garden: an update

After our massive heatwave several weeks ago, and leaving town when our air conditioning broke, I pretty much thought the garden was through :( Most all of the plants wilted in a matter of a day (even with lots of water). But, we pulled all of what was left (we lost several squash plants, lettuce, some carrots) up onto the deck and kept watering. And kept watering. And then watered some more. A lot of the plants revived. And somehow, the oregano and parsley were completely brown and wilted and started sprouting new leaves! Yay!

We have been able to harvest lots of herbs, some (very baby) carrots (my sweet son loved pulling them up out of the dirt!), cucumbers, and onions are not far off. I have some sort of squash plant that is flowering, except I'm not sure what squash it is (pumpkin or yellow?) - the marker got lost ;)

My tomato plants are three feet tall, and flowered, but never produced any tomatoes :( I've been researching as to why this happened... I'm still excited that I grew tomato plants from seed. But not so excited that I didn't get any fruit from them ;)

So once again, a season of learning with the garden. I think the containers were a bit too small. Maybe larger containers next season? Also may try out organic fertilizer? Maybe we just need a larger, sunny plot of land to grow directly in the ground? :)

the garden: an update

Our garden is coming along! :) I've been learning a lot (and still have a lot to learn), have had some disappointments and made mistakes, but am really just enjoying it! Several weeks ago, we had a crazy hailstorm that lasted about 10 minutes. And destroyed some of our plants. Thankfully, a lot of the plants ended up recovering - they looked sad for awhile (damaged leaves, wilted), but I was so glad (and surprised) that they bounced back.

Most of our plants we started from heirloom seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. And I have to admit. I was nervous. Really nervous. I tried growing a few things from seed (cheap seed packets, cheap soil) last year, and nothing ever happened. We started looking around for a reputable seed company (that offered organic seeds) and found Baker Creek. Their seeds are very well-priced - considering they are Heirloom and all seeds are guaranteed non-hybrid, non-GMO, non-treated, and non-patented. We were sold on trying to start the garden from seed. So we invested about $40 in seeds from Baker Creek. A lot of the seeds we didn't end up using this season. Did you know you can save seeds for a couple years - just pop them in a zip-loc baggie and put them in the refrigerator! :)  

We started the garden a little late (mid-April) since we didn't want to start seeds indoors - we don't have a good window with direct sun for long periods in the day. We started straight into the ground and into containers, using organic potting soil and compost from our compost bin. 

The first to go in the ground (while it was still cool outside) were sugar snap peas. We will start to harvest these soon. I've been reading that once the weather consistently stays in the 80 degree F, they stop producing. We had no idea that these would grow so incredibly tall. We had a little trellis (about 2 feet tall) and they outgrew that. So we added several lines of garden twine another 3-4 feet tall and attached it to the house (this bed is along the back of our home). Unfortunately, the stalks (? plants?) didn't really like garden twine (maybe we were too late to add it?) and started to fall over and snap. Thankfully, there are still a bunch of pods ready to harvest. We have learned how to do these better for next growing season ;)

Roma tomatoes. I think these are the plants I am most excited about ;) I planted three little seeds. And three little seedlings sprouted. I was so excited they sprouted, but I still wasn't sure if they would make it - everywhere I've read, it is strongly discouraged to start tomatoes from seed. But I really wanted heirloom, organic tomatoes. So I went for it. We lost one of the plants in the hailstorm, but the other two are now 18-24" tall. Will definitely be a late harvest, but I'm ok with that :)

I planted some okra from seed and lost several in the hailstorm (planted these late and they were little). My sis bought me a little okra plant from one of her co-workers and it has gone crazy. It doesn't seem to be acting like a typical okra plant (although I'm not completely sure what a typical okra plant does) - it is crawling like a squash plant instead of a stalk (my other okra plant needs a stake/trellis - the packet said they can grow up to 5 feet tall). So, any garden experts know what this plant is? Does the fruit look like an early okra? Maybe a zucchini? Or neither? I feel like it looks kind of like a little okra...

The basil we purchased from a local nursery (along with rosemary, oregano and parsley). I planted basil from seed and ended up have some crazy bug in the soil (that we could never identify, because we couldn't see it) eat it all up before it even sprouted (these were planted in the bed along our house, so the soil has been out in the elements for awhile). I planted some more basil seeds in a container and now have some really nice basil plants. Although for awhile, we had something eating the leaves :( So we purchased an organic insecticidal soap that seems to have taken care of the problem.

We have lots of lovely Big Boston lettuce that we've been enjoying for dinner :) We planted carrots, but I'm not sure if they will make it. I just kind of threw the seeds on the soil and I think I put in too many. Just kind of watching them to see what happens ;) Also waiting on yellow squash (which is flowering all over the place... which hopefully means the fruit is coming!), watermelon, onions and pumpkins (yes, pumpkins. little jack-be-little pumpkins :)).  Hopefully all of the plants will continue to grow and will eventually produce fruit :)

So that's kind of where we are right now with the garden. I will post another update in the next month or so... hopefully with lots of pictures of fresh veggies ;)

garden planning

In the (very) beginning stages of planning our garden for this year.  We learned a lot (and grew a lot!) last growing season, but of course still have a lot to learn. We are wanting to expand how many types of plants we are growing (I'm trying not to get over ambitious, as we are still very much novice gardeners), as well as trying to change over to growing from organic and Heirloom seeds, and using all organic soil, etc. The two catalogs we are looking through are Harris Seeds and Baker Creek.

We will use the same bed along the back of our house again this year, but will also be adding a lot of containers to the back deck. Been reading and studying through The Vegetable Gardener's Container Bible, as well as my other gardening books I purchased last year. We are liking the Container Garden concept, as they are less permanent and can be moved, don't really have to worry about weeds, etc. Although if we ever have more room (and more sunlight, tons of trees in our backyard), this Square Foot Gardening method looks fabulous.

Canning: Roasted Garlic Pasta Sauce

Some of my friends and I canned Roasted Garlic Pasta Sauce this weekend. It was a great time of roasting garlic, chopping tons of tomatoes and basil, using 25 (not really :)) different pots and colanders to get the job done (tons of tomatoes + not enough large pots = hilarious-ness in the kitchen), lots of laughs, some pizza and cokes. Six (yes, 6) hours later, we had 13 lovely pints of Roasted Garlic Pasta Sauce. We were proud that it only (haha) took 6 hours - none of us had canned before, besides jam. We used a recipe out of a special issue of Better Homes and Gardens - the recipe is located here - just add the garlic from 6 bulbs of roasted garlic to the tomatoes as you chop them in the food processor.

I think I am now addicted to canning. What fun it was to use super fresh produce (a lot from my backyard!) to create pasta sauce that can sit in the pantry. I spoke with one of my friends that was here canning with us and we were talking about how we seriously want to open up a jar and eat it now (we all tasted some last night, SO good), but it's so fun to just look at the cans of homemade tomato sauce that we all put time and effort into.

We are already planning on canning up some apple butter (maybe also peach butter before the season is finished?) as autumn approaches :)

Garden: At the Moment

Our little garden is producing tons of tomatoes, roma tomatoes, peppers, and jalapenos at the moment. If you go here, you can see the progression of the growth in the garden. The squash and zucchini plants are flowering and have begun to crawl out of the planter box (so has one of the pepper plants). It's hilarious. :) Some of my friends and I are getting together this weekend to use some of the tomatoes and can some Roasted Garlic Pasta Sauce - should be a fun time! :) Have a fabulous weekend :)

Garden: Then and Now

Our little garden is taking over the backyard doing really well! The pictures below were taken May 29 and this morning (July 13). We are learning a lot. Like, when the plant tag says to plant the plants 12" apart, they mean plant the plant 12" apart -as evidenced by our out of control Roma tomato plants. Thankfully, all of them are producing, we've been pruning the leaves in hopes of more sunshine reaching the plants.

I uprooted some lemon balm and gave it to a friend (it was a free plant and I didn't think it would really do anything... but it got HUGE. And we don't drink tea, so I felt like it was just taking up precious space. So we purchased a yellow squash and zucchini plant (last week) and they are huge (the plants on the right in the bottom picture). I also recently purchased a magazine on canning by Better Homes and Gardens and there is an entire section on Zucchini. "With its uncanny ability to yield big bumper crops, the zucchini plant seems to be the garden equivalent of an overachiever." Hahahaha! It's true! It's only been in the ground a week and it has quadrupled in size. When I told my mom I had planted a zucchini plant, she said we'd have enough zucchini to feed the neighborhood - she was speaking from experience :) I'm taking my chances on the two squash plants. Originally I wasn't going to plant them because they tend to take over and crawl all over the place. I'll post an update here when if that happens.

All in all, we are loving our little garden. We are already planning on expanding it to another box along the side of the yard next year so we can plant even more. We have learned a lot and are excited to learn more.

first tomato of the season

Well, we picked our first tomato of the season today! It was absolutely wonderful going in the backyard with my sweet Jimmy and picking it together. He was so excited and carried it around carefully for about 10 minutes. He was so proud that we grew a tomato :) We have TONS of cute green tomatoes growing, and more and more of them are starting to turn red. What a delight!

Random Catch Up Post

Happy Monday! And Happy Memorial Day to those in the U.S. A random catch up post today. Lots going on around here. My hubby finished up the super crazy semester (yay!). My sweet youngest son seems to be through the colic, pretty much 3 months to the day and it was like day and night-he's much happier and more smiley now. Thankful :)

Still planning and documenting in my Idea Journal. Am loving the pictures some of you have uploaded on flickr. If you would like to share a picture of yours, please go here.

My sweet blog-land friend Katie of Gadanke sent me this super cute {The Little Things} - Listing Thankful Thoughts Journal. Thank you Katie!! :) It is absolutely adorable and I am working on filling it up. It is great to write down all that I am thankful for, and to be prompted to remember/realize things I am thankful for that I hadn't even thought about. More on that later.

I found this recipe for Cinnamon Pull Apart Bread on pinterest and am a fan. A huge fan. And so is my hubby. And so is my Jimmy. Like, it might be a problem - this bread is that good. I ran out of eggs and couldn't make any more yesterday (although you can probably count on me getting more eggs at the grocery today... and making another loaf... or two or three).

Have been planning and rummaging around in my blog - working on labels for posts at the moment. Part of one of my 2011 Goals for my blog and shop.

So about those seeds we planted. Yeeaaaah. Not so much. We ended up buying tomato plants from a local nursery, as well as a jalapeno plant, green bell pepper plants, and herbs - basil, parsley and chives. We (my hubby) made one huge planter box and we filled it with potting soil (no weeds or red clay dirt to contend with). The plants are thriving. I am proud to say that we have 3 super cute tomatoes growing so far. I cannot even describe the pure joy of watching these grow!
And the herbs. They are out of control. I'm having to cut and pinch them back almost daily. Love being able to step out on the back porch and pick out fresh herbs to use for meals.
As far as running goes. Running today. Took a brief (but too long) break after having a massive neck problem from sleeping on it wrong ;) Was way out of commission for almost a week. Could.not.function. Still having trouble with it (3 weeks later?!) but am thankful that I can move.

Working on a few tutorials (I know, it's been way too long), and will be sharing those soon. I will be sharing some more from my idea journal tomorrow. Have a fabulous day!

Growing Seeds.

Remember how we planted seeds about a week ago? Well, we already have some HUGE seedlings (those tall things are bean plants). It has been so fun to watch them grow and I swear the beans grow about a ½" a day. We are getting ready to transplant them to cans with sticks (so they can climb) because it is still much too cold at night to transplant them to the outside.

My awesome hubby made a huge planter box to fit up next to our home (the only place on our entire property that receives enough sunlight - we have tons of trees!) this weekend. We can't wait for the seedlings to get big enough (and for it to get warm enough) to transplant them outside. Yay for fresh produce on the horizon. That is, unless I accidentally kill the plants before they can produce fruit ;) Hopefully not.

Planting Seeds

We had gorgeous weather this weekend. Am so ready for spring! unfortunately, all 4 of us (yes baby too :( not good) were sick with cold type symptoms. Bah. Saturday we all laid around in our pj's and watched movies on Netflix, had carryout for dinner and just laid low. Sunday we missed church, so as not to share our germs, but were able to get outside in the afternoon and enjoy the warm weather. We finally planted our seeds and I am super excited to see the first sprout come up. I had saved a bunch of cans to plant seeds in as well as purchased a Jiffy tray (which you can find at any garden center, hardware store, or online).

We planted all sorts of vegetables (after doing some research to see what would grow well in our climate and what would be least likely for me to kill - I'm not particularly green-thumb-ed) including carrots, lettuce, onions, snap peas, and herbs, as well as some flowers - zinnias and marigolds. I've heard it's pretty easy to grow marigolds. And did you know radishes only take 26 days to mature into ready-to-eat yummy-ness?!

I planted some roma tomatoes, but have read it is probably better (easier?) to just buy actual tomato plants (and green pepper plants) once the weather gets warmer.

So now we wait. Watch the cute little cans and jiffy tablets and wait. Once the seeds sprout and grow, we will transplant them to bigger containers and put them outside (when the warm weather is here to stay). For now, they will sit on top of the fridge where it is warm and have a "plant growing light" on them... which I still need to purchase ;).

On to February.

Goodbye, January, Hello February! We are just moving right along through 2011 :)

One of our family goals for this year is to attempt (keyword) a container garden in our backyard. The idea of fresh produce straight out of our yard is mouthwatering to me, as well as teaching Jimmy about fruits and vegetables and how things grow.

So a couple weeks ago, we started researching about container gardening checking out books from the library, reading online, etc. - there are so many options of what to do and how to do it. We are finalizing a plan and adding up how much up-front cost there will be. We will be buying a few seedlings, seed starting mix, and of course seeds here in the next couple weeks (you have to start seedlings inside in February here). We also plan to make a compost bin to start making our own compost (the process of how organic matter breaks down and returns to dirt is so fascinating and completely amazes me that everything does in fact, return to dust!).When planting time comes (early to mid-April), we will be buying potting soil and wood to make large rectangular containers.

We've made a list of what we would like to grow - tomatoes, onions, snap peas, carrots and a few more. We are trying to start small so that we do not get overwhelmed, but it's hard to not get super excited and want to plant every.possible.vegetable. we can think of :)
I made a "Vegetable Planning Binder" to house all of our plans and to have different sections of what needs to be done for each plant and when. There is SO much information to take in and so much planning when starting out as a novice like us :)

I took apart a skirt I had found at a thrift shop that was perfectly fit for a garden/plant/green binder, and then sewed some green fabric to make it fit over a used binder. I used super strong spray adhesive to adhere it to the binder, and while it's not my best craftsmanship ever, I'm happy with it. :)
I checked out some books from our local library that have been a huge help and plan on ordering a few of them from amazon to keep as a reference.

Some of my faves:
You Grow Girl by Gayla Trail
The Everything Grow Your Own Vegetables by Catherine Abbott
Bountiful Container by Mcgee and Stuckey
Little Herb Gardens by Georgeanne Brennan and Mimi Luebbermann

Do you garden? Any tips for a beginner? Any book or website recommendations?