My Mom’s Garden
I’ve talked about how I share a large potager garden with my mom. She lives an hour away and each week I head over both for work and to work in the garden (and to chat with my mom). We usually spend a few hours weeding, planting, watering and tending the large garden we share. While I was gone on vacation, my garden at home grew up in weeds, but my mom kept on gardening without me so our garden is still looking very good. This year we added a nice gate, last year it was just a piece of fencing with a wire to keep it closed. Since we added a nice gate, we thought an arch of morning glories would be nice at the entrance. It’s just filling in and starting to bloom.
The tomatoes are coming on in full force. I harvested about a bushel of tomatoes last Saturday and another half bushel earlier this week.
The popcorn is doing well, it will be harvested in about a month when it dries out. I don’t know if the sweet corn will produce or not, we planted it late trying to time it so it wouldn’t come ripe while we were on vacation.
Our fall peas are doing well, the carrots look to be sizing up nicely and our kale it doing very well.
My mom and I were discussing this year’s garden and we said we felt bad for anyone who was growing an edible garden for the first time this year. It’s been a rough year here in NE Ohio. The spring was really wet and the peas did not like that. Then it got really hot fairly early, which the broccoli, cabbage, and other brassicas did not like. Our beet crop was washed away by rain and hail 3 different times after planting. At least it looks to be shaping up well for the fall garden.
How has your gardening year been so for? Any troubles with specific crops? What part of the country/world do you live in?
Filed under Miscellaneous | Comments (18)
I’m laughing because I started an edible garden for the first time this year, and there have been a million things – not only the weather – making it quite an adventure!
I live in central Maryland, and we also had a very wet spring, followed immediately buy intense heat, then all the rain we’ve had as a result of the recent hurricanes is practically drowning everything.
In addition, because of the wet spring and my work and travel schedule, I didn’t even plant anything (and I started with seeds) until the second week of July! So I’ve been approaching it as an experimental year. I only planted the things I thought would come up in the mid-summer heat, but of course now the oncoming cool (and very wet) weather are the next challenge.
I do have some nice cucumbers that are about ready, and my edamame looks awesome. I have two cantaloupe steadily growing, and one little tomato starting. The zuchinni is struggling a bit; might not get anything out of that.
Oh, well – I’ve learned a lot and it’s been a good start, in spite of it all :-)
to Melanie W's comment
Unfortunately we’ve only had two inches of rain in the past 10 months (SE Texas)?… something like that, so there is no garden right now. I suppose that worked out well since I’ve been vastly pregnant all summer and couldn’t do much anyway. But, now that the heat has broken a little (90’s instead of 100’s) I’m going to start the seeds for our fall crops and do what little I can (with my husband’s major help) to get things ready for fall. The drought and heat have to go away eventually and we’re extremely heavy mulchers so irrigating is not as much of a burden as it might be. Normally I’m the one who does all the hard work around the homestead so this unintended break from my normal labors has been very hard on me. But, the baby will be here in 2 months and then I’ll be able to bend and lift! For all these reasons I’m really looking forward to fall :-)
to Annie's comment
I garden in NEO as well and haven’t heard of a single gardener that is happy with how their garden grew this year. Personally, our struggles seemed to be greatest with the insects. I’ve never had to battle them the way that I’ve had to this year!
to Quinn's comment
As gardens go, I guess it’s been a decent year- some things did great, others not so good. That’s how gardening goes though. I did harvest my first salad of the fall today! Fresh lettuce tasted so good, been craving that for a few weeks now!
to Melissa's comment
BTW- what kind of tomato is that in the 4th pic of your post?
to Melissa's comment
Those are San Marzano – a fabulous roma type tomato for canning.
to Susy's comment
I thought those might be! I grew those for the first time this year– so amazing! So rich in taste- will definitely be growing more of those next year!
to Melissa's comment
Your Romas look amazing! And those morning glories are so inviting! What a lovely garden.
Our garden was pretty much a bust this year. Fortunately, living in Central Florida, we still have a chance to put in a fall garden.
Love your blog!
to daisy's comment
Bakersfield, CA
3 sisters garden was a bust. Tomatoes and tree crops did well.
Camellias are failing.
to MAYBELLINE's comment
Eastern Iowa – First time food garden… Heat waves made the ground too warm for carrots and green onions, but the radishes could put hair on your chest. We had late sweet corn (a few weeks ago), not too bad but could have been better. Squash borrors got the zucchini, but the tomatos and strawberries did nicely.
I’m really hoping for a more even season next year…. this year it was too much rain to begin with and too little in July. However, now I truly know the importance of mulch!
to MollyMakesDo's comment
I live in North East Ohio as well and I love what my little bit of gardening has wrought this year..I have tomato plants that have just about taken over the neighborhood.. Everyone is talking about them asking what on earth I was using on them. Nothing out of the ordinary.. even I am shocked. I only had a little area maybe 8 x 12ish feet and I planted about 6 tomato plants, 2 pepper plants I started from seed & 2 squash plants and the tomatoes over grew everything and then over a rock barrier and out into the yard another 6 or so feet all along the 12 foot rock wall.. Its crazy..
There are also spaghetti squash that were planted along the porch edge that have weaved in & out of the tomatoes, over the top of the porch railing and all over the front porch.. Its downright comical.. Its gonna be fun cleaning it up in a couple months. ;)
I planted some scarlet runner beans (actually just 5 beans) and I have a nice little stand that Im letting to go seed.. They’re so pretty.
Got lots of garlic & herbs this year as always too..
Yep, I’ve loved this year, garden wise!
to KimH's comment
My garden was horrible this year. I am located in the mid-west and we have been experiencing drought conditions since June. I got a few cucumbers, green beans, and squash, but that is it. I bet I only got 2 dozen tomatoes – and I planted over 30.
to dkswife's comment
I’m in southern Minnesota, and it’s my second year gardening in this yard. The spring was cold, wet, and long, and the summer hot and dry. All of my tomatoes are smaller than what is said to be typical for their varieties, and almost everything else is growing more slowly than expected. However, my Yellow Wonder alpine strawberries (a search for other growers of those brought me to this blog in June) have been giving me berries periodically, the basil and parsley are doing well, garlic heads were small but abundant, and I’ll be finding out soon how the potatoes and sweet potatoes turned out.
to Karla's comment
I in So. TX and gardening just hasn’t happened this year without any rain. It is time to plant the fall garden and I am still holding off on that. I hadn’t planned on planting anything since we have had no rain, but I changed my mind this week and will only plant a few things. chard, lettuce, kale, lettuce and onions. It has been a tough year for gardening so far. Emily
to Sincerely, Emily's comment
I am in NE Ohio too so I share you pains. Our tomato plants were completely wiped out :(
Your & your mom’s potager is absolutely beautiful!
to Allison's comment
I’m in SE PA and in 20 years of gardening this has been the worst. Squash borers, Mexican Bean Beetles, something got the cucumbers (not sure what. sprayed for fungus and pests), potatoes succumbed to wilt, all the cockscomb I planted last year returned by the gazillions and I couldn’t keep up with them as weeds. Just a rough year all around topped off by our 10′ x 20′ solid oak arbor being destroyed by Irene. Scaling it back next year in order to regain some sanity and order. Thanks for the great blog!
to Cherise's comment
I am in South Dakota and the tomatoes are terrible! The past few years has been the blight and now it was less yield ever and there is no blight. I am not sure what happened, there is a lot of foliage but not muc fruits. Swiss chard did pretty well this year. Hope you are having a great end of Summer!
to angela's comment
Hi! From Connecticut shoreline,the pole beans were late and the brush beans not worth the space,except the lima beans. The toms had early blight, but I had my first tom on July 11 th, I started them in Feb.The toms were small and few.The cucumbers were great till year till the 9 spoted Ladybug showed up. she was eating something I could not see,they dyed. But enough of the sad tale,the garden fed us and I was able to pass on produce to a few people and fill a small chest freezer. Spinach and peas, lettuce,carrots,winter squash,ect. are planted for the Fall, Hopefully ,I can find enough plastic to cover them tonight we are expecting an early frost. The past two years have been strange , weather and too many bugs, but worth it.
Best wishes Roxy
P.S.love the refrierator pickles
to roxanne shea's comment