Sam helped me harvest at the community garden today. He dug the leeks and I dug beets. Then I processed them back at home. A messy muddy task.
What was I thinking! This is a huge quantity of leeks. And there are more in the home garden. I will have to look for more leek recipes.
The beets seem more reasonable in volume. A good selection of medium ones and another of baby beets. A few greens were harvested, but most were not edible.
And this always seems to happen. No matter how painstakingly I try to harvest all the onions and shallots, some slip by. I found this glowing plateful today.
Ground cherry is producing prolifically in the community garden plot. Not so much in the home garden. I really like it for snacking. The little morsels are so sweet and tasty.
Ground cherry with skeletonized huskGround cherry spreading out
Harvested at the community garden this morning. There are no crops left there. Just need to put the plots to bed. Sam blew out the water system so it wouldn’t freeze.
Sam is cleaning the inside of the emptied water tank at the Community GardenSetup with generator and power washerSam and Lesley discussing something, probably how to reduce algae buildup in the tankLast radicchio of summerI still have a row of leeks growingJudy’s beautiful patch of thymePanorama – water barrels are still out for awhileNext plot over still has some bloomsSam’s still working. I got a bright green dot in the photo, don’t know what caused that. Time for me to head home on footVenerableSelfie walking home at sunsetTree near the drivewayTree along the drivewayOur hazelnut bush turning color
Plot at Community Garden, covered with squash vines
I love this photo although it’s a bit fuzzy. The evening light, the barn next door, the trail head and surrounding forest. The echinacea glowing pink at the left edge and the pile of wood chips at the right edge. Most of all, the happy squash plants.
I really struggled to nurture these plants through serious transplant shock and then countering a squash beetle threat. I tried row covers, but found eggs on the plants that were under cover! So off came the covers. I then inspected the back of each leaf daily for a few weeks, tearing off the part of the leaf where eggs were laid. Not a single beetle on my adult plants. And they are growing like crazy! Some plants didn’t make it of course, but the others are just enjoying the extra room.
Growing squash is always fun because you don’t know what you’ve got under there until the foliage starts to die away. But I know I have at least a few butternut squash and a few pumpkins. I haven’t successfully grown butternut squash for a few years so this crop is especially sweet. On the other hand, my delicata and hubbard squash crops were a miserable failure this year, so there’s always some balance to contemplate.
Onions, white, red and yellowMore onions and a row of Burpee shallots. I’m letting them go to seed, I probably shouldn’t be. Echinacea, pollinator attractorPainted lady butterfly, maybe? A sad row of leeks. Winter squash has really taken off after surviving serious yellowing and attempted beetle infestation. Baby butternutBaby pumpkinAuxiliary plot of carrots, lettuce “Merlot” and a few radicchio
I put the squash plants in at the community garden. Planting is done there! Now I’m waiting for the plants to do their thing while I nurture them as best I can.
Three rows of squash Too small to see, but leeks are in the trench and Cippollini onions are to the left of the trenchSix rows of onion plants, one row of shallots
There’s also a nice perennial sunflower and echinacea plants, not in bloom yet.
we went to the workday
worked with the crew
replacing the back fence
with a sturdy chicken wire
well secured to the ground
and the fenceposts
edges covered with cardboard
and a deep layer of wood chips
our plot is empty
just a leftover allium
and a patch of Johnny-jump-ups
