Garden Evaluation: Herbs & Vegetables

Overall, I was late getting just about everything in this year.

Spring veggies didn't go in until May 1, and with the garden expansion still going on, the summer veggies didn't get in the ground until the end of June.

Even so, we had some success.

Let's talk about it.

 

Oregano: Even with having divided this last fall, we still harvested quite a bit. I cut them back in June again, then we dried them. This time we dried the whole stems in the dehydrator, then stripped and crumbled the leaves afterword. It was much faster that way! We ended up with a pint, which I gave to a friend, since we still have a lot from 2 years ago.

 

 

Other herbs: I planted some basil and pineapple sage in a pot. They started out strong, but were done about mid summer. Surprisingly, I couldn't find any rosemary starts to buy this year. So we were a bit sparse on herbs.

 

Peas: I did 2 packets, one each of 'Little Marvel' and 'Oregon Sugar Pod II'.
We really enjoyed these this year. The kids got many big handfuls to snack on. Every year I think--we need more peas! I wasn't super thrilled with my trellising. I need to figure out a better way to do that this year. The peas had just about pulled it down by mid-season.

Potatoes: 5 hills 'Yukon Gold', 4 hills 'Viking.' Smaller harvest than anticipated this year. Once again we had some hills that just rotted without growing at all. However, I'm going to try Monty's (yes, first name basis with my friend Monty from Gardener's World,)  potato planting method next spring and see if it makes a difference. Namely, chit the potatoes first, plant the whole potato, and space them a little further apart.

 

Spinach: 2 varieties: 'Tyee' and 'Olympia Hybrid.' We were loving the spinach this year! I need to plant it further apart so we don't have to thin as much. Or start it from seed earlier in February and plant out when it's a little bigger.  

 

Beets: 2 varieties: 'Chioggia' (red/white striped) and 'Cylindra.' We got some this year! None were very big, and I'm not sure if we just picked them too early or what. We like the Cylindra best. Chioggia looked better raw, but by the time you cooked them, it was just kind of a dirty white color. I learned how to roast them and that was my favorite way to eat them. I want to try them again next spring.

 

Carrots: Our carrots struggled! First we did a Rainbow Mix and Scarlet Nantes, which I just scattered, but hardly any germinated. So next I did a couple furrows of Danvers Half Longs. We got some here and there, but didn't ever harvest enough at one time to process or freeze.
The multi-colored ones were very sweet and good-tasting. I want to try those again. 
Next spring I'm going to do rows. I just haven't decided if they're going to be all along the front, or several short ones going front to back in one section.

 Beans: I found a tri-color bean mix, with purple, green, and yellow beans. I had two separate bean patches going, which both produced a steady yield. Enough for snacking.

 

Tomatoes: Mostly 'Oregon Spring' with some 'New Girl,' and 2 'Sungold'. We had good yields this year. I made some salsa to can, and I also had enough to do several batches of homemade tomato sauce, roasting them in the oven with onions and garlic.
Marked difference from last year--I'm crediting the compost and manure we added before planting.

Peppers: We harvested several small ones, all green. Once again I am underwhelmed by the peppers here. I didn't do any kind of plastic cover on the ground, though.

Zucchini: Our one plant up top produced for us this year. It was nice! We had enough to make some zucchini bread and some to eat, too.

 

 

Pumpkins: The kids especially enjoyed these this year. We had enough for each one to carve one for Halloween. We harvested probably 8 or 9 minis, which were brought in as decorations. Eventually, we ate the minis.  There was one variety that was particularly yummy and one that was really stringy and not very good. I don't remember which was which. Darn!  The perils of waiting to evaluate things. I think next year I will plan a meal to eat the minis soon after Halloween.

Squash: We harvested 2 butternut squash. One we just ate a few weeks ago and it was quite tasty. The other got rotten in storage before we got to it.

Cucumbers: These were a no-show this year. Died right off within a couple weeks of planting.

Watermelon: We actually harvested a few baseball size watermelons this year! They were good, but I think next year if we do melons I want to try cantaloupes instead.



Let There Be Grass...sort of

 

It is time to record the saga of the grass.

 

This is a story that starts, really, 4 years ago, when we decided to add a few features to our backyard. Namely, a shed, and a garden.

Both of these projects required very large tractors to rumble around in the backyard, along with the truck bringing up loads of supplies periodically.

To call our space a "yard" was almost a mockery.

We figured there was no need to even try to plant grass until we were done with the tractors.

We had the vacant lot vibe going on--not just weeds, but DEAD weeds.

There were ankle-twisting ridges and furrows all over the place.

On the plus side, the kids could dig holes or do whatever they wanted, because nothing they did would make it much worse than it was already.

And meanwhile, the garden and my flowerbeds were thriving.

 

So, finally towards the end of the summer, my husband completed the 3rd and final garden expansion. Done with tractors in the back!

It was time to start talking about putting in a lawn.

 

First things first--there were several areas that need levelling.

So we hired a local landscaping company to come out.

 

Dirt work.

 

At this point, we realized that we needed a sprinkler system, as well.

The thing is, we realized that we are basically incapable of keeping grass watered.

I don't know what it is.

Wait. Actually, I do know what it is.

I just don't care about grass that much.

I'll make sure my garden and flowerbeds stay watered. You bet!

But grass? Not so much.

 

So, insert another month of work here, while they put in sprinkler lines.

Bonus: they added an extra water faucet right by the garden! Score!

Also, one over by the side walls, that we can hook up to water that whole area.

Finally, in mid-September, they hydroseeded.

 

They used the "Playground Turf Mix."

60% Triumph Perennial Ryegrass

15% Argyle Kentucky Bluegrass

15% Kenblue Kentucky Bluegrass

10% Creeping Red Fescue

 

Sept. 28: a few patches of green here and there.

 Oct. 20: filling in a little...

 

...if you look sideways, at an angle.

 

We've had a typical very wet fall and early winter, which means that the grass got watered extra well.

Unfortunately, it also means that we haven't really been able to step on the lawn since September, unless it is frozen solid. Otherwise, you leave footprints 2 inches deep that promptly fill up with water. We are REALLY hoping that by spring our yard will be ready to play on!

Or even just walk across. We would take that, too.

 

At times we wish that we had just paid the money for sod.

There are a few problem spots that may need sod anyway.

For now, we'll stick it out and see how it goes in the spring.

Fingers crossed!