Garden 2012

As usual I am so excited about the warming weather.  I started the seeds March 9, 2012.  This year I started more seeds than ever before.  

Here is a list of what I started:

Garden 2012

56 Sweet Peppers
14 early Broccoli
9 purple broccoli
9 purple peppers
9 purple tomatoes
18 late Broccoli
9 black krim tomatoes
18 purple cabbage
9 eggplant
18 green kolrabi
18 purple kolrabi
3 ground cherry
3 Cabernet  sweet peppers
4 national pickling cucumbers
3 jalapeño peppers
5 acorn squash
9 zucchini
3 starburst squash
8 green cabbage 
11 slicing cucumbers
6 buttercup squash
3 watermelon
4 pumpkin
52 tomatoes (Beefsteak, Roma, & Cherry)

Unfortately this year I learned about Dampening Disease... :( I had to re-start some of my seeds, but learned to always NEW potting soil for starting seeds! 

When the weather warmed up I started the following directly in the garden and pots on my patios: 

Onions

Potatoes (Russet, red, purple, red fingerling)

Carrots (Really excited about purple carrots)

Garlic

Peas

Radishes

Lettuces

Dill

Beets 

Spinach

Asparagus Peas

Still to be planted for end of the season:

Bush beans
Rutabaga

Parsnips

Leeks

Broccoli Raab

I will also be buying new strawberry plants, 10 more raspberries and 6 Blackberry bushes

I have lots of herbs growing - Chives, oregano, rosemary, bay leaf tree, lavender, basil, parsley, sages, and winter savory.

Here is picture of the freshly planted herbs - 

I am really excited about my raised beds, the roots on my various veggies last year were stunning:

The root on these radishes in 2011 were about 8 inches! My carrots had similar roots.

The picture below is from my 2011 garden. One quarter of my bean harvest and half my snap pea harvest

My garden feeds my roommate and I and our 3 dogs for the growing season and 6 months after, with lots to give away to neighbours and friends! 

I bought a Foodsaver Vacuum sealer in 2011, to make preserving fruits and veggies in the freezer even easier! I am excited.... I know I need to get a life!

Here are pictures from the start of my garden 2012!!  

                                 You can see the straw mulch for my Asparagus patch on the left.

                                    On the far right are my 3 pallets for strawberries

                                                  The long row of cedar trellis is for my peas

                                  This is the view from top deck! 

Here are some pics of the harvest:

                                   Beet greens - I love you!

                                        These Beets got pickled for my oldest sister... 12 pints of pickled beets! She was happy!

 Butternut squash that was mislabelled in the nursery.  I had no idea what I was growing, thus why I picked them too early.

 Love my carrot rainbow... I grew purple, brown, and orange!

 My sad corn... but perfect for cutting for niblets!

 Garlic - my first harvest as a gardener! Very proud!

                Holy Leeks like my soil! Cant wait for Potato Leek Soup!

                                   5 different types of Mint!

                                                          Sweet Pepper Rainbow

                                                                  Potato Rainbow
 

 Yes these are sweet potatoes! I live in the central okanagan of BC and I can grow sweet potatoes.  This harvest was skimpy to say the least, but I blame the soil.  It was new soil and I didn't realize how compacted it was going to become! I will definately try again next season.  These are 'Beauregard' and 'Georgia Jet' varieties! 

                                Best onion harvest ever for me! 

        Dont the purple carrots POP next to the orange ones? Love them all!

Here is a "Before" picture of the corner of the yard before the cold frames were built! My dog Kilo is hanging out in the shade!

These are 2 pics of the cold frames.  Notice they are not in the corner of the yard I cleared out.  I changed my mind and out them along the fence to side of the yard. The sun exposure is better. 

 The cold frames are doing great. Below you will see the Swiss chard and spinach I pulled out the last week of September.

 Above is my bread bowl overflowing with chard. Will get about 8 meals from the Chard and spinach.

Overall 2012 was a good harvest from the garden.  I learned alot and am working to change lots of things! Especially the potato towers.  They need to be somewhere where they can get LOTS of water to soak through all the layers in the tower. 

Happy Gardening!