Bush-whack through my garden...

Finally!  Of course, I was going to go out on Saturday - a nice, sunny day - to take these but family duties intervened and I didn't get out until yesterday.  When it rained all day long.  So, without further ado:

New strawberry bed in the foreground.  Raised bed
behind:  tomato jungle, basil, cukes

(L-R) Tomatoes/basil/cukes and summer squash/winter squash/
pumpkins making a break for it!

Two rows chard (L)
Three rows beets (R)

Sorry pepper and eggplants (front)
Two kinds of kale (back)



Looking between two main raised bed areas:
Horseradish
Potatoes

I did not take my machete out with me, so more detailed pix were not possible.  I was actually afraid at one point that my pumpkin plant would pull an "Audrey II" on me...
You will notice two cars in my driveway - Bernice keeps barking at it and then I think someone has pulled in to visit.  Then I remember that it's my car.  In parking lots, I am still looking for a tan Focus wagon.  Sigh.  Lulabelle is going on Craigslist this week so I hope to find a buyer and end the confusion (and bizarre attachment complex).

I pulled out the bean plants this morning and donated them to the Ovine/Caprine/Camelid Sisters of the Benefaction Society.  They were much appreciated - except by Sister Norman, who, apparently, had never seen a bean plant before and didn't know what all the fuss was about.  I estimate that I picked about two bushels of beans - most of which were immediately consumed or processed into 3 Bean Salad and Mustard Beans.  The balance will be turned into Leather Britches.  The yellow (wax) beans far outgrew the green Providers.  I will have to double check the seed source, but I believe they were from the D. Landreth Seed Company (2012).  Being a small gardener, I can use a good-sized packet of seeds for more than two years - which is why it pays for me to use good, reputable seed companies.

Of the three types of beets that I planted, the chiogga were far better/advanced than either the golden or reds.  The reds are still chugging along.  I hope they hop-to because I have two beet recipes that I HAVE to try - one is a vegeburger and the other is beet hummus.  Hurry up beets!!!  This reminds me -- do you talk to your garden?  Not only do I talk, but this weekend I was singing/dancing the Jungle Boogie (thanks, again, Tami for sticking that in my head...)  I am hoping it will work miracles on my pepper plants.  I also talk to the goats, sheep, chickens, turkeys, llama, dogs, cats, Japanese beetles (bad words), inanimate objects.  It's probably a blessing that I live alone.

The Big Daddy onions (Burpee) are curing in the barn - fingers and toes crossed that they cure in time for me to move them out and my next hay delivery in.  So far, I am very impressed with the size of these babies.  The other three onion types I planted (also from Burpee) have not grown to half their size.  I am going to have to pull the garlic soon, as well.  That won't be a problem to cure, as I have rigged up hanging lines along the inside walls of the barn that work well.  I have no idea what my potato harvest will be like.  The plants were abundant, as were the flowers, there were much less pests this year.  But you never know until you dig in.  Kale did very well (Territorial Seeds), as did the chard (Territorial).  My tomato plants have formed a dense jungle and I am still only getting the small handful of black cherry toms a day.  There are plenty of fruit forming, but all is still green.  My slicing cukes are starting to produce, while my lemon cukes are small, small, small.  I have a feeling - if I can protect them - I will be getting a lot of sweet meat squash (Baker Creek) and pie pumpkins (Territorial).  I put in a second planting of lettuce (Territorial) and winter radishes (Mike's Seeds) which are starting to germinate.  So far, it's been a pretty good year.  Next year, I will not plant so many tomato plants (yeah, right) and will skip the lemon cukes and eggplant (yeah, right). 

On my agenda tonight is to fill my dehydrator with kale.  I am swamped with kale, chard, beets, squash, and cukes.  What a delightful predicament!