I have a crazy garden. I am trying to understand what the heck is going on. As you know, I planted early and had to baby the veggies during two frost/freezes. Even though I covered the plants, I believe the cold stunted them somehow. They have not grown as well as I thought they should. The plants have been a very light green, almost yellow at times and they are not filling out very much. I sprayed them with some Epsom salts and water...which is supposed to make foliage green-up and help fruits produce. It helped a little. I'm trying to be as organic as I can be.
Here it is, mid-May and the veggie plants are starting to produce their fruits, which is wonderful.....but I doubt it produces very much considering the size of the plants. Just take a look......
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| It's very hard to get a good picture of the garden, but here you go. |
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| Tomatoes in the foreground...so small. |
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| ....Small, yet it's producing tomatoes. |
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| Squash |
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| Zucchini |
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| Cabbages are looking good. I thought they should be ready by next week, but no. |
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| Celery, grown from the cut off bottom of a store bought celery. |
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| Picked two Romaines last weekend and enjoyed a fresh salad. |
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| Cucumbers |
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| Cilantro picked Saturday morning made a delicious salsa Saturday evening. |
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| The Peach tree is loaded. |
As you can see in the first couple of pictures, I'm not finished with the garden area yet. I'm still working on it and am also making a flagstone path around the outside perimeter. Hope to finish that project up next week. I'll show you, once it's done.
And how can I talk about the garden without showing you my blooming flowers.
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| Lavender |
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| Magnolia |
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| Peony |
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| And last, but not least...trailing Petunias. |
Talk Soon,
Laurie
You might not be happy about the size of the plants but I have to say that they look great! The zucchini flowers look good and, oh boy, I wish I had all that cilantro growing here! I have a small vase at home, because it would never survive outdoors. You are lucky I'm not your neighbour because I'm crazy about cilantro! ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks Sara, I'm stumped with this one. Normally, the plants are much larger when we start getting produce. But, like you said they do look great. Oh, that cilantro was so good and fresh. I wish I could send you some.
DeleteHi Laurie! To me it looks as if everything is coming along nicely! I know we have had it so cold in April that my dad had to start over with his tomatoes! Imagine all those sweet peaches!
ReplyDeleteYour flowers are so lovely & fresh too!
Enjoy your day!
Thanks, Christine. I'm just used to the plants being much larger when they start producing fruit. Oh no, hope your dad's tomatoes are doing well now. Our last frost date is Apr 15th. I'm going to wait next year.
DeleteLooking good there, Laurie. I had that same problem a few years ago, and found that a good 10-10-10 general purpose fertilizer was all that was needed. Man, what a difference! Just sprinkle in the beds, and water.
ReplyDeleteThank you Don for your tip on the fertilizer. However, I am trying to be as organic as I can be. I know that my soil is not ideal, yet, but I am going to keep working on it. Thanks again!!!
DeleteDo you have a friend with a bunny? Their droppings make great organic fertilizer for gardens!
DeleteAs a matter of fact, my daughter is getting ready to get some rabbits. I'm sure she'll be glad to give me all I want. Thanks, Betsy!
DeleteI think everything looks fantastic!I like that 10-10-10 hint.
ReplyDeleteThanks Monique! I am so grateful for Don's advice on fertilizing, but I'm trying to be organic. I'll just keep working on my soil. This is the first year I've had a garden at the lake and the soil needs lots of help in the way of compost and mulch.
DeleteLaurie, for your very first year in new garden soil, I think you are doing very well. Remember, until you get good organic matter worked into the soil and the humus built up, plants won't look quite as big or produce as well. Also, insects are more apt to attack plants before the soil is at its peak. Getting good garden soil often takes years (but don't be discouraged, please). In Illinois we were used to gardening in rich, black loam and what a shock when we moved up here to find the rocks and red clay didn't support the plants in the same way. (Strange, huh?) We spent years working with the soil to get it to the place it is now.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy whatever you get from the garden this year (I'll bet in your area you can even go for a fall crop, right?) and know it will be better next year. In the meantime, I think your garden is doing better than you give it credit for. :o]
Thank you Mama Pea! I'm sure poor soil is most of my problem. We have red clay, also. I am working on it. I'm composting and almost have enough ready to top dress the garden beds. I'll keep adding organic material through the fall and winter and hopefully, next year will be much better. Yes, we can have a fall crop in our area. I'm planning on lots of greens, especially collards. Love them!! Have a great evening!!
DeleteOh, man...I thought your slow-growing veggies were cool (they might just surprise you and you'll have vegetables for longer in the season than most), I got to the peony and magnolia - HUGE sigh!!!!!!! XOXO
ReplyDeleteI sure hope so, Tanya. I have high hopes for this little garden of mine. It's so much fun getting out there and getting my hands dirty. The peony had one bloom, but another plant has volunteered right beside it. This flower is new to me. The temps were just too warm back home to grow them, at least I think so. I need to do some research to find out it's likes and dislikes. I would love to have a whole bed of them. Magnolias....easy, peasy. Have a great evening!
DeleteI love your garden the way you have them in boxes. Clever. The cabbage looks great! IF you like rice, Try this...Cook some rice, add some lime juice and cilantro to it. Sooo good!!!
ReplyDeleteLisa
Oh, thanks Lisa! I do love rice and cilantro and lime juice. I'm going to make this! The garden boxes....I like growing veggies in them. I feel like I can control so much this way, especially weeds. Have a great evening!
DeleteHi Laurie...
ReplyDeleteLooks fantastic to me! We have to wait until mid-summer to see such lush plants!
I am just about to leave for the lake...first long weekend of the Summer here in Canada...all the kids are coming on Sunday...very excited!
Have a great weekend...
Cheers!
Linda :o)
Thanks, Linda! I know you can't wait until you can plant. I would be biting at the bits. Hope you have a great weekend, weather wise and with the kiddos. We are at the beach this weekend. It's the Harley Davidson Bike week. You should see them. It's like ants on an ant hill in places. Ha! I may go take a picture of them and post it. It's amazing how many motorcycles are here.
DeleteWhat a beautiful garden! We use cow dung to accelerate growth. But that is our lavender and our green hedges. Thank you so much for showing your super-cool garden! http://momentsfrozentime.blogspot.nl/
ReplyDeleteThank you! I use black cow. It's a cow manure compost and it normally works very well. I think the cold hindered my crop this year and the fact that my soil is not where it should be. I'm still working on it. I would love to see your lavender. Have you posted pics, yet?
DeleteI don'think my sugar peas are as large as they should be either and I don't even have my zucchini planted yet! Just planted a few beans and cukes today. Seems like my lettuce is taking forever to grow. Am I just impatient? Lovely garden boxes!! Nancy
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nancy! I don't know...I think I am impatient a little, too. I did plant really early because we had a lot of warm days, but the two frosts after that. I'm sure my soil has lots to do with it. This is my first garden at this home, so I need lots of patience to get it in tip top shape. It took my lettuce longer, also. Hope your peas and cucumbers do well and that you get some lettuce soon.
DeleteWe still had frost on the ground a few mornings just last week! haha. So we aren't planting anything yet. Memorial Day is the rule of thumb here for planting. It all looks great to me....hope they perk up and produce a lot for you....it's still early!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I have to tell myself that we normally don't get veggies for another couple of weeks still. I'm so impatient, though. Thanks for the rabbit poo tip....lol! It's amazing how different each area of our country differs as far as growing seasons. What do you plant?
DeleteUsually just the basics...tomato, zucchini, spaghetti squash, peppers, jalapeno. And just a couple of each to keep it manageable. Our season is much shorter than yours....I'm jealous!
DeleteThe garden is starting to look really good... in what seems like no time at all. Enjoy the all the fruits of your labour.
ReplyDeleteThank you, I'm surely looking forward to all those vegetables.
DeleteEverything is looking good - enjoy the veggies.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Carol! I will for sure. The veggies I'm looking forward to the most are the cucumbers.
DeleteLooking good! The only edibles I have right now are turnips and kale. But I have loads of other stuff growing.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lisa! I wish I had my garden prepared soon enough that I could have grown kale. Maybe this fall. Love it! Good to hear from you.
DeleteGORGEOUS!!! Wow, your veggie garden is miles ahead of mine but obviously your zone is more temperate. I'm ready to plant out the tender seedlings this weekend, yee haw!!!
ReplyDeleteOh, I can't wait to see them. I love looking at your yard and flowers and alpine looking mountain. Yes, we are definitely in a more temperate area. Zone 8. Not sure exactly where your mountain is, but glad it's warm enough for you to get those seedlings out.
DeleteThe cold may have stunted the size of your produce. I will say your gardens are the neatest looking I have seen. Does being raised beds keep the rabbits out? Blessings, xoxo, Susie
ReplyDeleteHey Susie. I kind of think the cold is the culprit too. I doubt the raised beds would keep rabbits out. I would think they could hop right in there. But, early on I placed hardware cloth over the boxes with lettuce and cabbages to make sure the rabbits couldn't get to them. The hardware cloth has been off for sometime now and I have not had any problems. I was actually more worried about deer.....that's the reason for the fence. Hope you're doing well!
DeleteHeat is doing a number on everything my end. The one thing loving the heat is the strawberries. Root veg are a disaster. Instead of pickled beets it will be strawberry jam seeing me through the winter.
ReplyDeleteOh goodness...surprisingly, the very hot and humid weather hasn't kicked in here yet. This week will probably bring it on, though. Sorry to hear your beets didn't make it, but strawberries are good.
DeleteHeat is doing a number on everything my end. The one thing loving the heat is the strawberries. Root veg are a disaster. Instead of pickled beets it will be strawberry jam seeing me through the winter.
ReplyDeleteYour garden is absolutely beautiful!
ReplyDeleteI just love how organized and structured it is.
Are you enjoying it- other than the gardening frustrations we all feel?
Thanks, Laura. Loving it to pieces!
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