Deep sigh of contentment

[Ldychef2k]

The purples won't be harvested for another month or so. I am really looking forward to seeing what has happened. One of the barrels is only half full. The plant just didn't grow tall. I am wondering if all its energy went to tubers and not leaves. Well, I can dream.

 

[kcsunshine]

I think Tankshill was talking about your turnips. Those look great. We grow and sell tons of turnips and greens in the fall. I don't really like to eat turnips but my husband will peel them in the garden and eat them raw. We have a couple of friends who walk through the farmers' market and stop to sample a raw turnip with him.

 

[framing fowl]

Ldychef, looks great! I'm so glad you're having fun rather than getting overwhelmed

 

[Dace]

this is my first year doing a major garden on my own. it's not started off so well- i only got my seed orders sent in 2 weeks ago and all of them haven't come in yet. i've started a few things in the house, but i can't even begin direct planting until Monday (if it stops raining by then). i'm WAY behind the regular schedule.

i started to get down about it, ready to concede defeat before i even gave it a shot. then i realized that it isn't about getting it perfect, especially not this year. if ANYTHING manages to come up this year i will be happy. just to know that i tried gives me a great sense of pride. it will be whatever it will be and that will be enough for me!

glad to see you are having some success! here's to a good year for all of us.

There is definitely a learning curve! Most lessons are learned (as always) by failure.

So every time something flops, just realize that you now know one way NOT to do it.

Gardening is wonderful, just be patient with the learning part

 

[Ldychef2k]

Turnips. Good grief. Sorry !

The onions I am using out of the buckets when I cook, and they are great. The garlic is close to being ready; a coupld of sets of leaves are dying back. One more set and I will pull one and check it.

I also have carrots, the "ferns" are about 6" high now. My tomatoes are about that high as well. Peas are already blooming, but they are so short, less than a foot, I am not sure what to think !

The slowest things are the peppers. They just are not growing at all. None of them, whether in containers or in the ground, are above two inches high, most of them half that. We are having 80 degree days, so it's a frustration.

The tomatillos, some are full and nice, most are sticks with a couple of leaves and a flower on the end.

I planted early watermelon last week.

 

[Dace]

Peppers can be slow to start....once the night time temps rise a bit they will take off.

Your garden is going to look like this before you know it....

The Dervaes

 

[FarmerDenise]

I know the wonderful feeling of harvesting and eating you own food grown by yourself. It is priceless.
Wherever I have lived, I have always tried to grow at least some of my own food. People often thought it was a waste of time, but after a while my friends realized that that was who I am. Eventually many of them came around to my way of thinking and asked me to help them put in a garden of their own.
So ignore the nay-sayers and enjoy the fruits of your labor.

 

[dragonlaurel]

You're garden is off to a great start ! .
If your potatoes get too wet, Modern Pioneers showed a step -by-step how to make easy potato baskets them in his journal. He gets loads of them and it was easily scrounged materials.


" Peas are already blooming, but they are so short, less than a foot, I am not sure what to think ! "

Some peas only get about about that tall. I think pea blossoms are so pretty.

 

[noobiechickenlady]

Great job, Kris!!

Your potato bucket results are making me want to dump one of mine & see what's going on with mine. I only have a few though, so maybe I can wait. One came back from last year. We must have missed a few tubers when we dumped the bucket & put the soil back in.
I was thinking of adding a tomato cage or ring of welded wire to the buckets & fill that up with soil, spoiled hay, sawdust & compost. Give them that much more room to grow up & form taters.

 

[Ldychef2k]

Noob, that would be so fun to fill up with taters !!! I was just thrilled to dump those buckets and have good results. Just can't hardly wait for the real harvest !!!

Dragon- I think these are the same peas I planted last fall, which got fou feet high. May be wrong, but in any case there are not a lot of flowers. I have a PVC trellis, but hardly reach it ! Oh well. We shall see what happens. I think that ought to be a newbie gardener's motto !

FD: I think you are right about others just having to accept that this is who we are. Your comment made me think about my niece, who is trying again with her gardening. She might make it this time, too !

Dace: I WISH ! No, it will just be me and my turnips for now. Carrots are coming along, though. I should have thinned them more vigorously.