This is a spectacular time of year for my little patch of land. The black raspberries I inherited with this house are producing more than ever. The first year I lived here, I wrangled about eight away from the birds. This year? I’ve picked at least a pint each of the last five days!
I’m trying my best to weigh and record all the produce I produce, using current market prices to see what my work is “earning”.
In addition to berries, the bush beans are thriving this year. I skipped planting them two or three years in a row due to poor germination and production. This year, I found a plastic bag of dried beans in the garage marked “bush beans” and figured it wouldn’t hurt to give it a try again. I remember that this bag was either mislabeled and actually vining beans, or I had mixed the two kinds together. So far there has only been one strange surprise: wax beans! I don’t remember ever having grown them, but here we are. As of now, I have picked a quart of beans each of the last three days. They need to be checked/picked every day once they start fruiting. Much like zucchini they will slow or stop production if one fruit is allowed to reach maturity. Also much like zucchini (and all squash), the plants are equipped with minuscule “hairs” that leave me with an unpleasant itchy skin rash. Thanks, nature!
I froze my first batch today, which reminds me I need to order more food saver bags. When freezing vegetables, it is imperative to blanch them first. Blanching, otherwise known as quick immersion in boiling water for 30 seconds to a few minutes followed by an immediate transfer to an ice water bath, inactivates the enzymes in the vegetable. Skipping this step can lead to undesirable colors or textures, such as browning or mealiness. I learned this the hard way with the oodles of sweet peas I froze last years, but mistakes are meant to be learned from.
In addition to putting up beans, I spent the early morning outdoors. We had our first rain in a few weeks yesterday, which brought slightly cooler temperatures and loose soil, prime for overdue weeding.
Oy, what a mess, right?! There are edibles intentionally planted there, I swear…
Edibles such as egyptian walking onions, red onions, leeks, celery, bush beans, lima beans, cherry tomatoes, and purslane (my favorite edible weed that I encourage to self seed each year).
The goal is improvement, not perfection.
The second area I worked on is one of the last patches of garden converted from ornamental to production.
Beets, vine beans, cherry tomatoes, celery, and volunteer tomatillos. An honorable mention for the yellow crookneck squash and flowering wild onions.
By that time, it was already approaching 90 outside, so I took a few more detailed photos before turning inside for the afternoon.
The world may be in chaos, but the garden provides predictable stability. I might not have enough beets for a standard victory garden, but I’m hoping to continue to supplement our weekly shopping and can salsa in a few months.
Are you growing anything delicious?
Eat - Drink - Both 