Vegetable Gardening and Me (#17)

My gardening season is winding down. I have a few decisions to make in the upcoming weeks that affect this year and next. In addition, more harvests and lost causes.

As I mentioned in my first post on gardening, I am not an expert gardener, and I have made plenty of mistakes, but my adventures may help others have more fun and success. 

Also, I now have a page dedicated to gardening, that will contain all past and future posts, as well as resources I have found useful.

In my hardiness zone, mid to late august is about the time to plant cool weather vegetables. For me, that would be lettuce and broccoli, both of which I failed at growing last year (the rabbits ate them), and this year (I did not have any seeds in the spring). I just have to decide if I want to make the effort. It would be a good learning experience. By the end of the week, I will make a decision and let you know.

I did yank the two remaining Brussels sprout plants: the were being crowded out by my uncontrollable bean plants. I really should have controlled those beans with a trellis. Unfortunately, I have yet to see any production out of them, except for a half dozen pale ones. Also, I removed an eggplant that had not produced anything more than two fruits. However, three other ones remain: they have flowers and buds, so I want to see what happens. Finally, I pulled all but one of the summer squash plants. The others were diseased, and I had collected more than a enough from them this year: I have several quart-sized storage bags filled with frozen slices and chunks.

My first harvest of cucumbers have finally been processed into pickles: dill flavored, and a bread and butter flavor. I have enjoyed both, but love the latter more. I am so glad my attempt at growing dill worked: I used it for the recipe. I was able to make four jars of each. Even better, my garden has begun to provide more cucumbers, hopefully for another batch of the two flavors. There are many flowers on my cucumber plants, but I am worried that they may die before they produce enough fruit. 

I know I will not be the only person disappointed if they perish.

The peppers have piled up, and I need to take time to process them for the freezer. The tomatoes, too, cry out for attention. Hopefully I will have time tomorrow to address it.

The corn is done. There are several ears, but they are not full, and the plants themselves are browning. Oh well. I did get something out of it. I will try again next year, with a little more wisdom. 

Finally, this time of the year is perfect for planting lettuce and broccoli for a late fall harvest. However, my garden has become overgrown with tall weeds. If I make the effort, and clear out space, I should be able to plant in time to see stuff before the first frost. 

We shall see.