Pro Bono Produce

Tomorrow (Saturday, May 19), I will be removing large quantities of greens from the garden.  Turnips greens and arugula have all got to go.  We also have way more lettuce than we can possibly eat.  So, I'm going to put up my signs and try to get rid of some stuff.  

If you are reading this, and you know where the Givler Garden is located, just show up sometime on Saturday between 9 AM and oh, maybe 3 PM and I'll give you free turnip greens, arugula, and lettuce.  You'll be doing me a favor.  I need that space in the garden to put in peppers and eggplant.  

If you don't know where the garden is located and you live in the Richmond Area, (and you're not a scary stalker-type or an abuser of gnomes) send me a message and I'll give you directions to the Great Greens Give-away.

Sven

A couple weeks ago, I did a little arts and crafts project.  Last year, a small orange gnome showed up in my garden.  He stayed there all year, even in the snow.

As a result, he faded some.  The orange, in some places, had faded to white.  The little guy was splotchy, and we couldn't have that.  Not at all.

So, I bought some paint and some clear spray sealant.  Over a couple of weeknights, I slowly added new color to the original orange.  I think Sven's a good name, especially since my son named the one he picked out for me "Steve."

Angelia and the boys say his eyes are creepy.  I'm very happy with how he turned out.  There's also another new addition to the garden, this mailbox.

How I acquired this mailbox is a bit of a story, but the gist of it is that I had to replace this lightly damaged mailbox with a new one, and I'd read in a gardening book about keeping a mailbox near the garden to store tools.  So, I did that.  I'm keeping a pair of gloves, trowel, knife, and a few other things in it.  It's watertight, and my most used tools are right there when I need them.

My Big Fat Green Garden

Tonight I took some pictures of the growth in the garden.  We've had regular rain and good temperatures, so these are happy plants.

Foreground to background, this seedbed has lettuce, kohl rabi, carrots, brussel sprouts, and pole beans.












This one is blondie type peas and two types of sunflowers.

This bed has 3 varieties of squash including yellow straightneck and zucchini, califlower, chinese cabbage, and broccoli.









This one had green slicing cucumbers, lemon cucumbers, burgundy snap beans, and cauliflower.

This is the seedbed that was planted last.  It has borage, curled cress, summer savory, dutch caraway, radishes, watermelons, and banana melons.

Ok, we've got German chamomile, celeriac (which initially did not germinate but now has), more Chinese cabbage, and more snap bush beans.

The lower end of the garden.  Arugula, carrots, onions, summer lettuce mix, sugar snap peas, turnips, beets, mustard greens, spinach, green leaf lettuce, more carrots, hot peppers, and in the back, tomatoes.

The two seedbeds next to the tomatoes.  All this stuff is ready to pick, cook, and eat.

Two beds of tomato plants.

This is a Ildi tomato plant putting out a ton of flowers.  It will produce yellow grape tomatoes.

Today's big garden victory...4 free bales of hay.  It makes incredible mulch and is also a great addition to the compost pile.  If I can, I plan to score 4 more bales tomorrow.

Harvest Numero Uno

This past Sunday I harvested radishes, turnip greens, arugula, and Chinese cabbage.  I pulled all of my sparkler type radishes...they were starting to bolt.  I also grabbed some of the more developed icicle radishes.

I love mutant veggies.  Here's another freaky looking radish to go along with the six-fingered man.

Here's the complete harvest.  From right to left, arugula, Chinese cabbage, turnip greens, and then the radishes.  This week I was away at a planning retreat for work.  I did most of the cooking, and I prepared these greens on Tuesday night.  I seasoned them with butter, salt, pepper, a little vinegar, and a new secret ingredient that I found at Kroger...smoked pork jowls.  Yes, it sounds gross, but they delivered substantially more flavor than bacon or ham.  The greens were very good, if I do say so myself.

I got back home today, and was greeted with ripe strawberries.  The strawberry patch has been producing, but this was the biggest batch yet.

Yes, that's a dinner plate full of strawberries.  Will had some at supper, and I ate some as I picked.  They're good.  The problem is bugs and birds.  As soon as these things turn red, they are attacked by ants and birds.  I don't like the thought of spraying pesticide on them, and even if I did, it wouldn't solve the bird problem.  Oh well. I really don't mind sharing as long as they leave some for the rest of us.

Tomato Insanity

The garden is now fully planted.  All 12 seedbeds have seeds or plants in them.  I still have some plants in the greenhouse, but I will slide them in as current crops are harvested and space becomes available.

Above is a picture down the length of the garden.  At the far end are the tomatoes, planted in the two seedbeds that I covered with black weed-blocking fabric.  It's not plastic, but a fibery fabric that water can pass through.  It absorbs sunlight, warms the soil, and makes tomato roots happy.

I have put 73 tomato plants in the ground.  Yes, I know.  That's a crazy amount of plants.  I have a problem.  I have put in 14 different varieties, one of which was a unknown volunteer tomato that came from some compost I used to fertilize some other seedlings.  Here's the cheat sheet I created as I was transplanting them.

Most of these are types that I have not grown before, so I'm expecting a few surprises.  I'm happy with the mix of different varieties, and I'm really looking forward to the peak of the season.  These all went in the ground a week or two ago.  Tonight we were out in the yard and Angelia noticed a small green fruit on one of the Park Early Hybrids.  Many of the tomato plants are putting out flowers.  I see a lot of canning in my future.  Salsa anyone?