Yesterday I picked our second round of Tall Telephone shelling peas from the kitchen garden. Starting to my schedule for July Gardening in Coastal Maine.
The pods were nice and full and I’m looking forward to not only picking a few more later this week. However, I’m also hoping the weather holds out long enough this fall to squeeze in another harvest with the seeds I just planted.
This was our first year growing the Tall Telephone pea variety and I’ve already got it on my list for next year.
The only tricky part is trying to figure out how much space I’ll need to dedicate to these peas if I want to grow a year’s supply next summer and freeze them.
Beets! The first round I planted down in the religious family sized garden plot are taking their own sweet time. Their slow growth is probably due to the poor soil but we plan to fix that issue by adding more amendments to the religious garden in the fall.
We don’t seem to have any problems with growing them up in the kitchen garden though as the soil is much better up there.
At this rate if all goes well and the new seedlings continue to thrive, we should be harvesting beets well into October in the kitchen garden.
The parsnip seeds I planted are finally up!
And the carrots are too. I decided to wait and plant the carrots and parsnips a bit later in the season this year to be able to maximize the growing space in the kitchen garden.
I also have cabbage and broccoli seedlings started in trays and will plant those seedlings in the ground as soon as the tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers are finished producing.
Speaking of cucumbers… I think my biggest success so far in the garden this year is the enormous Boston pickling cucumber plants.
These little cucumbers have taken over an entire row!
I haven’t decided what I’m going to do with them yet. Part of me wants to harvest them when they’re super small for mini gherkins. In years past I’ve always let them grow to more of a sliced pickle size, but gherkins would be fun I think. 🙂
Yesterday’s tomato harvest.
We’re going to be swimming in them soon.
I just don’t know when!
The pepper plants are loaded too.
And we’re about a week away from the Black Beauty zucchinis.
The celery is looking good this year too.
And leeks! I haven’t grown these for about 10 years so I’m pretty excited about those too.
There is so much going on, and in such a small space! It’s pretty exciting if you ask me. 🙂
It’s hard to imagine that fall {and soon after, winter} is just around the corner. It keeps me motivated though to get out there and keep the garden beds weeded.
After all, I want to grow all the food I can this year. Partly because I love gardening, but also because I know that anything grown in our very own backyard as opposed to buying in the store, is going to taste much, much better. And hey, if it shaves a little off of what we would have normally spent at the grocery store… even better!
Keep Calm and Garden On.
~ Mavis
P.S. What are YOU harvesting this week? We want to know. 🙂
Cindy Miller says
Looking good. I may harvest a few beets and some beet greens this week.
Bonnie Baine says
black beauty and golden zucchini, summer squash, pickling cukes and several kinds of tomatoes. i have several things that i want to can that use tomatoes so i hope the 38 or so tomato plants that i planted produce for me. i think it is vital that we keep our pantries stocked with so many shortages and such that the world is experiencing now. keep on gardening and stay cool if you can.
Wendy C says
I just got through picking tomatoes. This weekend will be my salsa-making weekend so I am getting our tomatoes & peppers ready for that. I have been working on our black-eyed peas for two weeks. So far we have put up 67 quarts so I am calling it a success :). I will freeze probably four more quarts today and then I should be done with this round of peas. My hubby will mow them down this weekend and we will plant turnip greens, more peas, cabbage, and brussel sprouts in their place. Trying to stay cool, the high today will be 94 and very high humidity.
Jamie says
We are harvesting shishito, jalapeño, and bell peppers, royal burgundy beans, our first round of carrots (and carrot tops!), red amaranth leaves, lots of herbs, and oakleaf lettuce right now. The tomatoes are soooo close, and I think we are a few days away from the first ones turning turning red.
Dee Patterson says
Strawberries, gooseberries, plums, blackberries, black currents, mulberries, courgettes, potatoes, carrots, German turnips , tomatoes and cress.
Your garden looks really good.
I started using our local dog groomers fur for the trees to help improve our soil, and retain water seems to help , especially the plums.
Devon, England.
Karen says
Human hair is said to keep deer away! Collect it after you give the family a haircut then put it in the garden.
Donna Knight says
We are getting tomatoes, cucumbers, squash almost every day.
Susan H. says
I have picked hot and sweet banana peppers, the world’s smallest radishes, orange and red cherry tomatoes, lettuce, mustard greens, onions, potatoes (raised in pots!), burgundy beans, peas, a cucumber. It sounds like a lot but the vegs are planted in flower pots tucked among my flowers so it is only a handful here and there. The ladies love all the herbs I bring them. Oh to have a garden plot and the strength to garden!!
mary l says
Sugar snap peas – and lots of them. Nothing else ready.
Gina says
I planted in metal raised beds this year and tried my best to give them some STYLE! 🙂 I find that I always want to wander out there, weeding and eagle-eying things when it feels healthy and organized.
My raised beds are filled with: LOTS of cherry tomatoes (egg yolk/yellow; blueberry/purple blushed, and red) (I started all of my own seeds using wintersowing and am not sure how I got nearly all cherry tomatoes, but has happened. My husband smirks every time he sees that out of the 20+ plants I have growing, only maybe two are big tomatoes and those are orange. I love them all though. They are my babies!
Also growing swiss chard which is huge and I don’t know what to do with it or how to eat it; a huge pile of volunteer Trail of Tears black beans (I added a large tomato cage and they have completely outgrown it and taken over the nearest arbor); pole green beans were planted intentionally on the arbor (I’m just watching for the purple blushed trail of tears pods to even be able to tell the difference in the two kinds of beans now growing like bean stalks on the arbor); onions (grown from dividing the hearts from onions that had growth in my pantry); jalapeno peppers;
My watermelon, squash and pumpkins have nearly all died from vine borers. I have one left; a Rugosa butternut squash. Fingers crossed!
I had a nice amount of bush green beans planted in front of a row of tomatoes and a ground hog has eaten them, leaving green sticks for the bean bushes. It has eaten half the leaves off my already harvested broccoli plants and has decimated a sweet potato vine overwintered in a pot with a tropical plant. We saw the little booger peeking his head out of a pot of beets/cucumbers like he was invited to a salad bar! Ugh. (I read garlic is a deterrent so maybe will plant a garlic border around my beds next year???)
I have some beautiful sunflowers, zinnias, and cleomes growing here and there. So beautiful!
In spite of the wild and wooliness of my garden beds (that just means everything is healthy and lush, right?) and the groundhog adventures, I still love every minute of it. It challenges me to dream up better solutions next year and hopefully I will harvest a heck of a pile of cherry tomatoes soon!
Angie says
We are harvesting yellow squash, zucchini, some tomatoes, jalapeños, green bell peppers, and basil.
This is our first year planting this garden and the dirt needs definite help. We have added organic plant food and 10-10-10 along with organic composted top soil and worm castings but it needs more. I am trying to feed the space really well in the hope that we will get a decent harvest but time will tell. Our green beans are just starting to come in and we will be adding nutrients before we plant for the fall. I plan on adding lots of veggies that set nitrogen in the soil too such as field peas.
Funny that you mention cucumbers. We have never had as many cucumbers as we are getting this year. We are harvesting 6-8 every other day. Canning lots of pickles and relish over here.
Happy gardening!
Gigi says
Weeds. And some zucchini, hot peppers and almost tomatoes. The garden was last checked on/weeded two weeks ago. Weeds are 4’ high and it’s all mixed in with the veggies. I’ll know more after weeding lol.
Patti says
Lol! I’m in the same boat. I got hooked on finding out ( picture this app) what the wild things coming up in my garden are and if they can be harvested and used in some way, like chickweed, purslane, wild lettuce, and amaranth. Now I’m afraid to pull anything up because it could be something helpful.
LindaT says
Purslane is supposed to be not only edible but full of all kinds of good things. Vitamin wise. They say it tastes like spinach. I’m going to find out soon. I have much of it in my garden.
Jules says
It’s berry season here…blueberries, marionberries, Logan berries, and raspberries. Our peas and lettuce are done, and I’m waiting for everything else
Mary says
I am in Oregon. I harvested the remainder of my snap peas planted in February. Still picking my first round of lettuce that is starting to bolt with the heat and my second round is looking good. I am about a week away from zucchini and green beans. I only have green tomatoes so far. We had an unusual cold snap in late May right after I planted and everything just stood still so lots of stuff coming soon but not as much as usual for this time. Several things I have had good luck with other years are not doing well (like my pickling cukes). I have had several plantings of radishes and have picked all my kale, chard and leeks I planted last August. It’s been a bit unusual.
I have nine 4 and 5 year old blueberry bushes and am getting about six cups a day. Yum.
Mimi says
Love the garden pics!
We’re swimming in blueberries, harvesting beets, carrots and potatoes and still have plenty of salad greens although with hot weather coming that’s probably not going to last. Zucchini, tomatoes, bell peppers and green beans should be ready soon.
Elizabeth Todd says
I would love it if you did a post comparing the results from your lasagna garden with your regular garden. Did the effort and work pay off with better produce? I’m living vicariously through your gardening posts. Here in Austin, TX our garden has completely died. A combination of insane heat and drought (we are restricted to watering once a week) served to quickly kill everything I planted. Oh well, there is always next year!
Mary Kerns says
Here in the puget sound I have finished harvesting the tall telephone and bush peas and I will replant after next weeks 90+ weather is over. Also getting broccoli and lettuce as well as raspberries and strawberries. Everything else is way behind. I could pull potatoes and onions but I will wait awhile.
Heather K says
Cukes, summer squash, zucchini, a couple of grape tomatoes, and enough green beans for our meal tonight here in Western Illinois.
Our blueberries are just finishing up. We have been eating the berries with our morning yogurt daily. I also made a batch of jam, shortcakes, and a kuchen. The rest went in the freezer to enjoy later.
We too have to watch out for the groundhogs! Caught one on top of my neighbor’s back fence “pruning” her lilacs last night!
Last year the raccoons harvested all my peaches before me!! I am ready this year – will update if my plan works. We have used electric fencing in the past but as the neighbor kiddos & doggos love to come visit – we are cautious to implement this route again.
Currently battling the Japanese beetles. Have picked off tons & filled several bottles.
Love my “hot mess”garden & the therapy it provides (food too)!!!!.
Mavis Butterfield says
I hope you get peaches this year!!! I need to plant some peach trees next spring.
Teri says
I never would have guessed you could grow so much in Maine! Just so lovely! How often do you have to water and are you hauling it out to the religious plot or what? You are an inspiration!
Mavis Butterfield says
The soil is really good up in the kitchen garden so I’ve been watering about once a week {with a sprinkler} for about 10 minutes. And while we do have a hose down by the religious garden and the soil isn’t as good, I’ve watered about 8- 10 times down there so far this summer.
KC says
I’d vote for doing a batch of little bitty pickles and then doing a batch of bigger slices or spears later on, personally, if they’re producing well.
The way I grew up with pickles was to fill the jar most of the way with <1"-diameter cukes (after the garlic cloves and dill umbel were in the bottom), then to put a few little pinky-sized cucumbers on top as a treat for when the bottle was opened. Can't get better than those itty-bitty ones… but on the other hand, if you harvest them all at teeny size, you may not have enough total pickles. So! A mix?