For the last two days I've been posting gardening reports as the garden is doing well and we're about to have some harvest.
These little squashes are always so cute. Just like cucumbers, with the big yellow flower on their head. At the time of writing, we already have a few squashes and there will be more in the near future.
There are a lot of flowers, which means if nothing bad happens, we're going to have a lot of squashes. I'm usually making squash pottage and also put some in the freezer for winter.
We have a few type of beans. This is one of them, don't ask me what type as I have no idea, that's my dad's department, but it has a nice purple flower.
This is the other one with white flower. These are the short types, not the running ones.
These are all beans, three and a half row.
This is the other type, the running beans. These are a little behind as there are no flowers here, but it's not too late, no rush.
Can you guess what we have here? More beans, of course 😁
I love sweet corn and each year we grow some, just to have for a week or two. There's still a long way till we can have the first one, but we're patient.
Green peas are also part of the collection. There were years when we didn't have any as it needs a lot of water and was easier to buy some from the supermarket, but now we have some again.
Some are ready for harvesting, so a good part is already in the freezer. The problem with peas is that you need to harvest them when it's time, otherwise they get hard.
This should be carrot and parsley, instead it's a jungle as the dill is trying to take over the whole garden. Therefore, the majority of the dill must go.
We love cauliflower that can be cooked in different ways, plus it's excellent for pickles as well. Last year we got a few cauliflowers and made pickles. This year we have a whole row, let's see if we can make more pickles to last till next summer.
These two are regular in our garden, although the watermelon is a risky business. The soil is probably not suitable for watermelon, but we're trying different types, hoping we get a different result.
Honeydew is on the other hand a success every year. I love to go our to the garden in the morning, when the morning is still chilly, get a honeydew and have it for breakfast. What can be more healthier, than a homegrown, organic and fresh honeydew. Those you get at the farmers market or grocery store are brought from hundreds of kilometers as this region is not suitable for growing honeydew. The temperature is better down south.
Last year we had a very good harvest of beetroots and made a lot of pickles. I love beetroot pickles and having some canned is the best. This year I'm hoping to get more. So far it looks like snails have chosen something else and these little cuties can grow happily.
The thing is, when you're growing seedlings, you have to make sure to grow more than you need as you never know what's going to happen. Hail, frost, snails or strong sun can all harm seedlings and it's always smart to have some spare, just in case something bad happens.
One year there was hail and we had to replant the whole garden. Good thing we had spare seedlings and also could count on others who were fortunate enough to escape hail.
If nothing bad happens, you end up with some spare seedlings, which you can gift or sell to others who need them, or, the other option is to plant more, in case you have spare space. This year we had this small lot and a spare sheet, so this is how there's a mix now, with pepper, cauliflower, cabbage, some spices and who knows what.
The thing is, every little counts and you don't know what the future holds for you. Also, it's advisable to can and freeze everything you have as again, who knows what's going to happen. So many times we got lucky with the excess we canned the year before. Last year for example, we had many pickles from two years ago.
Celery is not my favorite, but we still use the root and the green as well. Root goes into soups and sauces, green in sauces.
Garlic is poor as every year. Our soil may not be suitable for garlic as no matter what type we are trying to grow, the result is never what it should be.
This is the closing part of my gardening report series, I hope you liked it. If you've missed the first two parts, you can check them out here:
