Looking Forward to Start Digging up My Potatoes

 Although I have been picking many vegetables from my garden including tomatoes, corn which is done for the season, peppers, zucchini, and even eggplants  I am still waiting for my potato plants to start turning brown.  When the plants are turning yellow or brown is the perfect time to start digging them up and begin using them in delicious meals and dishes.  I love potatoes and when they grow like they should they end up being one of my favorites vegetables to cook with.  

I am hoping that these new potatoes I planted this season are at least a decent size, but I will not know until I start digging them up.  The soil is beginning to crack from the potatoes and must make certain to keep them covered otherwise they will not be able to be eaten.  Always make sure that your potatoes not the plant are covered throughout the season.

Eggplants and zucchini are the latest vegetables to be harvested from the garden the past couple of weeks.  A couple of weeks ago I got the very first zucchini from the garden which I did not think I would get any this year because of the late seed planting.  These are plants I like to start inside, but due to the cold weather in May I was unable to start them in pots.  Instead I had to hope for enough room in between the tomato plants and enough sunlight in order to get them to sprout.  Luckily they did and so far I have picked two zucchinis this season.

Eggplants on the other hand I did start them inside and very early because they need plenty of time similar to watermelons which also require an adequate amount of time.  I saw a couple of plants that had some good sized eggplants that were almost ready to pick a week or two ago.  I took a look at them this week and decided that it was time to begin harvesting.  I harvested four eggplants with three over them are some of the largest eggplants I have ever grown.  I can't wait to make them into some eggplant Parmesan meals or possibly eggplant pizzas which are also very delicious.

 

It is All Over for the Onions and The Start of Fall Planting

 Mid July is about when the onion stems start falling and turning brown and this is the time when you need to dig them up because they are not going to get any bigger.  The heat is usually what gets to your onions and leaving them in the ground too long is something you want to avoid.  I always like drying them completely before I store them indoors whether it be a garage or in a basement.  A cool dry place is where you should put them to prevent fungi from growing on them and going bad.  If you dry them properly they should last a long time and I have had onions that have past the new year into the month of March.

 

Potatoes are another plant that I will have to dig up, but at the moment they are nowhere close to harvesting.  I would say about mid August they might be ready because right now they are starting to flower which is a good sign that harvesting might be right around the corner.  I don't have that many plants this season because many of them didn't sprout for whatever reason.  I am hoping that the ones that survived will produce a very decent crop as long as the weather doesn't end their season prematurely.  

Some of my eggplant plants are beginning to flower so that is something to look forward to in a month or two.  Peppers are also starting to produce more flowers and fruit.  My sweet peppers are the only ones that are looking good while my habaneras peppers are growing, but not thriving as much as my sweet peppers.  In fact I will probably start harvesting these peppers this week or next at the latest.

 

I have also started planting seeds for my fall crop into small pots and some in peat pots.  I have decided to grow radishes, peas, and testing another crop of red onions.  This would be a good time to start a crop of carrots in peat pots, but with very little room in the garden at the moment I will hold off on planting them right now or for the season.  If my potatoes are done early, then I might be able to plants some carrot seeds.  This all depends on various factors.  For now I am sticking with radishes and snow peas for the fall season.