HELP! My Garden is Overgrowing Me!

Hello folks!

Last week I harvested the largest of my Yardlong Beans and had enough for a couple of meals. They were delicious cooked with onions and crumbled bacon. I decided to let them fill out a little more and pick some this weekend. I'm here to tell you.....this may have been a mistake! I've never seen anything grow so fast!

 This morning I harvested 10 pounds of beans! A lot have grown to the point that they will have to be shelled. I'm going to spend the afternoon freezing most of these, then I'll cook the rest for supper and fry some of the Hill Country Red Okra. I fried some of the Okra last week and it was sweet and tender. Even the large pods were tender! I think I over planted the beans this year. Maybe I shouldn't have planted the whole 20 foot long trellis with beans!   Live and learn!

Here is some more of my harvest from this morning.

The Matt's Wild Cherry Tomatoes are growing so wildly that the branches from separate plants are reaching out and sort of weaving together, helping to support each other.

This is a cluster of the Riesentrube Cherry Tomatoes.They are highly productive and have a delicious, sweet flavor. I will be growing both of these again next year.

This is a Tropic Tomato. They are really sweet and meaty with small seed pockets. Wonderful!

 I will grow these again, also.

 You can see the damage done by caterpillars. They are even getting into some of the tomatoes and ruining them.

 But, I have purchased some B.t. (Bacillus thuringiesis).

I learned about B.t. back in the '80s from Mother Earth News. It is derived from milk and is OMRI listed. It targets caterpillars only and is not harmful to birds, earthworms or beneficial insects. Totally organic! As I sprayed it on the plants, lots of the caterpillars just dropped off the plants. They don't like it!

 BWAHAHAHA! (That was my evil laugh).

The Black Beauty Eggplants are starting to produce fruit. 

I can't wait for some eggplant casserole!

The Nardello's Sweet Italian Peppers are producing well,also.

Here are some pollinators hard at work in the garden.

There are lots of wasp in the garden, too. I don't try to get close enough for a photo because I'm allergic.

So, this year I have probably planted too much of somethings and not enough of others, but as I stated earlier....Live and Learn!

Next year I will be wiser.

Anyone want to come and pick some beans!

So....Until next time....HAPPY GARDENING! 

Sunday Morning In The Garden

Good morning folks!

It's such a beautiful morning and I couldn't resist getting out in the veggie garden!

Look at what I found.

Those Suyo Long Cucumbers are strange looking, aren't they? But they sure are tastey.

Even though the plants seem to be diseased, they are producing like crazy!

And the Hill Country Red Okra are huge. 

The largest one is 4" long and over 1" wide! 

I'll have some fried Okra very soon! Mmmm!

Well, I've got visitors coming today for smoked ribs, so I've got to get busy.

So....until next time....HAPPY GARDENING!

Veg Update - 2014

Hello folks!

My spring / summer garden is coming right along!
These are Matt's Wild Cherry. They have grown to the top of their stakes and I am pinching them off at that height. Maybe that is why they are called "Wild". They have out grown all of the other varieties.

I harvested my first Tomatoes this past week. They are from the Matt's Wild Cherry. Small fruits loaded with flavor....perfect size for a salad.

The Tropic Tomatoes are loaded with fruit...

....as are the Abraham Lincoln Tomatoes.

The Yardlong Beans have grown to the top of the trellis. I have been looking for blooms for the last two weeks, but none had appeared and I have wondered if the soil had too much nitrogen. But finally today I noticed flower buds forming on the vines. Happiness is a blooming plant!

I also harvested my first Hill Country Heirloom Red Okra.... but it is only two pods for now.

 But there are more on the plants. I can't wait for some fried Okra! This months issue of Southern Living has a good looking recipe. Instead of cutting up the Okra, wack the pod with a mallet to split it down it's length. Dip it in buttermilk, roll it in cornmeal and fry it. Looks delicious... I'm going to have to try it!

The Cucumbers are having a problem. The leaves start turning yellow, then curl up and die.

This may be a fungus problem, but I'm not sure. Anyone know what this is? If so, please comment.

Here is my first Cucumber.

Its a Suyo Long. Sweet flavored, burpless Cucumber from China.

Here are a few more photos.

Purple Cosmos.

French Marigolds.

Cassava and Okra.

The Cassava has reached the bottom of the windows!

It is fun growing all these varieties that I've never grown before.
And there is nothing as satisfying as harvesting food that that I have grown!
God has blessed me with a productive garden!



So....until next time....HAPPY GARDENING!