Wednesday, May 3, 2017

In Case You Were Wondering...

This is my garden post. 

HaHa!


I have really had a lot of fun getting out in the garden this spring, planting and watching things grow. The plants are still small and I can't wait until they fill in the beds and start giving me lots of veggies. 

My garden is still under construction, so to speak. I still don't have a potting shed or a potting bench, for that matter. Hopefully, I can hogtie Cliff long enough to at least make me a potting bench, soon. Or, I just might have to pull out his power tools and make one myself....even though I'm forbidden from using power tools. HaHa! He does get brownie points, though, because he made me an extra raised bed and another compost bin.

I have a couple of garden accents I want to hang and I am patiently waiting for my zinnias and marigolds to grow big enough to plant around in different spots. Perpetual progress, I think, sums up the garden pretty well.

Well, as you can see, I took lots of photos and I'm just gonna go ahead and let them do the talking. 

I just love my little garden. It looks so cottage-y.

I've planted more vegetables this year than last and if I had the room, I would plant even more. I'll give you a quick list.....carrots, lettuce, onions, kale, broccoli, cabbage, bok choy, celery, tomatoes, cantaloupe, jalapeno, beets, radishes, squash, zucchini, watermelon, cucumbers, string beans, okra and dill. I also planted some spinach and sugar snap peas, but I think I planted them too late. Only one sugar snap pea germinated and the spinach never grew taller than an inch before dying off. 

My new raised bed is under the window and is home to the string beans and okra. And, do you see the pink tub and a tiny bit of a blue tub sticking up beside the new bed? That's where my other compost bin went. Cliff had not installed it yet before I too these pictures. 

From this view, in the top left corner of the garden is where some sort of potting shed or bench is going....one day...some day...whenever. 
And do you see that metal bin hanging on the side of the house? I use it to store a few small garden tools, extra gloves, garden string and scissors.

Last winter, I direct composted in the garden beds as well as topped dressed them with leaves. I really used too many leaves, though. They didn't break down all the way before it was time to plant. I probably spread the leaves 3 to 4 inches thick. However, the leaves that did break down made some good compost for the beds and the remaining leaves, although not very pretty, are helping to hold moisture and keeping the soil somewhat cooler during our long hot days. Because of the direct composting, I had a few volunteers. This is a watermelon volunteer.

....and, this is cantaloupe volunteers.

One way to get free plants and is so much fun to experiment with is to cut off the bottoms of certain vegetables that I buy at the store and root them in water. I've done it with celery, romaine lettuce and this one, bok choy.

Kale

Broccoli

Dill

Carrots. Yes, they need to be thinned, but I can't bring myself to do it. I've never had good luck growing carrots until this year. And they look so pretty that I hate to bother them.

Mixed lettuce. I picked quite a bit last weekend. It was delish.
I did a succession planting of this lettuce, Saturday. I'm not sure how it will fair since we are getting some really hot days, lately.

Tomato. I planted several varieties of tomatoes this year....some heirloom and some cherry tomatoes, too.

We've already been enjoying the radishes.

Since space is limited, I'm trying planting in pots this year. The one in the center is cucumbers and the two on the sides are zucchini and squash
.
Zucchini

  Cilantro, also growing in a pot.

String Beans

Okra

And before you go, I just had to show you one of my flowers in bloom. I am so happy with this Catmint. This is the second year's growth. I've planted them beneath my crepe myrtles. I love them so much that I ordered three more and planted them in the back of the house to help hide the AC unit. 

Last, but not least....do you remember
The Hope and The Potential?
This, my friends, is The Promise.

I've already picked the early cabbage and this head is in my crock...fermenting...as we speak. It will be sauerkraut in a week or so. I can't wait....man, I love that stuff. I have a later planting of cabbages growing, but once again, it's getting hot and I'm not sure how they will do. I'm still learning the best time to plant things, but with our unusually warm February and then a freeze in March, I'm sure the plants are as confused as I am. 

Hope I didn't keep you too long. I'll give updates as the season progresses. 

How's your garden growing?

Oh wait, I wanted to show you our salad from the garden. It's just lettuce, radish and a few sprigs of dill. I dressed it with plain white balsamic vinegar. Soooo good! 
I also wanted to show one of our favorite plant-based meals. A beans, rice and vegetable bowl. The possibilities are endless. And, depending on the combination, each bowl has it's own unique deliciousness.
 

Check back in a few days. I'm going to share another favorite recipe.

~~** Laurie **~~


















29 comments:

  1. Yum, yum, yum! Everything is looking great. Our season is ending but yours is just beginning and holds so much possibility. I had cilantro just starting to grow by the back door and Jingles plopped herself right in the pot. Sadly, it never recovered. The good thing about gardening, is you always get something out of it, even if you have some failures along the way. Enjoy!

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    1. Oh that's so true, Tammy! And it is so gratifying when you get to harvest fresh veggies. I guess Jingles thought she had a new bed. Lol!

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  2. I have been wondering about your beautiful spot..it was so nice seeing it come into play:) Looking reat!

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    1. Thank you, Monique! I've been spending a lot of time out there.

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  3. Your garden looks great! I cant grown anything without the squirrels or birds eating them before They even grow! I get so upset. However, I did get an egg plant to grow last year and the fruit was delicious! I only have a strawberry plant in a pot right now. Its full of strawberries but not ready yet. I hope I can get to them before the animals do!
    Lisa

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    1. Maybe a box top made of wire to place over your vegetables might work. One thing I'm sure of though, squirrels are from the devil! Lol!!

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  4. I love your garden!!! It's so organized, and that fence is awesome!! I planted peas, spinach, mixed greens, onions, and garlic so far. Nothing is coming up yet, and it looks like we may get a few frosts this week so I can't put anything else in yet. Next up is my herb garden, nothing came back but the sage. Too bad, I was hoping at least a few of the perennial herbs would survive, but the fact that they are in raised beds and also on the deck means they don't have the protection they would if they were in the ground. However, the convenience of having them right outside my kitchen door makes it worth it!

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    1. Well thanks, Debbie! I don't have a place to plant herbs outside the kitchen door, but I'm trying a pot of cilantro growing on the screened porch. So far, it's up and doing well. It only gets late evening sun, so we'll see. Look forward to seeing more of your garden.

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  5. Wow- That is a great garden!! I love it--and I love your fence and how neat and organized everything is there. Lucky girl-we have not had anything growing here yet. As a matter of fact we never plant anything outside until after Memorial Day. June 1st is almost an assurance we won't have another freeze. I can't wait to get some outside plants this year. xo Diana

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    1. Thank you, Diana. I do like it to be neat and organized for sure. I may be eating squash or zucchini by the time you're able to plant. What a difference a few lines of latitude make.

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  6. Beautiful. Beautiful. Beautiful!! LOVE your cottage garden, Laurie! Fits right in with your good eating! And, there is nothing that tastes better than home grown vegetables! Gorgeous flowers, too. Enjoy! blessings ~ tanna

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    1. Thanks so much, Tanna! I can hardly wait until I can get those first tomatoes and cucumbers. They're my favorite.

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  7. My raised beds are still sleeping! I don't ever plant anything until at least the middle of May. I could put in peas and lettuce and spinach but haven't had time yet! It's been very chilly these past days so I'll just have to wait for the time being. I laughed at the carrots because I'm the same way when it comes to thinning them. I hate to kill off any! I feel like I'm playing God or something. Jack just shakes his head at me but now I can tell him I'm not the only carrot thinning hater! Everything looks so cute in your garden and I love your fence!

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    1. Thanks, YaYa! I do love that fence. When we first put it up, Cliff said it looked like a cemetery. Lol!! Yep, tell Jack that we are exclusive members of the Carrot Thinning Hater club.

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  8. Your garden looks wonderful!! The catmint is pretty. I grew it at our last house. The first year we put it in it was pretty but then after that it didn't grow as tall. You are ahead of us in warm weather. Everything looks very pretty! Nancy

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    1. Thanks, Nancy! I can tell you how I care for my Catmint.....I have a drip system in place and my plants get watered 3 times a week and I fertilize them a few times over the summer. Really though, I think we get lucky when we find a plant that just plain likes the growing conditions in our gardens.

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  9. Amazing...I'm very impressed! And I love all the photos. I have 2 tomatos in pots. We've had to bring them in the last 2 nights because of frost. Good grief, we are ready for warmer weather. Your garden is refreshing!

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    1. Thank you, Anita! Goodness, frost still? Are you getting a lot of rain, too? We've been getting just enough. It's starting to really warm up, though. We've had 80 degree days already.

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  10. Oh my...I am jealous Laurie!!
    If it ever stops raining here, perhaps I could get some planting done!!
    Looking forward to see everything harvested...
    Cheers!
    Linda :o)

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    1. Thanks Linda! Hope you get to do some planting soon! It's starting to get hot hear and I don't know how well my cooler season veggies are going to do. I just love planting them anyway. HaHa!

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  11. Your garden is looking wonderful! How fun!

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  12. Gorgeous garden! I would be singing about it all the day long!
    Notice that you now have 111 followers? :-)
    When you get to 1111, I will bring that to your attention too! x

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    1. I noticed the 111 followers, but it didn't dawn on me for awhile that it coincided with 111 lala lane. I will definitely need it brought to my attention when it gets to 1111. Thank you for reminding me. Lol!! 😁 Maybe you'll sing it?

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  13. Love, love, love seeing any and all pictures of your garden. Your garden and yard both are magazine worthy! So lovely.

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  14. Well that is so sweet of you to say! Thank you, Mama Pea!

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  15. Wow- That is a great garden!! I love it--and I love your fence and how neat and organized everything is there.


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