Just Vegging

Variety of Tomatoes from the Garden

Finally!! Summer arrived here in Nova Scotia two weeks ago. We've had hardly a hint of rain since (except for today))); the sea warmed up to seventy'ish, and the days unfolded hot and perfect. Such Bliss for the bones and the spirit. Blogging simply got pushed to the side, as did a lot of "should do" jobs and you know, they can always wait. Autumn is right over the next hill and coming on much quicker than I want it to.

The last few sunny days have encouraged the tomatoes to ripen fast. Tasmanian Chocolates were one of the earliest, but for our climate or perhaps with all the rain, they didn't live up to the flavor or texture I had expected. The Woodle Orange are wonderful, delicious and a good hand size, but not unblemished like the photo on the seedpack ;-). OSU Blue.... also beautiful and prolific. Not boring as I have read, at least not here in our garden of quick draining and acid soil...more robust than expected, and even more so, used in a salsa when just about ripe...tart, tangy and firm, with a good zing.

The earliest tomatoes were Sungold cherry, Super Eary Latah and Mexico Midget. The latter's name applies to the size of the tomato (think blueberry)...not to the size of the plant which has climbed to about ten feet. A real plus, according to the Chief, is their dainty size fruit which continue to ripen even at the lower branches. He checks regularly for red ones.... just the right size to pick off and eat.

Going...

Gone...

Finally, having four days of sunshine in a row, the deck got stained. Thank heaven! I was beginning to despair of it ever getting finished; just a light driftwood grey, but it makes all the difference. Now we can get the furniture back on, and have our 'last of the summer' meals outdoors.

The mosquitoes have been a bit fierce though...you know, those big ones with the striped legs that come from the sea grass along the water...but a few cold nights should knock them back. In the meantime, the Captain has been taking care of us ladies when we go out on the picnic boat.

"Cheers to the Captain"...pats to the Chief!

Garlic Harvest

Duck Creek Farm display

Last week I took in the Saturday morning market on Salt Spring Island in beautiful British Columbia.   It's kind of changed over the past thirty years )))) . Back then, our market product was Bon Acres Corn. We were up at a dark five o'clock, heading down to pick in the lower field....baby kiddo in stroller hugging a fresh cob to chew on. The truck loaded, we were off to the "new" Salt Spring Saturday Market and usually sold out by eleven. Heh..I was a spring chick to gardening back then and a new mom! Fond memories.......
It was great to see local produce still being sold, Garlic ('Allium Sativum'), being one of the most popular farm products. The braids went by weight...$48.00 for a wicked heavy one. Don't they look beautiful! Lots of variety..Portuguese Red, China White..

 

Braids from Bright Farm on Tripp Road certified organic.

While we've had a sort of nursery bed of garlic growing in our plot for about ten years, it wasn't actually until last fall, I transplanted some of the small bulblets 'in the green' to the raised bed.  Pulling them out a few days ago, was a revelation....it worked...we had proper garlic bulbs! 

Our Garlic Harvest

The only difficulty so far, is finding a dry place to cure them where their smell can't overpower. Living near the sea, and with all this rain, everything is damp.... to cure, the bulbs need good ventilation! I found a Canadian site, for buying and curing garlic and the info there has helped tremendously. Now I'm anxious to try some named varieties....success has gone right to my head!

Wedding and Garden Update

Oh..it was just Great getting away! The wedding was marvelous...the cake simply beautiful and delicious. The bride and groom chose "hot" vibrant colors for their flowers and decoration which truly shimmered in the British Columbia August heat.

A variety of vibrant flowers to decorate the tables.

Returning to Nova Scotia.....well, don't think it stopped raining here the whole time I was away. Poor tomatoes, poor flowers. It was a jungle out there and most of yesterday was spent clipping and cleaning the beds and tidying up the trellised tomatoes. I am of the belief, that plants do not need sunshine to grow...just rain ;-) ! But if we are ever going to get ripe tomatoes...we need some hot summer sun.

Trellised tomato jungle!

There is magic in all that rain though...the day lilies have never looked so amazing, and at this time of year, that's a real plus for flower show. I managed to clean up the long bed on the summerhouse side and today will tackle the tomato plants inside the veg garden, pull out the 'gone over' lettuce and do a general thinning out of plants.

The cleanup continues.

The summer squash have taken over; beets need pulling (and roasting); beans are coming on gang busters.... back to eating from the garden with gusto!

Beans Fortex, Purple Podded and Golden

I Remember when...

I remember when... (oh my, do I sound old ;-) .. it was very difficult for me to figure out what was a weed and what wasn't and I still can't always tell. But, I guess with age comes experience, and thankfully, I can now at least, recognize sunflower sprouts in the garden or this beauty wouldn't have made it past the gate. Other sprouts which grew to provide height and color this year, were the pink poppies (last post) but they are fairly easy to recognize early on with their silver leaves, so only a few were left to actually bloom in the veg garden. Four leeks not used last summer, overwintered and flowered this year so if I am not careful collecting seed, they will likely end up sprouting in the soil next year. Would I recognize those I wonder? We can look this one right in the eye...so that's a good five feet! I love that unexpected bloom, that surprise...unplanned and stately in it's height, size and color..... 'garden architecture'.

If you grow garlic, you know how fantastic and architectural the scapes are... 'shepherd hooks' my friend Ann calls them.  They were trimmed off today; goodness should be going into the bulb below ground, not into making seed. The bulblets are yummy in just about anything ... salads...pasta..pesto.

Garlic scape seed heads with the sheath removed

We are always happy to find reseeded summer squash in the spring beds. With their huge leaves they add quite a bit of primal drama. I thought it might have been a mistake to resettle them in the new bed just off the deck but for a quick fill in until we decide what to do, it sure worked it's magic along with Agastache and Nicotiana. The latter fills the evening air with it's glorious fragrance and has it's own architecture as well.

Pole beans are at the top of their bamboo tripods; peas are at their summit. Clematis are sharing the wired wooden support and when  peas are done, we hope the vines will fill in even further.

beans Fortex, Gold Marie and Purple Podded

It's time to relax and enjoy the garden..... eat from it...smell it...embrace it. Also nearing time to take a little vacation from Blogger and "Go West" blog friends. I've a very special wedding to attend, friends and family to visit and hopefully some left coast gardens to enjoy! Summer really has arrived!
                                                                           

Pretty in Pink

Who doesn't love Poppies! They alone, decide where to grow, often in surprisingly perfect places...."oh won't that lime green lettuce (Black Seeded Simpson) look great at my feet" I could almost hear this one say....and indeed it did! Their shades of pink to red blend in the garden tapestry; early morning light helps them shimmer and glow.

We've been busy...company's coming! The beds are edged and refreshed, tidied up for Saturday when the Mt. Denson Garden Club will visit. This was my very first garden club, joined when we moved back to Nova Scotia many years ago. Members used to meet in the old school house... you know the type, with a wood or oil stove sitting right in the classroom, simple beadboard on the walls, hardwood floors and chalk boards. I fondly remember one senior gentleman who announced on herb night "you can freeze parsley; just put it in a baggie flat in the freezer and break off what you need, when you need it". What a revelation for a gardener like myself, who really didn't know a lot about herbs twenty years ago. One could say, I put down roots in that garden club and I am so pleased they asked to visit.

Some of the blooms I hope the members will enjoy are the sweet peas, just coming on. This year, they were grown in large planters down near the shed and seem to like the warm protection. There's Yarrow as well, with it's umbels of deep rosy pink, attracting beneficials to the garden. Robin Hood Rose is finally starting to come into it's own.

Click on photos to enlarge

There's just the front bed to tidy today. If the rain doesn't stop, well ..... the back deck isn't going to get stained and that's just going to have to be the way it is for now. It's hard to believe we haven't had four continuous days of sun since spring began and the deck was finished.