How does your garden grow?
By earthsong
@earthsong (589)
United States
March 8, 2009 9:30am CST
I'm starting to plan my Spring planting and wonder if anyone else is as weird as me about what they plant and when, the time of day they plant. What will you be planting? Do you can your veggies, or put up your hard earned windfall?
I am putting in okra, corn, tomatoes, zucchini, bush beans, bell peppers, cucumbers and pumpkins. I also have plans for a raised herb bed with basil, mint, chocolate mint, tarragon, marjoram and whatever else finds its way in there.
I make pickles out of the okra, freeze my corn and zucchini and can my tomatoes and beans.
What do you plant and what do you do with it?
1 response
@jsitko (1169)
• United States
9 Mar 09
Hi Earthsong, I see I am not the only one already getting prepared for the Spring planting. I was out in our gardens this past weekend cleaning them out and getting them ready for the planting. My husband and I have already drawn a "map" of where the veggies are going to go. We rotate their locations every year to promote better soil and better growth. As usual we will be growing: 4 types of tomatoes, 2 types cucumbers, zucchini,yellow squash,pumpkins, carrots,radish,leaf lettuce,red and green cabbage, brussel sprouts,broccoli, cauliflower, corn, green beans, snow peas, green and red sweet peppers, cantelope, watermelon, yukon gold potatoes, nor'land red and pontiac red potatoes, sweet potatoes, mint, basil, dill and garlic. I believe that is all that is on the list. This is what we have been planting for the last 2 years, prior to that is was just the basic salad stuff.
It is very addicting to have a garden. There is nothing better than going out into your own yard and pick tonight's dinner veggies. I do not can yet, may will this year. I do a lot of blanching and freezing though. I ran out of last years veggies about 2 weeks ago,they lasted pretty long but to make it from season to season, I will have to blanch and freeze more this year.
@earthsong (589)
• United States
9 Mar 09
I ran out of my frozen okra a few months back, and I still have a few packages of shredded zucchini and sun dried tomatoes. You must have one huge garden! I'd do a larger one, but between work and school I can hardly find the time to take care of what I do have. I do grow leaf lettuce. I love the buttercrisp variety. I can't seem to do well with garlic or onions, but I do plant yellow squash as well as my zucchini. I taught myself to can about 12 years ago. A friend gave me tons of tomatoes and I didn't want them to go to waste. This year I will be canning marinara and spaghetti sauce, as well as tomatoes and beans. Its very satisfying to know those foods I planted and took care of through the spring and summer have helped feed my family through the winter. Do you keep your own seeds? Or do you buy them new every year?
@jsitko (1169)
• United States
9 Mar 09
I am hoping to have the time to do canning this year, I need to learn how to do that and was told it is not too hard. My sister does this every year. I want to make my own spaghetti sauce too and I like tomato juice too. It does save a lot of money growing your own vegetables and it is a fun and relaxing thing to do every day. When my husband and I get home from work every night, we go out to the garden and pick what we can, trim the sucker branches. On the weekends we take care of the weeds if there are any.
We usually save our seeds from what we grow. We do buy our cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussel sprout and lettuce plants at the Amish stand in the farmer's market. They have great quality and we always get an abundance for veggies. I also like supporting the local farmers too. The rest we grow by seed we dry and save.
Do you compost for your garden? We do that too. It helps the soil and the growth.