I read lots of homesteading blogs about people living self-sufficiently and sustainable lifestyles... over and over this year, I've heard how people all over the country have been experiencing less than average yields in their gardens.
We harvested 1 big basket of potatoes; and I brought them up on the porch. They are keeping without growing eyes...nothing has gotten into them either, bugs or chickens. I know this is not the proper way to put potatoes up 'for keeps'...but hey it is working.
I cleared out 3 small rows of green beans back before the Grasshoppers got really bad...and it made the equivalent of a 1 lb. frozen bag. It was enough for about 5 small meals for The Honey and myself.
I blanched them and froze them on a cookie sheet and then put them in a zip bag.
I have enough right now to dump in a pot roast or something...but not by themselves.
This has been our worst year for veggies too.
We only harvested enough peas to add to one dish. I won't complain. It was our first time growing peas...I was glad we got that much.
Cucumbers... fail
Lettuce...bitter fail. By bitter I mean...we had lots of it...but it just tasted bitter. I know. that is what salad dressing is for... I tried that. It helped to take the vein out and just eat the leaf and it was alright on a sandwich. Overall... fail.
I must say, our tomatoes still have blooms on them and a few of them are just turning. The lettuce is long gone. So no tossed salad... we both like sliced tomato as a SIDE with my meals...so can't complain.
I threw a sweet potato into one of the bed boxes and threw some dirt on it...it's coming up now. They are apparently drought tolerant. Don't know about the grasshoppers though...haven't seen them eating it.
They DON'T EAT THE TOMATOES... I should plan to grow nothing but tomatoes!!!
Most of you guessed that my address sign was the back part of a bench seat.
Yes!
Delight yourself in the LORD and He will give you the desires of your heart. ~Psalm 37:4
- Too much rain.
- Not enough rain.
- Too late a start due to snow.
- For us, it was the ravages of Grasshoppers. We just have not had a cold enough winter the last couple of years.
We harvested 1 big basket of potatoes; and I brought them up on the porch. They are keeping without growing eyes...nothing has gotten into them either, bugs or chickens. I know this is not the proper way to put potatoes up 'for keeps'...but hey it is working.
I blanched them and froze them on a cookie sheet and then put them in a zip bag.
I have enough right now to dump in a pot roast or something...but not by themselves.
This has been our worst year for veggies too.
We only harvested enough peas to add to one dish. I won't complain. It was our first time growing peas...I was glad we got that much.
Cucumbers... fail
Lettuce...bitter fail. By bitter I mean...we had lots of it...but it just tasted bitter. I know. that is what salad dressing is for... I tried that. It helped to take the vein out and just eat the leaf and it was alright on a sandwich. Overall... fail.
They DON'T EAT THE TOMATOES... I should plan to grow nothing but tomatoes!!!
This plant has doubled since I snapped this picture.
I don't know much about Sweet Potatoes...but maybe we'll get some out of it. As I am the only one to eat them... just a few would be nice. Not to mention the education and experience I'll gain out of planting it. :)
Most of you guessed that my address sign was the back part of a bench seat.
Yes!
I accidentally broke it when I sort of tossed it out of the way one day while mowing. Ooops!
So glad it broke when it did...I'd hate for someone to have sat in it and have it do that.
That would be embarrassing for me and for them. Not to mention how their tail-bone might have felt afterward.
Delight yourself in the LORD and He will give you the desires of your heart. ~Psalm 37:4
9 comments:
You might not feel like you have much, but I am totally impressed. I want to try my hand at vegetable gardening now that I am retired. I think I will start first with some composting ideas I read on Sunny Simple Life.
Hope the grasshoppers have moved on.
The gardens around here did not do much this year. It was so cold for so long that it was impossible to plant and then rained and rained and rained and then hot hot hot and no rain. Can't win.
I broke a chair tossing it while mowing, too. Mowing can be a dangerous sport! xo Diana
The weather has been horrible this year. We've always had a great year, with different veggies over producing, but a great year. This year? Not so good.
Tomatoes are about the only thing I have had success with here in Texas. This year though, with the cooler temperatures and then things heating up quickly, my harvest was limited. However, we sure did enjoy eating the tomatoes we were able to pick!
Haven't had a great year either. The fig tree looks good though, figs are huge this year! Your garden has done better than ours this year, especially the tomatoes!
The potatoes look great! Gardening can be challenging. We have very little veggie plants-- too much shade!
Maybe you can garden some nice greens in the fall, and/or forage a bit. I wonder if different varieties might work better? Sometimes, between the weather and the bugs, it's just not great. Thank the Lord for grocery stores!
Sounds like you're doing alright, considering the obstacles. You can replant the lettuce and peas if you want to, for fall planting. Your bitter lettuce problem sounds like it got hot fast and the lettuce was in the process of bolting. I've noticed that it will taste bad before it looks bad when it starts to go.
Your potatoes are beautiful.
You have an abundance of potatoes and the tomatoes look like they will dodge the nasty critters. Sweet potatoes love the heat of summer, they are one of the only crops we can grow here in Florida during this time of year. Yours looks mighty healthy! Happy harvesting!
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