Garden Update #2

I know that I have not posted in quite a while, but truly, circumstances have prevented me!

My first born got married this past Saturday!!

I will post some pictures when I get them from the photographer. Needless to say, we are just thrilled with our new daughter-in-love. She is beautiful inside and out.

We have had some disappointments in the garden. First, a rabbit kept getting in at night and eating my yellow and zucchini squash! I used to love the Tale of Peter Rabbit. Now, though, I believe I identify with Farmer McGreggor more than Peter!



Recipe Tip: With the squash that we have gotten so far, I used a nifty little gadget called a Spiralizer to cut them in thin ringlets. (Actually, sweetie pie, Lydia, cut them and then proceeded to eat them! Yes, Miss Picky!) By marinading them in olive oil and soy sauce, they could be eaten raw, but tasted as though they had been sauteed. Mmmmmm!

The green beans have just about played out and I am going to replant them this weekend. I got about 12 pounds of beans from these plants. I don't know if that is remarkable or just average, but they were delicious. I don't know the price of organic fresh green beans, but the local grocery store had them priced at $2.99 yesterday so those yummy beans would have cost me around $35! We had some seed from last year, but my husband wanted to try a different variety this year so I did buy the seed, but that cost is minimal.



Recipe Tip: Take a jelly roll pan and brush it lightly with coconut oil. Spread out about a pound of green beans with ends snapped. Thinly slice an onion and top the beans. Add about 10 (yes, I said 10) cloves of garlic and place over the top. Once roasted the garlic will be deliciously mild. Salt and pepper to taste. Bake at 400 until beans are to your liking! I love them as they are, but my husband and sons like to sprinkle them with balsamic vinegar!

I have had about a dozen tomatoes to ripen so far, but about 75-80 have not ripened yet. I'm sure, with my luck, that they will all ripen on the same day! :)

Sun-dried tomatoes will definitely be on the menu.




Our fruit trees have totally shocked me! We just planted them along with our Spring garden and lo and behold, all the fig trees are bearing fruit along with several pears. I believe a delicious pear crisp is in order! I thought that you could not expect to have fruit for at least three years from when you planted.





Did you know that pears actually need to be picked before they are ripe? Bill was reading about them in one of our organic gardening books and that was the advice given.



I have already harvested and made pesto with my basil and am going to havest and make more today. Companion gardeners say to plant basil alongside tomatoes. I tried that this year and I seem to be having a "bumper" crop! I will also dry some of the basil for use this winter, but I really prefer it fresh.



My only regret so far with this years garden is that we did not plant even more!

Hmmmm...

I think I said the same thing last year!

Garden Update #1

Just wanted to update my garden news!

What is it about putting a seed or plant into the ground and watching it grow that is so exciting!

Especially when you begin to see it produce something.








Does the Lord feel that same excitement when we begin to sprout, to grow and then to produce fruit that glorifies Him?

My first pepper and tomato!
My squash is blossoming!




We put more mulch on the beds and more compost tea. The rain has been more than abundant and the humidity is fierce.


We have also reached 217 in our egg count.

Any customers?

Don't forget to check out From Seeds to Harvest to see what everyone else is doing in their gardens!

From Seeds to Harvest

I am taking part in a challenge! Those of you who know me very well will also know that I love trying something new! Experimenting!

My oldest son (whom I'm afraid takes after me, poor thing) would often get in trouble and say,

"I just wanted to see what would happen!"

My dear friends have often been seen cringing in fear when they hear these words come out of my mouth:

"You know what we could do?"

Well, our entire family has taken to gardening. Of course, it is now cool to garden because of our present economy, but I must say that this is not our first garden.

I must also confess, that I hope at the end of the season to be able to say that this was our first successful garden! :)

I have decided to take a challenge with a few other adventuresome folks to share what we are doing (successes and failures) in our garden this year. I will post about it from time to time.

I may even wax poetic occasionally. Isn't that supposed to happen to people who spend time with nature!

If you, too would like to 'take the challenge' just click on the images of Seeds to Harvest at the top of this post to find out how you can join with others on this season's GREAT ADVENTURE.

Here are some pictures of my humble beginnings. The garden has been trying to survive since March 20. Two weeks later we had a freeze :( and lost our first cucumbers. The other plants survived, but because of the continued cold began to turn a sickly shade of yellow. We continued to put worm castings on them in hopes that they would rally.



Note: Do not plant cucumbers until the ground has warmed to at least 65-70 degrees. They cannot bear the cold. (Of course, we did not know this until after the freeze and I then checked my gardening books. Hmmmm. Is there a lesson in this?)

We decided not to try cucumber plants, but started them the second time from seed. Aren't they the cutest things?


We have planted tomatoes, cucumbers, squash (crooked neck and zucchini), bell peppers, chili peppers, onion sets, beans, and several kinds of herbs.

Note: Here in Texas, we have been informed that our onion sets should have been out the first of January! I don't know how they will do. The farmers who let us know showed us their onions that are almost ready to harvest. Huge! Beautiful! I wish that we had known. sigh....


Pear, plum, and fig trees have also come to reside here at the farm. (I'll post pictures of these at another time.) We had a tiny black insect that tried to devour the plum trees, but I believe that we have overwhelmed him with organic pepper sprays. I know that I could not have lived through the onslaught of torture through which we put those bugs! :)

Compost tea is also another great way to feed your plants. Here is a link to making your own!