Monday, October 14, 2013

Harvest Monday 10.14.13

It's the middle of October and I can't believe it! Welcome back to Harvest Monday. Thanks Daphne for always being such a great hostess. If it wasn't for you we wouldn't all get together to celebrate the harvest that are happening all over the world!

The last few weeks I have lost almost all of my bean plants. I think I also figured out why - but that is another post. I've replanted my green beans (AND my winter squash) 6 different times this year to no avail. All the seeds come up the seedlings look great and then - poof they just disappear into nothingness. Deader than a doornail. It's been frustrating to say the least. At first I chalked it up to our extreme weather. This summer, more than any other we've had enough rain to continually drown out the plants. But, I garden in raised beds and while the rain would still cause issues and allow certain types of plants to die off this amount of destruction was unprecedented. We've had more than 6 months in a row with over 10" of rain each month. You'd think that would be enough to cause the problem after all!

But, I have been able to harvest some beans. The lady peas and black eyes made it through OK, but even those are no starting to succumb to diseases. I can't wait to plant out my fall plants. I sure hope they do better!

This weeks harvest? BEANS... well, southern peas but it is still a bean. 


 
Don't let the pictures fool you. That is not a plate they are on. This is a very large serving bowl. The first picking was just over a half pound, the second a pound and the third a good 2 pounds. The green ones weigh more because they are not dried, nor will they be dried. They'll be used as snaps in my beans.  For a reference the green beans on the side of the bowl are 6-7" long.
 
Yes, I also harvest a few handfuls of green beans each time I harvested the southern peas and a couple lemons as well. They continue to trickle in a couple every few days. But, I've only got a few green bean plants that made it so the pickings are slim. I'll probably just throw them in the pot along with the beans and make some cornbread to call it good. Nothing like it!
 
Unfortunately like the rest of the year has been my harvest is not varied. (Thank goodness for eggs!) I sure hope to cure that with the cooler nighttime temperatures upon us now. Hope all is well in your garden.
 
 
See you soon!
 
Barbie~

12 comments:

  1. Nice harvest! Sorry to hear about all that rain issues. We have our beds raised so even if we get a lot of rain (like june) i don't have any issues with rot.

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    1. I have beds that are raised 6-9 inches and other beds that are raised 3'... so they should drain well enough. Unfortunately this battle will be ongoing.

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  2. Your beans look good! Good luck with your new plantings, I know it must be frustrating to be so water-logged! My parents live in Florida and they have complained to me about all the rain they've been getting this year, making it hard to keep up with yard-work and growing things.

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    1. We normally have super rainstorms in the evenings - but they last an hour or two and then they are gone. This year it actually rained for days at a time without any major storms around. Very odd.

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  3. Wow, 10 inches of rain in a month!! That's more than we get in an entire year here in the dry state of Utah! Your beans look fantastic!

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    1. Seems being stuck outinto the ocean has it's disadvantages, too - wonky rain eing one of them. Humidity the other. LOL. Utah is a beautiful state, and I'm sure your dry weather makes it just as difficult to garden.

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  4. I am anxious to learn what happened to your bean plants. Have been wanting to plant black eyed peas so I can enjoy fresh black eyed peas, but lack of space have prevented me from planting them.

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    1. Well. they are a large bush, but they seem to not mind being crowded. I plant mine square foot style. I'm sure I sacrifice a little production on each plant, but then again more plants = more production over all. They really thrive in the heat and seem to do equally well in dry years as our wet ones. Because they like the heat maybe a pot would work. They are not bad to look at either. :-)

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  5. I hope your fall plants do better too. I had to replant some of my squash as they just never came up. I've never had that happen before. I hope those late planted ones ripen well enough. I'm going to pick them soon regardless.

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    1. THat is the good thing about squash. They are good to eat, even if they are not ripe enough for storage. At least you got squash. Apparently they were the most suseptable to my soil issue as the only thing I ever got this year were zuchs. (different bed)

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  6. I feel your pain with the excess rain! We had 9 inches in June and that was enough to cause a lot of problems. I think dry conditions are easier to handle, because you can always add water, but you can't take it away!

    I'm envious of your peas. I used to grow lots of them when my garden was bigger. Now I get them at the farmer's market.

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    1. I'm beginning to think my winter months will be spent at the farmers market. I've already been there a few times lately. :-( Wahhh.... (But thank goodness they are there!)

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