB_h9YEZv-gnfwz3r0RSMhBxkLz-GTI/s1600/P4092629a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_lu94uNwPwAiGPKPfKNOwNbZNwjZeVyfJbPJwNUVIHoyNJCJ889KujAeCmxePTKZgrsQldK7dRUXL0MgQcX-rxTpAQqxE10-_egkYn5ls57GjZB_h9YEZv-gnfwz3r0RSMhBxkLz-GTI/s640/P4092629a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beneficial Bug Flower Bed</td></tr>
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From the vegetable garden, I have been harvesting spring crops. I pulled some of the overwintering carrots (1 lb, 6 oz) and spring planted cherry belle radishes. I neglected to take photos of all the greens that have been coming out of the garden: lettuce, Swiss chard, spinach and cabbage. I made an Asian coleslaw with cabbage and carrots along with a quiche with the Swiss chard. I've been eating plenty of salads with lettuce, carrots and radishes.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVx-3g_JO16HX8I6WpWLJGIwHon90itckv7fQVEJW50HpfllosSwPd20DQAmInws59uoZf9crkdnGnufdOmYfbeHwpBGFNry_xIFfQe88LuMxUmIwiEwKOfxMXX3nl82B6QCT7kudXteU/s1600/P4062615a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVx-3g_JO16HX8I6WpWLJGIwHon90itckv7fQVEJW50HpfllosSwPd20DQAmInws59uoZf9crkdnGnufdOmYfbeHwpBGFNry_xIFfQe88LuMxUmIwiEwKOfxMXX3nl82B6QCT7kudXteU/s640/P4062615a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Overwintering carrots and spring radishes</td></tr>
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It tastes and looks like spring around here!<br />
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<br />Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-6998076539607593182017-04-02T17:31:00.000-04:002017-04-02T17:31:16.135-04:00Early April Garden Tour<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We've had warm temperatures and descent rainfall the past couple of weeks, which has brought the spring garden to life. I love seeing the bright new green growth emerge from blank beds. Sprouting seedlings contain so much potential for delicious harvests. I find spring a season filled with inspiration from the germinating seed to the strawberry flowers.<br />
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Join me on an early spring tour of my garden.<br />
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Two weeks ago I planted asparagus crowns that looked lifeless and brown. I built a new raised bed using rocks, filled it with soil and buried the octopus-like root crowns. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTwLFcjGsbypgHJBEnYJImurS8NM8upd5F2SuZXV8BZp2VElR-_kVou0YYfTp_VVaQ8y50y2APuh8xpkM-80VwRKJyCkPGN48cFwaEySRTCyJNaKrQ4FTLFRRaF2Lkl8UefziTDjbeUuA/s1600/P3172565a.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTwLFcjGsbypgHJBEnYJImurS8NM8upd5F2SuZXV8BZp2VElR-_kVou0YYfTp_VVaQ8y50y2APuh8xpkM-80VwRKJyCkPGN48cFwaEySRTCyJNaKrQ4FTLFRRaF2Lkl8UefziTDjbeUuA/s640/P3172565a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Today I noticed that they've sprouted thin stalks! Either I was completely oblivious and missed seeing them emerge or they shot up out of the ground really fast. They are growing next to the pollinator flower bed and I've discovered that black-eyed susans disperse excessive amounts of seeds and will colonize the world (or at least my garden). I'm hoping the asparagus bed doesn't get overrun with black-eyed susans.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyNP6Q6A9U1S_5BBapTHk2SaWj1MS7wHtg5oKK_o3a-UqODSj9E0wzuGNemqTupyvSnwjugNgkN3OChpyEzQ61hVAPc_E_eZq7mJzOlSrKtD2cCa0L-YUTN3lPqSMv5QPfdvF2FnAofvU/s1600/P3312575a.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyNP6Q6A9U1S_5BBapTHk2SaWj1MS7wHtg5oKK_o3a-UqODSj9E0wzuGNemqTupyvSnwjugNgkN3OChpyEzQ61hVAPc_E_eZq7mJzOlSrKtD2cCa0L-YUTN3lPqSMv5QPfdvF2FnAofvU/s640/P3312575a.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
Now just a couple of years to wait for an asparagus harvest!<br />
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In the annual beds of my garden, lots of seedlings have sprouted and are putting on new growth. I overplanted spinach seeds because I had poor germination in the fall. All the seeds have sprouted and grown. I thinned and thinned some more, saving the miniature spinach leaves as microgreens to add to my salads. Spinach has a narrow window of growth in my climate because we tend to go from cool spring temperatures to the heat of summer suddenly. Hopefully the spinach will have time to grow before the heat arrives.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW-wD3Hg7mZoHw1gAD7kmcO6hz6yZkYpeiVFp-J3wGwuuU7BcRsKguBmLuZ-fQJEigGIvRBwOZS7zi7u1STLvjO51beLgtjCTULT-Ll-efgnN91QS7GK90SMvZ7LrYU0KaRizhjfyUk30/s1600/P3312576a.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW-wD3Hg7mZoHw1gAD7kmcO6hz6yZkYpeiVFp-J3wGwuuU7BcRsKguBmLuZ-fQJEigGIvRBwOZS7zi7u1STLvjO51beLgtjCTULT-Ll-efgnN91QS7GK90SMvZ7LrYU0KaRizhjfyUk30/s640/P3312576a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Peas germinated abundantly this spring. Yesterday I put up their trellis since they are growing and reaching into the sky for something to cling to. Last year aphids infected my peas, so I'm hoping for fewer aphids and more peas this spring. I still dream of having enough peas to freeze. It has yet to happen, but maybe this will be the year.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKNuFJQXy2mVJ7WJdUzS4_ILzYq6tmAb6SDekL7JjjsKs-r_qQwpVx-24f8dCZQxGOfidtGM3yQYelmwfw-dk_zAbqbmTwxxsrygIRUrcsySXP7GvlzIjugUq5UjYybs6odxHMn57YxPE/s1600/P3312578a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKNuFJQXy2mVJ7WJdUzS4_ILzYq6tmAb6SDekL7JjjsKs-r_qQwpVx-24f8dCZQxGOfidtGM3yQYelmwfw-dk_zAbqbmTwxxsrygIRUrcsySXP7GvlzIjugUq5UjYybs6odxHMn57YxPE/s640/P3312578a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
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Spring planted turnips are abundant and green. They are living under a row cover this year because last year I had a destructive infestation of harlequin beetles.<div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuUl5Zqe4ll4vUYYg0TCV0RKHyh4ehBv07fx8ed179Ld_PBJGZFvaNiIUn6C-ZnRcaG6j3RuIR-A209mQ7suX6ncGtjbIH5kbLoP4jOlFSOTWnXBVdVPhWaUNWi9bC2GLgedr4ODN6fNI/s1600/P3312579a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuUl5Zqe4ll4vUYYg0TCV0RKHyh4ehBv07fx8ed179Ld_PBJGZFvaNiIUn6C-ZnRcaG6j3RuIR-A209mQ7suX6ncGtjbIH5kbLoP4jOlFSOTWnXBVdVPhWaUNWi9bC2GLgedr4ODN6fNI/s640/P3312579a.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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Carrots are notorious for poor germination, but they are looking good this year. They are growing next to the turnips, so I ended up covering the entire root row. However, we had some strong winds a couple of days ago and those row covers did not want to stay put! A fifty foot row cover kite and strong winds makes for an entertaining scene for anyone watching, but not so fun for me!</div>
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Detroit red and golden beets sprouted too. My fall beets performed poorly this year, so I'm looking forward to a beet harvest.</div>
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Mustard is one of my new crops for 2017. I direct sowed them and they seem to be thriving. </div>
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Celery is my other experimental new crop for the year. I started them inside and transplanted them a couple of weeks ago. I need to thin them, but other than that they seem to be growing fine.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVaIlZ3xEhcdo9gZHQDx4jSzavExMbvLo6Z8TxGehfQpOM_xyMO4o-nEeMBwP32WpL1jkKk343oCWkej4vDeqIoyY83Ty5ETYMDslgDg2HufjBXhyIb3eE-TcWVppL4J4MEGaEZUDfTxg/s1600/P3312583a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVaIlZ3xEhcdo9gZHQDx4jSzavExMbvLo6Z8TxGehfQpOM_xyMO4o-nEeMBwP32WpL1jkKk343oCWkej4vDeqIoyY83Ty5ETYMDslgDg2HufjBXhyIb3eE-TcWVppL4J4MEGaEZUDfTxg/s640/P3312583a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The little Cherry Belle radishes beat the competition for the first spring crops. I've never been a big radish fan, but I love to grow them since they are the closest crop to instant gratification you can get.</div>
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Fall planted garlic continues to grow and gets greener as spring gets warmer. I'm hoping for a good garlic harvest this year.</div>
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My overwintering cabbage looks ready for harvest. I harvested one head last week (2 lbs 11 oz), which is a good-sized cabbage for me! I used the first head in a potato and cabbage casserole. The next cabbage harvest will become coleslaw for a cookout this coming Friday for J's birthday.</div>
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And because gardening is a constant process, here's the newly planted cabbage seedlings. I need to thin them too! </div>
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Many of the herbs have put on new growth as spring arrives. My thyme looks lush and dense with little blooms.</div>
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Broccoli had a rough start this spring. We had an exceptionally warm February, but then in mid March, winter decided to return and we had a hard frost for several nights. At this point, my broccoli were tiny and I didn't have enough row covers and I assumed that they were cold hardy. They were too young and unprepared for the cold, so I had some causalities and do not have as many broccoli seedlings as I would like. </div>
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Potato stems and leaves have poked out of the ground. They too are protected under a row cover because I do not trust the potato beetles to leave anything for me.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI-76J8vgf9N6fzcLTsmRYuhkN3IFOdeXt9mkoGaiTAXDrR3brDlAHPg_XWkqOoYErxMXO6EXLCokm6SUjunolwDTvLOPeohzISbJ2V0d_Xz5CHNx1TJ2XW0WXgp-QL2PQl1vhvat6g0Q/s1600/P3312597a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI-76J8vgf9N6fzcLTsmRYuhkN3IFOdeXt9mkoGaiTAXDrR3brDlAHPg_XWkqOoYErxMXO6EXLCokm6SUjunolwDTvLOPeohzISbJ2V0d_Xz5CHNx1TJ2XW0WXgp-QL2PQl1vhvat6g0Q/s640/P3312597a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I am delighted to see my strawberries flower and begin to form tiny, green berries. This year will be my first strawberry harvest. I planted them last year and I can't wait to taste the first delicious and juicy strawberry. I have a feeling that some squirrels may also be anticipating strawberries as much as me.</div>
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That is what is going on in my garden this spring. Soon it will be time to plant the summer crops. I have tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, squash, melons and okra growing in little pots waiting for the sun to warm the soil so that they can move out into the garden. I've been putting the seedlings on the back porch on warm days to help them acclimate to the sun. Our average last frost date is mid-April. That means that soon the gardening pace will pick up. Spring is a lovely time to observe the greening of the garden. It's always amazing to watch as the garden goes from empty soil to tiny seedlings that grow to towering plants producing abundant crops. Oh the miracles of spring!</div>
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Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-66972434235493337972017-03-16T18:46:00.000-04:002017-03-16T18:46:16.307-04:00New Beginnings<div class="MsoNormal">
Spring promises of things to come. It is around the corner here and with spring
comes new chances. Gardeners are an
optimistic bunch. Every year brings new
hope with every seed that sprouts. We
tell ourselves that this will be the year that the garden grows lush and
productive. We will remember to do our
succession planting. We will stay on top
of weeding and harvesting! We’ve spent
the cold months plotting and planning and dreaming and now it is time to get
out there and make the garden grow!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid4oVQNQhrdRofh-_0IR3dUedNiR5qmWNgxMkeer2Pv2fkUPA7HI10RHVAJsxwevwKkhMFUWDPWdL_D12nTNOqi_tufRbUPRoKk4Av_g7vpoqdpFetESvdphpGzsTtlGqVo-1b5t8aPBI/s1600/P3162548a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid4oVQNQhrdRofh-_0IR3dUedNiR5qmWNgxMkeer2Pv2fkUPA7HI10RHVAJsxwevwKkhMFUWDPWdL_D12nTNOqi_tufRbUPRoKk4Av_g7vpoqdpFetESvdphpGzsTtlGqVo-1b5t8aPBI/s640/P3162548a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Of course, there will be challenges, there are always challenges. But each year the challenges are a little bit
less insurmountable. Every year I learn a little bit more about how to
successfully grow food in my corner of the world. Every season will be slightly different. Some years the rains come until fungi grow
better than plants. In other years, the
rain is sparse and the sun is intense and the plants bake. Gardening is never dull or predictable. You learn to adapt and do the best you can to
the changing conditions. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Every year I like to try to grow something new. This year I’m trying some new veggies: celery
and mustard, which are completely not adapted to my climate, but that’s why
they are a challenge. Both grow best in
cool weather, which we tend to avoid. It
seems our weather is either cold, warm or hot!
I’m hoping if it’s too hot here to successfully grow mustard and celery
that they will at least bolt and produce seeds.
I use both of their seeds in pickling banana peppers and in some
dishes. If I end up with plenty of
mustard seeds, then I can always make some mustard. I’ve already started both celery and mustard
for spring planting, but if they do not grow well in the spring I may try again
in the fall.<o:p></o:p></div>
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In the herb bed, I want to add ginger and turmeric. There’s a farm not too far from here that
sells rhizomes of these and has detailed instructions about how to grow
them. Both are tropical plants, so they
are not hardy here. They require a long
growing season and need to be pre-sprouted inside to ensure enough growth to
get harvests before the first frost. I
use ginger and turmeric often for curries, so it’ll be nice to have some fresh
flavors from the garden.<o:p></o:p></div>
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For permanent additions to my garden, I’m putting in a new
bed that will hold asparagus and some perennial onions. I’ve ordered fifty asparagus crowns: Half
Jersey Knight and half Jersey Supreme.
I’ve been wanting to get asparagus planted for a few years and this is
the year. The bed is ready and my crowns
should arrive Friday! It’ll be a few
years before I get to enjoy a bounty from my asparagus bed, but I’m sure it is
worth the wait. The rest of the bed will
be devoted to perennial onions. These
will be planted in the fall, so I haven’t settled on what I’m planting
yet. So far I’m thinking of Egyptian
walking onions and potato onions. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Another big change for my garden this year is that it has
officially become a no-till garden. I
am going into my fourth year at this garden and since I plant directly in the
ground, tilling was necessary to break up the soil and turn up the never ending
supply of rocks. Tilling, however, has
some negative consequences. The soil
where I live has a considerable amount of clay, so tiling can cause compaction. Tilling also leads to increased soil erosion
and I am especially concerned about this since my garden has a significant
slope to it. Tiling also breaks up the
natural soil structure and the ecosystem of organisms. I’m a bit concerned about whether weeds will
be worse without tilling and whether some pests will be able to overwinter and
survive better in my untilled garden. I
think in the long run no-till will make the soil healthier, but I may encounter
some speed bumps along the way. I added
compost to the beds and instead of tiling; I added plenty of water and covered
them with black plastic. I am hoping
this will kill any weeds in the beds and add some warmth to the soil to allow
for decomposition. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiynk7dUAKJkkWnBCQD5XKO6LZeLSAJWfZcVbijuC67nLKFqFnSyxI6s6lIIzscrPkvTpCOBh4UxsJqCNApNYMyteoTRybzUhKq_8mo4KubJBLUCCpnBl5IMbBHVb0RuLNraDuSe4VWN5U/s1600/P3162551a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiynk7dUAKJkkWnBCQD5XKO6LZeLSAJWfZcVbijuC67nLKFqFnSyxI6s6lIIzscrPkvTpCOBh4UxsJqCNApNYMyteoTRybzUhKq_8mo4KubJBLUCCpnBl5IMbBHVb0RuLNraDuSe4VWN5U/s640/P3162551a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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For me, gardening is constant experiment. I’m hoping 2017 will bring some new harvests
along with an abundance of my favorites.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Are you trying new things in the garden this year?<o:p></o:p></div>
Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-25653119949910894742016-11-07T19:26:00.000-05:002016-11-07T19:26:54.231-05:00Harvest Monday 11/7/16Our frost free days are numbered here. The forecast shows below freezing temperatures for this coming weekend. That means I'm going to be busy this week!<br />
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The summer veggies may be making their last appearance. I harvested some of the remaining green beans. I've had a good green bean year and have plenty in the freezer. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggdgtUKx_G7LIwJptwJAMp2SS3sDtFDDQGOXRjTjJkNNMM1FpRR-EAUtcv_uPsTRcrZoL0vXXcrpfjvOQoXO0Xz35OtVK2LWJ4EVkXR9NXifi4UFAWocBfBvGJsP0r4RQaYlouxORJBfM/s1600/PB062083a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggdgtUKx_G7LIwJptwJAMp2SS3sDtFDDQGOXRjTjJkNNMM1FpRR-EAUtcv_uPsTRcrZoL0vXXcrpfjvOQoXO0Xz35OtVK2LWJ4EVkXR9NXifi4UFAWocBfBvGJsP0r4RQaYlouxORJBfM/s640/PB062083a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blue Coco and Garden of Eden Beans</td></tr>
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My giant okra plant that flopped over still produces. I find it much easier to harvest when it is sideways, especially when I'm only five feet tall! </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKWTYWyd_KFl74FrAVXBAt6w5_lQeZMWhnlVgr2IzXykoR7togv17_U4msgvUUxLyjAVe-zMtEXLldA9Tm-CPoZmblhWAAe9BPgqnGjcghtOLHwBqBt1MOTfnRRupoWITvAcEgd8Isa6I/s1600/PB062085a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKWTYWyd_KFl74FrAVXBAt6w5_lQeZMWhnlVgr2IzXykoR7togv17_U4msgvUUxLyjAVe-zMtEXLldA9Tm-CPoZmblhWAAe9BPgqnGjcghtOLHwBqBt1MOTfnRRupoWITvAcEgd8Isa6I/s640/PB062085a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basket of okra from my sideways plant</td></tr>
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The tomatoes slowly ripen although many of them have been damaged by an assortment of insects. I've been harvesting them as soon as they are the tiniest bit red to get to them before the bugs do. There's still quite a few green tomatoes out there. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKRTK8DQU5UaRpIT8kdOQIt7SUVgG7TR6SSWVrtQ_6XuUQSuwyCySeI6rmIo2DgaRwC9UHMDVJnaGHX6hDe7aBq1CepVxuaBYc3H4pZOoUsl2Z4aB94bOWYb759WL5ld_jzQOWiVi6z40/s1600/PB062089a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKRTK8DQU5UaRpIT8kdOQIt7SUVgG7TR6SSWVrtQ_6XuUQSuwyCySeI6rmIo2DgaRwC9UHMDVJnaGHX6hDe7aBq1CepVxuaBYc3H4pZOoUsl2Z4aB94bOWYb759WL5ld_jzQOWiVi6z40/s640/PB062089a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A mix of paste tomatoes</td></tr>
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The summer veggie I always miss the most are sweet bell peppers. I can't complain because this year has been a record pepper year for me, but I will still miss them.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">How many peppers can I pile in a pail?</td></tr>
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I'm also harvesting eggplants and more Seminole pumpkins. I have quite a pumpkin pile growing on my kitchen counter. This winter I will need to explore some new pumpkin recipes.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Zy4tq7zmycpCVPHeKjg6C2NfJbqvWlLegYFHgG-c848rFDKuPC1VN8FvhMK9v0ZqzrXxoEEZBi3fFngOrYd-dmX-8-3yb0Y5xY5e6iRFFxgbNFrnozu_S9RMCyb-3Z-xDpu4655tXsk/s1600/PB062087a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Zy4tq7zmycpCVPHeKjg6C2NfJbqvWlLegYFHgG-c848rFDKuPC1VN8FvhMK9v0ZqzrXxoEEZBi3fFngOrYd-dmX-8-3yb0Y5xY5e6iRFFxgbNFrnozu_S9RMCyb-3Z-xDpu4655tXsk/s640/PB062087a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seminole Pumpkins and Eggplants</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I've also been working on shelling dried beans. I've yet to weigh them, but the black beans have been the most productive. I've also got pinto and kidney beans in there along with a few soybeans, which I'll be saving to replant next spring. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8WD5VjwUagFVCilu_a0Og3KcgN7y1KjOWVbwJ9KlGAV6Uw4rAMQQbqUjuVKHwK78WM5vYcN_KUnXnqy59nPYNLDsD5LZYDNUJ9vYPn6_-QO758kmAXENbaPxejOJ2kII00vPu6PWJIvo/s1600/PB062091a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8WD5VjwUagFVCilu_a0Og3KcgN7y1KjOWVbwJ9KlGAV6Uw4rAMQQbqUjuVKHwK78WM5vYcN_KUnXnqy59nPYNLDsD5LZYDNUJ9vYPn6_-QO758kmAXENbaPxejOJ2kII00vPu6PWJIvo/s640/PB062091a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bowl of dried beans</td></tr>
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On Sunday, two friends texted and asked what we were doing and I replied, digging up sweet potatoes. Well, they showed up with a shovel and with four people it only took about 30 minutes to dig up all the sweet potatoes! I've yet to weigh them, but there were some good sized potatoes. There's definitely less than last year, but I did plant less because last year was 175 lbs and that was just ridiculous. They need to cure for about two weeks at a warm temperature and high humidity. To attempt to get those conditions I put them on a heat mat and place a container of water inside while leaving the lid ajar. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVN2fzNY2AoTv3anIaSur6qU70r84hIBxbUrblhELwNnpnyzq8Vu_GRnx_Bm9G1pK3IFV4iYPrBqX329nhRjvRzyJKZlZ4dlxdCmIk9SbzMWxcLdWKgAopf08YBKmYPfe7-OyA-cXFlpk/s1600/PB062092a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVN2fzNY2AoTv3anIaSur6qU70r84hIBxbUrblhELwNnpnyzq8Vu_GRnx_Bm9G1pK3IFV4iYPrBqX329nhRjvRzyJKZlZ4dlxdCmIk9SbzMWxcLdWKgAopf08YBKmYPfe7-OyA-cXFlpk/s640/PB062092a.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet Potato Bounty</td></tr>
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My harvested peanuts from last week should be dry by now. I'm sure the squirrels ate some, but there seems to be plenty left. I also had a suspiciously turned over wheelbarrow next to the fence where the peanuts were drying with some peanut shells scattered about.</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Weekly Harvests (lbs):</div>
Chard 0.81<br />
Peppers 4.62<br />
Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 1.04<br />
Green beans 0.88<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 5.99<br />
Eggplant 1.83<br />
Winter squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>5.28<br />
Sweet potato greens 0.42<br />
<br />
Yearly Harvests: 954.6 lbs<br />
<br />
That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres</a>.Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-73936054018248432192016-10-31T15:28:00.000-04:002016-10-31T15:28:15.806-04:00Harvest Monday 10/31/16Last weekend we camped in the mountains of North Carolina and explored the Blue Ridge Parkway to view autumn leaves. I missed harvest Monday last week because of our trip, so today's report is a two week harvest. I love autumn with all the beautiful leaves, blue skies, cool weather and garden harvests, especially pumpkins! <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGIxeLofMqJ2W57WhaoUXFOqEKO0Gca1WF7GtUCwVvtIA1OgiiNHtx0POuDN_X4z2RULLUhS5JJdkj6m-7s5gUl19EB5eSzOcYYXTwde67pwjXOH4qGvq-HlEqsACiREeOReUCR4l0FGo/s1600/PA232071b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGIxeLofMqJ2W57WhaoUXFOqEKO0Gca1WF7GtUCwVvtIA1OgiiNHtx0POuDN_X4z2RULLUhS5JJdkj6m-7s5gUl19EB5eSzOcYYXTwde67pwjXOH4qGvq-HlEqsACiREeOReUCR4l0FGo/s640/PA232071b.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Autumn along the Blue Ridge Parkway</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In honor of Halloween, I'm updating the status of my big pumpkin that fell off the vine before it ripened. I'm happy to say it is much, much more orange than before, but it does have a soft spot on one side. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that my big pumpkin continues to ripen and not rot.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYQMnz0S_IbN5di_rdcGBDcliD9qC7z6RmtoIhNs9K5IhcFtqMYyEizscX4ZI5ct9E4UAqjQjJPyQGE55CJ-GqLOE2SY_YMs4q7OtM21cnCehc-fwKWkxdzHpMqG7JsE89GL9nPu8YSds/s1600/PA292074a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYQMnz0S_IbN5di_rdcGBDcliD9qC7z6RmtoIhNs9K5IhcFtqMYyEizscX4ZI5ct9E4UAqjQjJPyQGE55CJ-GqLOE2SY_YMs4q7OtM21cnCehc-fwKWkxdzHpMqG7JsE89GL9nPu8YSds/s640/PA292074a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My slowly ripening Dickinson Pumpkin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
On the topic of pumpkins, I harvested another almost 2 lb Seminole pumpkin.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-zVUOJv80XB2pMTTMIFVA-zR-oLak_fCaat34yBfNMUL-_wJP0PyUoPEt4SlHutvAqc8f-XB_Z4I8icVkDle7piCPAuFldUJtuuea910IaSAk33rNZx3949rteHoTxv4jjPxr3qvh9_A/s1600/PA302082a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-zVUOJv80XB2pMTTMIFVA-zR-oLak_fCaat34yBfNMUL-_wJP0PyUoPEt4SlHutvAqc8f-XB_Z4I8icVkDle7piCPAuFldUJtuuea910IaSAk33rNZx3949rteHoTxv4jjPxr3qvh9_A/s640/PA302082a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seminole Pumpkin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I have gotten creative with cooking pumpkin. My latest concoction is pumpkin pizza. Instead of tomato sauce I used pumpkin puree with onions, garlic and fresh thyme. I topped it with sauteed sweet potato greens, onions, mozzarella and parmesan. I thought it was delicious! J refused to try it, so I don't have a second opinion to report.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNzu-N0qlVTKN4Kf5X3CmgxORDMoYGzLM_UHGQ6Mf4lyzDJdO9SQRRqEufuHiC_KgsToLfplxBZfqok3AypAEhTty0gqi58dZ_ff9wElqO9sH4T0PhGuLBTT4EKNI01UQbOATF7OjEqVI/s1600/PA292077a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNzu-N0qlVTKN4Kf5X3CmgxORDMoYGzLM_UHGQ6Mf4lyzDJdO9SQRRqEufuHiC_KgsToLfplxBZfqok3AypAEhTty0gqi58dZ_ff9wElqO9sH4T0PhGuLBTT4EKNI01UQbOATF7OjEqVI/s640/PA292077a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pumpkin, sweet potato leaves and onion pizza</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The biggest harvest over the past two weeks are peppers at 7.4 lbs. I chopped and froze a bunch of them. The rest have been roasted or sauteed with eggs for breakfast. Peppers broke my harvest record this year at 77 lbs while last year I had 68 lbs.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIbni0wWKxU57P-TcE_sP74CRdniOsIGtq6J53-W6sXwXobMCHJDkQppolzyoOzu0H5DCkMk1HKCjGvvQgmIpWgUdGlaXb3oXfmcmw_dYdfzpkvW38cLS87DvW9QFY9_mmn4gBN0Apbbg/s1600/PA292073a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIbni0wWKxU57P-TcE_sP74CRdniOsIGtq6J53-W6sXwXobMCHJDkQppolzyoOzu0H5DCkMk1HKCjGvvQgmIpWgUdGlaXb3oXfmcmw_dYdfzpkvW38cLS87DvW9QFY9_mmn4gBN0Apbbg/s640/PA292073a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peppers and more peppers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I finally picked a descent amount of tomatoes this week. I haven't harvested many tomatoes since August. It looks like we don't have a first frost in the ten day forecast, so maybe I'll get even more tomatoes. Our average first frost date is usually the end of October, but this year it looks like we should make it to at least the middle of November.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZIJesSvvp7CLDprTPN_6NFsMy8h5cSQ7NThrYjxpdW9EvI42o0Nbi4YLO4W3XXUGm-YBevVwGSUveo5Uy6OUtT83hI4vWteBv30QMcuSzmWNKnN54oiJVP-qHq_1a_saPF1dcMHyK9n8/s1600/PA302079a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZIJesSvvp7CLDprTPN_6NFsMy8h5cSQ7NThrYjxpdW9EvI42o0Nbi4YLO4W3XXUGm-YBevVwGSUveo5Uy6OUtT83hI4vWteBv30QMcuSzmWNKnN54oiJVP-qHq_1a_saPF1dcMHyK9n8/s640/PA302079a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paste Tomatoes</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Green beans and okra continue to produce a bit each week. Roasting is still my preferred cooking method for okra. On our camping trip we cooked green beans and potatoes over the fire one night and bell peppers and onions another night. We also had pumpkin muffins along with the greens and cheese hand pies I had made previously and froze. It's fun to take the garden harvests along on a camping trip!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNXiaZ_bxogN-uaMJij6NV6k_i9-QP4ZSjwtwEpEsCjnW6K-OgU95aD6CKGU8FXe8aDNjMrbF0rXczejs9rSMlCg5neuGTmejwo_YudX1UPiPoGxUHDvEoDjvGE-gTfWARflFLWGis8P0/s1600/PA302081a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNXiaZ_bxogN-uaMJij6NV6k_i9-QP4ZSjwtwEpEsCjnW6K-OgU95aD6CKGU8FXe8aDNjMrbF0rXczejs9rSMlCg5neuGTmejwo_YudX1UPiPoGxUHDvEoDjvGE-gTfWARflFLWGis8P0/s640/PA302081a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Green beans and okra</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The first of the fall peas ripened in the garden. Germination was not very successful, so I doubt there will be very many peas this fall. We devoured these as soon as I took the photo!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkOLs69ce46iUOEvLZVIjOg1Yt9kJl6UmjHAY9rhHjBBo6z-2P56zSULFmczAgU3Eu_-OqAOhzQ4lvt8p8YwizrdqJ_VK-pGJ7qWPY-0ndFh-pjSBbnLaMPJD-l8XtMT_4KcBiw7ao-gU/s1600/PA302080a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkOLs69ce46iUOEvLZVIjOg1Yt9kJl6UmjHAY9rhHjBBo6z-2P56zSULFmczAgU3Eu_-OqAOhzQ4lvt8p8YwizrdqJ_VK-pGJ7qWPY-0ndFh-pjSBbnLaMPJD-l8XtMT_4KcBiw7ao-gU/s640/PA302080a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first of the fall peas</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I finally shelled the dried cowpeas that have been sitting in the garage for at least a month. This year was a very good year for cowpeas. These jars hold 8 cups and there's still some cowpeas in the garden. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgcbcDSktlUJ3AOa_RttY-8OCEmDMl2I63ZqBErxaxlI9SQQl6R647-5mrf_MMT-Org0RtTnv66nD7z4q0jInm_udjjbmRA8O598ozS7jng4nKHgbh1Cp_5winVjazDsMdcoBqp2Ad51E/s1600/PA302078a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgcbcDSktlUJ3AOa_RttY-8OCEmDMl2I63ZqBErxaxlI9SQQl6R647-5mrf_MMT-Org0RtTnv66nD7z4q0jInm_udjjbmRA8O598ozS7jng4nKHgbh1Cp_5winVjazDsMdcoBqp2Ad51E/s640/PA302078a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dried Cowpeas</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This is the season of digging in the garden for me. The peanut leaves began to yellow, which meant it was time to harvest. I dug up the peanuts and now they are drying on the fence. I'm hoping the squirrels don't steal them all! They need to dry for at least a week. For once I am happy to see no rain in the weekly forecast so that my peanuts can dry.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEintuyWfwtzmFMm06WGWJBs2WSxNEVxjU05Sy5alqlyDdau_Ds76GLH5svPRShyphenhyphenEhpsBp4N8I5WAB4n8CrgJ3tE8zMeVKV3I8LfJGU2gCs6Lx9gyCIbA3LIsonj57wlUwt2Tj9WAUgCRH4/s1600/PA292075a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEintuyWfwtzmFMm06WGWJBs2WSxNEVxjU05Sy5alqlyDdau_Ds76GLH5svPRShyphenhyphenEhpsBp4N8I5WAB4n8CrgJ3tE8zMeVKV3I8LfJGU2gCs6Lx9gyCIbA3LIsonj57wlUwt2Tj9WAUgCRH4/s640/PA292075a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peanuts drying on the fence</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Peanuts hang all around the garden. The peanut harvest appears to be abundant this year. We will see how many I end up with after the drying period. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2bizKTE4dTITqFQ71OnA0uSQNEd-9KJEuY2htoUNfkH3HLbLy6zcVWz6bdP_uIuJGkxBCptbqH7tEzqMsTT6F923Q-ELMu3GvnCQv_aNeIEhWVw4KyaohBYmKNZafjZaE5I0DrUwM0II/s1600/PA292076a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2bizKTE4dTITqFQ71OnA0uSQNEd-9KJEuY2htoUNfkH3HLbLy6zcVWz6bdP_uIuJGkxBCptbqH7tEzqMsTT6F923Q-ELMu3GvnCQv_aNeIEhWVw4KyaohBYmKNZafjZaE5I0DrUwM0II/s640/PA292076a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peanut harvesting and drying</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Two Week Harvests (lbs):<br />
Peas<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.14<br />
Peppers 7.40<br />
Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 1.36<br />
Green beans 2.39<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 4.14<br />
Eggplant<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>6.38<br />
Melon 3.93<br />
Winter squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>1.94<br />
<br />
Yearly Harvests: 933.8 lbs<br />
<br />
That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres</a>.Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-56211048108312391702016-10-17T12:25:00.000-04:002016-10-17T12:25:25.813-04:00Harvest Monday 10/17/16We had perfect fall weather this past week and I spent some time cleaning up the garden. What I really need to do is start digging up all the sweet potatoes. The coming week is predicted to be warmer and the first frost is nowhere is sight for the next ten days, which means I will procrastinate digging up sweet potatoes!<br />
<div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgTqrWJvqdV5IC-cNQ4WfZx-17p_cptULw-_R5ZiPaDu9TD-n8ooFJYDpEvOqh0EJ3zzzEgdhfnapJQqi6gcZV_7kgtcTuksF1HeI95Jqmbzc8CaFvL97BUqwNGXgV5ca-J9SDGp6POcs/s1600/PA141912a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgTqrWJvqdV5IC-cNQ4WfZx-17p_cptULw-_R5ZiPaDu9TD-n8ooFJYDpEvOqh0EJ3zzzEgdhfnapJQqi6gcZV_7kgtcTuksF1HeI95Jqmbzc8CaFvL97BUqwNGXgV5ca-J9SDGp6POcs/s640/PA141912a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Late fall garden with abundant sweet potato vines</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
With such nice weather, I spent time just being in the garden while procrastinating hard work like digging up sweet potatoes! It won't be long until all the green will be gone, so it is time to savory the garden and all the critters that enjoy it as much as I do.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmHlz2vvR-9PTaqFtdrxdBhfKE0wRNZTuUR-cKvMip_c_l-ol_fRoFWQNOUvRobWlgnnsDlnaPInqoTKXDsrl3cN7Q0kh7K0r7U5X3t5x9ngRpdPgfr9ebcvGQWc79NPCMsN6WXSvwsFY/s1600/PA141917a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmHlz2vvR-9PTaqFtdrxdBhfKE0wRNZTuUR-cKvMip_c_l-ol_fRoFWQNOUvRobWlgnnsDlnaPInqoTKXDsrl3cN7Q0kh7K0r7U5X3t5x9ngRpdPgfr9ebcvGQWc79NPCMsN6WXSvwsFY/s640/PA141917a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bee enjoying marigolds</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Some critters that enjoy my garden are not on the guest list, including this giant grasshopper. I'm suspecting that he may be responsible for my disappearing fall seedlings!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPrbjkfzIYKZcleyo9RC01ggT2Lrhsy7NETrSX1ae9696FDcP2jjX8-7NvDmx001KiIS1lpXtZcQV3yAgkZfgnokbp7CJHJKBekoE8iqnU09FG73gukQl4B4FE1yAZeyra2ckb83Sq6vY/s1600/PA141913a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPrbjkfzIYKZcleyo9RC01ggT2Lrhsy7NETrSX1ae9696FDcP2jjX8-7NvDmx001KiIS1lpXtZcQV3yAgkZfgnokbp7CJHJKBekoE8iqnU09FG73gukQl4B4FE1yAZeyra2ckb83Sq6vY/s640/PA141913a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant grasshopper on chard</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
As for harvests, the eggplants continue to produce well. The plants have bent over with the weight of fruits. I'm getting tired of eating eggplants, so these were passed on to a coworker. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaSAJVdgpFLgIEm1qkiMPYNToGgha6mQBxtr2tdZ6F6YH_u8NNsYM9iXouaaUV1vyW5bxJRtiuVnoZE3B4-3WKpPDsGUUJfFscOg1qWZrL-NB6ikfUK43pIIYNOqUyHMIn6Tly3c06rfg/s1600/PA121901a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaSAJVdgpFLgIEm1qkiMPYNToGgha6mQBxtr2tdZ6F6YH_u8NNsYM9iXouaaUV1vyW5bxJRtiuVnoZE3B4-3WKpPDsGUUJfFscOg1qWZrL-NB6ikfUK43pIIYNOqUyHMIn6Tly3c06rfg/s640/PA121901a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Florida Market Eggplants</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I spotted another giant grasshopper in the green beans. Luckily the beans continue to provide harvests even though the leaves are looking munched and sad. This week I roasted <a href="http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/roasted-fingerlings-green-beans-with-creamy-tarragon-dressing" target="_blank">green beans with potatoes with a creamy tarragon dressing</a>. Delicious! I have tarragon growing in the herb bed, but it is something I don't use often. This dressing recipe may change that.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq_Xd6yUNcaY9QRNezuyCow2SvHT0OJyVGw7lZI7Ge_GZVwzQA1ZNHf2f_J1NULcur-iA7prnrrUFtBbF1wm5sGwI9JZhyUeFyolRD7fZtYmCdQ5mvg_llB0CfxfxPODpUYtsFf6KGYFw/s1600/PA161924a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq_Xd6yUNcaY9QRNezuyCow2SvHT0OJyVGw7lZI7Ge_GZVwzQA1ZNHf2f_J1NULcur-iA7prnrrUFtBbF1wm5sGwI9JZhyUeFyolRD7fZtYmCdQ5mvg_llB0CfxfxPODpUYtsFf6KGYFw/s640/PA161924a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Garden of Eden and Blue Coco Beans</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I harvested another little Seminole pumpkin at about 2 1/2 pounds. I counted at least a dozen more little pumpkins growing on the same vine. They may not all ripen before our first frost, but it has definitely been my best pumpkin year ever. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuRCwM4zK9p6ExtM3sV_KEi1FJodSqVDYlaNw3nq0K1CEMKHRCWIdnSj_Q_7ufji9XFlYNIdNnuxQqXnB0TB36oWTSk9LlE3tQAvRPOTZrKVeX3h9CtG3X8gkC06-lMPxQ87XBnbF0wyU/s1600/PA161926a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuRCwM4zK9p6ExtM3sV_KEi1FJodSqVDYlaNw3nq0K1CEMKHRCWIdnSj_Q_7ufji9XFlYNIdNnuxQqXnB0TB36oWTSk9LlE3tQAvRPOTZrKVeX3h9CtG3X8gkC06-lMPxQ87XBnbF0wyU/s640/PA161926a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seminole Pumpkin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The okra plant that toppled over from all the rain ended up toppling over in the opposite direction. I attempted to right it again and broke a major part of the stem. I decided to just leave it toppled over. Despite all its troubles, I did harvest a bit of okra this week. The tomatoes are slowly trying to make a comeback. I will take all I can get!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCIGZzs0RJUdSF-Utdp5ZEs0q2ssEOr8mH4kLNpisHjx1RQ7HFHh7zNPb6As5CN-1W2CfVOJAXf32Na9vZg1WJbOUTYwHzZ5f2efmvJ84rQsmqEwdmRxycihp0uq3XfsN54VWcnmFmpmY/s1600/PA161929a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCIGZzs0RJUdSF-Utdp5ZEs0q2ssEOr8mH4kLNpisHjx1RQ7HFHh7zNPb6As5CN-1W2CfVOJAXf32Na9vZg1WJbOUTYwHzZ5f2efmvJ84rQsmqEwdmRxycihp0uq3XfsN54VWcnmFmpmY/s640/PA161929a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A few tomatoes and okra</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Peppers were the most abundant harvest this week at 3.9 lbs. I have now harvested more peppers this year than last year. I've been roasting and eating them with plans of freezing the extra. However, for some reason I never seem to have extras.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiREYywb5pRzjtxLS0RcDIAAqkKtT4esksHLJ8mAykhybZgQX95bpf25ANmD6U0NnjaqoFvwHQeGcF2ZAGz_9aS-dH6e74cxFIzSAyVV7T8mhujHzFFSBkyEfe2e1rRuJCHWca4DeaQtJc/s1600/PA161928a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiREYywb5pRzjtxLS0RcDIAAqkKtT4esksHLJ8mAykhybZgQX95bpf25ANmD6U0NnjaqoFvwHQeGcF2ZAGz_9aS-dH6e74cxFIzSAyVV7T8mhujHzFFSBkyEfe2e1rRuJCHWca4DeaQtJc/s640/PA161928a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basket full of Peppers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Last week I harvested sweet potato leaves and this week I cooked them into these <a href="http://www.dirtygourmet.com/spinach-cheese-hand-pies/" target="_blank">greens and cheese hand pies</a>. I really like these although I did change the recipe a bit to use whole wheat flour and coconut oil. I froze a bunch of them before baking. I hope they taste good after being frozen. If so, I may be using a lot of sweet potato leaves to make hand pies to keep in the freezer.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5TtUhoRLACGv0Urhcz0CN3glEmfQ7qZ0OUVefc8SqRFUNhGAhPnkelwQKQd2Fw0QzcSyyiW7o4SIpK7fDDd614AxBqHR0E2ezmn-mnOSGzhEQpc6VkWMjUPJPZ4IesjvnxSLRW3Qj_4g/s1600/PA151919a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5TtUhoRLACGv0Urhcz0CN3glEmfQ7qZ0OUVefc8SqRFUNhGAhPnkelwQKQd2Fw0QzcSyyiW7o4SIpK7fDDd614AxBqHR0E2ezmn-mnOSGzhEQpc6VkWMjUPJPZ4IesjvnxSLRW3Qj_4g/s640/PA151919a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet Potato Greens and Cheese Hand Pies</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Weekly Harvests (lbs):<br />
Peppers<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>3.9<br />
Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.3<br />
Green beans<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>1.6<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.3<br />
Eggplant<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>2.4<br />
Winter squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>2.6<br />
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Yearly Harvests: 906.1 lbs<br />
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres</a>.</div>
Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-6252763541696072232016-10-10T13:58:00.000-04:002016-10-10T13:58:47.927-04:00Harvest Monday 10/10/16This week we finally met autumn. The temperatures are cooler and the skies are bluer. Well, except for a few days of rain from hurricane Matthew. We're far enough inland to miss the major path of the storm, but we did end up with about three inches of rain. It thoroughly soaked the garden to the point of the massive okra plant toppling over. I feel as though my okra plant is not of normal size. Most of the ones I see in other gardens are tall, but have one or two main stems.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOmsVN0rW3LxIFMNaygbMLrGzBzdsGoG6WedMtmmSalN_LN-QX8m0H8HsQVz65vmMoWG7lG5y6ukqw_uFIyMDwStV3qmmeeHotTvDPftkGNqy-bTLoEyWe-ZcfW5yMRvq-1_a6WUe-USQ/s1600/PA091892a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOmsVN0rW3LxIFMNaygbMLrGzBzdsGoG6WedMtmmSalN_LN-QX8m0H8HsQVz65vmMoWG7lG5y6ukqw_uFIyMDwStV3qmmeeHotTvDPftkGNqy-bTLoEyWe-ZcfW5yMRvq-1_a6WUe-USQ/s640/PA091892a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The giant okra plant toppled over from the rain.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The good thing is that picking okra is much easier now! I did attempt to right the plant and propped it up with bricks and stakes. The trunk didn't break, so it may survive. If not, I've had plenty of okra from this one plant, 12 lbs to be exact.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi96YCu6pyaP0Y5EKenGg61ICwW3VjngwE4UC0VX6f5mkf2bPqDUu03GqOAUpPEqo14NCbkYa_fqy7p4OoxefIUBeQ1KCr5W7-nFPdelxsjkerJ6uTakHSv4nhzdVwCYgOTDEXa4omHSHE/s1600/PA101897a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi96YCu6pyaP0Y5EKenGg61ICwW3VjngwE4UC0VX6f5mkf2bPqDUu03GqOAUpPEqo14NCbkYa_fqy7p4OoxefIUBeQ1KCr5W7-nFPdelxsjkerJ6uTakHSv4nhzdVwCYgOTDEXa4omHSHE/s640/PA101897a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basket of eggplant, okra, edible gourd, Seminole pumpkin and a few tomatoes and cucumbers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Besides okra this week, I harvested another Seminole pumpkin that was almost 3 lbs along with a rather large edible gourd. The remaining cucumber plants are putting out a few fruits. The tomatoes appear to have lots of green tomatoes on them now, with a few making it into my basket. I hope they have time to ripen. So far the ten day forecast does not show any lows anywhere near freezing. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we'll have a late frost like last year.<br />
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Peppers were plentiful this week at 4.5 lbs. The ones I don't eat this week will get frozen.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC91BlJY2ZMhmVLs6hqVMAA9Az7YT6x2vZfLTDWgMhZnktL3JBx32K0hIuR4YGGTY-W43zm0QkdvbK_1fY3k_U6bqEg_rQL1ZaZstnlLpi3nCY_1rwYPO0N-I6Hc5MGeyah1lgFGDxrTc/s1600/PA091893a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC91BlJY2ZMhmVLs6hqVMAA9Az7YT6x2vZfLTDWgMhZnktL3JBx32K0hIuR4YGGTY-W43zm0QkdvbK_1fY3k_U6bqEg_rQL1ZaZstnlLpi3nCY_1rwYPO0N-I6Hc5MGeyah1lgFGDxrTc/s640/PA091893a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basket of Sweet Peppers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Green beans are in the running for most resilient crop this year. They have steadily produced since early summer. This week I harvest 2.3 lbs of green beans. I roasted a pile of them and then blanched and froze the rest.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQr_FXOy0AGYJnMny2lYsbRX_QWLYiU7Hthy2YzbbfFepfo4HzXuY8ISDFFFItlvMwRVBpgCo_mt_kE0_gZz08qtwCbc9VhwZfHjIy1P8KM7OgfiCeDJv6wDLqt_ifFVkq_q7gG4spiP8/s1600/PA101894a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQr_FXOy0AGYJnMny2lYsbRX_QWLYiU7Hthy2YzbbfFepfo4HzXuY8ISDFFFItlvMwRVBpgCo_mt_kE0_gZz08qtwCbc9VhwZfHjIy1P8KM7OgfiCeDJv6wDLqt_ifFVkq_q7gG4spiP8/s640/PA101894a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Garden of Eden and Blue Coco Beans</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I picked another cantaloupe at almost three pounds. Several of the remaining melons cracked from all the rain and were swarmed by ants. A couple of melons remain, so I may have a few more before the season ends. I'm still not tired of eating melons.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLw8KvK9PrAXwYMJ03ZAV4NF0-LnckllDS8PiEBdNde1B0kOBEHjhthxJB-rGf2s7TpVeaeSZL-u-CXrhRBjlGa101TLgvDiIrMdGGpesSw2tRcvplUamc69qkwtIUcoZwTPrbNTCOP5A/s1600/PA101900a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLw8KvK9PrAXwYMJ03ZAV4NF0-LnckllDS8PiEBdNde1B0kOBEHjhthxJB-rGf2s7TpVeaeSZL-u-CXrhRBjlGa101TLgvDiIrMdGGpesSw2tRcvplUamc69qkwtIUcoZwTPrbNTCOP5A/s640/PA101900a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hale's Best Melon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In a few weeks I will need to start digging up the sweet potatoes. The vines are growing rampantly. I trimmed several of the vines to prevent them from taking over the young carrots, so now I have a pile of sweet potato greens to cook. I wonder if they can be frozen like other greens? When I harvest the sweet potatoes, I'm going to have a ton of leaves. In the past they have gone to the compost, but this year I may experiment with freezing them and see how they do. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc9WRtyJ4_H3HOrhy1eV3tfVEUh6_9olUYoOhkXVzIYhdpeUAMbJA7YPmw7qregJfddm215aiEHPIdnhTfmx7m7Q3Fugfr6Rxe7a4zRUd1sIsLpHgW-Js25dqE-36sgt6y6RJfy23VMsw/s1600/PA101898a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc9WRtyJ4_H3HOrhy1eV3tfVEUh6_9olUYoOhkXVzIYhdpeUAMbJA7YPmw7qregJfddm215aiEHPIdnhTfmx7m7Q3Fugfr6Rxe7a4zRUd1sIsLpHgW-Js25dqE-36sgt6y6RJfy23VMsw/s640/PA101898a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet Potato Greens</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Saturday it rained and rained and rained some more. I decided to bake and puree one of my medium sized Dickinson pumpkins. From a 7 lb pumpkin I got about 10 cups of pureed pumpkin. From that I made pumpkin soup, a triple batch of pumpkin muffins and some treats for Domino's 7th birthday. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1n4WvaQs2iiq61WQR9AzToKytzgPP6dN3k3-sPK7i01amH5vb5IfCNw_JLDfoJP5TH_sfCBRvkzVXgKMXRXec-wKQoqKFwoj_uuHJM6e_YCzm-P0dchuVFBppKMItzP_Q64qcno4zLpM/s1600/PA091890a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1n4WvaQs2iiq61WQR9AzToKytzgPP6dN3k3-sPK7i01amH5vb5IfCNw_JLDfoJP5TH_sfCBRvkzVXgKMXRXec-wKQoqKFwoj_uuHJM6e_YCzm-P0dchuVFBppKMItzP_Q64qcno4zLpM/s640/PA091890a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pumpkin soup with grilled cheese and homemade pickles</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifOp838RVJV46Xa8QcBsSTibDnqKcHFbsvVStprpk-dCB1fk1ZDn5Gntqmlfe_j88FxQ44OgAx5L-Zbbij68lLmS9cPMMqBow8AwuoI3gDbFDImkLvHWEhBMIaEIbtHsR1Hm5oZAWMjB4/s1600/PA101896a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifOp838RVJV46Xa8QcBsSTibDnqKcHFbsvVStprpk-dCB1fk1ZDn5Gntqmlfe_j88FxQ44OgAx5L-Zbbij68lLmS9cPMMqBow8AwuoI3gDbFDImkLvHWEhBMIaEIbtHsR1Hm5oZAWMjB4/s640/PA101896a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pumpkin Muffins</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2-q9ygXe4f26SvSyrFkQyJzlvSWY-xXBf7n9XybsWazZaUJ3Cd7e1JDwmrK8iTihzxhWf9pTIt7NZhXZy3m7jVW8qmq_pJ-7-5F6BpD3QIXy3iqSHOZyjZ83WL7Q4NXCXRxi1QcZI5Ag/s1600/PA101899.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2-q9ygXe4f26SvSyrFkQyJzlvSWY-xXBf7n9XybsWazZaUJ3Cd7e1JDwmrK8iTihzxhWf9pTIt7NZhXZy3m7jVW8qmq_pJ-7-5F6BpD3QIXy3iqSHOZyjZ83WL7Q4NXCXRxi1QcZI5Ag/s640/PA101899.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pumpkin and Peanut Butter Treats for Domino's 7th Birthday</td></tr>
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If you recall from last week, I had the tragedy of a giant pumpkin falling off the vine. It seems to slowly be turning a bit more orange. I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that it'll ripen. Domino is also keeping his paws crossed because he's imaging all the treats that I can make from a pumpkin that big!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlrAJ-cffmoFwYYEiAPXYI4HY_G0EoAA4bNUSMmzjmPoxMPUzS5-kFqSoMFuZhqqYbSW0g5RoBlsQQg8RckiudTULliC3odJk8AAaI81OENYbC4sy8iwKQ1v3ZuGQIwFYBPls4gag8v28/s1600/PA091891a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlrAJ-cffmoFwYYEiAPXYI4HY_G0EoAA4bNUSMmzjmPoxMPUzS5-kFqSoMFuZhqqYbSW0g5RoBlsQQg8RckiudTULliC3odJk8AAaI81OENYbC4sy8iwKQ1v3ZuGQIwFYBPls4gag8v28/s640/PA091891a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Weekly Harvest (lbs):<br />
Peppers 4.5<br />
Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0.95<br />
Cucumber 1.45<br />
Green beans 2.33<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0.24<br />
Eggplant<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>1.74<br />
Melon 2.73<br />
Winter squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>2.86<br />
Sweet potato greens 0.71<br />
Gourd 1.31<br />
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Yearly Harvests: 895 lbs<br />
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres</a>.Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-31870859558500932592016-10-03T19:55:00.000-04:002016-10-04T09:43:31.768-04:00Harvest Monday 10/3/16A tragedy occurred in the garden this week. I had a giant Dickinson pumpkin growing along in the last row of my garden that is referred to as the squash jungle. Any pumpkin that is 20 or more pounds is considered a giant in my garden. Yesterday I discovered that he had broken from the vine! I'm hoping it'll still ripen if I leave it in the sun. We will see.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26kf6Lq7ub4dp1b9x9dEJ3EGhZcLvNczwE_QA9fZn7DsyqAoHmxBQQ7LBIV-1UM_LkhL0OkEbFMuCd1fdp3xiyLJrAsYycBQdGfulLfRvM8F1f_cPUQHycCCtYEMP69xYqLjhAcBv8gY/s1600/PA021849a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26kf6Lq7ub4dp1b9x9dEJ3EGhZcLvNczwE_QA9fZn7DsyqAoHmxBQQ7LBIV-1UM_LkhL0OkEbFMuCd1fdp3xiyLJrAsYycBQdGfulLfRvM8F1f_cPUQHycCCtYEMP69xYqLjhAcBv8gY/s640/PA021849a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not Quite Ripe Dickinson Pumpkin</td></tr>
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In better news, my eggplants produced well this week at 5.3 lbs. I roasted many of them and then made a double batch of Szechauan eggplant with some green beans and tofu. My Serpente di Sicilia Edible Gourd vine also seems to be perking up and producing again. We finally got some rain and cooler weather. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNG6dSnAgom_Q9ZA0cVvNwgUeLXLg_Ab_SrISwGcoa8_4myG9JcqnIdABzPZTt70t_swHu0P_4lpfr6wIR7Y2Xx6cE0eoyqf-6rPjcKHJeU3c2VUqSpjBu9ijJ1BH1gJ6T5xOJktNBu_c/s1600/PA021855a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNG6dSnAgom_Q9ZA0cVvNwgUeLXLg_Ab_SrISwGcoa8_4myG9JcqnIdABzPZTt70t_swHu0P_4lpfr6wIR7Y2Xx6cE0eoyqf-6rPjcKHJeU3c2VUqSpjBu9ijJ1BH1gJ6T5xOJktNBu_c/s640/PA021855a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eggplant and Serpente di Sicilia Edible Gourd</td></tr>
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The Serpente di Sicilia Edible Gourd vine continues to grow. I don't understand how the vine is still alive. The base of the vine looks completely dead with wilted and brown leaves, but yet the vine continues to grow along the fence. The amazing thing is that this is one plant. It has produced 10.5 lbs of gourds so far this season, which sounds productive for one plant, but not so great when you see the size of the vine. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbXsEagksmNKyIbeqQLWqfChGvGoFtbf8Jk_V-hiS-IyyQ8vl8AmgUdT2ysYaecm1fE7jfAZvDwOZrOX9XsykYN6ajPDwRROS8Q0FqJcWc-dh70EYwxSuvL_gsafEYnMuAuOElv7yDwTI/s1600/PA021862a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbXsEagksmNKyIbeqQLWqfChGvGoFtbf8Jk_V-hiS-IyyQ8vl8AmgUdT2ysYaecm1fE7jfAZvDwOZrOX9XsykYN6ajPDwRROS8Q0FqJcWc-dh70EYwxSuvL_gsafEYnMuAuOElv7yDwTI/s640/PA021862a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Serpente di Sicilia Edible Gourd vine taking over the fence</td></tr>
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The peppers continue to plod along. I've been roasting some of them, sauteing others and freezing the spares. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh9EXM1yWYonJ_HQ_5TYx1d-6tKfQ7CtjpcWTc3Q2plX7mLnWbHCVqcLuBbjNoNfSoiJOdnkGDs45RkRxmyWEWF1u5Hlm2iiVvnkiaOWbpSPR0j3ZkvZKQyV4J9U-xOt68qv5S4nuKKWo/s1600/PA021856a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh9EXM1yWYonJ_HQ_5TYx1d-6tKfQ7CtjpcWTc3Q2plX7mLnWbHCVqcLuBbjNoNfSoiJOdnkGDs45RkRxmyWEWF1u5Hlm2iiVvnkiaOWbpSPR0j3ZkvZKQyV4J9U-xOt68qv5S4nuKKWo/s640/PA021856a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Antohi Romanian and Marconi Red Peppers</td></tr>
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I also harvested an Armenian Cucumber, which hasn't happened in a month or two. Surprisingly, this cucumber managed to dodge the pickle worms that have been infecting the other cucumbers. I also continue to pick cantaloupes. They appear to be getting smaller and smaller as the season goes on.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxF7YlMf9mRBCtAPyWyhKo3bE_tmdyxIjsVUuL38rAUErZMnqLzbbfA9sZ8MM3vKZ97VIyRwRCFgCSaVn7hWuBE8vu-Dzs80c5y1cR41eCoxtjHVWaB7yrvYQp5ZYbIbBjlUnegswOuZI/s1600/PA021865a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxF7YlMf9mRBCtAPyWyhKo3bE_tmdyxIjsVUuL38rAUErZMnqLzbbfA9sZ8MM3vKZ97VIyRwRCFgCSaVn7hWuBE8vu-Dzs80c5y1cR41eCoxtjHVWaB7yrvYQp5ZYbIbBjlUnegswOuZI/s640/PA021865a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Armenian Cucumber and Cantaloupes </td></tr>
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Green beans and okra continue to do well. Steamed green beans are a staple around here, making an appearance for dinner multiple times a week. I really should freeze some more green beans. I've also been roasting okra and mixing it with other vegetables. My one okra plant has produced over 11 lbs this year. <br />
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It seems the tomatoes may be making a comeback. There are several green tomatoes, so hopefully they'll have time to ripen before our first frost, which is typically around the end of October. It also depends on those leaf-footed bugs that have been sucking the life out of my tomatoes. I haven't seen as many in the garden lately, but perhaps that's because there aren't many tomatoes.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu8IblGN0EVGjIQwgQZ0HcYBv_M_6fjCqzqI9n99mqMyxGH8vDCr80BIfiGywgadxalJE4RQjMm49ApIEchhn8cjd4huABVxvn8tUZnfgx8B9wlRqkqVzjF2IjSFbXF_LQ3vagi7_JlRI/s1600/PA021861a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu8IblGN0EVGjIQwgQZ0HcYBv_M_6fjCqzqI9n99mqMyxGH8vDCr80BIfiGywgadxalJE4RQjMm49ApIEchhn8cjd4huABVxvn8tUZnfgx8B9wlRqkqVzjF2IjSFbXF_LQ3vagi7_JlRI/s640/PA021861a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leaf-footed Bug aka Destroyer of Tomatoes</td></tr>
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Weekly Harvests (lbs):<br />
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Peppers<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>3.8<br />
Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 1.0<br />
Cucumber 1.4<br />
Green beans 3.0<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0.2<br />
Eggplant<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>5.3<br />
Melon 7.4<br />
Gourd 2.2<br />
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Yearly Harvests: 876.2 lbs<br />
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres</a>.Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-50146905013914737872016-09-26T14:14:00.001-04:002016-09-26T14:14:49.270-04:00Harvest Monday 9/26/16This week is scarce on photos, but not on harvests. I had to breakout the wheelbarrow to haul everything from the garden.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijSEikgGSQuNG3I79l6tBQrJ8nJrYC1hkXzz_vh_e2yt9_aukDPcM8LI3ciqu0JkHpAidyUnO_0hsHJGzAt3W_2iKO3-VoLGBDPYQWpSoiNArRg_7h50NrY31sMJlgQGXfvE9nnaXg42E/s1600/P9251843a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijSEikgGSQuNG3I79l6tBQrJ8nJrYC1hkXzz_vh_e2yt9_aukDPcM8LI3ciqu0JkHpAidyUnO_0hsHJGzAt3W_2iKO3-VoLGBDPYQWpSoiNArRg_7h50NrY31sMJlgQGXfvE9nnaXg42E/s640/P9251843a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Early Autumn Bounty</td></tr>
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Winter squash made up the bulk of this week's harvests at 24 lbs. I picked several butternuts and Seminole pumpkins along with one spaghetti squash and a Dickinson pumpkin. I've now harvested 12 small pumpkins off one Seminole vine and there are still plenty more. I'm glad that winter squash stores well because I doubt I could keep up with cooking these as I harvest them.<br />
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Eggplants were also abundant this week at 7.2 lbs. I roasted some of them with peppers, a gourd and green beans to eat during the week. I also cooked a green bean and eggplant stir fry, but forgot to take a picture. The rest of the eggplants were roasted and frozen.</div>
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The big yellow melon in the wheelbarrow is an odd Moon and Stars watermelon. Sadly it was not ripe. The vine had died and it sounded hollow, so I was hoping for a delicious melon. Luckily I had some cantaloupes instead.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Ln_4kLC9lRHgmWWG4FdfgpcNOOuNqXhWQFyc_QoCdZoYxWYp17kejQaJj_zp7QsUJ_79PnI4AuSnMifkjCyBTpVM12YZGVEdl1MDFtUB8MqmNXoODnyXkUezTA4sGrwG-YfLO5M9bgA/s1600/P9241840a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Ln_4kLC9lRHgmWWG4FdfgpcNOOuNqXhWQFyc_QoCdZoYxWYp17kejQaJj_zp7QsUJ_79PnI4AuSnMifkjCyBTpVM12YZGVEdl1MDFtUB8MqmNXoODnyXkUezTA4sGrwG-YfLO5M9bgA/s640/P9241840a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First bite </td></tr>
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My peppers and okra are plodding along in the continued heat. I've also been harvesting a good amount of green beans (3.8 lbs). The cherry tomatoes, cucumbers and edible gourds have made a small comeback. Hopefully this past weekend will be our last 90 degree day for 2016. I planted my remaining fall seedlings with hopes that some of them will survive. The forecast predicts clouds and rain for the next two days, so I hope that'll give them time to get settled. Now if only the seedling eating enemies will leave some for me! </div>
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Weekly Harvests (lbs):<br />
<br />
Peppers 1.9<br />
Okra 1.1<br />
Cucumber 0.9<br />
Green beans 3.8<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0.6<br />
Eggplant<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>7.2<br />
Melon 6.6<br />
Winter squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>24.3<br />
Gourd 0.4<br />
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Yearly Harvests: 851.9 lbs<br />
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres</a>.</div>
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Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-30817968078012268902016-09-19T15:35:00.000-04:002016-09-19T15:35:27.511-04:00Harvest Monday 9/19/16The weather forecast for it to get cooler did not happen. We had two days in the mid-80's and the rest went over 90, again. Did I mention I'm tired of the heat? We also have not seen any rain in weeks. Perhaps the bugs are sucking the life out of my veggies because there's no water.<br />
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Despite the weather and the bugs, I still have some harvests to report. I'm getting a good amount of melons. They tend to be smaller and not as juicy, but they are still tasty. I've had mostly cantaloupes, but did pick a small watermelon. I haven't cut into the watermelon yet, so I'm hoping it's a good one despite its small size.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUKprcD39PLBYvzTpC1_ScwlLzV3BvM3-Qx55UFy_qaYjC39UEGfuOU4XavWzCSNAXnnSYBcr9_-ada08ZNLIgrDkJsleiswLeJ5Z9aFow5Z20T0I-weNsJgwzyCdEdCBKsKrPTHn9od8/s1600/P9181838a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUKprcD39PLBYvzTpC1_ScwlLzV3BvM3-Qx55UFy_qaYjC39UEGfuOU4XavWzCSNAXnnSYBcr9_-ada08ZNLIgrDkJsleiswLeJ5Z9aFow5Z20T0I-weNsJgwzyCdEdCBKsKrPTHn9od8/s640/P9181838a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bowlful of cantaloupe cubes</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I also picked several more Seminole pumpkins. Even though they are individually small, the vine is producing quite a few. I've harvested seven so far and there's plenty more ripening.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDku1v1AqxmSoj0fQUhisXo8XG3omON7bhKh6hmGLhagPstHXuAEqLYdT1glTaDfAu3ds5zOEi7qD5eENix9MPq593UPHvwnBniZ0wiQ8bZWH_RI9zxR23Zjw3FVBe8pVoOcbO9tNfMZA/s1600/P9171832a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDku1v1AqxmSoj0fQUhisXo8XG3omON7bhKh6hmGLhagPstHXuAEqLYdT1glTaDfAu3ds5zOEi7qD5eENix9MPq593UPHvwnBniZ0wiQ8bZWH_RI9zxR23Zjw3FVBe8pVoOcbO9tNfMZA/s640/P9171832a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seminole Pumpkins</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The peppers continue to produce. They seem smaller than earlier in the season and tend to have some sun scalding and bug damage, but they are still delicious. Peppers are one of my favorite vegetables and I've been freezing some for the winter. They are also colorful and very photogenic!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgesUKFqN1FcpO3nefudYJnq2pOiT1_-Oplzo6mipS25wbYgGcA4O7KFnrZjEFkQ22jOL0QJR3fm1jZrcITdtmmGXSVhLc-RP2cNoVoOdRgoS0E3IwxewjX3ZVPPKP3oSnIjw_hNZm_JmI/s1600/P9171835a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgesUKFqN1FcpO3nefudYJnq2pOiT1_-Oplzo6mipS25wbYgGcA4O7KFnrZjEFkQ22jOL0QJR3fm1jZrcITdtmmGXSVhLc-RP2cNoVoOdRgoS0E3IwxewjX3ZVPPKP3oSnIjw_hNZm_JmI/s640/P9171835a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet Bell Peppers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
My sad cucumber vines managed to produce a few little cucumbers. I've only tasted the lemon ones so far and I'm happy to report that they are not bitter, which is impressive given the oppressive heat. I would be bitter if I had to sit out in that heat and humidity all day!!<br />
<br />
The green bean supply continues. I harvested 3.3 lbs this week. About 2 lbs went into the freezer and the rest were steamed for eating. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmIKreOwpt6qjpq2tXPE0YwcszuoAuYbNc_6JUy0dltc8xAtfLgVgmvIvwgrvJRF09boZXyAGs7-BKkZp2NkdHIOS4rrxAVpgpv9JLm469MCrvjvZjRm2mYS0XDYvI0MrbT9cd_CffZnc/s1600/P9181837a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmIKreOwpt6qjpq2tXPE0YwcszuoAuYbNc_6JUy0dltc8xAtfLgVgmvIvwgrvJRF09boZXyAGs7-BKkZp2NkdHIOS4rrxAVpgpv9JLm469MCrvjvZjRm2mYS0XDYvI0MrbT9cd_CffZnc/s640/P9181837a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An assortment of beans to be frozen</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The eggplants yielded some small fruits this week. There are plenty more small eggplants growing. I haven't seen as many leaf footed bugs this week. Maybe they have moved on and the eggplants can thrive for the next month until that first frost comes.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJfczsAeKDLsD6lFEP6UMc9gkubd3_bD5aLoyusTJatGrEKJ5Jt3IZXPtOGaFzxzBayxNJ-VmP1XFRilhmXR8ThdUuwRXfIYAb6lS-KSd_qOPDVVhaVS4_LZb0iaKY6bzy7L87WrabaaE/s1600/P9171831a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJfczsAeKDLsD6lFEP6UMc9gkubd3_bD5aLoyusTJatGrEKJ5Jt3IZXPtOGaFzxzBayxNJ-VmP1XFRilhmXR8ThdUuwRXfIYAb6lS-KSd_qOPDVVhaVS4_LZb0iaKY6bzy7L87WrabaaE/s640/P9171831a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black Beauty, Long Purple and Florida Market Eggplants</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I was searching for recipes to cook with an odd variety of pumpkin, eggplant and peppers and stumbled upon a <a href="http://www.heavenlynnhealthy.com/one-pott-eggplant-pumpkin-and-chickpea-curry/" target="_blank">curry</a> that used all three. It called for spinach, but I used my sweet potato greens instead. The curry had a great flavor, although it took longer than thirty minutes for my pumpkin to get tender.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy1i0GqBbcyILXGjLW2k0b6SkWDvM8YXXVNJX6fly5tDJPohliErUEg0RdTld7g2PVyypsBybwk2NO1bVt_ioATJ_oFzDvdeiRKwTephBvYd38OgX3Uvtb42Ge6CX5-7T3466bzrSrNHY/s1600/P9171834a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy1i0GqBbcyILXGjLW2k0b6SkWDvM8YXXVNJX6fly5tDJPohliErUEg0RdTld7g2PVyypsBybwk2NO1bVt_ioATJ_oFzDvdeiRKwTephBvYd38OgX3Uvtb42Ge6CX5-7T3466bzrSrNHY/s640/P9171834a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One Pot Eggplant, Pumpkin and Chickpea Curry</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I still had pumpkin leftover to use, so I made some <a href="http://www.cookingclassy.com/2014/08/pumpkin-oat-chocolate-chip-cookies/" target="_blank">pumpkin, oat and chocolate chips cookies</a>.. yum!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRsQ3sFUF3MJpT5x6Z5V86oSRYu5WoPgw21oGPhcMhvE8jnzkck7TOUDK5jzxusRVG5rccTd_emMcEuhwOHCCk9tka4Sth7v5UHFlY0N9Dyd8byiZcIosZvcMPLXcmUqTTSS3UFa3wUfM/s1600/P9181839a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRsQ3sFUF3MJpT5x6Z5V86oSRYu5WoPgw21oGPhcMhvE8jnzkck7TOUDK5jzxusRVG5rccTd_emMcEuhwOHCCk9tka4Sth7v5UHFlY0N9Dyd8byiZcIosZvcMPLXcmUqTTSS3UFa3wUfM/s640/P9181839a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pumpkin-Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Weekly Harvest (lbs):<br />
<br />
Peppers<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>1.7<br />
Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0.96<br />
Cucumber 1.1<br />
Green beans 3.3<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0.36<br />
Eggplant<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>2.7<br />
Melon<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>10.4<br />
Winter squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>6.0<br />
Sweet potato greens 0.22<br />
<br />
Yearly harvests: 805.2 lbs<br />
<br />
That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres.</a>Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-9089543023631593032016-09-12T13:26:00.000-04:002016-09-12T13:26:32.335-04:00Harvest Monday 9/12/16Hopefully this was our last week with 90+ degree weather. It has been impossible to prevent fall seedlings from wilting and fall seed germination rates have been terrible. It's getting a bit late to plant fall crops unless we have a late frost, so hopefully I can get everything planted this week as the temperatures decrease. The other problem I'm experiencing are bugs. This is the time of year that I feel that I might as well wave a surrender flag. For the fall seeds that manage to sprout in the heat, it doesn't mean that all is well. Something has been eating the little, new leaves off my seedlings. I was happy to see several lettuce seedlings one day, the next day they had vanished. I'm not sure who the seedling eating culprit is, but they are not my friend!<br />
<br />
Harvests this week include some eggplant, okra and a gourd. The eggplants haven't been getting very large. The leaf footed bugs seem to be trying out the eggplant, which may be effecting their growth. They suck the life out of veggies! I planted okra this year because it was supposed to thrive in the hot and humid South. Well, it has not disappointed. I have yet to find another way to cook it besides roasting that I can handle eating, but I have grown to like roasted okra.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbxETHuL-5PSNP6HO-GvyYzH8k4EtY3YkSfq7UEhJRPd9HItSydEPOklLCFPTdYRdvMIz2oqcca8nPpuUa2AbsUI4glfdCYComdQq4lTwSOmFlbQ_cOKXhH89yCdMwabnBbYEavSwr_jY/s1600/P9101821a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbxETHuL-5PSNP6HO-GvyYzH8k4EtY3YkSfq7UEhJRPd9HItSydEPOklLCFPTdYRdvMIz2oqcca8nPpuUa2AbsUI4glfdCYComdQq4lTwSOmFlbQ_cOKXhH89yCdMwabnBbYEavSwr_jY/s640/P9101821a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A summer basket of okra, eggplant and an edible gourd</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The peppers seem to be enjoying the heat. Those same leaf footed bugs have been damaging the peppers too. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii7xw22eRtDa-q_isBbmUiNkVpIhbpwrboCk150SY3gk50GFTiyDaGt6yD4V1EF4zRkfOUDBJY06W4SNvQ5NRq66K3wfXog7xzXGo7wz9QTmPXHx7e0iDqO5ohZprzgNz2guRgvLsR0DA/s1600/P9101823a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii7xw22eRtDa-q_isBbmUiNkVpIhbpwrboCk150SY3gk50GFTiyDaGt6yD4V1EF4zRkfOUDBJY06W4SNvQ5NRq66K3wfXog7xzXGo7wz9QTmPXHx7e0iDqO5ohZprzgNz2guRgvLsR0DA/s640/P9101823a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marcani Red and Antohi Romanian Peppers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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I've been getting a few, pathetic tomatoes. You can see the speckles that the leaf footed bugs cause. They have a piercing mouthpart that they use to suck the juice (and the life!) out of tomatoes. I've had some tomatoes that I cut open and have no juice inside. I was hoping my tomatoes were going to have a comeback and produce more, but I'm beginning to have doubts.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5uOneS-L_hHLMm16hLV9kS7O6hdZaikWsDRSgxLA15zoXdeZfJcr4O_JhyesWvJcyE5KyOBxiI_WS3bDubLC4bRwDmjFZIvH9TUCSlIZsOQbVf-3GBGfl-VpYORXGCxdS_IBPsUSu2XU/s1600/P9101824a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5uOneS-L_hHLMm16hLV9kS7O6hdZaikWsDRSgxLA15zoXdeZfJcr4O_JhyesWvJcyE5KyOBxiI_WS3bDubLC4bRwDmjFZIvH9TUCSlIZsOQbVf-3GBGfl-VpYORXGCxdS_IBPsUSu2XU/s640/P9101824a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I discovered a zucchini that I let get out of control. It's not really normal for me to get any zucchini this time of year, so I'll take overgrown one over nothing. However, if you notice in the picture, it is covered with holes. These are pickle worm holes. I was not going to let some little caterpillars stop me from having zucchini! I held it down in water for a few minutes and out came the caterpillars. Surprisingly there was only one despite the many holes. I then cut out the bad spots.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKi5Wtd0YyTTEjZ2meUO5bCe6BJ-397mo8T8W06drg60GTY-jTpk7pNyxwMejEOEpF_pEw6fKXbfoQaPPYo04FRt72PF2XFnl2GNqE7OScUvaErV7XNjOdZxKfc_U8X_VmXis85Mfqvac/s1600/P9101816a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKi5Wtd0YyTTEjZ2meUO5bCe6BJ-397mo8T8W06drg60GTY-jTpk7pNyxwMejEOEpF_pEw6fKXbfoQaPPYo04FRt72PF2XFnl2GNqE7OScUvaErV7XNjOdZxKfc_U8X_VmXis85Mfqvac/s640/P9101816a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Caserta zucchini riddled with pickle worm holes</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The good parts of the zucchini, eggplant, peppers and tomatoes went into ratatouille. I combine it with some chickpeas and rice for a meal.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUs1Ka1od3F49HMOwV2Qse8UWvyg6fp98X37PLGxzfJO69O4FXJAhCp1QopZEMz27zs5ND1ZJK5jgBqHKb9-oRSfr-6CYYFaby9aBZAUIWLERuXbH7vjCeuNDtzWVDIDZZ4eIGOQfQTlI/s1600/P9101825a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUs1Ka1od3F49HMOwV2Qse8UWvyg6fp98X37PLGxzfJO69O4FXJAhCp1QopZEMz27zs5ND1ZJK5jgBqHKb9-oRSfr-6CYYFaby9aBZAUIWLERuXbH7vjCeuNDtzWVDIDZZ4eIGOQfQTlI/s640/P9101825a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">Ratatouille with eggplant, zucchini, peppers, tomatoes and herbs</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I harvested some green and purple beans this week. I've met my freezer goal for green beans this year.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhagPIo5W7eREekHeP0NrZYZmXHVXH-FgoInp-3biJOftoml17Tk9GYGrR1NTb0AhqgZKlWS5f8kkz9bDWFKw5lmkLedSZW4LhmTyqc4_dxkBfh1TMDJY9Voyx25Theb-a-dklpcRZUDJs/s1600/P9101817a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhagPIo5W7eREekHeP0NrZYZmXHVXH-FgoInp-3biJOftoml17Tk9GYGrR1NTb0AhqgZKlWS5f8kkz9bDWFKw5lmkLedSZW4LhmTyqc4_dxkBfh1TMDJY9Voyx25Theb-a-dklpcRZUDJs/s640/P9101817a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Green (and purple) bean harvest</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I also harvested a good sized spaghetti squash (4 lb 6.5 oz). This will likely be my one and only spaghetti squash this year because the vine is looking almost dead and the remaining squashes are not ripe. I also picked another Dickinson pumpkin at 9 lb 13.4 oz. My one Dickinson pumpkin vine has now produced over 43 lbs! <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRKOnT7qx2gCJGYPAdFGTbH4V5rKJiDTyaJ4qKf7ETKEkMnB2J_hl_sxbO7jN5zcAD5kb1lGVZiBIhsxwPSlAATF1873wFXHxkEhGTBkOxreMXFnvdPdzp_Z_qkCuOBTiA30BI_ffe61c/s1600/P9101818a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRKOnT7qx2gCJGYPAdFGTbH4V5rKJiDTyaJ4qKf7ETKEkMnB2J_hl_sxbO7jN5zcAD5kb1lGVZiBIhsxwPSlAATF1873wFXHxkEhGTBkOxreMXFnvdPdzp_Z_qkCuOBTiA30BI_ffe61c/s640/P9101818a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I opened up three of the Seminole pumpkins that I harvested last week. No ax was required. They were harder to cut open than the Dickinson pumpkin, but not impossible. They are also much smaller. Most of mine are between two and three pounds, so after you get out the seeds and strings there's not a lot of flesh left. The flesh is also much wetter than Dickinson. It did have a nice taste. I made a pumpkin, sweet potato leaf and feta quiche.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwCeN6xCuBsOb_lWYDAzabjQocN6x0C5dTtfDKVDkqqJcZrgt_y87UBRAkR5DTKKM_BrEkd7U1Ths3JfbEuC-PziB9e0-zQAQShrhD7h3iHU1ChDanQnQGgnF91X71XzzKaHgoGh-4fxE/s1600/P9111830a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwCeN6xCuBsOb_lWYDAzabjQocN6x0C5dTtfDKVDkqqJcZrgt_y87UBRAkR5DTKKM_BrEkd7U1Ths3JfbEuC-PziB9e0-zQAQShrhD7h3iHU1ChDanQnQGgnF91X71XzzKaHgoGh-4fxE/s640/P9111830a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seminole pumpkin and sweet potato leaf quiche</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
On Labor Day we went apple picking. Maybe one day we will get to pick apples at home, but until then we venture to an orchard for some delicious apples. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXha9BfyfQXPrC2bTO0UtDg_UqvbbBGUPy1vhZIB0OXTJbCVdrHIcgGECN_GQ916EzQx6Pxfu2QBdMcq5AZAXcYFNFSQ2CU_byMm3g_sLe0opKCGnJUE9DE5QSMtN3AntlVHVNznitofw/s1600/P9051792a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXha9BfyfQXPrC2bTO0UtDg_UqvbbBGUPy1vhZIB0OXTJbCVdrHIcgGECN_GQ916EzQx6Pxfu2QBdMcq5AZAXcYFNFSQ2CU_byMm3g_sLe0opKCGnJUE9DE5QSMtN3AntlVHVNznitofw/s640/P9051792a.jpg" width="516" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Apple picking</td></tr>
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And of course, if you pick apples that means there must be pie!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguvJrIetxcdOQacPLqMJhyem5cl-liCdnGuuu6ZOgVg0QzbZvWxP-PyTroW5kMMAKx9Qz6d32CLsf-ZecpCGfahHF4EML1HwI9rocSUATuzaXE3iDHh4TD0dlWeZFwklsBPUVRr2dKENY/s1600/P9111827a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguvJrIetxcdOQacPLqMJhyem5cl-liCdnGuuu6ZOgVg0QzbZvWxP-PyTroW5kMMAKx9Qz6d32CLsf-ZecpCGfahHF4EML1HwI9rocSUATuzaXE3iDHh4TD0dlWeZFwklsBPUVRr2dKENY/s640/P9111827a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Delicious apple pie</td></tr>
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Weekly Harvest (lbs):<br />
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Summer squash 1.77<br />
Peppers 2.31<br />
Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 1.18<br />
Green beans 2.47<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0.88<br />
Eggplant<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>2.75<br />
Winter squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>14.24<br />
Sweet potato greens 0.33<br />
Soybeans 0.30<br />
Gourd 0.24<br />
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Yearly Total: 778.8 lbs<br />
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres.</a><br />
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Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-25383000925033265852016-09-05T18:50:00.000-04:002016-09-05T18:50:59.953-04:00Harvest Monday 9/5/16This has been cantaloupe week here in South Carolina. None have been overly large, but there have been several. Eating a juicy cantaloupe while sitting on the back porch swing is a quintessential summer activity. As much as I'm ready for autumn and some cooler weather, cantaloupe brings nostalgia for long summer days.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsRdxf_Dwfg2VShAzJ885er4jM72fpYP7EQhdEsr2JTW6TejSDijUmQNGW6TF7srlhyXEIG73saBIm3mAVt6t7NfHDV-rrpfu9UipR3amzAMi9rnE2xrzY38qBzZad0Aji5YaKvYQLU2s/s1600/P9041782a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsRdxf_Dwfg2VShAzJ885er4jM72fpYP7EQhdEsr2JTW6TejSDijUmQNGW6TF7srlhyXEIG73saBIm3mAVt6t7NfHDV-rrpfu9UipR3amzAMi9rnE2xrzY38qBzZad0Aji5YaKvYQLU2s/s640/P9041782a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eating cantaloupe on the porch</td></tr>
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Perhaps I'm just nostalgic for summer vacation. I've only been back to work for two weeks, but I'm really happy to have Labor Day off. It has given me time to catch up on fall planting in the garden and getting veggies cooked and preserved. One thing I did was to chop up a pile of peppers. Some will be frozen and the rest will be sauteed and eaten with fajitas tomorrow.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB01QPzHoXyMIYJc-TQpQCTiHHF7GXhosux5SGnAEAT4KfMo0osxy7iKW4BRQ9nO0Lkayw5sM-K5VImmS7yJwXGr1AR-aqrDhvglu27_NXBZ_XDrdsQU4hUIcgql_pNQX6AOpKWJRJVFU/s1600/P9051783a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB01QPzHoXyMIYJc-TQpQCTiHHF7GXhosux5SGnAEAT4KfMo0osxy7iKW4BRQ9nO0Lkayw5sM-K5VImmS7yJwXGr1AR-aqrDhvglu27_NXBZ_XDrdsQU4hUIcgql_pNQX6AOpKWJRJVFU/s1600/P9051783a.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lots of lovely sweet bell peppers</td></tr>
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We finally got a good three inches of rain from hurricane Hermine last week, so I'm hoping it will give new life to some of the summer veggies that have been looking a bit pathetic. I've been getting a few eggplants this week. I know I haven't had too many yet because I'm not tired of them. Eggplant is one of those veggies that I like, but not in large quantities. I roasted the eggplant along with some okra. Then I threw the veggies with some quinoa and feta for a quick and simple meal to eat during the week.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0dfGlt7plwtmaIMxg3cVOHsuAYRv91p81QTFlyoQFZ7-IaygkmTn1TFqZpWZWdNccJBpetLCXeZPax6V9jAriiZ2BVkug1Vaw3G0pUl3Sg4xgjTitTf-WOe-k4-EwlTBHBEPmN9IurT8/s1600/P9051785a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0dfGlt7plwtmaIMxg3cVOHsuAYRv91p81QTFlyoQFZ7-IaygkmTn1TFqZpWZWdNccJBpetLCXeZPax6V9jAriiZ2BVkug1Vaw3G0pUl3Sg4xgjTitTf-WOe-k4-EwlTBHBEPmN9IurT8/s640/P9051785a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A little basket of Long Purple and Black Beauty Eggplant</td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: left;">This was the year that I experimented with growing some different varieties of pumpkin. I struggle with pumpkins due to vine borers, squash bugs, wilts and powdery mildew. The goal was to find some varieties that can survive all these problems. If you check out last week's harvest report you will see that the Dickinson Pumpkins have been a large success and will become a regular in my garden. This week I harvested the first of my other experimental pumpkin variety, Seminole Pumpkins. These are much smaller than the Dickinson Pumpkins. Mine are a little over 2 lbs each, but one vine has grown well and has probably 15 pumpkins on it. It has definitely thrived despite the all the potential problems. From what I've read it is very good at storing. The one downfall I've read about so far is that it may take an ax to open them! I haven't tried yet, but I will report back about opening and cooking one of these little Seminole Pumpkins soon. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2zHgKW8LKd-_5RCAZb-BftqqoElF_nnlbPqjfDodJUlksaV0znhpJ-quvmzy1LhL1yrofqxcKWZG8oR9JuBVW1lYSHRlvlPCwRmIC6VrRM60DgT2_2cCwalplr08u2eepN6QHmyAr6zQ/s1600/P9051786a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2zHgKW8LKd-_5RCAZb-BftqqoElF_nnlbPqjfDodJUlksaV0znhpJ-quvmzy1LhL1yrofqxcKWZG8oR9JuBVW1lYSHRlvlPCwRmIC6VrRM60DgT2_2cCwalplr08u2eepN6QHmyAr6zQ/s640/P9051786a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seminole pumpkins</td></tr>
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I also harvested and froze some soybeans...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDq6utS7eyyjVU9uHMv0Im6gTWTJRP9-NsuoMkCo3JcfsR2BZHNioDDXDmbioVLzKzc2ho3h6chyhcM4uddkL66GlrT3FmKbr280TSD_GaFdpX4UKNK6VEJlIoIMs39Ad_A14FytDVMqU/s1600/P9051787a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDq6utS7eyyjVU9uHMv0Im6gTWTJRP9-NsuoMkCo3JcfsR2BZHNioDDXDmbioVLzKzc2ho3h6chyhcM4uddkL66GlrT3FmKbr280TSD_GaFdpX4UKNK6VEJlIoIMs39Ad_A14FytDVMqU/s640/P9051787a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blanched soybeans ready for the freezer</td></tr>
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along with some green beans. I make and freeze my lunches well in advanced. One of my favorite lunches is lentil loaves with green beans. I now have enough lentil loaves and green beans to make it through the entire academic year. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFjclQvt2uoxPlt-jrPtST3LpFu8Zb17nTUTOjjIEPfqGUQ-T3sixq9L9WtxoAt8kfr4JajntlEavLyjjm9wGRjYcVsJcLcjvjncy9-sfcqTOpqso6AAlBN8KGgg6umB_X2A4rluRHmT0/s1600/P9051788a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFjclQvt2uoxPlt-jrPtST3LpFu8Zb17nTUTOjjIEPfqGUQ-T3sixq9L9WtxoAt8kfr4JajntlEavLyjjm9wGRjYcVsJcLcjvjncy9-sfcqTOpqso6AAlBN8KGgg6umB_X2A4rluRHmT0/s640/P9051788a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Green beans</td></tr>
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Weekly Harvests (lbs):<br />
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Summer squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.16<br />
Peppers<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>3.98<br />
Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.66<br />
Cucumber<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.81<br />
Green beans<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.96<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>2.26<br />
Eggplant<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.61<br />
Melon<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>16.01<br />
Winter squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>5.36<br />
Soybeans <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.84<br />
Gourd<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>1.47<br />
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Yearly Total: 752.3 lbs<br />
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres.</a>Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-44730444923475274112016-08-29T20:38:00.000-04:002016-08-29T20:38:58.778-04:00Harvest Monday 8/29/16Today is a double report. I missed last Monday because the semester started and I went back to work. Transitioning from the lazy days of summer to the hectic days of the fall semester is jarring. Add to that fall seeds that needed planting and veggies that needed harvesting and cooking. Needless to say I've been busy, so you will have to use your imagination this week as I didn't take very many pictures!<br />
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The big harvest that I'm excited to share is the biggest pumpkin I've ever grown. If you live in the land of vine borers, then you will understand my enthusiasm for successfully growing a large pumpkin.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoBshu26wgYWdjyFgOZejgirsTfbAsle9lNbNqj1YfHTyb4aiEfacDqu21DWwIaq-hIx8-xjQlAyh3mtChxJ3xrNkMF-Bs1Gi_u3qLJGuYH8MgWCOETTxttpqDDnNSosLrff_p06JsQZQ/s1600/P8281769a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoBshu26wgYWdjyFgOZejgirsTfbAsle9lNbNqj1YfHTyb4aiEfacDqu21DWwIaq-hIx8-xjQlAyh3mtChxJ3xrNkMF-Bs1Gi_u3qLJGuYH8MgWCOETTxttpqDDnNSosLrff_p06JsQZQ/s640/P8281769a.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My 20.8 lb Dickinson pumpkin and Domino making sure he still gets all the attention!</td></tr>
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This is my first year growing Dickinson pumpkin and I've been very pleased. From one vine I've gotten two 7 lb pumpkins and now this 20 pounder, plus there's another smaller one on the vine. This pumpkin vine hasn't been phased by vine borers or squash bugs or the heat and humidity. I have searched the internet and have assembled 40 different pumpkin recipes to try!<br />
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On the topic of winter squash, I also harvested several butternuts. I think I am going to have plenty of winter squash to make it through the winter this year!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifsep0i80fWaf9m8KriOhTrwI-hifh_T3xrZVHj2zTEYXyXv8NROg0PLSpVkl2VwKNvzGpRAIl4TW4AOUQrLwJU4IGhQKFfEeEvk0TCe0Uh4G-rMeULLUf-LlJhlKO3ir-rylgeKMBE4s/s1600/P8211759a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifsep0i80fWaf9m8KriOhTrwI-hifh_T3xrZVHj2zTEYXyXv8NROg0PLSpVkl2VwKNvzGpRAIl4TW4AOUQrLwJU4IGhQKFfEeEvk0TCe0Uh4G-rMeULLUf-LlJhlKO3ir-rylgeKMBE4s/s640/P8211759a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waltham Butternut</td></tr>
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I've also grown to like the edible gourd more than I first reported. Peeling the skin makes all the difference. I've been roasting them with other veggies and they are quiet tasty, plus they can come in fun spiral shapes. They also seem to be picking up production as the last of my summer squash have given up the will to live.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK03xe25syPvPi6MloG0Pzazb452X6SwP62ZjCDZCBSd765AHXgT3M1BUlQ8XALqmhaZ6xFenfTdxvcUv7s_1t37ax6UxGGg8F9YhRDwhvnMFjP8Fyrhb0GOQ_FXC1kA7Yq_knjCP7iZA/s1600/P8201756a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK03xe25syPvPi6MloG0Pzazb452X6SwP62ZjCDZCBSd765AHXgT3M1BUlQ8XALqmhaZ6xFenfTdxvcUv7s_1t37ax6UxGGg8F9YhRDwhvnMFjP8Fyrhb0GOQ_FXC1kA7Yq_knjCP7iZA/s640/P8201756a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Serpente di Sicilia Edible Gourd</td></tr>
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My second round of corn did not fair so well. The ears and even the stalks didn't get very big and they got devoured by corn earworms. This year was definitely not the year for corn. I did manage to salvage some ears for a few dinners.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcwHPzawX-tMNUyqEjfvfh1iEh4dF81L7ZsiwCzdA0hciZ4TlFU2mfbyaXLMWPVv2mgsK5VR-cIrDZTZ5LVB6GfiYkvRUUucxg6ibcKarDVH0g_opkCk0_YrbWmXrd5Fd9ti4faEgFnvM/s1600/P8191754a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcwHPzawX-tMNUyqEjfvfh1iEh4dF81L7ZsiwCzdA0hciZ4TlFU2mfbyaXLMWPVv2mgsK5VR-cIrDZTZ5LVB6GfiYkvRUUucxg6ibcKarDVH0g_opkCk0_YrbWmXrd5Fd9ti4faEgFnvM/s640/P8191754a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Honey Select Corn</td></tr>
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This is a basket of some of the other regular harvests (tomatoes, cucumbers, a few red noodle beans, eggplant, peppers, yellow squash) along with a couple of unwelcome visitors. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBic-VVuTqs21VzS_FyS1g0BVm6kz_dRqfGtLvuX8GEM34mmi51urXRv1leCFKGqadLlTO8_cfw1qn2HPp8yjXspNPU-PqmB0CGBQjAooV_y0bgmiXYOf4JcJCz3IqagU7gmwutgku_lg/s1600/P8161753a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBic-VVuTqs21VzS_FyS1g0BVm6kz_dRqfGtLvuX8GEM34mmi51urXRv1leCFKGqadLlTO8_cfw1qn2HPp8yjXspNPU-PqmB0CGBQjAooV_y0bgmiXYOf4JcJCz3IqagU7gmwutgku_lg/s640/P8161753a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basket of summer vegetables along with two tomato hormworns!</td></tr>
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It's a good thing I got an abundance of tomatoes a few weeks ago, because now the tomato plants are looking very sad and producing very little. They have the combination of late blight, hornworms and those annoying tomato sucking bugs. I've found six hornworms so far. It's amazing how hard it is to find them on the plants. I hosed the tomato plants down with neem oil and Bt to help with the bugs, but there's not much that can be done about late blight. I try to pick varieties that are supposedly resistant to late blight, but that seems to not apply here! Although some are definitely hit harder than others. The Sungold, Plum Regal and Mr. Stripey seem to have the least blight damage. Cherokee Purple, San Marzano and Amish Paste are hit the worst. I love the taste of Cherokee Purples, but I may have to stop growing them. I never get very many due to cracking, blight and an assortment of bugs.<br />
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Weekly Harvests for Two Weeks (lbs):<br />
<br />
Summer squash 3.0<br />
Peppers 4.7<br />
Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 1.5<br />
Cucumber 8.2<br />
Green beans 3.2<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> 15.0</span><br />
Eggplant 2.2<br />
Melon 7.3<br />
Winter squash 31.6<br />
Gourd 0.5<br />
Corn 1.7<br />
<br />
Yearly Total: 719.2 lbs<br />
<br />
That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres.</a>Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-46965923750502568252016-08-15T11:29:00.000-04:002016-08-15T11:29:44.880-04:00Harvest Monday 8/15/16I spent most of this past week visiting family in Tennessee. This is what it looks like when I pack for a drive in the summer:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoL9Un7oD2ZlADD2Clurfxsz8GmxgSPuyB6hOzL-7tUKNwJCXRfUWNC71WJNoiZr0fUIarIr5Shis4JYI32m8fufKLhn9oYG-AvwQF4W4v0gZHgnc5mwEuI2_9wDjRuOC3pmgpYobC7Xg/s1600/P8101685a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoL9Un7oD2ZlADD2Clurfxsz8GmxgSPuyB6hOzL-7tUKNwJCXRfUWNC71WJNoiZr0fUIarIr5Shis4JYI32m8fufKLhn9oYG-AvwQF4W4v0gZHgnc5mwEuI2_9wDjRuOC3pmgpYobC7Xg/s640/P8101685a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Domino and garden veggies are ready for the road.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Luckily Domino did not decide to have a snack while going for a car ride!<br />
<br />
The big harvest this week was watermelon. It was a good thing that I was visiting family because there is no way the two of us could have eaten the watermelon harvests alone with week.<br />
<br />
The monster watermelon was a 29.7 lb Moon and Stars:<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYD4WnAelujoJB8fOXZa9XLHqvwAzveAu0rPmEI2O0OYS9G2b74pVZOcaqj-dPQLRPUUTVIGnElc0L_tWD3xsj8kSNcYMUcAWQfmqtxsxoWQfmwSNA0PjaUfU1kpkYnZ3pmbzI4rXV7W0/s1600/13932752a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYD4WnAelujoJB8fOXZa9XLHqvwAzveAu0rPmEI2O0OYS9G2b74pVZOcaqj-dPQLRPUUTVIGnElc0L_tWD3xsj8kSNcYMUcAWQfmqtxsxoWQfmwSNA0PjaUfU1kpkYnZ3pmbzI4rXV7W0/s640/13932752a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with my 29.7 lb Moon and Stars watermelon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2FF5LqNurM5UZHj67LyXq1dS9rEpV7J_15olaNwrYvfq7XFD0aKWzqaPLanVTnRInLGpa51QmuiUA9Y_oNwLpsbHxpmBAdtk-1iJe6fJHmEo6HvGtjEe4-Ovf9Qo_Q16-AkIzg1FuU_A/s1600/P8131748a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2FF5LqNurM5UZHj67LyXq1dS9rEpV7J_15olaNwrYvfq7XFD0aKWzqaPLanVTnRInLGpa51QmuiUA9Y_oNwLpsbHxpmBAdtk-1iJe6fJHmEo6HvGtjEe4-Ovf9Qo_Q16-AkIzg1FuU_A/s640/P8131748a.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My niece prying open the giant watermelon.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I'm always uncertain about when to pick watermelons, but luckily this monstrocity was ripe and sweet and juicy. We had plenty to eat and then sent everyone home with chunks of watermelon. <br />
<br />
The second watermelon this week was a 13.1 lb Charleston Grey.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-X29UX76wYX2U_4FBTdPlJDAEPYrQvascS3vFNTedLDJNR1HZzl_TeurYddWi0Rh4TuX55Gk0USJAGxtufIkGJPW9791OxAgOLOLd4PeKRV4obQWDYDkCPYuHBo1S0LeB6DXpOEaNubI/s1600/P8121707a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-X29UX76wYX2U_4FBTdPlJDAEPYrQvascS3vFNTedLDJNR1HZzl_TeurYddWi0Rh4TuX55Gk0USJAGxtufIkGJPW9791OxAgOLOLd4PeKRV4obQWDYDkCPYuHBo1S0LeB6DXpOEaNubI/s640/P8121707a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Charleston Grey watermelon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It was also good and ripe. This variety is crispy and sweet and made a good addition to a summer picnic.<br />
<br />
The melons definitely got the spotlight this week and the other harvests got neglected and did not get their photos taken. J got to do the harvesting while I was gone and did a good job. There were some squash and zucchini, peppers, okra, cucumbers, green beans and eggplant, I came home to a big pile of tomatoes (38.7 lbs), which I need to work on cooking today. He wasn't too fond of picking green beans or okra, so I need to get out there and do some more harvesting. I froze some more soybeans before I left. I have learned that it is much, much easier to blanch and then shell the soybeans instead of shelling first. <br />
<br />
Besides dealing with all the harvests, it is time to get fall seeds planted. I need to plant onion, pea, radish, lettuce and chard seeds this week, which means I have to make room in the garden for them! It is going to be a busy and hot week for me!<br />
<br />
Weekly Harvests (lbs):<br />
<br />
Summer squash 1.3<br />
Peppers 3.7<br />
Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0.3<br />
Cucumber 8.9<br />
Green beans 0.75<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 38.7<br />
Eggplant<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.3<br />
Melon 42.8<br />
Soybeans 1.86<br />
Gourd 0.35<br />
<br />
Yearly Total: 605 lbs<br />
<br />
That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres.</a><br />
<br />Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-84590739926665452242016-08-11T15:42:00.000-04:002016-08-11T15:42:22.516-04:00The Magic of Summer MorningsSummers are a special time for me. I teach, so I get to spend my summers at my own pace, enjoying the days and doing whatever I please. The one thing I absolutely love about summers are the mornings. During the rest of the year I have to move in the mornings to get where I need to be at the time I need to be there, but in the summer I can linger and enjoy the mornings.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLsY1GVFT_aliGbhbFVwt0W989gKNxEslRL_ydi3V6s7evl-DUwrzx-eDa7wvCGkFfkJW0HKxXdMsT8AQ2EDleKqSJL5ceCldwR0xbNqqSeMWfJXCWYHJf7ecc_3avrqHsKRbUKamknPk/s1600/Breakfast+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLsY1GVFT_aliGbhbFVwt0W989gKNxEslRL_ydi3V6s7evl-DUwrzx-eDa7wvCGkFfkJW0HKxXdMsT8AQ2EDleKqSJL5ceCldwR0xbNqqSeMWfJXCWYHJf7ecc_3avrqHsKRbUKamknPk/s640/Breakfast+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
What are some ways I savor my summer mornings? <br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>I can take a leisure walk with my dog.</li>
<li>I can make a delicious breakfast with homegrown veggies.</li>
<li>I can linger over tea on while swinging on the back porch.</li>
<li>I can get lost in a book.</li>
<li>I can make lists of projects I want to do and work on them.</li>
<li>I can pour words into a journal.</li>
<li>I can take photographs in the perfect morning light.</li>
<li>I can peruse the garden, picking vegetables and pulling weeds. </li>
</ul>
<br />
These are the magically mornings when anything is possible as the day unfolds. It is filled with bees buzzing and birds chirping and unlimited possibilities.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXKk-IKZyk6qOlTJ8pp70VVK9ptk9PAsXkdInAyBrIcVI4a3qtWTxUpAY23ErvPPwemX0bvmg0NmTX7cXxB5GKebQvG9L_i6wEgHZah0kf2-lh6DjHlNV3FNnzpEwoN3Fuyj1oio73ky4/s1600/Breakfast+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXKk-IKZyk6qOlTJ8pp70VVK9ptk9PAsXkdInAyBrIcVI4a3qtWTxUpAY23ErvPPwemX0bvmg0NmTX7cXxB5GKebQvG9L_i6wEgHZah0kf2-lh6DjHlNV3FNnzpEwoN3Fuyj1oio73ky4/s640/Breakfast+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Sadly, my summer mornings are coming to end for now. I have lofty goals of getting up early to enjoy some of that magic of mornings even when work begins. If that doesn't happen, I will always have next summer.Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-77019380852238014012016-08-08T12:25:00.000-04:002016-08-08T12:25:16.053-04:00Harvest Monday 8/8/16The theme of this week is tomatoes and more tomatoes, a total of 48.9 lbs of tomatoes to be exact. This is a record amount of tomatoes in one week for me. Besides picking tomatoes this week, I've made batch after batch of my favorite <a href="http://sanguinaria-budding.blogspot.com/2016/08/roasted-tomato-sauce.html" target="_blank">roasted tomato sauce</a>. I've also been eating tomato sandwiches for lunch everyday- cream cheese, slices of delicious tomatoes on bread. Very simple, which I desperately need with all the harvests coming in, but tasty.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi27TAJ-RAjXWPWbcaW-QCqXUIWI05__Ub7Hx3mKIK6jRjrCQET6qqmJK3jFGiE1eWVef63kQjzR6TDPy6v-Qm8DdF6zMrPr4LGfzTBj4qKHEgtw0kGMqsneSd5z8E3kMjmRItVWlVtl8A/s1600/P8081645a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi27TAJ-RAjXWPWbcaW-QCqXUIWI05__Ub7Hx3mKIK6jRjrCQET6qqmJK3jFGiE1eWVef63kQjzR6TDPy6v-Qm8DdF6zMrPr4LGfzTBj4qKHEgtw0kGMqsneSd5z8E3kMjmRItVWlVtl8A/s640/P8081645a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mr. Stripey, Jubilee, Beefsteak (unusually small this year) and some Cherokee Purple Tomatoes hidden beneath</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Other harvests this week include summer squash (4.3 lbs), peppers (4.7 lbs), okra (0.7 lbs), cucumber (4.7 lbs), green beans (2.3 lbs) and soybeans (3.2 lbs). It seems the pickle worms have arrived and despite their namesake are attacking the summer squash more than the cucumbers. It is looking like the squash and zucchini harvests will be dwindling. I do have six more seedlings in reserve that I should plant soon, although I'm not sure how well they will fair with the onslaught of late summer bugs. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdEjK2vlXVy80fvLlqNSCUXCc_cSx_eCgAgVrpgBz5K2AHq1yWIabbFZwQrqZOCb7IFIgTrCYg2qe1dSRcdRIByLxlFBC_Znur-4GualSW0xKrM3RQ3chyrOy9fMMbYH4nwTgIacO_kaU/s1600/P8051583c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="466" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdEjK2vlXVy80fvLlqNSCUXCc_cSx_eCgAgVrpgBz5K2AHq1yWIabbFZwQrqZOCb7IFIgTrCYg2qe1dSRcdRIByLxlFBC_Znur-4GualSW0xKrM3RQ3chyrOy9fMMbYH4nwTgIacO_kaU/s640/P8051583c.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A typical summer bounty</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This year I planned for the loss of zucchini. As my zucchini alternative, I planted an edible gourd, <a href="http://www.rareseeds.com/serpente-di-sicilia-edible-gourd/" target="_blank">Serpente di Sicilia</a>, and this past week I ate them for the first time with the conclusion of meh. I did learn that the skin gets tough, so you do have to pick them when they are small. Strike one against the gourd is I really don't care for the smell of the plant, so searching the vine for gourds isn't a pleasant smelling activity for me. For the smallest gourds, I tried them sauteed with egg for breakfast. They look very similar to zucchini, but the taste and texture is definitely different. They have a denser texture than zucchini and the taste is hard to describe, but has more of a green grassy taste and not as mild as zucchini. It wasn't bad tasting and I can certainly get used to it. For the gourds that I picked larger, I cooked them using a <a href="http://www.food.com/recipe/marges-zucchini-pie-387261" target="_blank">zucchini pie recipe</a>. I was hoping that the combination of sauteing and baking them would help combat the tough skin, but it didn't. However, besides the skin, I really wouldn't have noticed a difference in the taste of zucchini pie versus gourd pie with all the cheese and flavors. I think peeling the gourds would improve the texture.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7bK_i0k9Vmcq7O9NhA_ga8lD_t20nkt6cSur-ljNCxEWG3pYTq3Raubc-NiDpzqeulgRElvmIYSAbj3ivjP-v_YSSLhBWkUm_prRfbLo7Rp89YjmP4Gl1GBY7Q5_cBYPZ6wE9-aYBwFI/s1600/P8071596a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7bK_i0k9Vmcq7O9NhA_ga8lD_t20nkt6cSur-ljNCxEWG3pYTq3Raubc-NiDpzqeulgRElvmIYSAbj3ivjP-v_YSSLhBWkUm_prRfbLo7Rp89YjmP4Gl1GBY7Q5_cBYPZ6wE9-aYBwFI/s640/P8071596a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Serpente di Sicilia Edible Gourd Pie</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This week I also shelled and cooked a bunch of soybeans. Most of them got frozen. I'm always impressed at how productive soybeans are in comparison to my other bush beans.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;">s<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiOQ2r94tFIBFaekdXoLhcs644kDklshe1g59eaCBVvKrVgNg2zSyGXpxMo9jnHnmH_nmSYi-jSSrzqaiMNAOLR1wutMGVvqg45KomZ8NyRblwnHFb6jZ_cb3tflxNdqS-rtqtGu5sRLc/s1600/P8031552a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiOQ2r94tFIBFaekdXoLhcs644kDklshe1g59eaCBVvKrVgNg2zSyGXpxMo9jnHnmH_nmSYi-jSSrzqaiMNAOLR1wutMGVvqg45KomZ8NyRblwnHFb6jZ_cb3tflxNdqS-rtqtGu5sRLc/s640/P8031552a.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shelled Edamame </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
The other big harvest this week was my second Dickinson pumpkin weighing in at 8 lb 8 oz. One vine has produced 16 lbs of pumpkins so far and there is currently a very large one on the same vine and another smaller one. I will be waiting until the tomato harvests calm down before cooking up this pumpkin. I also harvested some small acorn squash this week as well.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtSTjgw5UF6e9kl4HDadwXFKyeJtuIdSUMWGKUskG6C8wg4cKeB3u6xgY8NaQs7XDz0OLrRFlmnkpIjiF_hC6xa45jmk5Ay9EvjM_DDIHWA4QQ63fLPQy0CzL6j5y1XNK0omVRX9zSGvI/s1600/P8051587b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="490" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtSTjgw5UF6e9kl4HDadwXFKyeJtuIdSUMWGKUskG6C8wg4cKeB3u6xgY8NaQs7XDz0OLrRFlmnkpIjiF_hC6xa45jmk5Ay9EvjM_DDIHWA4QQ63fLPQy0CzL6j5y1XNK0omVRX9zSGvI/s640/P8051587b.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dickinson Pumpkin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
My kitchen counter is still buried under a pile of harvests despite my efforts to cook and preserve. I have the added challenge of being out of town this Wednesday to Sunday. I don't think J is looking forward to the never ending harvests. Everyday I tell him that I think the tomatoes are slowing down only to come in with more and more to add to the growing pile. <br />
<br />
Weekly Harvest (lbs):<br />
<br />
Summer squash 4.3<br />
Peppers<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>4.7<br />
Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0.7<br />
Cucumber 4.7<br />
Green beans 2.3<br />
Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 48.9<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><br />
Melon 19.6<br />
Winter squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>11.0<br />
Soybeans 3.2<br />
Gourd 2.0<br />
<br />
Yearly Total: 506 lbs<br />
<br />
That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres.</a>Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-79835878571702098512016-08-04T20:15:00.000-04:002016-08-04T20:15:14.154-04:00Roasted Tomato SauceThe tomato glut is in full force. That means it is time to make tomato sauce, which is one of my favorite things from the garden. I love roasted tomato sauce- it is delicious and it is very easy to make. There is very little chopping or stirring, but you do need a food mill.<br />
<br />
A batch of sauce makes about a pint and takes 4 pounds of tomatoes (I used a mix of Roma VF, Plum Regal, San Marzano and Amish Paste), a couple of sweet bell peppers, a small head of garlic, a few small onions, oregano and olive oil.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbIK3V9siOCJTzrY1DbW1zw7voPfD5l707KaPZb4NtxC97ZeOfEYt5r3YU_KAxGzX9LKFVr-gTMHlpmknm_cxl9m9Qy45yxwf5HU-AvH7t0hak-4-cJu56d8Ia6reENE-Ej5xDHFH4YuQ/s1600/P8031557a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbIK3V9siOCJTzrY1DbW1zw7voPfD5l707KaPZb4NtxC97ZeOfEYt5r3YU_KAxGzX9LKFVr-gTMHlpmknm_cxl9m9Qy45yxwf5HU-AvH7t0hak-4-cJu56d8Ia6reENE-Ej5xDHFH4YuQ/s640/P8031557a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Everything gets roughly chopped except for the garlic, which is peeled and put in whole. It all goes into a 9 x 13 inch pan.<br />
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Roast at 450°F for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring every thirty minutes. The tomatoes will get blackened and it will not look very pretty when it comes out of the oven.<br />
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Let it cool and run through a food mill. I got my Victorio food strainer last year and it has been a wonderful addition to my kitchen and has made tomato season much easier and quicker to deal with. The roasted ingredients go into the top, you push it into the mill, crank it and then it separates the thick sauce from the skins and seeds.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibTIShz-3-8gGTD-5MnzGEJLjf1n3QWBf_ACUnHojDgylfOqRUtmnp8t1U_Wc9l2WIUW5NGl485DcdvBarBOHid06UPP2TOm135AyqIBiDP4cSwbN1JmmrUcZDNZ2tOlIt_2zZvs8g0Zw/s1600/P8041566a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibTIShz-3-8gGTD-5MnzGEJLjf1n3QWBf_ACUnHojDgylfOqRUtmnp8t1U_Wc9l2WIUW5NGl485DcdvBarBOHid06UPP2TOm135AyqIBiDP4cSwbN1JmmrUcZDNZ2tOlIt_2zZvs8g0Zw/s640/P8041566a.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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You end up with a delicious roasted tomato sauce that is thick and rich. I have not canned this sauce because I'm not sure how acidic it is. I'm a paranoid canner and only use recipes for canning that have been tested, so I freeze my tomato sauce in quart size bags. There's nothing like the taste of roasted, homegrown tomatoes in the middle of winter.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUPmVVMJluFkrZf45IoU1ctnGGBOp2rfUTdPN72oT_tYm5iEFW5LoH0RrpGHu3q50er3FoqhcwSg5VDREtWff7M4OvIC2jGjcxNKNfetKGP7Tb0gNwcufeZTI7RL3BoG2YWyGfwQKxBE8/s1600/P8041568a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUPmVVMJluFkrZf45IoU1ctnGGBOp2rfUTdPN72oT_tYm5iEFW5LoH0RrpGHu3q50er3FoqhcwSg5VDREtWff7M4OvIC2jGjcxNKNfetKGP7Tb0gNwcufeZTI7RL3BoG2YWyGfwQKxBE8/s640/P8041568a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b>Roasted Tomato Sauce</b><br />
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<b>Ingredients</b><br />
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<ul>
<li>4 pounds tomatoes, stemmed and quartered </li>
<li>1 large onion (or 2-3 small), roughly chopped</li>
<li>2 small bell peppers, roughly chopped</li>
<li>8 cloves fresh garlic</li>
<li>1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil</li>
<li>1 tablespoon dry oregano (or a handful of fresh oregano & basil)</li>
<li>salt and pepper to taste</li>
</ul>
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<b>Directions</b></div>
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<ol>
<li>Combine ingredients in a 9x13 inch pan.</li>
<li>Roast at for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until juices get thick. Stir every half hour. Tomatoes will get a bit blackened.</li>
<li>Let cool, and run through a food mill to remove skins & seeds. The resulting puree will be thick, so there is no need to reduce.</li>
<li>Season to taste with salt and pepper.</li>
</ol>
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Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-45258312948851461922016-08-01T16:14:00.000-04:002016-08-01T16:14:18.489-04:00Harvest Monday 8/1/16The word to describe my harvests this week is overwhelming! This has been the week where my baskets and bins just aren't big enough, the kitchen counters can't hold it all and there's not enough time to deal with all the harvests. Yep, it's late summer around here!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL5pmVH4X7fX5SItOyhF8Hchxf_3WJ0AbVn01yhziTHCy0BUieeKd9_0LNJEaicKP3lacwI82xD6yYF3oCu0MXX6cLW4qhUtdB5kvJ2lWdUgSqThSLdgQXQ8ymQ9knSbgQNGGnipUiUSk/s1600/P7251433a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL5pmVH4X7fX5SItOyhF8Hchxf_3WJ0AbVn01yhziTHCy0BUieeKd9_0LNJEaicKP3lacwI82xD6yYF3oCu0MXX6cLW4qhUtdB5kvJ2lWdUgSqThSLdgQXQ8ymQ9knSbgQNGGnipUiUSk/s640/P7251433a.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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This week brought the biggest tomato harvest so far at 28.6 lbs. I made a batch of gazpacho and two batches of tomato sauce so far. J got me a very snazzy new food processor for my birthday this past weekend. I was thrilled to be able to make an entire batch of gazpacho all at once (it holds 16 cups!). My previous food processor had developed a crack at the top of the bowl that meant I had to try and cover the opening with my finger to prevent food from flying out, which was never very successful!<br />
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The biggest crop this week was melons at 39.7 pounds. Luckily we had company this weekend and had help eating excessive amounts of melons. I harvested the first watermelon of the year, a Charleston Grey, which was very delicious. It didn't get too large (12 lbs), but it was tasty. Most of the time my watermelons aren't very sweet, but this was the best tasting watermelon I've ever grown. I did make a friend select which watermelon to pick. She is much better at that thumbing and listening to the sounds of watermelons than I am!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV8NXFFH35f5CFHQ3gSWxjzPzbq2y2-CxmE6zImpBavvaSUQv_XtGmrykZ7WWESh1AynOqOkWjokh0WnVf5l9VCwMgzCOUHlOcGz-JOQlHd4tPabMmZEhphTE2Tov1OtwZN5-j1SXND68/s1600/P8011551a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV8NXFFH35f5CFHQ3gSWxjzPzbq2y2-CxmE6zImpBavvaSUQv_XtGmrykZ7WWESh1AynOqOkWjokh0WnVf5l9VCwMgzCOUHlOcGz-JOQlHd4tPabMmZEhphTE2Tov1OtwZN5-j1SXND68/s640/P8011551a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I find that knowing when to harvest cantaloupes is so much easier. They practically pick themselves and almost detach from the vine when they are ready. This week brought lots and lots of cantaloupes.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaX42FrGnwiQPiOm1bvIZLgyK-aaf83e7AEEiLAQYmP2shPNpGT4CH3uaQsMY3kp6QOB9x4d-0YpImRfG8L6eqvCSvysF3Gfvyfwu79vBpCZDEPYvj5HxhtZldMKIWc-pG6carQgk2QrI/s1600/P7241420a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaX42FrGnwiQPiOm1bvIZLgyK-aaf83e7AEEiLAQYmP2shPNpGT4CH3uaQsMY3kp6QOB9x4d-0YpImRfG8L6eqvCSvysF3Gfvyfwu79vBpCZDEPYvj5HxhtZldMKIWc-pG6carQgk2QrI/s640/P7241420a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Another first this week is a Dickinson pumpkin. I struggle with growing pumpkins because of the vine borers. This is a variety of <i>Cucurbita moschata</i>, which is less attractive to the vine borers because of the solid stems. It is described as very disease and pest resistant- a must in my garden. Varieties of <i>C. moschata</i> also tend to do better in hot and humid climates- hello South Carolina! A type of Dickinson pumpkin called <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/nadiaarumugam/2013/11/19/why-you-want-canned-pumpkin-for-a-better-pie-not-fresh/#414260e658ec" target="_blank">Libby Select</a> is used to make most of the commercially canned pumpkin in the world. The company owns that particular variety, so the seeds are not available for purchase. However, this Dickinson pumpkin is closely related. I harvested one 7 lb pumpkin and there's another one on the same vine that is the same size, a third one that is huge and now it is producing a fourth pumpkin. As for taste, the Dickinson pumpkin is dry and sweet. It is also easy to cut and the fleshy part is very thick. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrhB1YTEN8ol-OR9GOlxazUkpVu9jQPDoR0gF7luuK4-cfAwRibhxsivKMKLfsNdT2i7UNgrds_GjJTmdmdrk4zx2N2Ee-BxHDoAHN7OMsK6FEC4WOHoNC-FvWYp6vkVwy2920W5BMQ-4/s1600/P7251434a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrhB1YTEN8ol-OR9GOlxazUkpVu9jQPDoR0gF7luuK4-cfAwRibhxsivKMKLfsNdT2i7UNgrds_GjJTmdmdrk4zx2N2Ee-BxHDoAHN7OMsK6FEC4WOHoNC-FvWYp6vkVwy2920W5BMQ-4/s640/P7251434a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I haven't tried making a pie yet, but I did make these pumpkin patties that were delicious. The Dickinson pumpkin is definitely going to become a regular variety in my garden.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirSDoSkGdZp97GZFE174HnGRa2zmytGlWlUDIJtFOt89LymBE9ng-YjRRHKc5p83o5SNBMF06Ph5HdkzrwmfCSEHROY7dF-XOUmzBTH_0rC46v3u7mRtMP_eJhPSrAKXJH8_Tcq2WEsss/s1600/P7261446a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirSDoSkGdZp97GZFE174HnGRa2zmytGlWlUDIJtFOt89LymBE9ng-YjRRHKc5p83o5SNBMF06Ph5HdkzrwmfCSEHROY7dF-XOUmzBTH_0rC46v3u7mRtMP_eJhPSrAKXJH8_Tcq2WEsss/s640/P7261446a.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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This is how my current veggie pile is looking:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilElBH3auI0zO9zMlBIwB6upLLydhO3e_7C44YGlCDU4dQo-Q2hSz6qLl90dqmVFgBXdFv-ikd5O7uIpKecScuF_QIBHTLYLUx1_WcJCqAvo1fcPjqDHsP3FKF2CMBnBSOeUceCcALkOA/s1600/P8011549a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilElBH3auI0zO9zMlBIwB6upLLydhO3e_7C44YGlCDU4dQo-Q2hSz6qLl90dqmVFgBXdFv-ikd5O7uIpKecScuF_QIBHTLYLUx1_WcJCqAvo1fcPjqDHsP3FKF2CMBnBSOeUceCcALkOA/s640/P8011549a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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It has been a big week for peppers at over 23 lbs. The green beans (7.3 lbs), summer squash (3.8 lbs), okra (1.4 lbs) and cucumbers (14.3 lbs) are still being harvested. Another interesting new harvest for this week is an edible gourd- the long green things in the center of the picture above. I have yet to try them, so I'll report back next week. I also harvested and ate sweet potato greens for the first time, but I really need to deal with that giant pile of veggies and will tell you all about it when I can dig myself out of the summer harvests.</div>
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Weekly harvests (lbs):</div>
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Summer squash 3.9</div>
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Peppers 23.3</div>
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Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 1.4</div>
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Cucumber 14.3</div>
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Green beans 7.4</div>
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Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 28.6</div>
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Eggplant<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.45</div>
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Melon 39.7</div>
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Winter squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>7.3</div>
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Sweet potato greens 0.16</div>
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Soybeans 1.6</div>
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Gourd 1.3</div>
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Yearly harvests: 404.8 lbs</div>
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres.</a></div>
Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-25377811675851935062016-07-28T11:52:00.000-04:002016-07-28T11:52:59.850-04:00Mr. Stripey Heirloom Tomato Caprese SaladNothing is more summery than a big, juicy tomato fresh off the vine. The first tomato always brings excitement. It is usually the small cherry tomatoes, which are delicious and juicy balls of sunshine that you pop into your mouth as soon as they are picked. The anticipation of the first big tomato is a summer tradition. While the evening soundtrack of cicadas, crickets and tree frogs plays in the background, I walk the tomato row looking for signs of ripening. I had my eye on a big Mr. Stripey with anticipation. It was a giant tomato and seemed to take forever to ripen.<br />
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Finally the moment came. Time to harvest the first big tomato of the year:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaWjJoGJAtBa6h6Uo47Dnpz_wnp8ms23Mv6YdcD_S0EZr4SuADDw1uHHopiIzmb5rI3JGKf9gm5rf8F1lepcsV9D2fnNcl-0b1wzfu44_rUCZ3d-3yHs2A6rOEeJky-POCL-Dk0lw-6A8/s1600/P7191270c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaWjJoGJAtBa6h6Uo47Dnpz_wnp8ms23Mv6YdcD_S0EZr4SuADDw1uHHopiIzmb5rI3JGKf9gm5rf8F1lepcsV9D2fnNcl-0b1wzfu44_rUCZ3d-3yHs2A6rOEeJky-POCL-Dk0lw-6A8/s640/P7191270c.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Mr. Stripey Tomato: 1 lbs, 2 oz</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This is my first year growing Mr. Stripey. It is an heirloom variety that was discovered by Wayne Hilton in Georgia. The reason I added him to my grow list, other than his cool stripes and giant size, is that it is an heirloom tomato that <a href="http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/NewsArticles/Tomato-late%20blight%20resistance%20variety%20trial%202012.pdf" target="_blank">has been shown to have very good resistance to late blight</a>. With hot and humid summers in South Carolina, late blight always shows up in my garden. Any disease resistance is a positive trait to have. It is an indeterminate tomato that can grow very large, which I luckily have room for. I just hope it doesn't get so tall that I can't reach the tomatoes!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLswyySj4Vi7eI-o-9SyrRC8bTNL6O6oNe49e-KQXNN8nI-Ya2-v-ESsTKl0Yd052_U8F1NltdbX5jHP57uJguH5m_qL7BY502Tqr2VEXnoV51Oald3xFZwyWXLqJUYDS6QVMQ6-ZRMD4/s1600/P7191305a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLswyySj4Vi7eI-o-9SyrRC8bTNL6O6oNe49e-KQXNN8nI-Ya2-v-ESsTKl0Yd052_U8F1NltdbX5jHP57uJguH5m_qL7BY502Tqr2VEXnoV51Oald3xFZwyWXLqJUYDS6QVMQ6-ZRMD4/s640/P7191305a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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What to do with this big, beautiful tomato? I wanted to highlight it's loveliness and flavor, so I felt a Caprese salad would be perfect. <br />
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I assembled some simple ingredients: a big Mr. Stripey tomato, fresh mozzarella, garden fresh basil, olive oil, salt and pepper.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB4vpJCBFukcVLND6cXZpDQaFu5oHGj9tfwCgmGUS1A4-ire9KaBFCJRSJE0TYKxTmAAVN67QotdGJs6uqJywC-zIrlyjhbyAMX158PQtKCjA1sk-qDo2ZQybNujcfyKOhNAH11Bgyc5M/s1600/P7201349b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB4vpJCBFukcVLND6cXZpDQaFu5oHGj9tfwCgmGUS1A4-ire9KaBFCJRSJE0TYKxTmAAVN67QotdGJs6uqJywC-zIrlyjhbyAMX158PQtKCjA1sk-qDo2ZQybNujcfyKOhNAH11Bgyc5M/s640/P7201349b.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I sliced the tomato and the mozzarella into 1/4 inch slices. Just look at that beautiful tomato!<br />
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Then I layered a tomato slice, a mozzarella slice and topped it with a basil leaf. I kept making stacks and then drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiMTtoVy3dfp5YLhr8d2rXOv6yV-GGOjosPP03XdgeIAKNCVHPMWoxiQTlXd7XORaX6XAs9Qt5ojummuZ9389Lwu6EBsNtqE8RK0qO7jzMEGBVz5txOO16WrqLh8RYdPZHZ5V4YWv5T70/s1600/P7211376b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiMTtoVy3dfp5YLhr8d2rXOv6yV-GGOjosPP03XdgeIAKNCVHPMWoxiQTlXd7XORaX6XAs9Qt5ojummuZ9389Lwu6EBsNtqE8RK0qO7jzMEGBVz5txOO16WrqLh8RYdPZHZ5V4YWv5T70/s640/P7211376b.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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A beautiful and delicious way to enjoy the first big tomato of summer. Mr. Stripey has a low acid content, which means that the sweetness comes out. It is not a strong or tart tomato, so a simple dish highlights its flavor without drowning it out.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisLQtuN3UmYO3AB2YVHnG5DiTerkkyS8rX4DtxaveY8zxzA1XNa-DfRxjVmdkEi48owDBdNdF3QLBWmLIPmSHTjqkJxCItyPWjWRefZ2JxauZmjTeuPufqcwpWDykjYdY1A6vX7Dh9fyE/s1600/P7211378b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisLQtuN3UmYO3AB2YVHnG5DiTerkkyS8rX4DtxaveY8zxzA1XNa-DfRxjVmdkEi48owDBdNdF3QLBWmLIPmSHTjqkJxCItyPWjWRefZ2JxauZmjTeuPufqcwpWDykjYdY1A6vX7Dh9fyE/s640/P7211378b.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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If you decide to grow Mr. Stripey, be sure to not overwater. They are prone to cracking and have a better taste with less water. <br />
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Savor those fresh garden tomatoes... summer is fleeting!Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261494849047025161.post-82887318605503140282016-07-25T13:10:00.000-04:002016-07-28T11:53:32.169-04:00Harvest Monday 7/25/16My exciting harvest this week is my first big tomato of the year, a 1 lb 2 oz Mr. Stripey:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEPAhuktqKA8G7CAU4pFCltyl9tCHJ4b4coyb4KfvR0jgwaoe9RYV0FLEU1L_cTsG3GrfFW29O-TWVs5JDWqoktvB-Biy7D8Pi1oEzTXQ2bdEH7VskJ4palGT3bXCowm6hwSG_ijIkd9g/s1600/P7191305a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEPAhuktqKA8G7CAU4pFCltyl9tCHJ4b4coyb4KfvR0jgwaoe9RYV0FLEU1L_cTsG3GrfFW29O-TWVs5JDWqoktvB-Biy7D8Pi1oEzTXQ2bdEH7VskJ4palGT3bXCowm6hwSG_ijIkd9g/s640/P7191305a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Mr Stripey will get a <a href="http://sanguinaria-budding.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">dedicated post later this week.</a> As a preview, it was one delicious tomato!<br />
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You can see that the tomato is almost as big as my little Rocky Ford melon:<br />
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I also harvested the first Striped Armenian Cucumber. They are technically more closely related to melons than cucumbers, but they taste like cucumbers. The great thing about them is that they never get bitter in the summer heat and they are pretty cool looking! The downfall is that they are a bit fuzzy, but you can always peel them.<br />
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The other big harvest this week is the first winter squash, a Green Striped Cushaw weighing 10.3 lbs.<br />
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This is a great squash to grow in the south because it tolerates heat very well and even more importantly, the squash vine borers don't care for it. It can be substituted for pumpkin in recipes. Another great thing about cushaws is that they store well- up to four months and they are surprisingly easy to cut through. </div>
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I've been harvesting lots of other summer veggies here: Cubanelle peppers, Roma tomatoes, Sun Gold cherry tomatoes, Red Noodle beans, okra, zucchini and yellow squash. The summer squash wilting has begun. I've pulled two plants and a third one is looking like it is on its way out. I do have back-up seedlings that I will plant. We are having some really hot weather, so I was hoping the hundred degree days would pass before planting the new seedlings.<br />
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My green bean pile was getting large, so I froze my first batch for the year. In doing so I discovered a freezer tragedy. Last Sunday we had a thunderstorm that briefly knocked out the power. I didn't think anything of it and then on Tuesday I was blanching and freezing green beans. I took the beans out to the freezer in the garage and find that it is far from cold. The power outage had reset the outlets in the garage. All I had to do was press the little reset button on the outlet and the power was back. The freezer was without power for two days in a 90 plus degree garage and everything was thawed. The temperature was up to 68 degrees. The good news is that there wasn't too much in there. This was probably the best time of year for me to have a freezer crisis. The only loss from this year's harvests was some cream of broccoli soup that I had put in the freezer on Sunday before the storm. The rest was leftovers from last year's garden that I hadn't gotten around to eating. So now I have a clean and empty freezer! <br />
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I also harvested the last of the New Mama Super Sweet corn. I have a second round of Honey Select corn that will hopefully do better, although I find that the insects on and in the corn tend to get worse as summer progresses.</div>
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The cucumber harvest continues and in an effort to avoid having too many jars of pickles, I've been experimenting with cucumber recipes including cucumber bread that you can read about <a href="http://sanguinaria-budding.blogspot.com/2016/07/cooking-with-cucumbers.html">here</a>.</div>
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My garlic harvest is now dry and cleaned up. It wasn't a great harvest, but it was a last minute crop planted with grocery store garlic. This fall I plan to order some varieties to plant. There are lots of small heads, but any garlic makes me happy. They will come in handy very soon when the tomato sauce making begins.</div>
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Weekly harvests:</div>
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Summer squash 5.89 lbs</div>
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Peppers<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>2.94 lbs</div>
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Okra<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0.63 lbs</div>
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Corn 2.35 lbs</div>
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Cucumber 11.66 lbs</div>
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Green beans 2.98 lbs</div>
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Tomatoes<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>7.57 lbs</div>
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Eggplant<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0.25 lbs</div>
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Melon 4.13 lbs</div>
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Cowpeas<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>2.56 lbs</div>
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Garlic 2.90 lbs</div>
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Winter squash<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>10.30 lbs</div>
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Yearly harvest: 275 lbs<br />
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That's all the harvests coming from my garden this week. To see what others are harvesting, check out Harvest Monday on <a href="http://www.ourhappyacres.com/" target="_blank">Our Happy Acres.</a><br />
<br />Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00193278804750154921noreply@blogger.com5