Now we're caught up....

Well, on blogging.  I feel like I'll never really be caught up with all the work that needs to be done outside.  I think that this is normal.  We worked on some projects this summer that were necessary.  We had some brush that needed to be burnt.  We had a Christmas decoration that had lived it's useful life, and needed to be taken down.  We had decluttering to do in the house.  And, the biggest project was holding a part time job this summer.  It sapped my time and energy.  So, Tim was left in charge of a lot of the gardening this year.  He was so good to help me out so much, with weeding and watering. 

The end of the month of July and the start of August is bountiful harvest time.  The fair marks the time of the year that there are some impressive things coming out of my garden.  The fair was a week earlier than normal this year, so my garden was still very green and waiting to ripen... but in the past couple of weeks, things are ripening and we're getting to enjoy our own fresh veggies!

The thing I'm proudest of this year are my onions.  Not only did I have some great green onions, my big onions have been getting big and are very plentiful!  I think that weeding does that to them.  I'm so excited when we grill up a basket of veggies, and I can cut up my own onion to put in with the yellow squash, peppers, zuchinni, and beans.  It's great!  I'm thinking that next year will demand six bags of sets instead of the three I got this year.  My favorite onion is the purple onions, so I'll think about how I want to allocate things next year.

I have a grow bag on the deck with a lush bed of lettuce growing in it.  For less than $1.00 (the cost of the seeds), I've had at least twelve salads.  I'm thinking about keeping this grow bag with lettuce in the house all winter long.  I'll just continue to add seed if it needs it. 

I spent a lot of time cleaning out the herb garden this year.  I think it's a little too much shade on this side of the house, so my herbs did alright, but not great.  I know for next year, now.  Also for next year, I know that berries aren't around for very long.  So, when it's time to pick them, I'd better get out there and do it.  Complicating matters this year were my berry pickers.  The kids came down with a horrible illness for an entire week this summer: right at prime berry picking time!  It was also a busy week for me at work, so I suppose that we'll just have to save the recipes that I got for next year. 

I'll leave you with my family's favorite side dish: grilled veggies!  Simple recipe.  Take whatever veggies you desire and cut into bit sized pieces. (Shown here: yellow squash, zuch, onion, green pepper).  Put all the veggies into a gallon sized plastic bag and drizzle with your oil of choice.  We use olive oil to support the Tunisian economy and keep our hearts healthy.  Toss with your favorite seasoning, which for us is whatever we have handy.  In this case, I used Tastefully Simple Garlic Dill Seasoning.  I also use the Pampered Chef grill basket so my veggies don't fly over the edge.  Delish!

Typical farmer...

I've been so coated with mud, dirt, and grime that I haven't had the time or the energy to blog for the last couple of months.  But, I've tried to do a good job taking photos.  So, the next two posts will be on the same day, but will be inspired by the past.

We finally completed a shade garden of sorts by the front door.  We spent $15 on dirt at the local landscape store.  Our friends lent us their truck and we ended up with a large load of black dirt.  It was so much work for Tim to rake and dig out all of the decorative stone and fabric, but it looks so nice now.  My parents got us a watering system (in payment for dogsitting!) and the plants in the front have never looked so great.  Neither have the weeds.

Before and After Photos of the front garden....
All photos taken approximately July 10th, 2011.

The turkeys are growing so big!  We have a medium white and a large bronze.  It's funny that the white was hatched first (by three days or so) yet it's the smallest of the turkeys.  The fluffy head has been replaced by an interesting texture of skin.  It's a face that only a mother could love:  



Lastly, the garden has been growing really fast.  I'm all about making excuses, so here is a big one.  I had flats of wonderful seedlings started in my dining room.  The weather warmed, the sun shone bright.  What stopped me from getting my little seedlings into the warm ground.  Well, our tiller was not working.  By the time the small engine repair place let us know that we no longer have a tiller, several weeks had passed.  Some thoughts for the future: Don't wait until spring to get your tiller fixed.  The small engine place gets really backed up :)  Other thoughts: Renting a tiller was a great money saver and the tiller worked really well.  It only took us a couple of hours to till both gardens.  By then, however, I was a little behind.  Thus, my plants are now a little behind.  I guess that I know for next year.  The strawberries were great this year.  Beans are starting, snap peas are almost ripe, and the garden is starting to fill out nicely.  Pictures follow: