Harvest Festival

tomato pie

cukes lead to pickles

hexagonal tomatoes

humongus watermelon

sunflowers and daisies

homemade Veggie juice

pumpkins came early

lavendar - foraged from neighbor

edamame

baba ganoush (eggplant dip)

strawberries relocated....

Strawberries were thinned from the bed and planted in smaller pots to re-root. We also have strawberry pots to give away to neighbors. The plants are 3 years old and should bear this year even after being disturbed.

a variety of tomatoes

Our tomato varieties:
Cherokee Purple (Ferry Morse Heirloom)
Abe Lincoln (Ferry Morse Heirloom)
Black Krim (Ferry Morse Heirloom)
Big Rainbow (Ferry Morse Heirloom)
Yellow Pear (Burpee Heirloom)
Roma (Burpee)
Sweet 100 hybrid (Burpee)
John Baur (Seed Savers - Bonny Best 1914)
Green Zebra (Seed Savers - Tater Mater 1983)
Tasty Evergreen (Seed Savers - Seedmen 1956)

Alexa really grew strong seedlings this year. This one was sown in February, transplanted after 6 weeks growth and is about 12 weeks old now and ready to go into the garden.

peppermint divided

It's very hard to grow mints from seeds but easy from cuttings from the mother plant. I divided it and soaked the roots and then popped them into our potting mix. Voila! 6 plants from 1 main plant.

Gardening is not a rational act - things that did not go well in 2012

Wild weather

• Drought: there was not much rain and certainly high temperatures. The water bill was high even with a drip system.
• Drip system installed. Had pressure issues and plugged hoses. Drip system saved the containers, though, while we were away for 3 weeks in June.
• Broccoli did not head. Cauliflower headed in late October. 
• Strawberries flowered and fruited three times! They were confused.
• Raspberries also confused.

Rodents of unusual cuteness

• Chipmunks ate young brassicas and undercut one of the tomato beds leading to premature demise. Too bad, our resident Cooper's hawk (picture) wasn't hunting them.  In further insult, our friends who were gifted with extra tomato plants had bumper harvests. Rats!

Japanese beetles: I won the war this time by going out morning and night and capturing and killing all that I could find on my cherry trees. Last year, they defoliated them. This year, I claim victory!

Beauty acquired: I scored white tulips at a clearance bin!

Peppers galore! Freezer full of hot and not-so-hot peppers.

Potatoes: Two years of unsuccessful harvest. The container method is not working. Where are the 100's of pounds of potatoes from a bin? We barely get seeds back out.

Sunflowers rocked!

sunflowers

Alexa is 5'4"...the sunflower is almost 7' tall.

This one is from seeds Kervin gave me...we're been calling the giant russian sunflowers, but that's just a guess.

Also, a happy bee.

tiny fruits....

Tomatoes, jalepeno peppers, and cucumbers have all fruited. 

japanese beetles are back

Japanese beetles, also known as popillia japonia, are invaders that we truly need to prevent and control. They love to feed off of the yard's life, defoliating leaves and fruit. I was going to town with a spray bottle full of soapy water and olive oil. Last year, the beetle defoliated both cherry trees. I hope to stop them this year before complete destruction occurs.

Drip system worked...sort of

The drip system and timer worked very well while we were gone for 10 days. Some plants didn't get as much water as others; one can tell from the size of the plants.

The basil had a great growth spurt despite being dug by a chipmunk!  To each side, are the flowers that just loved getting watered every day.



Yes, the chipmunks managed to dig out there tunnel which I had blocked. They, however, did not eat my brassicas to the ground like last year. So, win. There is now a pound of camphor inside and a large brick over their hole.


In other news, the poor cucumbers are battling. They did not get as much water as the centered yellow squash and melons. This one has only 2 true leaves, and has blossomed. Weird!

Purposeful living in the garden

The idea behind this garden blog is to share information about growing my own vegetables for health. I'm already a regular customer at the farmer's market for fresh, local produce. I'm a big fan of eating local and supporting organic practices. I have an existing garden bed but intend to step up this year and try to grow more vegetables in order to change my nutrition lifestyle into a more vegetarian one. All the books I've read indicate a diet composed of fresh, organic and raw vegetables is desirable for both treating and preventing a host of health concerns.

I've been diagnosed with psoaratic arthritis - I have all the symptoms of Rhuematoid arthritis but tested negative for the Rh factor. I am being treated with a combination of piroxicam, humira (a "biologic" - monoclonal antibody - anti-TNF) and methotrexate. I take tramadol for pain. It currently affects the mobility and dexterity in my hands/wrists, neck, hip, and toes. Reducing localized and systemic inflammation is a main health goal.

My friend, Alexa, is a wonderful supporter in this endeavor.

I expect to grow most of our spring/summer/autumn vegetables in the backyard this year. There are two exceptions: corn and squash which can be had very cheap at the farmer's market and in plentiful supply. Both are heavy feeders and take up a lot of space in the garden so it makes economic sense to simply buy local from trusted farmers.

I've toyed with the four season harvest and one year harvested winter carrots in March. I use the double dig, raised bed method with succesive, intensive planting. I have three compost tumblers for soil improvement.

My gardening has a purpose - mental, physical, spiritual.

Goals from 2009 - progress report

I want to revisit my goals from previous years to see how they've worked out (or not.)

1. Don’t go digital on February 17. It’ll save money and liberate time. Affirmative! I didn't go digital and do not have television in my house. I got rid of internet as well so I don't watch any television programming on the laptop either. I do watch DVDs either on the laptop or with Alexa at her house. I have a blackberry so I do get email at home.

2. Commit to an anti-inflammation (mostly vegetarian) lifestyle. This comes and goes. Recommitted with the new season and Alexa's support.

3. Eat 75% local (100 mile ) nutrition. Ditto. The garden was expanded and much more produce will be available from less than 10 ft away. Farmer's market for things I can't or won't grow: zucchini, peaches, apples, specialty plants.

4. Eliminate packaged foods to all extent possible. Mmm, partial success.

5. Reduce waste in the household. Increase recycling. Yep. No-sort recycling with a new company makes it easy to dump everything (plastic, paper, cardboard, glass, aluminum, etc) into the big tote. 6. Determine and follow a financial plan and schedule for home improvements (roof, bathroom, deck, etc). I have saved up enough money to complete the projects. Prioritization completed. Now to get quotes and start work.

7. Expand the garden beds. I have twice the growing space as last year. The boxes were built in 4'x4' and 6'x4' dimensions.

8. Plant dwarf fruit trees. The potted lemon tree that Mom gave me in 2009 is in good shape an dproducing fruit. This is on schedule for this year. Blueberry, blackberry/raspberry, and cherry esplanier.

9. Implement rain water catchment for irrigating the garden beds. Also on schedule for this year with the new beds.

10. Ride my bike for enjoyment at least twice a week, weather permitting. With my RA under control, this should be good to go for this summer.

11. Use bike/trailer to do local shopping on weekend. Maybe. Traffic is a problem unless I do grocery shopping at 6 am.

12. Ride to work at least once a week. Possibly. Safety in traffic a concern. 13. Continue reducing “things” in the house aka the 100 Thing Challenge. Pretty good. I still have a big closet to go. The neighborhood grarage sale is coming up 3rd week in May.

14. Explore different compost systems to maximize production and minimize space.I obtained 3 compost tumblers which work pretty efficiently. Also have a cold pile box.