upon learning to grow my own food, i’ve found as time goes on, that it gets even more exciting. particularly if you try to adhere more-or-less to the locavore way of eating. no, i’m not trying to say i don’t indulge in the succulence of a texan grapefruit in the winter, or a wayward avocado even. i mean, hell, it’s not like i can eventually grow them myself up here in new england. but life takes a wonderful turn when one really starts to think consciously about what they consume. the seasonal joy that comes when the first buds bloom, and the first signs of green pop in the vegetable garden is palpable. i love home preserves as much – or more – than the next cat to be sure, but there’s nothing like homegrown produce straight from the garden or neighboring farmer’s garden if you don’t have one yourself.
although we’ve had some wacky heatwave like temperatures recently, the end of may and first days of june have been the typical cool, wet weather familiar in the late days of spring here in the berkshires of MA. the vegetable garden is nowhere near the horn of plenty it will be a month from now. still, there’s some early blooming show stoppers.
like these neon orbs of lettuce. not for nothing, but if i happened to come upon a gang of whirling dervishes at a rave party, this would be them.
the kohlrabi are taunting me. peeps, you cannot guess how much i love kohlrabi. i will eat them big, i will eat them small, but mostly i will eat them all!
the hardy perennial herbs are raging too; bronze fennel, chives, mint, horseradish, lovage, sage, chervil, and this rather robust oregano.
the pea greens are finally floppy, trellises ready. the greens in between will be snipped for stir-frys, the others tied up and left to grow. english garden peas coming soon, in june! there’s spring onions behind the whirling neon lettuce orbs – the larger allium bed is outside of the fence. in the back corner is broccoli, kale and future kraut.
and then there’s these mischievous little buggers. truth be told, i’ve not made tea with them once. they’re back every year multiplied by the 100′s I think. most dewy mornings their petals are flat and spread wide, all sun-shiny and bright looking they are. by dusk they look ornery. definitely up to no good. i love them.
what things are you (or your neighboring farmer) growing to eat?
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Those have got to be the most orderly garden beds I’ve ever seen! They look gorgeous, and I’m sure you’re right: a month from now they’ll be overflowing like nobody’s business.
I’m not sure I’m growing anything this year, other than my big pot o’ herbs, which survived overwintering in my dry & not-so-sunny house, and which I stuck outdoors on a warm & sunny weekend in March, then promptly forgot about. For 2 months. And a few frost warnings. But now? It’s gorgeously overflowing. I think I might quit while I’m ahead!
that sounds good kaela. if i could only grow one thing it would be herbs for sure. and yes, i shout at my vegetables and make them stand at attention.
I am growing so many different things that I don’t think I could mention them all here. Some new things we are trying are Amaranth and Quinoa and that will be interesting to see how they do.
I use chamomile tea mixed with a zinc oxide cream to relieve insect bites. Better than using anti-cortisone anyway. Here in Latvia, a strong chamomile tea is used for many skin complaints and itchy eyes.
that is very cool to know about chamomile – there are plenty of insect bites to be had here in the berkshires all summer. very cool to hear about what you are growing in latvia!
Beautiful garden. I am an avid but not always timely gardener. I never quite get the timing right to get the early spring lettuce in and I never am quite sure when to replant for a fall crop. And I know nothing about growing onions or garlic. If you ever want to do a how to post I pick that. This year we threw in some plant-lings to get the “oooh look something is growing” feel as early as possible. It worked – I wonder the garden mumbling happy incantations as I go. Most of our peas are done or will be soon. They are grown strictly for the pleasure of our six year old. She eats them raw only. If you want your child to eat peas stick a fresh picked raw pea in their mouth – they will think mother nature started growing candy. I look forward to your updates.
yes, of course, who can resist fresh peas? i think maybe mine got in a bit too late this year. but as you say, the happy thing is just to be growing things, not so much of getting it ‘right.’
Your garden is simply spectacular. I’m so envious. Because of deer and poor landscaping, my garden is in containers on our deck: sweet peppers, beans, cucumbers, tomatoes, chiles, Italian onions, fennel, black eyed peas, squash and herbs. This is our first year trying some of these things in containers and I can’t wait to see how it all works out.
would love to hear more on how your container gardening works. i too have deer troubles, they are chomping on the adolescent sweet cherry trees, and i have beans and corn outside the fence that i fear are vulnerable. also have some flooding problems. i only showed you the good part!
Your garden looks beautiful! I’m envious! I only have a few potted plants on my apartment balcony, but I want so much to grow my own fruits and veggies. And this is inspiration for the day when I do have my own backyard! Plus I love your recipes for canning and jamming. Great stuff!
thank you ashley! balcony growing is better than no growing at all!
It’s all about the beneficial insects right now–letting parsley, cilantro, and even Brassicas bloom brings them in droves. And maybe those good bugs will ensure I get a good squash and cuke harvest. I’m ripping out the peas, favas, and blooming turnips and radishes this week (letting a few of those plus spinach go to seed), giving away lettuce like crazy before it bolts.
Though I can’t take the cold, I have a slight envy for northern gardeners, as it’s such a challenge for me to time cool weather crops in spring and fall. The non-winter helped this year with some things, but I’ve yet to be successful with broccoli or cauliflower.
I know all too well what a tremendous amount of work went into creating a garden that attractive–kudos!
thank you val. i do have a garden goddess that helps me. we did it ourselves for 5 years and it is a TON of work as i am sure you well know. i work more than full-time and since we grow pretty much all of our food, having someone help is a huge blessing. so i cannot take all the credit for those orderly rows!
That makes me feel better–I was beginning to think you were superwom-, er, tigress, ha! I have difficulty making the time to preserve/make bread/make cheese, on top of the rest.
I limit my small non garden space to half wine barrels with many herbs. They love the Pacific coastal climate. By the way Chamomile has saved me upset tummies many times while traveling through Mexico! Just look for the teabags with those same cute flowers on them.
half wine barrels with herbs sound gorgeous pat!
I’m very excited! Our Kirby cucumber plants are growing like crazy. This year I made a simple wood frame with wide wire spaced wire fencing for the little guys to climb up and it saves so mug space in the garden. Also lotsa roma tomatoes and one dark brown heirloom variety that tastes so sweet. Also peppers (bell and Thai chile), carrots and potatoes. So far everything is gettin busy growing big
where are you writing from? i’m don’t even have my tomatoes, chiles or cukes in the ground yet!
Your garden so pretty. I still haven’t figured out how to make my garden look anything other than functional, but maybe next year! This year I’m trying out a few new plants like eggplant, cinderella pumpkins and kobacha squash. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that they grow in our cool bay area climate.
i try eggplants every year but don’t have much luck, but i keep trying. it’s always fun to try new things each year, you never know when you’ll find something that you love to eat and that is perfect for your clime. good luck!
What a beautiful veggie garden! I love how the bright green heads of lettuce look–always so cheery.
I’m growing the usual suspects this year and a couple oddities for me: agretti and tromboncino squash. Always love trying something new!
ooh. i haven’t heard of either of those. this year, in terms of winter squash i am only growing acorn and butternut, i’ve found both varieties that claim to be a bush like plant. i don’t have much room for wandering squash vines this year because i’m trying some corn too. although i’ve found deer tracks around my corn and bean seedlings so i am getting worried!
Your garden is gorgeous! I love growing my own food, and seeing those first wisps of green coming through the earth is pretty awesome. Your lettuce is lovely!
thanks you!
Last year, 17 plants of lacinato kale just about swamped us. The year before, butternut squash – I would up with 75 squash by the end of the fall. I am hoping this year is the year of the brussels sprout. I am not so good a planting just a few plants of a lot of different things, but need to work on that. I was wondering why you don’t mulch around your plants, when the walkways are so well laid down with straw?
gardening is definitely a learning process. each year i try to hone in what we eat – and what i can save for later realistically. so i hear you on the learning how to grow whats right for you and yours.
in terms of the mulch, i used to do it on the beds but because the berkshire summers can be quite damp it can hold too much moisture and therefore make a great environment for funghi or blight, not good.