All the carrots have been pulled, they seemed to be getting thicker rather then longer so I figured I better get them out before they turn woody. Some kind of bore got to about 10 of the carrots so they ended up in the compost, I guess everyone has to eat right?
I also picked a few beets that had grown to a good size. They seem to be all at different growth stages so this is good because I can pick them as needed without having them get to large.
The celery has also grown large enough to start harvesting. I pulled one up, removed the pot I placed over the bottom of the plant to blanch it and it worked great. The celery is almost white, I have yet to taste it but I am betting it is not bitter at all because of the blanching.
The cucumbers are starting to produce a lot of blooms which is rather exciting because I am a cucumber fend.
This photo shows the bumper crop of mild banana peppers that are starting to get almost large enough to eat. I hope they taste good because I am going to have alot of them. The rest of the peppers, chocolate & red are flowering but no peppers yet.
The zuchinni is also producing many blooms but all 15 or so are male with no female flowers in sight, not sure if this is normal.
I will end with a couple photos of the waterfall we visited over the weekend. It is called Grindstone Cascade and is located in Waterdown, ON on Mill St. South. It is a very nice spot and was enjoyable even after factoring in the heat, humidity and I wore sandals on a rocky/clay trail at times on a 20 degree angle. Boy I'm whinny today! Anyhow, I was experimenting with the shutter in hopes of getting the moving water to appear as it is moving in the photo. It worked pretty well with some of the photo's but it was hard not to over expose and end up with a very washed out image.
Congrats on your harvest. I'm yet to have success with even a potato. What do you do with your harvest - do you preserve it somehow or use it all up?
ReplyDeleteliripoop - Well this is my first year with a full blown veggie patch so I have yet to preserve any of it yet. I also unfortunately have a small yard so I can't really grow enough to preserve.
ReplyDeleteI will blanch and freeze some things though if we can't eat it all within a few days. I will also make some preserves with tomatoes later in the year when there are way to many to eat.
But for the most part it get consumed right away well it is at its peak.
Your red carrots are beautiful! What variety are they?
ReplyDeleteemily - these carrots are an heirloom variety called Dragon Carrots. They are said to be a purple carrot but they are more red/burgundy then purple with the interior being orange. They have a spicier flavor and are rather interesting. I purchased the seed from the Seed Savers Exchange .
ReplyDeleteI have never seen red carrots before! Interesting to the eye...
ReplyDeleteYour cucumbers will be taking over soon so get ready for lots of cucumber salad! Everything looks so good.
I am impressed with your picture of the waterfall. I CAN see it flowing.... Beautiful place...
Your harvest looks really good. I am so jealous of the celery. We didn't even try that this year. Is that a summer or fall crop? I might want to plant some for the fall.
ReplyDeleteskeeter - I sure hope I have lots of cucumbers, it would be nice if I have surplus that I can turn into relish. Its great you enjoyed the waterfall, I like visiting new spots so I will keep posting places as I find them.
ReplyDeleteDP - I start the celery from transplants for the garden center. It has to be started indoors in my climate at least because it takes up to 140 days to harvest so it is defaintly a spring planting.
From what I have read it has erratic germination so you need to plant at least 5 seeds per cell, it needs to be evenly moist through out the whole growth stage and needs heavy feeding.
With that said, it seemed pretty easy to grow in my opinion, at least from transplants. I think next year I will try it from seed.
Man Dan, your harvest is looking awesome. Tons of interesting veggies and varieties! Love the carrots. I'm doing regular mokums this year to be safe.
ReplyDeleteMy cukes are flowering up a storm too, but they're nowhere near as prolific climbers as yours are. I'm training them but they really want to run along the ground. hehe stubborn suckers.
sin - I think the main reason the cucumbers are growing up the trellis so well is because of the potatoes planted in front of them. Basically up is the only way of getting to the light. The variety is "Double Yield Cucumber" for the Seed Savers Exchange, I hope it lives up to its name.
ReplyDeleteSaw your comment on my daughter's blog and wondered who you were so I visited your blog. Great garden pictures. My daughter is inspiring me to try vegetable gardening again here at this new house. You can see my travails with gardening at my blog. BirdsBloomsBooksetc.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteThat's a really great looking harvest you've got.
ReplyDeleteThose carrots are awesome... I don't know how I'm ever going to grow all the varieties of tomatoes, carrots, and so forth that I want.
marcia - thanks for stopping by, I will have to check out your blog too.
ReplyDeletehydroponica - I go through the same thing, I want to try so much but really have no room for it all. I hope your dental venture is going well.
Your veggie garden looks great, especially those carrots. What's the secret??
ReplyDeleteVery loose soil and lots of water is all the secrets I have.
ReplyDeleteYour celery looks fantastic! I'm looking to grow my first celery next season and want a good cultivar to start with. Yours looks very impressive. Do you know what cultivar you purchased?
ReplyDeleteAlso, I just wanted to say that I love your blog. I really enjoy the pictures and descriptions. Keep up the good work!
Kim