Up Close and Personal: The Kitchen Garden

 Amish Snap Pea

 Amish Snap Pea

 Amish Snap Pea

Bottom to top: Elephant Garlic, Georgian Fire Garlic

Brandywine Tomato

Pingtung Long Eggplant 

Detroit Dark Red Beet

True Gold Sweet Corn

Lettuce Mix

Lettuce Mix

Wisconsin Lakes Bell Pepper

Scarlet Nantes Carrot

Earliglow Strawberry

 Imperial Star Artichoke

Borage

Grandma Einick's Dill

Jewel Nasturtium

America Spinach

Sugar Baby Watermelon

Giant Double Flowered Zinnia

Amish Butter Squash

The garden and animals are all healthy and happy.  What more could I want?

Our sweet potato slips arrived last weekend, so I think I'll be putting those in today.  We ordered 200 Beauregard slips from Johnny's.  We planted them earlier in the spring last year, and a lot of them got damaged by frost.  I think it's going to stay warm from here on out, so these guys should be just fine.

Views from the Asparagus Forest

The asparagus that we put in last year is now taller than me!  We'll get our first harvest next year.  A few weeks ago we picked one pound for ourselves and a pound for Ben's 'rents.  It was delicious.  I'm so amped for next spring.

Long days weeding and mulching asparagus don't seem quite so long when I stop and look at the view.  The mountains are gorgeous winter, spring, summer, and fall.

The Big Picture: The Kitchen Garden

 Miles Giles, Lord of the Backyard

My pink weeding bench.  I can't believe I need a weeding bench - I feel so old!

Can you see Miles?

Some day, all of these babies will bloom.  From bottom to top: Nasturtium, Borage, Fernleaf Fiddleneck, Dill, Zinnia, Sunflower

The Peppers are Planted, Bring on those Hot Summer Days

The arugula and most of the spinach has bolted.  So, out with old and in with the new.  It is now time for the peppers to take their place in the kitchen garden.

Out of the greenhouse, loaded up and ready to go.

After a lot of hard work, this bed is now full of worms.  The greens liked it just fine, and I think the peppers will too.

Forground to background: Wisconsin Lakes, Orange Bell, Ancho Gigantea, and Hot Portugal

I'm really looking forward to canning a lot of salsa and hot sauce this year.  In order for that to happen, I need my peppers to stay safe and grow strong. 

Soak up those rays, little guys.  Stretch toward the sun and let your roots sink deep.

BIG News and other Happenings

BIG News:

Fat Bear Farm was recently awarded a USDA grant to build a 30'X72' high tunnel!  Construction will begin within a month or two, and there will be some demolition beforehand.  We're taking out a treeline that's full of pines and scrub.  The treeline stands between our yard and the blueberries.  We've wanted it gone since we moved in.  We will be replacing the pines with fruit trees (mostly peaches), and we'll grow strawberries inside and outside of the high tunnel for market.  I'm thrilled to bits about this project.  It will mean a lot more work this summer, but I know it will be worth it. 

The dozer has arrived!

 These trees will soon be replaced with a beautiful orchard.

We plan on planting the strawberry crowns this fall so that we'll have a full crop next year.  That means that we'll have to take soil samples, amend the soil, plant, and mulch a huge area.   I can't wait!

Round About News: 

The chickens had their first day out in their yard.  Ben's lovely father helped us finish it up, and the ladies are lovin' it.  It took them a few hours to venture out of the house after I opened their little door.  They like chilling out in the shade under the house.  The girls made happy chicken noises and ate bugs all day.

We thought the ladies would like to roost on the old ladder when they get a little bigger.

Cuties under the coop.

The kitchen garden is almost completely planted (for now).  I've left some space for later tomatoes and corn (see sidebar for full listing), and I'll soon replace the salad and wilting greens with peppers.  When the peas are over with, I'll put in cukes.