Onion Harvest

The onions that have been in the garage for several weeks are now nicely dry.  Some of them are gigantic.

The PrimeArk blackberries are still producing, I assume now on this year's canes.

Winter Chard

Even though the chard I planted last spring is still going strong (and looking fantastic, thanks to the netting!), I sowed a little more as insurance.  I'd hate to have the early crop quit and be stuck without any chard.  I planted about ten seeds in the same bed as the early crop, then moved the netting to cover the whole bed.  I may move the seedlings later, but for now they're protected.  The variety I've planted this year is 'Electric Neon Blend' from Territorial.  It really doesn't seem any brighter than the rainbow chard I've always planted.

Dry Beans

Some of the dry beans are getting brittle, so I picked what was ready.  It was mostly Brown Dutch, with some Jacob's Cattle and a few Hidatsa Red Indian.  It was a little less than a pound.  Lots more to come.

Amana Orange Tomato

Today I picked the second Amana Orange tomato.  It tipped the scales at just over a pound.

It fits nicely onto a sandwich thin.

What I didn't use on the sandwich I put on tonight's pizza, along with Cube of Butter squash and yellow bell pepper.  It looks like sunshine.

Winter Carrots and Lettuce

Yesterday I pulled out the second planting of bush beans and planted three rows of Romance carrots and two rows of Gourmet Blend lettuce.  Last night some critter came into the garden and dug several holes in the soil where I had planted the seeds.  Now I'll have to wait to see what comes up and fill in any gaps.

Dehydrated Tomatoes

Today I tried dehydrating some of the Debarao tomatoes.  They came out really well.

I also cut back the berries in the back.  I left just four trimmed canes on each of the Beckyberries and six trimmed canes on the Boysenberry.  I'll be anxious to see how they produce next year.  In the past I've left lots of side branches on the canes and left six canes per plant. 

Potato Harvest

A couple of months ago I transplanted three or four potato volunteers from last year's bed into a big pot on the deck.  I wasn't going to grow any more potatoes after last year's problem.  But I learned it was a calcium deficiency, so I added some bone meal and decided to give it a try.  There was a small sprinkler in the pot, which was hooked into the deck watering system, so it got plenty of regular water.

I was pleased with how many potatoes we got.  None were huge, but that's o.k.  And it sure was easy to harvest them.  We just dumped the pot on a tarp and sifted through the soil with our hands.  And no damaged potatoes from the spading fork.  This is definitely the way I'll grow potatoes next year.

Ratatouille Tonight!

The finished product.  Yum!!

Debarao Tomatoes

Today I picked the first Debarao paste tomatoes.  So far they look good.

Fall Veggies

Today I planted fifteen of the starts of broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage into the bed they were all holding in.  Because it's been in the 90s, I put a temporary shade cloth over the butterfly netting.

The remaining thirty are now holding in the bed with the carrots and beets, covered, of course.  They're waiting for a bed to open up.

Lettuce & Kale

I pulled the first planting of bush beans and planted a couple of short rows of lettuce and a row of Tuscan kale in the space.

The second planting of beans is producing nicely.

Apples & Figs

The Golden Sentinel apples have started to fall.  Almost enough for a pie!


And I picked our first (of two) fig.  We split it.