More Vegetable Harvests Coming in the Near Future

 So far the main vegetables I have been harvesting over the past couple of weeks and months have been cucumbers and tomatoes.  Mostly cherry and beefsteak tomatoes have been harvested the most while my roma tomatoes are still green and will take some time to ripen.  With the amount of sunlight the garden has been receiving I thought that my romas would ripen about the same time as my others, but that is not the case.  I am sure within a couple of weeks or so they too will start ripening and I will then begin to harvest them along with all the others.

My spring crop plants are still up and producing a decent crop even though the weather is quite hot during this summer especially the last couple of weeks.  As long as the soil is kept cool and free of weeds they should thrive all the way through until the fall and possibly late in the year.  While they are producing I am continuing to pick leaves, broccoli, and soon brussel sprouts as long as they weather doesn't harm them.

Eggplants have also started to grow on a couple of plants in the garden.  Most of the plants look good, but only a couple that actually have some pollinated eggplants hanging from the plant.  I wouldn't be surprised if they were ripe enough next week or possibly earlier.  I don't think they will be ready this week, but I will probably start picking them sometime this month and hopefully by then all my other plants will begin producing large eggplants as well.

I am still picking cucumbers while my vines are still producing fruit.  They have been producing since mid June and I love picking and eating them.  Along with cucumbers cherry tomatoes have also been quite steady with the harvesting and they are perfect for salads.  unfortunately or fortunately my cherry tomatoes are quite large this season and have had to cut them in order to eat them.  They are just too large to eat whole, but there are a few that I find that I am able to eat whole.  I have also picked a couple of beefsteak tomatoes recently and can't wait to slice them up for delicious sandwiches.

 My zucchini seeds were planted quite late this year and I am finally beginning to see some production and fruit from some of the plants.  Most of the plants are still too small to begin flowering and I probably will not be able to get much from them.  There is one that is showing some hope and I hope that the vegetable flower has been pollinated so that I can have at least one zucchini for the season.  I would like to have a few, but with the late planting and lack of room I would be happy with at least one good sized zucchini.

While Crops are Finishing Some are Still Thriving

 At the moment all my corn is completed and so are my beans and zucchini.  I did not get a good crop of beans this season due to I only had a couple of vines that sprouted and they were planted later than I would have liked.  corn I was able to get a good harvest from the two types that I had planted this season. 

 I was able to save and freeze them in order to have them during the Winter at some point.  I also got plenty of zucchini and was happy with the entire harvest of these squash plants.  The last of the squash would be my pumpkins which are just about ready for picking.  There are only two of them that are not ripe yet, but with time and sun they will be ready by October.

Kale and broccoli are the two cool weather plants that I added into the garden during the springtime.  They are normally for the fall and they were most likely not supposed to survive the summer months except for broccoli.  At the moment these are the two plants that are continue to thrive now that cool weather is arriving and the hot humid days are over with. 

 My broccoli is a hybrid plant that is made to withstand the harsh hot weather of the summer months while kale is just for cool weather.  Luckily my kale was able to survive the summer and looks like I will be continuing to cut many of the leaves.  The rainy summer this year was probably one of the reasons why my kale was able to get through the summer.  Both of these plants will probably last far into the fall season.

I also planted some peas that are also another cool weather plants except I decided to plant them in the fall rather the spring.  I planted them in the spring last season and they didn't produce or grow that well and that is why I am trying out planting them in the fall.  I was also going to plant radishes, but in the end just stuck with my pea seeds instead.  I planted them a little while ago and I am hoping that they sprout sometime in the near future.

One last thing that I wanted to mention was the digging up of my potatoes.  This was the latest new harvest since the last post and wanted to let you know.  For the amount of plants that were in the garden I think I got a pretty decent harvest.  I would say that each plant had at least two potatoes and they were about the size of a baseball.  Next year I hope to plant much more potatoes similar to last season in order for them to last long into the fall.

Taking Onions out of the Totes and Eggplants of the Plants

 The month of August is never the time when onions are completely done and dry them in the sun and get them ready for consumption.  This was an unusual year for the garden due to rainy weather, but was definitely a good change compared to last season with very little rain throughout the summer months.  This might be why they were not ready for harvesting during July which is when I tend to pick them out of the ground.  Even with all this rain I still was able to pick them and have a decent size harvest.  I also got much larger red onions which I was happy with and hopefully these onions alone will last to the new year.

 Eggplants are also another vegetable I have been harvesting more recently and have already eaten the first of the season.  I have about five plants of eggplants and each of them has at least two or more vegetables growing on them.  Some are small, but most of them are about medium size and I can do plenty with these vegetables once I start picking them on a consistent basis.

 

My tomatoes are also coming in quite well and I have already made some salsa out of my beefsteak tomatoes because I had too many and I can only eat so many BLT's every day.  I still keep the best ones for my sandwiches and still there are many tomatoes that need picking, but just waiting them to turn color.  

 

Broccoli has also been prominent in the garden with many of their heads ready to be cut from the plant.  Although I would rather pick the heads in the spring or fall this particular type of broccoli is good in warm to hotter than normal weather.  Although they can still grow in cool weather I wanted them in order to pick broccoli throughout the year.  Although it didn't work out that way I still have plenty of time to possibly pick smaller broccoli from these plants

 

.Peppers and cucumbers are still being harvested, but I think my cucumbers are done for the season with only a couple of healthy vines left producing fruit.  Peppers on the other hand are still producing vegetables and I think a couple of hot pepper plants were able to survive this season.  I was certain that none of them sprouted, but I think I was wrong and it looks like one or two possible habaneras are alive and well in the garden.  I will have to wait and see if these are the hot peppers that I tried sprouting during the early springtime.

Now the Garden Season has Started with The First Transplants in The Garden

 Early to mid April happens to be the best time to start transplanting cool weather plants into the garden.  If you are using cold frames or placing row covers over your plants you can even start transplanting much sooner.  This is also a great way to extend the garden season especially in areas that are much cooler such as in northern states.  I like to do the first tiling sometime in April and do enough for adding all my springtime crops.

 

 This year I have decided on growing spinach, lettuce, potatoes, onions, and sun king broccoli which should be able to withstand the hot months and produce a decent crop.  I am still working on whether I should grow peas and or radishes.  Most likely I will plant pea because I bought a whole packet of seeds in the beginning of the year and would be a waste not to use them.

Even though these are normally springtime plants I can still plant them later and use them for a fall time crop instead.  Normally I plant kale and broccoli for a fall crop, but I decided that I would use them for a springtime crop instead.  I want to see if I can get a much better crop during the spring or if the fall is where I should keep my kale and broccoli plants.

This week was the perfect time to get my spinach and kale into the garden and the weather is still cool enough that they should be able to provide some great leaves for consumption.  I still have my lettuce and broccoli growing in pots outside, but they are not quite ready for planting.  I still have some time before the hot weather comes around and ends the spring season.  I would say in less than a month I will be putting my lettuce into the garden.  

 

I still have seeds that need to be planted indoors including many flowers that include cosmos, statice, calendula, amaranthus, queen annes lace, and some more wildflowers.  I already have six containers of both dill and alyssum at the moment, but I need to start growing many of the other flowers that I need to support my garden and plants.  I will hopefully start getting them planted indoors and placing them under lights this week.

Spring Seeds Sprouting and Some Rows of Corn Planted

The time has finally come to start transplanting some summer crops now that all spring crops should be in the soil.  I finished planting my spring crops last week and all that is left is to place my carrots in the ground.  They were started in peat pots this year so I still have plenty of time to put them in the ground.  I also started planting some corn and looking forward to setting up my bean trellis and planting my beans as well. 

I finished my spring crop transplanting beginning with spinach, lettuce, and then broccoli.  This type of broccoli will probably not last long because they don’t grow well in hot weather unlike the sun king hybrid that I am growing outside in pots.  This type of broccoli can withstand the heat and I am hoping that I can start planting them as soon as they are big enough to withstand the garden soil.

My potatoes, peas, and radishes are all sprouting and they are looking good at the moment.  I will have to thin out my radish and pea plants, but I am waiting until they get a little bit bigger before doing so.  I don’t want to wait too long otherwise it will become much harder to thin them out and might end up harming the plants that I want to keep in the garden.

I added both alyssum and dill into the garden as well and put them all near my potato plants.  I also have some perennial alyssum that is already flowering and will probably last for another week before they are done for the season.  My dill will soon flower and hopefully this will attract the insects that I need in the garden.  I have planted my sunflower seeds and they are sprouting as well which should be a good attracter of bees. 

I have placed corn seeds into rows this week due to the good weather we have been having the past couple of days.  This is a good time to start planting corn, beans, and possibly tomatoes as long as the temperatures are between 60-70 degrees Fahrenheit.  I also have some peppers which will probably be going into the ground about the same time as my tomatoes.

Getting Ready for Placing Plants Outside

At the moment there are only a couple of plants that are able to withstand the cool temperatures that have arrived.  It is still a little bit early to put all my plants outside.  With these temperatures only my spinach and lettuce can bear it right now.  I also have broccoli which I started inside that loves cool weather and I will probably be putting them outside soon as well.  For now I will be keeping my lettuce and spinach outside.  I am hoping by the end of the month to be putting them in the ground as long as they can get some sunshine.

I have been planting more seeds inside this season and have recently planted some cucumbers, cantaloupe, watermelon, and even carrots.  My melons and cucumbers are sitting underneath fluorescent lights to get them sprouting quickly. 

I have also used larger peat pots this season for these seeds.  Using larger peat pots will allow for more time for the plants to develop without having to put them in the ground too soon.  If they sit in the peat pots for too long the containers may begin to dissolve and I would have to put them in the garden soil right away when it may not be time to do so.  That is why I chose to use larger ones for my melons.

Carrots on the other hand are not normally put into peat pots and I usually just plant some seeds directly into the garden soil.  Unfortunately this is not very efficient to say the least and I needed to try a different approach to planting this vegetable. 

Using small peat pots for carrots seemed like the obvious and best solution to this problem.  Planting them in plastic containers is something that should not be done because of transplanting problems.  Many times when transplanting carrots from a plastic container into the garden may cause the roots to not grow straight and might crack easily.  This is why I avoided planting them in plastic containers and chose to use small peat pots.

 
I also have tomatoes and broccoli sprouting that have grown beyond the trays that I placed them in and had to move them into larger pots.  I moved all my tomatoes and broccoli and placed them into large cups that I had saved up and this should last them until it is time to transplant them into the garden in the next couple of months or so

A Good End to The Summer Garden Harvests

Eggplants this season was more prominent than any other summer or spring crop.  I had planted close to thirty eggplant plants and received at least one or more from each plant.  I picked some of the last eggplants a couple of weeks ago just before a frost ended the season for most of my plants.  Close to a dozen were picked in this last harvest
 

The frost ends the season for all my summer plants and starts the season for harvesting my fall crops that include broccoli and brussel sprouts.  Carrots will also be harvested during the fall season as well, but that will be a little bit later in the month. 

My last tomato plant that was still growing after most of them were done for the season has finally finished growing the most tomatoes that it could during the time that it had.  It grew some of the best beefsteak tomatoes this season and some of the best that I have ever grown.  This year I grew a different variety of tomatoes and still focused on beefsteak, but instead of a large type I decided to grow a basic type of tomato.

 

 Now on to my fall crop which I am very much looking forward to.  I have actually started harvesting both my broccoli and brussel sprouts.  I have only begun to harvest just the large heads of my broccoli plants, but soon I will be harvesting the side shoots that come after cutting off the head.  So far I have just cut a couple of large heads that were ready earlier than many of the others.  I would say that the next couple of weeks most of the heads will be removed from my broccoli plants.
 

I wasn’t sure if it was time to start picking my brussel sprouts, but the plant had stopped growing and most of the brussel sprouts looked like they were pretty much ready for consumption.  Instead of picking the whole plant I just started with about have of them and the rest I will get later in the fall season.

Some of The Last Plants That Will be Growing Until the First Ground Freeze

Right now most of the garden plants are done with the exception of cool weather plants and a couple of eggplants.  I have picked an eggplant from each of my plants this season, but I am getting a second crop from a couple of my plants.  Since this week a frost may occur I might have to pick them prematurely before the cold ends the summer season for good this year.

I am also growing a cool weather crop for the fall including some broccoli, kale, brussel sprouts, and a few plants of celery.  I even have rhubarb which I started this season which will hopefully last through the winter once I place some straw over it for protection from the freezing cold.

The only plants that I added into the garden this fall was my kale.  Although kale can be grown in the spring I have found that growing them in the fall is much easier and there is much more room to grow a couple of rows of this delicious plant.  Since they are easy to freeze and store it makes them the perfect leaf for any season.
 

All the other plants were planted in the springtime and have endured the hot temperatures that came during this summer.  Since I plant a sun king hybrid of broccoli they are able to withstand the heat and still produce good sized heads and side shoots.  Right now I am working on two broccoli plants and I have been harvesting broccoli from them since sometime in late July or August.  They are still good and both plants are continuing to supply me with more broccoli each week.

Brussel sprouts and celery I have not harvested yet even though they were planted all the way back in the springtime.  I will have to plant them a little bit earlier and probably start both of them inside in small pots or possibly peat pots. 

The good news is that the heat did not damage them and I still might be able to pick them once they are ready for harvesting.  My celery might be ready in a couple of weeks and my brussel sprouts might soon be ready for picking.  At least my brussel sprout plant is producing sprouts on the stem and in-between the leaves.  I can’t wait to start harvesting all these fall crop plants

Short Corn Season with Plenty of Ears Harvested

Although the season for corn was a little short I actually got quite a bit of ears from this variety of corn.  Most of the stalks had multiple ears for picking while previous types of corn that I have planted previously only had one and sometimes two.  Ambrosia is definitely one to grow if you are interested in picking more than just one ear per stalk.

Many of the corn that was picked was frozen so that I can have a little taste of summer during the cold winter season.  I still have others that have been cooked and need to be eaten right away.  As long as you keep corn in the fridge they should be fine for several weeks.   So far it has only been a week or two since I have cooked the first harvest of corn.

Although now that corn is done for 2018 I still have plenty of other vegetables that still need care for a few more months.  For instance my peppers have been growing since I planted them a while ago and it is just about time to pick some peppers off the plants.  One pepper was picked this week and with the amount of flowers on the plants I am sure to get many others this season.

Another harvest of cucumbers was completed this afternoon and they look quite well for consumption.  I wanted to make sure that they stopped growing on the vine before picking them.  I don’t like picking them when they are ripe, but instead wait until they stop growing to their full size.

Not only were cherry tomatoes picked, but on one of my tomato plants there was a steakhouse tomato that was surely ripe enough for picking.  I like to pick them just before they are ready to turn red.  This is the prime time to pick them and they will last a little bit longer than if I was to wait for it to turn a dark red color.  Picking these tomatoes will last longer and stay firm for a good duration

Lots of Transplanting and Lots of Seed Planting

This week was a week full of seed planting and transplanting of many plants and seeds.  I began with obviously seeds that were made for cooler and spring type weather such as broccoli, spinach, and lettuce.  I wanted to get as many seeds into the ground as possible before the warm and hotter weather arrives which should come in a couple of months or so.  Two full rows of seeds should provide a good amount vegetables if they all sprout.

Transplanting both flowers, broccoli, and brussel sprouts I had to finish today.  I started with my flowers since they are much easier to transplant into the ground.  I placed them in between the two rows above and between the two rows of corn that I planted a couple of days ago.

Above is just some dill that I have planted into the garden and I also put both alyssum and wildflowers into the garden as well.  Some of them between corn rows and some between my spring crop rows.

Although it is still spring it was time to get as many corn seeds into the garden as possible.  Two full rows will provide enough corn that I need to enjoy when they start producing some time July and into August weather permitting. 

Thinning out plants is an important part of gardening and that is what I did with my radishes and my pea plants that I had planted back in April.  They were starting to crowd each other and that will cause some issues in the future if you do not remove all the plants but one in a bunch.  I plant the seeds in bunches and if they all sprout they will crowd up all around each other and that is when you start thinning them out.

The last thing I did today was getting all of my transplanted broccoli and brussel sprouts into the garden right next to my spring crop.  I wasn't sure if I was going to plant them today, but I decided that getting them into the garden as soon as possible was the best possible way to get them out of the way.  This way I don't have to think about them later on and is one less plant that I need to transplant into the garden.

So far this is all I have done in the past week and hope to get some more plants into the garden with the next couple of weeks or so.  I will probably start planting some of my squash seeds indoors including pumpkins and zucchini.  I also have some flowers that need to get outside in the near future once they get a little bit bigger.  I have been placing my tomatoes, melons, eggplant, and peppers outside to harden them off in order to get used to the weather.  It was a little cool today so I left them inside for the moment and hope to put them back outside this week again.

Picking Broccoli Heads and Large Kale Leaves

For the past couple of weeks I have been picking some very large kale leaves that have been growing from most of my plants.  Today was just the third time that I had picked some leaves.  Only twelve leaves were harvested, but I am more happy about their size rather than amounts. 

I have just started picking broccoli which started a couple of days ago with the first head to be harvested.  I have not used it yet, but I am thinking about using them to make some broccoli and cheese soup.  I only eat broccoli in cheese soup or if there is cheese on it.  Yesterday I did pick a couple more heads and today I decided on cutting a few of the broccoli side shoots which look ready to eat.

Here is the first broccoli head that I picked earlier in the week.

I picked these broccoli heads yesterday.

Here are just a few of the side shoots that I picked this afternoon.

Kale Ready for Second Picking While Last Watermelon Harvested

This week was actually a little eventful even though most of the garden is done including the last of the summer crop.  Some of the last vegetables I picked would include eggplants, peppers, and tomatoes.  This was the last from the summer season and now it is on to the fall season. 

Before I talk about my kale and broccoli I wanted to mention the last watermelon that I picked last week.  This one was the largest watermelon that I have grown and it was time to pick it before it went bad by being outside.  Once the vine died I knew it was time to pick it right away.  The melon weighed 46 pounds which is a personal record for me and I hope to break that next year. 

Today was a good day for picking kale and taking a look at some of my broccoli plants.  The heads are beginning to grow on most of them and one of them actually looks like a good size and I might be picking it real soon hopefully.  For now just my kale is ready for harvesting and I should be picking some of my cabbage soon as well.

The End of July Means Fall Seed Planting Begins

This is just an optional way of extending the growing season by planting fall seeds that can withstand the cool weather or sometimes require the cool weather to produce great tasting leaves.  Since time is always against me as a gardener I like to grow as much as I can in the allotted time that I have.  This is why I like to have a fall harvest and this is usually when I begin planting the seeds.

It is also a great way to grow different things for the current garden season.  This year I am planning on growing cabbage, kale, and broccoli.  These plants thrive in the colder weather and can also withstand some hot weather in case there are some hotter than normal days during September to October.  I planted eight of each plant into small pots today.

On a side note some of my cherry tomatoes have been turning red.  I noticed this yesterday when I was going through my plants and I noticed that some of my cherries were red.  They were not quite ripe to eat, but today I decided to pick one of them a give it a taste.  It was quite good for a first and I should be picking many more of them in the next couple of weeks at the most.  I hope it will be sooner, but these are just the early bloomers that like to ripen really fast and early.

I finally have my first honeydew melon of the season growing on one of the vines.  I only have two plants, but since I have never grown these before I think that this would be plenty for now.  I could always grow more next year, but for now I wanted to focus on the honeydew and my watermelons for this season.

Speaking of my watermelons I think that they are doing quite well right now.  I hope that they get as big as possible because it won't be the same eating a small watermelon.  I am not looking to grow a 200 lb watermelon, but I think a twenty to thirty pound melon would be perfect.  Take a look at a couple of them below.

I have a total of five watermelons growing at the moment and these are just two examples of how they are growing.  The others are pretty much the same in size and shape, but I wonder which one of these melons will be the biggest of the season.  Make sure to keep reading this blog to find out how big these watermelons can get this year.