The squash bugs are mocking me…

They have now eaten every bit of squash and squash plant out there, and while I’m not really mourning the loss of the squash plants at this point, they have turned their attention to the other plants in the garden.

I would like to be able to do a second planting of some things without them being overrun, so I finally broke down and pulled out the sevin dust (seven dust?).  I marched resolutely to the garden, not proud that I was breaking my no pesticides rule, but determined to solve the squash bug problem one way or another.

I found several large groupings of bugs and murderously poured large amounts of the dust on their little buggy heads.  They, instead of following the script and politely keeling over, frolicked in the “snow” and laughed at me.

Then, it rained, and I thought any remaining chance I had at the dust actually doing its job was gone.  Two days later I went down there and I can still SMELL the stuff, but the squash bug population is thriving.

They’re down there mocking me right now.

Today's collection...

4 patty pan squash
5 yellow squash
2 handfuls of beans (most of which the campers ate while we were still in the garden!)
several cherry tomatoes (most of which were also eaten)
a few strawberries (all eaten)
a bunch of red leaf lettuce and romaine lettuce
one small onion

They really enjoyed being out there today. It was fun walking them through and seeing their fascination with the growing things. I even got them to pick a few slugs for me!

How's your garden coming?

Some stuff from the garden

Just wanted to share a few things I collected from the garden this weekend.  The big purple bowl is a salad I collected for the high school campers.

I also got at assortment of beans, strawberries and green tomatoes (and one little red cherry tomato!).  I fried up the green tomatoes and they were delish!  We also had the first patty pan squash, which I sautéed with onion, olive oil, salt and pepper – yummy!

I love summer!

Jean

Garden Pictures and Wine Update

Here are some pics of the camp garden that I took the other day during a break in the rain.  It’s really coming along!  I picked some lettuce and spinach and a few chives for a salad to go with dinner the other night.  It’s SO satisfying to be able to go pick something and take it right to the table!

Strawberries, Spinach and Onions

 

 

Cherry and Roma Tomatoes and Lettuce

 

Bell Peppers, Lettuces, Onions, Herbs and Cherokee Yellow Bush Beans

 

This is the same bed as the previous one, just a bit closer.

 

Patty Pan Squash and Variegated Oregano

 

This picture is the dandelion wine, now strained, but still murky…  I am unsure about it’s color, but am pleased to report that it at least has begun to smell like wine!  I think I’ll strain it a few more times with some coffee filters to see if I can refine it bit more.  I have not been brave enough to taste it yet!  Maybe tomorrow…?

Garden update

I got out yesterday and worked in the garden for a few hours. I planted a few more things and just cleaned up some of the empty pots and loose straw that were floating around. We now have the following planted in the camp garden:

Tomatoes (Early Girl, Lemon Boy, Mr. Stripey, Big Boy, Roma and Husky Cherry Red)
Onions
Lettuces
Cabbage
Spinach
Strawberries
Yellow Cherokee Bush Beans
Kentucky Blue Pole Beans
Potatoes (Yukon Gold and Red Pontiac)
Red and Green Bell Peppers
Bright Lights Swiss Chard
Broccoli
Yellow and Zucchini Squash
Triamble Squash (Many thanks to Novella over at Ghost Town Farm, who sent me the seeds. I can't wait to see how they turn out!)
Assorted herbs

If it stops raining long enough, I'll go out and get a picture for you. Until then, I'll keep the laundry going... wheee!

Garden Update and Adventures in Winemaking... sort of.

The garden is nearing completion a stopping point, all the vast majority of the dirt is dumped/mixed/ammended, and all MOST of the plants are in. It's really taking shape! Now to sit back and relax, enjoy the fruits of my labors, mulch between the beds... I'll post pics later so you can see how it's going!

Another wild hair that I had was to try making some dandelion wine. Actually, I had this idea last year, but had no idea the sheer VOLUME of dandelions needed for this process! Plus, then someone told me it was not a good idea, which just meant that I HAD to do it this year... FYI - telling me NOT to do something does not always work to your best advantage people!

SO, this year I convinced (by way of bribery!) the two small people that live in my house to help me pick the many, many flowers we needed. And my Mom and my Nana said, "don't bother, it's gross!"

Which means, of course, that I must proceed with my diabolical plan...

SO, I boiled water, poured it over the washed flowers, and let it sit. Today, I strained it through cheesecloth, and while it looked rather murky, it didn't smell unpleasant, just sort of reminiscently grassy. Then I added the other ingredients that the recipe that I'm using called for (some juices, sugar and yeast) and stirred and frankly, now it smells...GROSS!

Like some horribly yeasty weed juice, which, I guess, it is...

It has to sit for a week to ferment before it can be bottled. Bottled?! It better smell a WHOLE lot better by the end of the week for me to go that far!


Just don't tell my mom, ok? ;)

The Camp Garden

A few weeks ago, the Camp Guy asked me to work on a project for summer camp.  He wants a vegetable garden as a source of fresh eats for the kids, but also a place where the kids can come and learn about growing their own food.  A place that would serve as a jumping off point, if you will, for talking about bigger issues, like environmental stewardship and the importance of knowing where your food comes from. 

The Camp Guy and I walked around camp talking about where to put this garden, and found a few promising places, but non that worked better than where our garden had been before (plus that spot was already approved by the Corp of Engineers!) so… that’s the spot we decided on.  It gets great sun, has easy access to water, is close to our house (which is nice, since I’ll be taking care of it!), and it’s close to the shop, where the tools will be anyway!

So, I wrote a letter and took it to our local Home Depot, Lowe’s, Tractor Supply, and two local farm supply stores.  I also mailed it to several national gardening/plant supply companies.  And boy, did they come through! One of the local places supplies 5 flats of lettuce and cabbage, plus a few pounds of onion sets.  A box arrived in the mail from Burpee – no letter, but FULL of seeds!  And our local Home Depot went above and beyond – they worked with their vendors (Bonnie and Miracle Grow) and got us two pallets of Garden Soil, hoses, tomato cages, and a LOT of plants! 

I also got on the phone and had a bunch (140!) bales of straw delivered by a nice man who gave us a great price.  Aunt J and Uncle P came over this morning and we hauled straw and bags of dirt around until now, it looks like this…

As you can see – there’s a LOT more to do!  We’re using raised beds because, even though we’ve added some amendments in our previous gardening attempts (I say attempts because it’s always ended up being a salad bar for the deer! more on that later), it’s still mostly clay.  So in order to maximize our amendments, and make some easily workable spaces for the kids, AND not run afoul of the Corp, we’re opting for the raised beds out of straw.  The pathways in between, plus a walkway around will eventually be mulched, the beds will be filled and planted  until they’re overflowing. 

And the deer?  The Camp Guy has plans for a temporary fence… but if doesn’t work, you’ll be able to find me camping out in the yard all summer to keep this project from getting eaten!

I’ll post pics as we get more things done.  In the meantime, I’m sending happy spring and garden thoughts your way!

 

Jean