10.16.2014

into fall :: the garden











last week I picked the majority of the peppers left out there.  maybe there are about a dozen small ones hanging on.  most of the tomatoes were all long since pulled, with the exception of a few volunteers.  things are definitely a lot calmer and quieter out in the garden beds these days.  we've got kale, chard, collards, lettuce, leeks, parsnips, beets, carrots, and a smattering of herbs still growing.  oh, and radishes.  which I must admit I sowed more for the instant gratification than for any real love of radishes.  because, really?  they're not my favorite.  not even close.  we're hoping the greens go well into the winter with the added protection of plastic covering over the hoops, which we'll add soon.  there are also still some tomatillo and okra plants, but it's cool enough that they can't really do much.  though we'll likely be able to make one more small batch of tomatillo salsa.

we are quite literally scraping the bottom of the barrel (basket) of the onions.  we started harvesting and eating them in late July and haven't had to buy any since then, but it looks like they'll be on the next grocery list.  I'm pleased to have grown roughly three months worth of onions, but thinking next year we'll double (or more) the amount we plant in hopes that we'll get further into the year on what we grew ourselves.

we didn't grow the corn in the picture up there~ bought it at the market from a kid in art class who grew a bunch of gourds and corn.  I think I'd like to grow popcorn next year though.

acorns.  wow.  there are four huge white oaks in the front of our house and the house next door and it doesn't take nearly as long as one might suspect to gather this many of the poky little orbs.  and the pigs at farm school were quite pleased with the treat.


a little list in the garden journal of things preserved and such this year.  it could be a lot longer, but it could be a lot shorter as well.  there was also a small batch of tomatoes from a friend's farm canned whole - maybe 6 or 7 quarts.  above is the list of stuff made just from our own garden (with the exception of the blueberry jam made from our blueberry picking venture, which also yielded some quart bags for the freezer).  well, and the sugar maples in our neighborhood.






the garlic will go in any day now, and we'll keep tidying things up and adding mulch and compost to the beds for the winter as we can.


12 comments:

  1. We have just had a break in the weather so I have been in the garden tidying up all we have left to harvest is leeks and beetroot. You have done so well with yours.

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    1. thank you! we are constantly tweaking things each year.

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  2. loving the chard. been itching to get some new ones in, though perhaps too late. we have tomatillos too for the first time, so delicious.

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    1. oh I love tomatillos! we use them mostly for salsa. they are so much more reliable than tomatoes for us, it seems like nothing knocks them back except for the frost.

      if you cover your chard I bet you could plant some starts now, right?

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  3. Pretty impressive! What variety of onion did you grow? It seems like they kept pretty well.

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    1. we grew Varsity and New York Early- both varieties we ordered from Fedco Seeds. and the red onion was Rossa di Milano. the yellow onions did store well, they just didn't grow very large and we went through them quite quickly.

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  4. oh, how i love your pictures! you have such an eye for capturing simple things in a spectacular way :) love love love that white face with the flowers!

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    1. thank you, Jenny~
      a neighbor gave me that planter when she moved away- I love it, too!

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  5. Looks lovely in your garden. Mine is definitely soggier and further gone than yours. I do have some of the same things now though, like garlic, chard, kale etc. So things were great and some things, like my Brussels's sprouts are a definite fail...lol. Win some, lose some. :D

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    1. definitely win some, lose some! our brussels sprouts didn't work out so well either, and our cucumbers were nearly a total bust this year! ah well, leaves more room for dreaming for next year I suppose :)

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  6. I think you've had a very successful year! Love the smiley sculpture so happy :)

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    1. it feels that way for the most part, for sure! we get stuck in wishing we had more space (for outdoor farming-type ventures) quite often but we've got a good thing going, no doubt.

      that little white planter always makes me smile!

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thanks for taking the time to read and comment~