First off, I have to admit I have completely neglected my garden this summer. I don't know what got into me, but I just haven't wanted to go out and dig in the dirt. So I am sorry I haven't written much about it. Luckily, I was motivated in the spring. So even without my sweet talking my plants and constant attention, veggies have still grown!!
When we were in Costa Rica the weeds got completely out of control! I never really recovered. Consequently I noticed that a lot of the plants were flowering but not producing any fruit. I decided if the birds and the bees weren't getting it done, then I was going to have to pollinate the garden myself! So I went out with a few Q-tips, rubbed it in the blossoms of the flowers and waited. I kept a metal note of what flowers I had done this to. To my surprise it worked and I got zucchini and cucumbers from it!
When we were in Costa Rica the weeds got completely out of control! I never really recovered. Consequently I noticed that a lot of the plants were flowering but not producing any fruit. I decided if the birds and the bees weren't getting it done, then I was going to have to pollinate the garden myself! So I went out with a few Q-tips, rubbed it in the blossoms of the flowers and waited. I kept a metal note of what flowers I had done this to. To my surprise it worked and I got zucchini and cucumbers from it!
Naturally my favorite thing about having a garden is being able to cook with the food I harvest. I found this gigantic zucchini hiding under all the weeds. I would not recommend letting them get this big! But you use what you have! From this one zucchini I made four loafs of zucchini bread and zucchini fritters. Unfortunately I didn't keep track of the recipe I was using, but I am sure you can all find one! The zucchini fritters are a lot like potato latkes and I love them!
School started last week and I was suddenly thrown into the routine of rushing all day at work, coming home tired, and trying to throw something edible together for dinner. Here is my secret. Keep boxes of pasta handy at all times! Then you can whip up some penne and go shopping the garden. Tomatoes, cucumbers, basil, sage, zucchini, squash, etc. The fresh ingredients are tasty enough that you can really just use a little olive oil in stead of sauce.
Garden Maintenance:
1. Weeding, weeding, and more weeding. I know, it's the pits.
2. Also, maintain your tomato plants. In the crotch of the branches little starter branches will grow like you see in this picture. At the point in the summer they will not bare fruit. So you have to pull these sucklers off. The plant will use all the energy growing these extra branches that don't benefit you! If you have tomatoes on the vines, but they are not turning red, or they are splitting then cut back the water. Tomatoes need to be starved of water a little in order to ripen.
3. Plant anything that you want growing for the fall if you haven't already (I haven't).
1. Weeding, weeding, and more weeding. I know, it's the pits.
2. Also, maintain your tomato plants. In the crotch of the branches little starter branches will grow like you see in this picture. At the point in the summer they will not bare fruit. So you have to pull these sucklers off. The plant will use all the energy growing these extra branches that don't benefit you! If you have tomatoes on the vines, but they are not turning red, or they are splitting then cut back the water. Tomatoes need to be starved of water a little in order to ripen.
3. Plant anything that you want growing for the fall if you haven't already (I haven't).
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