Unfortunately for my yard, I've had a bit going on this summer. It's been a pretty nice summer, all around (although I won't claim it was an *easy* summer). I was able to take a road trip from New Mexico, do a lot to the house, and I've made breakfast, and enjoyed mornings with my husband pretty much every day this summer. Too bad the list of summer activities did not include weeding or getting plants in the ground on time.
My garden wasn't abandoned, exactly, but perhaps a bit neglected. It really would have helped if I'd known WHAT I was growing, or where I was growing stuff. I had volunteer plants all over the garden, and I lost track of which tomatoes came from what farm immediately upon planting.
I've had to pull the squash plants because slugs demolished them. My bok choy bolted before I ate any. I have pumpkins on the vine, but many of the lower leaves are white with mildew, and I can only hope that the vine with continue to thrive. I've had only about 5 zucchini this summer, and even the broccoli is less fruitful that last summer. My garlic heads were very, very small. I had to replant my carrots, twice, because they were accidentally weeded out or didn't grow. I've still got to go through my potato "field" and pull up potatoes so I can plant winter crops...if it isn't too late already.
I was worried that my tomatoes were NEVER going to ripen, they were yellow for so long...and then I realized that they were yellow tomatoes. I only have one set of tomatoes that are "red" but I think they're actually purple.
So all in all, I'm pretty grateful for everything I HAVE been able to harvest. I've had some cucumbers, and now tomatoes, a small handful of raspberries every day, about 10 squash, a few zuchinni (which still might continue to produce more), 5 heads of broccoli so far, radishes, 4 green peppers, spinach, sunflower seeds, grape leaves, onions, scallions, and much earlier I had salad greens and peas. I could be leaving something out (probably am as a matter of fact) but nothing else comes to mind.
I hardly spent a lot on soil or plants this year (and it really shows). I doubt I broke even, but at least I've been able to get some of my own food, provide a bit of pollen for the mason bees, and have an attractive, if overgrown yard. I suppose my "crops" will taste especially sweet considering their rarity.
2 comments:
Those yellow tomatoes are beautiful.
Our garden is also neglected. The kids were eating sweet peas straight off the vine for a while in the spring. Then summer hit and the main thing that is thriving out there are the volunteer marigolds. We had two marigold plants that Char planted in a cup at school a year and a half ago, and they're quite fertile. Our 4x12 bed is 90% marigolds.
The good thing there is that it looks nice and lush and green next to the patio for the potential buyers (of whom we've seen like none).
I thought there were a couple of romas that were turning red finally, so I need to go out and check those before they go bad.
Well, at least you won't have that sense of loss when you turn the house over with the garden all abloom. Nothing worse than walking away from a lush garden you've painstakingly cultivated before you get to enjoy any of the goods. I hope your move is going well and that next year's crop is exceedingly bountiful!
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