Garden Bounty ~ Week Ending 11/16/14

Normally, I end my harvest week on Saturday, but this week I’ve added the extra day to fit in all of the final harvest of my summer crops. And it was a doozy! This past week, I harvested 2 pounds of beans, 1.5 pounds of tomatoes, a quarter pound of eggplant, 4 pounds of watermelon (yes, you read that correctly), almost 3 pounds of pumpkin, and a whopping 15 pounds of peppers! That’s almost 26 pounds of produce in one week. Holy cow, am I going to be busy in the kitchen this week!

2014 County Fair Horticultural Competition Results

This year, I not only entered my canned goods into the county fair competition, but I also entered my garden produce. I’ve had some beautiful specimens among my garden produce, and I wanted to show them off – and maybe even win a ribbon or two. Yesterday, I shared with you the judges’ results in the canned goods competition. Today, I will ease your curiosity and share with you the judges’ results in the horticultural competition.

Garden Bounty ~ Week Ending 10/18/14

It’s definitely autumn because I’m planting, harvesting, and canning all in the same week. Sleep? What’s that? The weather has been gorgeous, and I’m loving being outside now. No more 90+ degree days! My plants are obviously loving it, too, because they’re giving me more to harvest. This past week, I harvested almost 4 pounds of beans, 5 pounds of peppers, 2 ounces of raspberries (alas, they’re done for the season), and 2 tomatoes.

Garden Bounty ~ Week Ending 10/11/14

Finally, my harvests are “picking up.” The cooler weather has given relief, especially to my peppers. We also had quite a bit of rain in September, which helped. (Unfortunately, we have now had two weeks without rain, so out comes the garden hose again.) In addition to my pepper harvests increasing, my second crop of snap beans are now producing. This is in addition to my Dixie speckled butter peas and raspberries. Harvesting is my favorite part of gardening! This past week, I harvested 4.3 pounds of peppers, 4 pounds of beans, 3/4 pound of raspberries, and one tomato. (Hey, it’s October. I’m grateful I have ANY tomatoes!)

Sanctuary Gardener Update ~ 10/6/14

Autumn has finally arrived here in the Charleston, SC area. The temperatures are now in the upper 70s or low 80s during the day and in the low 60s at night. We had a cold front come through this past weekend, and yesterday’s low temperature was 46! Thankfully, it warmed up quickly, and I was able to spend the day in the garden, planting some more fall crops – more lettuce and kale, turnips, radishes, and cilantro. I also planted peas, though we’re not supposed to plant them again until January, but why not give it a whirl? Elsewhere in the garden, things are growing and looking a little more robust.

Garden Bounty ~ Week Ending 7/26/14

I love how my garden grows and fruits in cycles. One week, I may have an abundance of tomatoes, while the next week it’s peppers. Some weeks I lose some fruit to insects or heat-related damage, while other weeks I reap the full available harvest. No matter what, there’s always something to eat – and put up – from my garden. This past week, I harvested 55 ears of Glass Gem corn, over a pound of eggplant, 12.5 pounds of melon, almost 6 pounds of snap beans, 1.3 pounds of chili peppers, and 8.7 pounds of tomatoes. Not only tasty to eat, but pretty to look at!

Garden Bounty ~ Week Ending 7/6/14

Even though it’s been extremely hot and humid for weeks, my garden is still producing enough for enjoying right away with a little extra for preserving. (I know I’ll have harvests out my ears once it cools down a little!) This week, I harvested 14 cucumbers, 1 (almost 6 lb) white watermelon, 1 (half-pound) butternut squash, a half pound of snap beans (last harvest until I replant), almost a pound of lima beans (shelled), 3.4 pounds of eggplant, 6.6 pounds of peppers, and 19.5 pounds of tomatoes!

Sanctuary Gardener Update ~ 10/21/13

Well, it’s been another week without rain. We had a bit of a spit on Saturday, but it didn’t even measure in my rain gauge. I am not looking forward to my water bill! But the gardening must go on. Although I didn’t accomplish all I wanted to this weekend, I still got a lot done. Besides the harvesting and weeding, I planted more Scarlet Nantes carrots and Early Wonder beets. I also planted five kinds of lettuce: Tom Thumb, Buttercrunch, Black Seeded Simpson, Red Romaine, and Red Sails. I put up a quart of green beans (ate the rest!) and about five pounds of green bell peppers in the freezer, dehydrated three pounds of Pink Lady apples and 140 lemon drop peppers, and made two batches of hot pepper jam. Busy farmer weekend, for sure. It may be autumn, but the homestead is still hopping.

Sanctuary Gardener Update ~ 10/14/13

I am loving this cooler, autumn weather! The temperatures are in the upper 70s, lower 80s with much lower humidity. It’s actually nice to be in the garden. I finally planted my cover crop (red clover), five types of radishes, watercress (in a pot), and some more golden globe turnips. I planted a few more kale seeds, too. I also trimmed my cucumber vines in an attempt to help them survive against the onslaught of pickle worms. I’m not sure if we’re past the worst of it, but I’m hoping. My mums are in bloom (see picture above) and there are good things happening in my garden.