Sunday, August 23, 2020

Plant A Tiny Seed And Watch It Grow

Well, it's almost the end of the gardening season and I know I've been promising for months to show garden photos, but I have been so busy in my garden, I have barely had time to take pictures yet alone blog about it.  This year was unusually busy because in addition to renovating a very large garden that had completely gone to weed, we also put in a vegetable garden.   So to make up for my lack of garden posts, I'm going to do a little wrap up of most of the garden year for you.  Unfortunately, I did not take any midsummer pictures, so I separated the post into four categories:  spring, late summer, the vegetable garden, and the fruit of my labor.

                                   SPRING!



This spring the gardens were gorgeous.  The laminum was the star of the garden this spring.  My daughter was still living with us at the time it was in bloom and asked what the beautiful purple flower was in bloom all over the yard.  She really loved it.


The peonies did very well this year too.  Below is the common pink peony followed by a beautiful burgundy version.




The Foxglove was not as showy this year as it has been in previously years.  It needs to reseed every year, and last year I renovated this garden so I'm sure I disturbed the seedlings.



                            Late Summer


Black Eyed Susans are the star of my late summer garden.  It reseeds everywhere, and I don't mind one bit.  It is such a low maintenance eye-catching plant.  I just love it.


This is the top of the garden I just renovated looking down into my yard at the other side of the garden shed.  When I finished renovating this garden, after I removed all the weeds, there was nothing left!  So I sprinkled some Zinnia seeds that I picked up from the Dollar Store onto the ground and racked them in.  I had no idea they would turn into these gorgeous beauties!



Here is a side view of the newly renovated garden.  I left plenty of growing space so I don't have to do this  again in a year.  Perennials grow so fast, leave them plenty of room to grow.


                      The Vegetable Garden

And now for my vegetable garden.  This is the view from inside the garden looking down at the shed.


Jackson has been enjoying his time in his "Catio".  He's like a little puppy dog.  Every morning he runs down the steps and stands by the door till I let him out.  His usual routine is to spend all morning outside, then he comes in for lunch and his afternoon nap, then back outside he goes till dark.  I hardly ever see the little guy anymore, he always wants to be outside.  One night he came to the door with a mouse in his mouth.  He was so proud of his catch he had to show him to us.


His favorite spot in the garden is in the cool shade underneath the tomato plants.


The garden has grown beyond my wildest dreams.  Everything is so huge and lush, when people visit they are truly amazed and keep asking me what I did for they never saw such large and healthy plants before.  My response is "Nothing!  I simply planted a tiny seed and watched it grow".  I will have to give all the glory to God because we ordered top soil from a local truck driver and what we ended up getting was pure clay.  We were so devastated.  When it rained, it hardened like cement.  I lamented to my husband that "Nothing will grow in that soil!".  My poor hubby spent weeks trying to amend the soil with sand, peat moss, and wood ash, but still, it was so bad.  But I went ahead and planted my seeds anyway, and for awhile, things looks pretty sad, so I said a prayer over my garden asking God to bless it and make it fruitful for my family, and lo and behold....He did!  I have more food than we can possibly consume ourselves.  Every morning I go out to the garden and harvest a bushel full of produce, sometimes two, then I spend the afternoon canning/freezing the produce.  Our brand new freezer is almost full to the brim already!  God is good!


In the picture below the squash and watermelon vines got so big, they grew onto the porch!


This picture was taken a month ago, and when I look at it now I can't believe how much things have grown since this photo was taken.  The garden on the left is so full now, you can't even see the dirt.


I thought I'd include this picture so you could see where the garden is in relation to the house.  It is right off our sunroom so it's almost as if the vegetable garden is an extension of the sunroom.  There is a door underneath the wreath on the right, that leads to the porch and the rest of the vegetable garden.


                       The Fruit Of My Labor

And finally, I wanted to show you the fruit of my labor.  I actually think "labor" isn't even the right word.  My husband did most of the hard labor of hauling the dirt and amending the soil, I just planted the seeds and laid down the cocoa bean mulch.  Once the mulch was laid, there was very little labor involved until harvest season.  Now I spend about an hour or two every day picking beans, tomatoes, cukes, summer squash, and Zucchini .  I also look for bugs, and hand pick those off as well.  I did use a little Sevin dust when the plants were young to ward off the cucumber beetles, but once the flowers bloom and the plant starts producing fruit, you can't use the dust anymore....hence the hand-picking!

In the picture below I'm pointing to my Spaghetti Squash.  I have never seen such huge spaghetti squash before in my life, have you?  It grew up the fence on its own and I let it.  So far, only one has fallen off.  I have so much spaghetti squash growing on the ground, I don't mind losing a few.


I planted one row of radishes this year and they were incredible...better than any I've bought in a store.  I was hoping to plant another row this fall, but I don't have any room!  Everything filled in so much, I don't have a row available to plant more.


The bush green beans were incredible.  I could not believe how easy bush beans are to plant and grow.  If you don't think you have a green thumb, at least try beans.  If you have small children, they would love to plant bean seeds with you as their seeds are nice and big and easy for little fingers to handle.



Now, just so you know, you are seeing a rare photograph of me without makeup.  I hesitated posting this photo because I have no make up on but I get questions/comments all the time like "You're always so well put together, it makes me wonder what you look like when you're just at home".  Well, this is what I look like:  no make-up, my hair pulled back in a pony tail or messy bun, and a t-shirt and jeans or  jean shorts.

What I'm holding is a bowl full of kale.  Kale is such an easy plant to grow.  It grows so prolifically that I could harvest a bowl this large every single day.  I've been freezing some of it, but really run out of time in a day to freeze as much as I should, so I fear a lot is going to waste.



I planted one cherry tomato and one grape tomato bush.  They have both been provided me all summer long with more fruit than I possibly need.


I've mostly been canning pickles and tomatoes, but I plan on canning salsa starting today.  I was waiting for my hot peppers to start producing to do the salsa.  The beans, summer squash, and zucchini I have been freezing.  I don't really care for canned beans, that's why I've been freezing them.


I planted a few herbs:  basil, oregano, parsley, and cilantro.  Pictured below is basil before I harvested some.


Here you can see what it looks like after I harvest it, don't worry, it grows back bigger and better than before.  I filled an entire colander with basil and then dried it.


There are many different ways to dry basil.  I oven dried mine.  My first batch I left the leaves whole and then put in a canning jar.  I read if you leave the leaves whole and crunch them as you need them, it produces more flavor.  My second batch, I actually crunched the leaves and then put them in the jar.  Sometimes I'm in a huge hurry and I don't have time to crunch the leaves and prefer to have them pre-crunched so I can just sprinkle them on.  

Once the basil is dried it really shrinks down.  My fresh basil leaves filled two cookie sheets, yet when they were dried they filled one quart size canning jar.


I only planted two zucchini plants and three yellow squash, yet they produce so much fruit it's ridiculous.  Next year I think I will only plant one of each as I seriously don't know what to do with this much zucchini.  I have made just about every dish I can think of at this point.  

Even though I check my garden every single day, zucchini can really get hidden underneath the large leaves.  This one grew so big by the time I saw it I wondered if it was still edible, but it was!  I think I got three dishes out of this one large zucchini.


The picture below would be a typical days harvest in July.  Now, it's probably double that since the cucumbers and peppers are also ready to harvest.


I've never grown summer squash before.  My husband picked up the seeds and I actually had no idea what they were.  I planted them in the ground and I was so surprised by the results.  And the yellow squash is a lot easier to spot in the garden than the zucchini.


And finally I leave you with a picture of one of our little forest friends who visited my garden a few evenings ago.  He/she saw me taking pictures of him/her through the window, and was not afraid at all.  I let him/her nibble on a few things as it's so late in the year it really doesn't matter anymore.  I just love seeing wildlife in my yard.  But, now you know why we have to have our vegetable garden fenced in.  Before we had it completely fenced in, a woodchuck got in and did some serious damage.  We would not have a vegetable garden if it wasn't fenced in as we have a lot of wildlife in our yard.



Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!










 

43 comments:

  1. Your results are incredible! congratulations on becoming a very successful vegetable gardener. I am sure your work is going to pay off in the coming year, when things look so uncertain. God bless you and your family.

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    1. Thanks so much Julie! Yes, the future looks uncertain that was why we planted a garden. We should be prepared this winter if something happens, and if not, it will definitely save $ on our grocery bill. God Bless you too!

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  2. Well no wonder you haven't had time to put together posts on gardening! What amazing gardens you have and how wonderful to get to enjoy the fruits of your labor. By the way, I think you look great even without makeup!

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  3. Wow. Amy, this sure is a mighty crop. I love the colorful flower photos too. Will pin this post and keep up the good work.

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  4. Wow!it just looks so amazing, all of it! The flower gardens are just gorgeous, my favorite being the black eye Susan's and your vegetable garden so bountiful. How wonderful. Going to try your technique for drying my basil.
    www.chezmireillefashiontravelmom.com

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    1. Thanks so much! Good luck with the basil. I just did my third batch yesterday. Such a bountiful plant.

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  5. Wow, that is so very beautiful. Very nice.

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  6. What an enjoyable post!! Your yard is so park-like or like an arboretum I remember visiting in Boston as a child. The black-eyed Susans are magnificent. And the foxglove looks pretty amazing to me. Not sure I have ever seen it in person. Read a book about a woman poisoning her husband with it!!
    Your produce rivals Whole Foods!! Beautiful. And surely even tastier. Thank you for sharing.

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    1. Thank you! I often hear that about my yard, that it looks like a public park. Yes, foxgloves are poisonous. I think they still have some medicinal value though. Poisonous plants are actually great for a garden that has a lot of deer visiting. They won't touch it. You can always tell what plants are safe to eat by what the animals eat. I wonder how they know what plants are poisonous. Nature is so amazing. That's so sweet to hear you say that about my produce. Thanks so much.

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  7. Both your flower and vegetable gardens are a work of art!! You truly have a green thumb and everything looks just beautiful! Next year I will scatter some zinnia seeds and see what happens. I bought a small zinnia hanging plant this year and I love that it attract butterflies.
    You are so good with canning all of your veggies too! I only grow enough for a somewhat immediate use, but next year I plan to add green beans and plan to freeze some of them for later use.
    Jackson looks like he's enjoying the outdoors so much!

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    1. Oh, thank you. That makes me so happy to hear that. I really wanted my vegetable garden to be "pretty" like my flower garden and fit in well with the landscape. I was really worried about the fencing, but we wouldn't have a garden without the fence. Yes, Zinnias are super easy to grow from seed...the easiest flower to grow from seed in my opinion...and they attract butterflies like crazy! More than any other flower I know. I really felt I did grow as small amount of vegetables as possible (with the exception of the tomatoes, I grew a ton of those!) so I could plant a variety of things, but everything just grew so well and became so fruitful it was crazy!

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  8. Wowza! I absolutely enjoyed your incredible photos!

    Thanks, Amy!

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  9. Amy what a beautiful (and fruitful - and flower-ful) garden you have. I'm incredibly jealous of your green thumb - and I bet it takes a LOT of work to keep it as beautiful and productive as it is. Thanks so much for sharing the photos and giving us a little sneak peak into your yard.
    And thanks so much for being a part of #MLSTL

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    1. Thanks Leanne. I actually don't think I even have a green thumb. I just plant what works and get rid of what doesn't and if I have issues, I google a solution. The work is very seasonal. I do most of the work in spring, and in late summer most of the work is harvesting and canning/freezing. I'm sure I'll be very busy this fall cleaning all the beds up.

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  10. I love a garden that has a lot of variety throughout the summer. What fabulous colors, too!

    It's great to see you at 'My Corner of the World' this week!! Thanks for being here.

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  11. Your garden is beautiful.It would be my pleasure if you join my link up party related to Gardening here at http://jaipurgardening.blogspot.com/2020/08/garden-affair-love-for-caladiums.html

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    1. Thank you! I'm always looking for new link ups!

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  12. Oh, that's awesome! Thanks so much! I'll be sure to drop by and add the feature to my "Where I've been featured" page.

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  13. Amy, your gardens are works of art! I will be featuring them in this week’s Creative Compulsions.

    Michelle
    https://mybijoulifeonline.com

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  14. Your garden is amazing. Full of such a beautiful flowers. You must enjoy so much there.

    New Post - https://www.exclusivebeautydiary.com/2020/09/marc-jacobs-decadance-mugler-aura.html

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  15. Delightful little fountain in your pond!

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  16. Thanks for linking up with Garden Affair .Please do continue to link up with Garden Affair .
    http://jaipurgardening.blogspot.com

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  17. WOW!! Your photos - and your yard - are just gorgeous! I loved looking through all of them...and just drooling. I so wish I could grow anything...flowers, veggies, any of it! Thanks for sharing!!

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  18. Thanks so much for linking up with me at my #UnlimitedMonthlyLinkParty 16, open until September 26!

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  19. Visiting again to say thanks so much for linking up with me at A Themed Linkup 50 for Vegetable Gardening. You're quite the veggie and flower gardener, huh? Pinned!

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    1. Yes, I am. I'm new to the vegetable garden, I just started one last year, but I've been growing flowers for years. Thanks for popping in again!

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  20. CONGRATS! Your post is FEATURED at A Themed Linkup 51 for Handmade Cards from my previous linkup for Vegetable Gardening!

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  21. Visiting again to say thanks so much for linking up with me at A Themed Linkup 58 for Vegetable Gardening. Pinned again!

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