Summer is in full swing here at the farm and so that means we are beginning a steady flow of garden produce harvested every few days. Sometimes I like the stagger and flow. At other times I would prefer things to come heavy, all at once, and then pause for a bit…

The potatoes are really dying off now and we should be able to harvest them in the next little bit. This year was three rows (30 ft each) of German Butterball.

The carrots should be ripe for picking within the next 2 weeks. I am looking forward to seeing how they yield. This was our 3rd planting. The first two never germinated. I chose Danver’s Half Long this go-round.

We have preserved and eaten lots of zucchini. I froze. I baked. I hope to dehydrate more.

The onions and garlic were harvested the end of last week. I didn’t want to braid anything this year. I just cut the tops off and laid them out to cure on a screen window. Not the biggest harvest, but it should be enough for now.

We have been picking and preserving green beans. So far, I have put up 24 pints. Last years’ yield was nice, but as it was bush beans, we didn’t grow as many as I’d hoped. A friend of my in laws welcomed us to come and pick theirs and we frenched those and canned many pints. We still have about 6 French style pints on the shelf. They make for good green bean casserole. But, I need to make some fresh green beans and new potatoes soon.

The tomatoes and peppers are growing fine. No red tomatoes yet, but the green ones are coming on strong. I picked 3 banana peppers and took them down to my sisters’ in St. Louis this past weekend. I don’t particularly care for them unless they are pickled, but I love them that way!

Cucumbers are doing so much better than in years past. Growing them alongside nasturtiums seems to be the way to go. We’ve eaten 5 so far. I have one a bit larger yet to eat and hoping to some smaller ones to pickle whole. I made two jars of sliced chips into refrigerator dill pickles. They are good! This style will only last about a month so they’ll be on the table every day.

The brassicas I planted are still growing. The red cabbage has had something making holes in its’ leaves. The cauliflower is a bit stunted. But I am hoping for good yields from both! I plan to purchase some Bt organic spray for these big leafy greens.

The flowers are lovely. My zinnias are attracting hummingbirds! That’s very fun to watch. The dwarf sunflower variety I planted looks ready to blossom any day now.

We have already harvested quite a bit of basil for drying. I am hoping to use it for my herbal medicine cabinet this fall/winter. I was able to give some away at church and my friend made pesto for the freezer! I am finding the more I pick it and prune it, the more it produces.

The carrots we planted in place of the shell peas did not come up. The butternut squash seems to get growing fine. The boys mulched it this weekend. And, the watermelon did not germinate either. Darn! But, oh well. Maybe next year! I bought 14 broccoli starts and planted in place of the carrots. They are also mulched with straw. Going to spray Bt on those as well when they are large enough.

I made some jam and jelly this week with our orchard fruit! More on that to come.

How is your garden? Have you visited the farmer’s markets? Any fun new recipes to try?

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