It's been a while since I've done a proper garden post here--so much to catch up on.
The front yard beds are flourishing. These are the dry beans we grew as an experiment--Tiger's Eye from Territorial. So beautiful!
We planted Black-eyed Susans along the front walk--they thrive with so little care and attract lots of bees to pollinate the winter squash...
...which is also thriving.
I never tire of cheerful zinnias.
The green beans are about done for the season--we didn't get as many this year. Some of the vines mysteriously dried up and died...not sure what caused it. But we did harvest enough for a few good meals and a couple of bags for the freezer.
The zucchini and summer squash has gone crazy over these last few weeks. Sauteed zucchini, zucchini pasta, zucchini pizza, zucchini quiche, zucchini bread, chocolate zucchini cake, raw zucchini, zucchini dropped on neighbors' doorsteps...
Tomatoes are just beginning to ripen--the cherries and early varieties.
And our adolescent chickies have blossomed into lovely full-grown, productive hens.
Say hello, ladies! From left to right: Ruby the Rhode Island Red, Ethel the Australorp, Gloria the Golden Laced Wyandotte, and Delia the Delaware.
We discovered our long-awaited first eggs this weekend.
And potatoes! The thick straw mulch worked really well. There aren't any potatoes actually growing in the straw, but they are right on the surface of the soil under the straw, and much more successful than in past years.
Monster leeks.
More blooms and bees.
Cucumbers are happily climbing their trellis.
This time of year is such a lovely one to spend out in the backyard,
watching the dragonflies and bees buzz industriously, soaking up the long
awaited sunshine, reveling in all the growing things.
We are working this year on quickly clearing out plants that are past their prime in order to make room for new plants. Hopefully this will make a more robust fall and winter harvest possible. We harvested the garlic early in July and planted that bed with carrots which should be ready in a few more weeks. We also cleared out the spring broccoli and kale and have new plants started in that bed. Scallions and salad greens are always hard to keep up with but we've tried to continue planting throughout the summer. Our peppers this year are mostly a bust--I think it has just been too cold. The basil has also been sad, though we planted out another batch of starts earlier this month that seems to be doing better.
So much to be grateful for in this little plot of earth we call home!
I love to eat most vegetables, but until a few years ago, beets were one food I just couldn't stomach. Then a friend gave me a copy of Feeding the Whole Family, and I discovered Cynthia's recipe for Luscious Beet Salad (which can also be found here). Upon trying it, my disdain for this humble vegetable turned to effusive adoration. The combination of savory dressing, lightly cooked greens, toasty pumpkin seeds, fresh scallions, and silky smooth, sweet beets truly does make for a luscious salad. So the last couple of years we have been sure to grow at least enough beets to make this salad a few times. I love that every part of the beet plant is edible--the greens, the root, even the stems are good chopped and thrown into the rice and beans we had with the salad. Makes for a very efficient use of garden space. And they are so incredibly beautiful--the way they leave traces of that deep magenta juice on whatever they touch. Here's to the humble beet!
