The beds look empty, but actually all are full to the brim. Seedlings are in some, seeds are sprouting in others and some are reserved for planting in a couple weeks. I plant everything as close as possible, so there will be lots of green here soon.
In June, the peas will ripen. The peas are all planted now. Half are one inch tall, half are still germinating. I have snap peas and green shell peas this year. In June too, lettuce will be ready for harvest. My lettuce seeds were started indoors in March and are about 2 inches tall now. Also in June, bok choy will be ready for the grill. I planted a big patch of basil for late summer harvest, but in June I can pick early leaves to add to early summer salads.
In July, my tomatoes will be ripening. That will bring celebrations! There's nothing as good as a garden fresh heirloom tomato. Even better is running out and picking one as I make dinner. I have eight tomato plants growing in the side yard. All my favorites: Brandywine, Sungold cherry, Giant Belgium, etc.
Also in July, the cucumbers and beans will ripen. Neither of these are planted yet, but spaces are reserved. I have four varieties of cucumbers growing inside. And seeds for several varieties of beans including Chinese pole beans, Provider bush beans, and soy beans for edamame. And in July, the broccoli will be ready. This is the only vegetable my teenage son will eat. He loves piles of broccoli fresh off the grill. Ahh, July!
Looking at a new garden brings such joy!
19 comments:
Skippy is supervising the garden :)
Yes, its Skippy's job to supervise and protect the garden. He takes his job seriously. Except when he's stretched out napping in the sun....
Is the lattice trellis for cucumbers? Why two close together? Is the idea to grow up over the first and then over the second? I'm curious because I'm still considering how I might grow my cukes this year.
That's exactly right paullamey.
My husband put these little trellises together for me years ago and I like to "stack" them this way. The tall one is too high for the vines to reach and the front one too low to contain the mature vines. So they scramble over both. I have another pair I'll put up soon.
My cuke seedlings are still growing in pots. I left them outside last night and they wilted a bit. It may be best to bring them (and the melons and eggplant) inside tonight. Still chilly at 45*F for these.
That's great Kathy. I think I might try a similar setup for our cucumbers this year (Market More 76 & Boston Pickling). I really hate fooling around with netting-styled trellises so it looks lattice for me this year. I love your blog, keep up the good work.
Paul
You garden looks peaceful. It looks like the kind of place where you'd be sitting on your patio looking at a particular plant closely and then...was that a fairy? I love it and your dog!
Looks lovely. I always love this time of year when everything is still small and neat. Soon enough things will be spilling out everywhere.
Love this peek at your gardens. I wish we could get tomatoes in July. Our tomatoes dont come until Septemnber and the bulk of them get here in October! The climate is just too cool here.
How exciting!! :D I can't wait to see all that you grow.
I ended up making a teepee with metal rods for my peas. Do the branches work a lot better? Would you end up with more harvest since they'll sprawl around more?
Kathy, I wanted to let you know I've given you a Lemonade Award for your blog. I've been following it for some time now, and want to recognize it this way because I enjoy it so much. For more info, see http://www.concordma.com/blog/2009/05/we-received-a-lemonade-award.html
best,
Debbie Bier
ConcordMA.com
Congrats Kathy! Great blog, I'll be back!!!!! ROB
kathy, I planted sweet pea seeds, when they become plants how do I let them grow? On the ground or up on a trellis? How about cucumbers? Mary
Kathy, how do you manage to keep your weeds at bay throughout the fallow months? I find this to be my biggest problem. I live in Toronto, Ontario.
How about weeds outside of the vegetable garden? Short of digging up all of my perennials and trees, I just can't seem to rid myself of some particularly invasive types - plants as well, not only weeds. Although I guess I could consider the unwanted plants weeds, couldn't I?
Love your site and enjoy my daily fix of it.
Cynthia,
Its the first year I've tried branches for pea supports. A friend who took the Master Gardener course last year told me they recommend branches. They were certainly easier and cheaper to assemble than trellis.
It seems to me that the branches I put up are too branched and dense and I may have trouble reaching in to harvest. We'll see.
It is true that its better to provide a support that allows the vines to spread out to get more sun and air. I find the little tendrils prefer something thin to climb on, like string or netting or fine branches, unlike beans that twine around a pole well.
But I think the very best is to try out new methods yourself and see what you like best for your garden. There's more involved than maximum harvest, like cost, convenience and appearance.
Deborah - Thanks so much for the Lemonade Award! That's great!
Mary,
Sweet peas should be on a trellis or fence, I think, so the blossoms are where you can see them well. But the package I have says they'll do fine as a ground cover too, without any support.
Cukes do fine on the ground. I only trellis to save space. In a small garden one of the precepts I follow is: grow up instead of out. It also reduces bending over to harvest and tend. And makes it easier to access the stems if you spray for stem borers.
About those weeds, Mary, I think that needs a whole post. I'll do that soon. They sure are growing fast now!
Thanks Kathy! I'll definitely try different methods out and see what happens :D I'm looking out at my garden now and totally wish I had done the beans on my teepee and peas on the trellis. Darn. Ah well, hopefully they both work out fine :) I'll keep you posted!
Kathy, and what do you have growing through the cracks of the patio stones? My different mints have grown through and I like that look of softening the edges, but my husband is not so fond of it because of the money spent on the stone work. What's your take?
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