A Wildflower Morning

 My lettuce is doing great this year, even though the temperatures have been steadily warm.    This is unusual, because lettuce doesn't like our warm, inland Northwest temperatures, and usually quickly bolts.   The next issue is that my lettuce starts out tasting nice, but quickly turns bitter.  And then if it doesn't go to seed, it really doesn't matter, because I don't like strong tasting lettuce, and it usually doesn't get picked.   I heard that sweetness might be effected by the amount of water the lettuce gets, so I tried keeping the lettuce very moist.  But that only attracted more slugs, and the lettuce still got quite bitter. But this spring I saw something that gave me an idea.  Could it be that shade might help keep out the bitterness and keep the lettuce from bolting?  I decided to give it a try.  We pounded in some stakes, strung up some string, then used clothes pins to hold some old she...

Do you remember back to when you were a baby?  Maybe you can remember back to when you had your own baby.  What could that baby do?  Almost nothing.  Cry.  Wet.  Nurse.  Sleep.  How much could that baby NOT do?  Almost everything.  If it wasn't for your loving care, that baby would have died.  All that you did for that helpless baby, things that baby could not do for itself, was grace.  That baby got older, and could start doing a few more things. They could walk and talk, and say please and thank you.   They might even be able pour a bowl of cereal and find the milk in the refrigerator.  Wow!  Soon they learned to tie their own shoes, and empty the dishwasher. But could they do everything?  No.  The child can not earn their own income and pay rent on a house.  They can't drive a car.  They might not even know how to read yet, or sign their name.  They need protection, and ...

 There was so much to harvest yesterday we had to load it in the truck to bring it back to the house.  I'm amazed at the abundance. And all of it came from little seeds, mixed with good work, sun, rain, a watering system, and the blessing of God. That yellow and green melon in the lower center edge of the photo was pure delight.  I can't remember what it is called.  But I'll have to do some searching through the catalog so I can order some more of that seed.   6 boxes of tomatoes, and two buckets of little tomatoes, a box of zucchini and summer squash, a box of green beans with cucumbers, 5 watermelon, 6 other mixed melons  I'm short on time this week for canning, and my cupboards and freezer are getting very full.  So the green beans and zucchini went to an elderly gentleman who is always doing good things for other people.  Grandma convinced him that he needed to make zucchini patties too.  Some of the produce went to ...

 Do your remember when we planted potatoes back in May?   Well, deep under the soil, those potatoes grew.  They grew big! And we are glad to gather in the harvest.  We give thanks to our God for providing good food for us.  It is because of Him that potatoes grow.  It is because of Him that we have potatoes to eat.  We are grateful!

The tomatoes are ripe!  Yipee!!  We've had two small pickings so far, but tonight I had to call for help to carry 30 pounds of tomatoes to the house!  We have some great, big tomatoes, and some tiny current tomatoes.  Just see how tiny these are in grandma's hand.  Let the canning and drying commence - tomorrow, after I get some sleep.  And of course there will be onion and tomato sandwiches for lunch.  Spring is my favorite time of year, but tomato season is a close second. Next year I want to experiment with getting some tomatoes into the garden really early.  September is the latest I've ever had my first tomato harvest.

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 an...

There has been an abundant quantity of lettuce coming from the garden the last two weeks.  We planted three different beds at different times, but all three seemed to get ready to eat at about the same time.  There was a bed with a lettuce mix called "Rocky Top,"  a long row of Romaine, and a small section of variety of Butter Crunch lettuce.  If only I had known how delicious the Butter Crunch was, I would have purchased more seed of that variety, to keep planting through until the frost.  But I can put that on my list for next year. The earwigs also love our lettuce and other tender garden leaves.  If anyone has some non-toxic ways to get them away from my plants, please leave me a comment.  I just found a broccoli plant that is almost down to just the leaf ribs, thanks to those little undesirables.

I'm happy to tell you that my garden is growing, fast and well, now that the weather has warmed up.  The T-Tape experiment is successful, adequately watering each row.  The peas are finished, but we are harvesting lettuce now, every day.  Lots of other plants are blooming, so it won't be long until until we will be eating well.  Also, the weeds haven't been as bad as I expected.  There is a good crop of thistle, teasel and bindweed, but we are keeping it under control.

Drip hose on the potato row that is just beginning to sprout!  The soil on the left of the row will be piled on as the potatoes grow. Since I live in a dry area, it is absolutely essential that I get water to my garden daily.  I know that some of you live in the humid areas of the south and the east, and you don't really have to water, but can rely on humidity to do the job.  But if I don't water, my plants can die within a day, and that's the end of that. Drip irrigation works better here because it uses less water but still waters the plant adaquately.  Sprinklers put more water into the air then on the soil by the plants.  Much of it evaporates quickly.  Many plants don't like water drying on their leaves either.  So, in answer to a request from a friend, I am detailing my watering system with photos. There are many ways to do a drip system.  Local home and garden supply stores may have some drip system products.  I've tried many...