Crop Report

So I was out in the garden, turning the compost (don't ask) and gathering the last of the raspberries (raspberries give a "second sitting" of crop ... so now these fresh ones will be added to the earlier batch that are sitting in the freezer, and I can get going on the jam!) anyway I turned my attention to the potatoes, some of which needed hilling up ... and then, I spotted this:



Note: this is not a tomato.  This bunch of fruit is actually growing from a potato plant.  For comparison purposes, here is a tomato plant:



See the completely different leaf shape?  

So the question remains ... what exactly is growing in the potato patch?  There were no tomatoes planted there.  The soil was thoroughly tilled before the potatoes were planted.  The plant this fruit is growing from has potato leaves, not tomato leaves.  So what is it?  A pomato?  Watch this space.

Anyway, the garden is coming up like crazy, despite the extremely hot and dry summer.  We've got pole beans:



We've got peas and carrots:



And as you've no doubt gathered, we've got tomatoes:



And the corn is as high as ... well, maybe not an elephant's eye, but it's as high as my eye, and that's good enough for me:



Oh, and finally, anyone for squash? 



No, seriously ... someone come and take this squash away.  Please!

This week we're finally getting some rain.  It's sorely needed for the creeks are bone dry.  The apples and grapes seem to be growing regardless, but I'm sure they could do with a drink.  Speaking of fruit: I was walking past the old pear tree this afternoon and it's actually put out a few pears!  Just four ... so I picked them all.  Here's the evidence:



Not in the greatest of shape, but I'm sure I can make something out of them.  Hmmm ... pear and raspberry jam ... ?

In the meantime, if anyone has any clues about that mutant potato/tomato plant ... let me know!  

EDIT: The mystery fruit turns out to be the fruit of the potato plant ... yes, it actually bears fruit from time to time ... you can save the seeds and propagate your own potato variety!  Who knew!  :)

A Time to Sow

Hey everyone, sorry I haven't posted in a while, but we've been really busy lately. June started off cold and wet, but has now turned over sunny and warm. We had a couple of late frosts (one the morning after I'd planted out the cucumber seedlings!) which messed up my gardening plan somewhat, but I think that danger is past now. So I'm busy planting seed potatoes, with Molly's "help": I plant the potato, she digs it up and eats it. (:

We picked up a load of lumber for building projects, and Paul laid the gravel down for the base of the shower cabin.  We may find another use for this, but for now, that's the plan.  Watch this space!



We also had a load of firewood delivered, which is now stacked outside the back door where it will season in time for winter.

It's been a busy June so far!  I held my first Reiki class, which went very well, and we're getting enquiries for both sides of our business: the retreat/Reiki/meditation side and the survival school side.  Right now though, I'm trying to get the vegetable garden planted, and hoping for rain ... !

If May was yellow (with an occasional splash of red tulip), then June is shades of blue, purple and mauve. We've passed from the gentle haze of blue forget-me-knots and precocious indigo of johnny jumpups, to the exuberant lilac in full bloom, the deep purple lupins that line the roadside, and my favourite, the wild meadow columbine. Don't forget the blue starflower or borage, which is rampant all over the garden, and the secretive blushing ladyslipper hiding in the woods.

Before I wax too poetic, back to work! We've planted garlic, onions (red, white and yellow), spinach, swiss chard, sage, thyme and leeks in one bed. I'm trying companion planting, which basically means planting stuff which is friends with other stuff. So for example, garlic planted around the base of a peach tree will keep borers at bay.

Which reminds me! We went and picked up our fruit trees from the local nursery: 1 peach, 2 plum and a pear. We planted them, and they're doing great so far! And just today I noticed we have tiny little pear buds on our old pear tree, the one that lost a limb in a storm. So pear jelly come Fall ... :)

I'm nursing some seedlings in the potting room, much to the disgust of our cat, who lives in there. Tomatoes, peppers, sweet basil and thyme are all coming up well, plus I've planted another batch of cucumber seeds to replace those that were killed by the late frost. In the garden, I have pole beans coming up like crazy, and I just planted peas and carrots. Fingers crossed!

But enough talk from me! I know what you really want are pictures, so here are a few I took this week:




Columbine grows quite happily next to the tea rose.



Chives in bloom!



A crowd of buttercups, cheering on the sun.



Speckled trout, basking in the pond.



Misty blue forget-me-nots.



I walked out onto the deck and there was a garter snake!  Yikes!



And a tiny green frog was investigating the vegetable bed.  My fingers show the scale.



Irises are in bloom.  Love these.



In the woods, the Ladyslippers are a hidden treasure.



And of course, a post wouldn't be complete without Molly.  Here she is, taking a break under a shady tree.

Yellow Time

It's Yellow Time at Willow Retreat.  Yellow is the first colour that shows up to let you know Spring is really here to stay. 



The garden is currently lush with daffodils and narcissus, and the forsythia is in bloom.  As well, we have masses of pear blossoms!  Funny thing about pears: they need another pear tree close by in order to fertilize, and they bear fruit in alternate years.  The other pear tree was split in two by a storm, and we had to cut half of it down, but it's still alive and has leaf buds.  I'm hoping that its pair (pardon the pun) will give us lots of lovely fruit this year!



The pear tree, holding its own rather well against that precocious forsythia.



A carpet of daffodils.



A golden sundown at Willow Retreat.

I was lucky enough to get some free horse manure for the vegetable beds.  If you can, get your hands on some, it's absolutely the best for the garden.  Make sure you get well-rotted manure though - if you put fresh horse manure on your garden, you'll burn the veggies!  And for those of you holding your nose and going "Ewwww ...", well-rotted manure doesn't smell at all.  It's like lovely crumbly compost.  Just spread it as evenly as you can over the soil with a garden fork, and then dig it in.  All you need then is a bit of rain, and you've got a wonderful bed for your veggie seedlings.  This is what they mean when they say "enriched with organic matter."  Yum!



You can never get enough daffodils, really.



And of course, you can`t have a Yellow theme without a Golden Retriever.  :D

Next time I go to the stables for manure, I`ll remember to bring my camera, and take some pictures of the horses.  Until then, you`ll just have to make do with Molly.



That faaaaace.

My next set of pictures should show leaves on the trees ... there`s certainly been enough rain lately!

Enjoy your May, wherever you are.

Crop Report

Hey everyone, I thought it was high time I wrote an update on all the various things we have growing.  First off, the potatoes!  I thought I was going to harvest them today, but it turns out, on further research, they need to be left a while longer in the ground.  I did hike up a few  for dinner though, and here they are:



Looking good!  But apparently I have to wait until the vines have completely wilted away, which is normally around the time of the first frost.  The reason for this is because right now, although the potatoes are fine to eat, their skins are still too thin to be effectively stored.  So I have to have patience and wait for their skins to thicken up.



This is how the potato patch looks right now.  I have to sit on my garden fork for a few more weeks!

Luckily, there's a lot more to be harvested at the moment, more than enough to keep me busy.  I've already made blackcurrant jam, blackberry jelly, and redcurrant and blueberry jam.  There are still tons of blackberries ripening, so today I bought some more mason jars.

The other crop that is definitely ready to harvest are the apples.  I'm starting with the wild apples because they're already falling off the tree.



Plenty more where these came from!  Once I have a couple of boxes full, I'll make apple jelly and apple butter.

In the meantime, our other trees are loaded with eating apples, which will be ready to pick very soon.  I have to beat the moose to them this year!



The other thing I have to beat the moose to is the grapes.  I checked out the vine today and noticed that something has already started to nibble a few bunches.  I think I'm going to have a few dozen jars of grape jelly for the Farmer's Market ...



I'm no grape expert, but I'm wondering if these are Concord grapes?  They're green, quite small, round and firm.  They taste a little tart, but good.  I'm open to advice, as well as recipes!  We don't have our winemaking equipment here yet, but next year ... !

As you may remember, I'm trying to grow tomatoes in a pot, as well as herbs from seed in the garden.  I've had some success with the herbs, and the tomato plant is growing slowly.



Note: I've never done this before.  Does it show?



A nice crop of parsley.



Sage is doing well.



Thyme seems to need little attention to grow profusely.

My rosemary didn't germinate, but no matter - I discovered that rosemary is already growing in another part of the garden, along with oregano, golden oregano, and chives!



Flowering oregano, covered in ecstatic bees.



Golden oregano. According to my son (who is a culinary arts student) this is a euphemism among his classmates for another kind of - ahem - "herb" entirely ...



Chives.

Now, I need your help with this one.  Anyone have any idea what this plant is?  It's growing in the herb garden, and smells like onions.



Mystery Plant ... ??

Last but not least, our pumpkins are doing great!  We planted them from seed, straight into the garden, and very late.  Behold:



We have seven plants, each of which has three or four pumpkins growing.



A bee on a pumpkin flower.  It's very important to have a healthy bee population in your garden, as they are the little workers that pollinate your crops.   No bees, no crops!



I don't know how long pumpkins take to grow, but I'm hoping by Halloween these guys will be a decent size!

Now if you'll excuse me, I have some freshly-dug potatoes to cook!