Slowly Growing...

A long-overdue update of my neglected blog, about... my neglected garden.

After being inspired by my friend's pictures of her baby plants, I decided to go record the growth of my little plot.

It's had a bit of a rough start...  I started a kazillion seeds indoors in early May, but unfortunately didn't read my seed books close enough.  That part about hardening off seeds by setting them outside in the sun a few hours at a time until they can stand to be planted in full sun?  That's important.

Most of what I planted from seed has kicked the bucket, but a few things are hanging on.  You can see evidence of sun scorching on my tomato and pepper seedlings.

The spinach and lettuce I planted from seed straight into the ground, and it's doing quite well.

All the herbs were completely fried, though, so I went to the nursery and picked up some plants - basil, dill, parsley, and cilantro.  When I went to plant the cilantro, though, look what I found still hanging on strong:  if these little guys hang on through the summer, I will consider my garden a success!

Garden, Phase 2

Phase 2 of the garden called for busting out the hoes and rakes!  Once the grass had been turned under and left to decompose for a week, it was time to work the dirt into some kind of manageably fine, plantable substance.  

Here's E and J working the dirt:

Up in the woods on my friend's property, there is an old cement pool that was used about 100 years ago.  Today, it is just collecting leaves and trash from over the years, but as we discovered, years and years of rotting leaves = the richest black dirt I have ever seen!  While the girls were hoeing and raking, I shoveled up buckets of dirt from the pool and carried them back to the garden to mix in with the dirt.

You can see the difference in the soil here - the outsides have been raked and had the dirt/compost added, while the middle is still dry and pale-looking.

We also planted the first of the cold-loving plants!  Onions and cabbage have taken up residence in our little garden, and I am so proud!  I know deer don't eat onions, but as long as they don't trample them I will be happy!  (Also, onions and cabbage weren't originally planned... my list keeps growing!)  Happy gardening!

Garden, Phase 1

Well, today the girls and I got out and started digging!  Starting a garden plot from scratch is going to be more work than I originally thought, since we don't have the benefit of a roto-tiller.  But we are buff, tough girls, and we will kick this gardening thing in the pants!  We picked a 13x13 plot in the middle of a field in order to get as much sun as possible.  According to my dad, the first step is to turn over the grass with shovels...  Here are some pics of us working hard and getting dirty!

plot marked, time to start digging!

down to the last few shovelfuls!

it is finished!

(believe it or not, I actually DID do my share of the digging, I was just the one taking the pictures! :)

Garden, pre-planning

My childhood home was located in the country, and we lived next door to my grandparents.  Every summer, in between our two houses, they and my parents planted a huge garden to share between the six of us, and other aunts and uncles when we had a bumper crop.  My summer chores most often included weeding and picking veggies from the garden (strawberries were the worst!).  

The place I'm living now doesn't have any room for a real garden, and last summer I planted lots of things in pots.  But this summer, a friend of mine who has some extra space around his house, has offered to let me plant a REAL garden!  I don't really know what I'm doing, and the process will probably include a lot of calling home to my parents to find out how to do certain things.  But as long as I can keep the deer from eating everything I plant, I think I'll be in good shape!

I started by going to the garden shop and buying WAY too many seeds, stuff to start the plants indoors, and making charts and lists.  I keep telling myself not to go too big, and not to go overboard and grow so many things that I can't eat them!  But I don't really think I succeeded...  Regardless this will be a fun experiment!  

2009 Garden Plants

HERBS:

parsley

lavender

oregano

cilantro

chives

dill

basil

spearmint

stevia 

VEGGIES:

beefsteak tomatoes

cherry tomatoes

cucumbers

pickling cucumbers

eggplant

sweet corn

zucchini squash

yellow squash

red/green peppers

purple/red peppers

jalapeno peppers

hot peppers mix

lettuce

spinach

FLOWERS:

poppy

zinnia

Stars!

I found these great picture frames on clearance at Bed, Bath and Beyond a couple months ago.  They're practically deep enough for shadow boxes!  Definitely good for some 3-d art.  I saw the idea for these pictures on someone else's blog, but unfortunately I've lost the link.  If you happen to have seen it out there in the blogosphere, let me know!

Pickles!

I'm planning to make another batch of pickles and pesto today, and I want to try making dilled green beans too. Gotta work fast to get the rest of the fall bounty!

Yummy Dinner

Got a lot of fresh vegetables? Have I got a recipe for you! I love it because it's quick and flexible. Basically, you just take whatever veggies (and meat if you want it) and simmer them together.

Begin warming some broth over medium-high heat. (I used one can of chicken broth, and one can of vegetable broth because that's what I had on hand.)
If you're using meat, you should probably pre-cook it before adding it to the broth. (I used pre-cooked chicken sausage, so I just added it here while it was cold.)
Add the harder veggies early so they have time to soften. (e.g. carrots, celery, green beans if you like 'em soft. My roommate and I disagreed on this point.)
Cook those for a while before adding other veggies. (I used zucchini, onion, and corn.)
If you're adding potatoes, those should go in early with the meat and carrots. However, if you forget to put them in early (like I did), you can always microwave them for a few minutes to soften them and add them with the rest of the veggies.
Add salt, pepper, and any other seasonings you would like.
Toss in some chopped parsley before serving!