How My Garden Grows - This Week

On May 3 my garden looked like it does in the photo above.   The summer was slow in coming, and so the plants were slow in growing, but they did grow.

Now my garden is taking on the jungle characteristics that I so enjoy.  Take a little tour with me and see how my garden grows, this week.

The bean rows are growing tall, interspaced with lush potato plants.  The sunflower seeds my daughter has planted around in various places are getting big, and many are almost ready to bloom.  Sammy, our little dog likes to check on the garden with me.  When I go to the garden, he's always right there with me.

A row of potatoes, with squash at the end of the row.

 Red potato blooms.  Did you know that Russets bloom white?  I just learned this out in my garden this week.  The Yukon Golds aren't blooming yet.  I am eager to find out what color their blossoms will be.

 Bean vines growing on their fence support.  We have to go out and help wayward vines find the fence.

The bean vines are growing tall, so tall they'd like a higher fence.  I'm hoping they will start blooming soon.  I'm hungry for garden fresh green beans.

 Looking the other direction, plants aren't as big, but they aren't supposed to be.  In this section of the garden there are turnips, beets, Swiss chard, onions, summer squash, peppers, okra, eggplant and cabbage family plants.

 We have already picked a couple beets.  I really like the orange ones grated in my salad.  And I like to slice and eat the red and white candy striped ones.  Some of the beets didn't grow from the seed, so I've gone back and filled in with some more seed, and they are starting to grow.  Those beets will be the dark red kind that are so good for you and your liver health.

We've picked two zucchini and there are likely two more for me to enjoy with my lunch today.  Should I slice and bread them, or should I put them through my spiralizer and make raw spaghetti?  I like zuchinni both ways.  There should be some yellow summer squash and some lemon squash soon.

Did you know there are male and female blossoms on squash plants?  The female blossoms come with a tiny squash below it.  The male blossoms don't have a baby squash.  You can pick the male blossoms (leave just a few for pollenization) and take them in and stuff them and eat them.  Look around on the web for recipes for squash blossoms.  You will be amazed.

I can't remember which kind of cucumber this is, but I remember it makes the nice long kind.  I also have some medium sized ones planted, some lemon cucumbers, and some pickling cucumbers planted, but these long ones bloomed first.  I'm looking forward to a bite of this yummy cucumber.

 My garden didn't have any rhubarb plants, but I asked for some on free cycle, and a lady asked me to come take all of hers.  Thanks to her (she said she didn't know anything about rhubarb) we have lots of plants growing.  And my mom really does like rhubarb pie.  I want to make some rhubarb and strawberry sauce to put in the freezer for putting on biscuits or pancakes on days when we need a treat.



The tomato plants have been bigger in previous years by mid-July, but they are still growing, and starting to bloom.  These tomatoes in the photo above are especially for drying.  I am eager to try making my own sun dried tomatoes, and putting them in sauces this winter.  Under this row of tomatoes is some lettuce, a red relative to romaine.

The cabbage family plants have had a hard start.  The soil in this end of the garden doesn't seem to be as good as in other parts.  The plants have been under attack from the earwigs, who think broccoli is very delicious.  And now the aphids are coming in.  My dad has been using Neem on them, and they are looking better.  Neem is an insecticide for organic gardens.  I haven't used it before, but it seems to work, and isn't supposed to cause any harm to gardens or people.  Maybe we will still get some broccoli, and kale.