Vegetable Garden 2013

    With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I thought it would be appropriate to share this year’s harvest. We had some successes like the carrots and broccoli; we also had some failures like the squashes and tomatoes. We did get some squashes and tomatoes but they didn’t do as well as last year. One of the problems we had were insects on the squash plants. By the time we got them under control, half of the plants were gone and I had to replant. Every year we learn something new and get better at it.

Broccoli
   This was our first year growing broccoli and we couldn’t be more pleased with results. I had a big spot in the garden were I planted tomatoes last year and instead of have to can bags and bags of tomatoes we decided to plant broccoli. I planted seeds directly in the ground and not starter plants. The broccoli grew well like this and made it easier on the roots not being transplanted. The first harvest we ended up with a decent crop, what we didn’t expect was how well the plants did after the first harvest. It seemed like every time I went out to the garden, I was bring back a bag of broccoli sprouts from the off shoots. Once fall came, I pulled some plants up every day to feed to the pigs. None of the plant went to waste, we even tried baking the leaves like kale chips and they were good.

Carrots

    In the early spring I planted the seeds directly in the ground. I’m not sure if I watered them enough or what, but most of them didn't pop up. I sent a email to Johnny Seeds, where I got the seeds, about my problem and they sent another packet of seeds to me free and without questions. That’s why I like dealing with local companies. The second time seemed to work a lot better; of course I made sure to water them better too. Once fall came Miss E and Mr. T helped me with the harvest of the carrots and the beets. They had a blast pulling the carrots out of the ground and making a big pile for them to admire. We ended up with about 125 lbs. of carrots. They kids love eating fresh raw carrots from our own garden.

Basil
   Basil was the only herb we tried growing this year. I tried making my own plants inside but failed due to lack of sun light. Luckily for us, a friend of ours had a bunch of extra plants and was able to give us some. We grew them in one of those patio boxes that holds water on the bottom. The plants did ok, but could have done better if they had more sun light. Mr. T helped with the harvest, we would have been lost if not for his dump truck. We store the leaves in the freezer. We found that this is the best way to keep the flavor strong.

Potatoes
   I planted the potatoes in the same place as last year, and just like last year we had the same great results. I was able to keep the bugs of the plants long enough for them to grow well. I tried not mounding the plants, and didn’t notice that much difference in the ones that were mounded. When harvest time comes everyone gets involved. All the kids put on their boots and gloves, and come out to help. As I dig up the ground they look for the little buried treasures and put them in the bucket. It’s a lot of fun. We ended up with about 150 lbs. of potatoes this year.

Lettuce
    This year I tried a type of lettuce called Tropicana from Johnny Seeds. I loved the way they came out. I planted the seeds directly in the ground and just watered. It’s a leaf lettuce that grows in a tight bunch and does very well here. I tried growing them in the spring, summer, and fall; and they grew well in every season. We’ll continue to grow them next year.










Garlic

   We tried growing garlic in old tires this year and it worked well. I bought some hard neck garlic from a local produce shop and put them in the tires with some dirt last fall. As spring came the garlic started to grow. Once the main stalk turned brown we pulled up the garlic. Each plant had five big cloves on them. It worked out so well that I made a spot in the garden to plant some of the cloves in the ground this fall. We’ll see how much we get next year.













Peppers
   When I went to the nursery to buy some jalapeño plants, I came across some habanero pepper plants and decided to buy them along with the jalapeños. They both did well in the garden and were able to harvest a lot of peppers. I tried making some pepper jelly with the habaneros and even though it came out well, the smell it made in the kitchen was way too hot to bare. I pickled the jalapeños and gave away the rest of the habaneros at work. They are way too hot to do anything with.

Pigs' Last Day on the Farm

I loaded the pigs on the trailer this morning and gave them a ride to the butcher. I'm happy to report that it was very uneventful, unlike last year. I didn't feed them the day before, so when I put a pile of apples and some grain in the back of the trailer all but one of them walked right in. The last one needed a little nudging with a piece of plywood and of coarse, she was the biggest one. I'm trying a different butcher this year and so far I'm impressed with the service and price. We can't wait tell Friday when I pick them up.