This week was a fun harvest for me because I was able to get a few small harvests over a couple of days. Having such a small garden means my harvests are going to look mostly the same for the rest of the season, just more of everything as the peak draws nearer...
Here is what I picked on Tuesday...
Then again on Friday...
This was the first of the Siam Queen Thai Basil...
All of the purple beans were from the set that's growing in front of the melons. These plants are huge! I swear there is some symbiotic relationship going on between the melons and beans, because the beans growing in their own bed are half this size, and scraggly. Maybe it's that they're soaked in the sun all day vs the other bed of beans only gets afternoon sun. Who knows...
These were picked this morning...
See the new tomatoes in the middle? Those are my first Pearson tomatoes, with the red coming in at half a pound! The red one was way in the middle and barely visible, and I accidentally pulled the green one off with it.
Does anyone know why the top of the tomato has cracked around the stem? Is it still good to use?
Some of the basil and a couple tomatoes have been used on personal pizzas, and the rest are in the freezer. I have a quart sized ziploc almost bursting with basil leaves now.
I try to make my own breads and pizza crusts as often as possible, but seeing "5 minutes," had me suckered into trying these crusts. They're pretty good for ready-made crusts...
This week's harvest total...
Bush Slicer Cucumber: 4 lb, 5oz
Viva Italia tomatoes: 2 lb
There are three more cucumbers growing, but where I was complaining of only female flowers showing up before, now I only have male flowers. Doh! Next year I think I'll start the plants 2-3 weeks apart to help with this.
I don't know how long it'll take for the Charentais melons to ripen, but they're starting to look really yummy!
There is also a new one, so it will be nice having a staggered harvest.
I didn't think this would ever happen... My White Habanero's are finally starting to fruit!
Each week Daphne over at Daphne's Dandelions hosts Harvest Monday. Check out her page to see what other's have been munchin' and crunchin' on this week.
Well, you realize that your beans and melons likely are benefiting from each other? You have two of the three components there of the '3 sisters' planting (the third being corn). Your melons (the squash component) are probably acting as a living mulch, shading the roots of your beans, and helping to conserve water. I have pumpkins at the foot of some of our scarlet runner beans. The beans with squash at their feet are taller, and blooming more profusely than those that are just mulched with straw. Next year I suggest adding corn, and completing your trio...we're certainly going to try (just so we don't need to construct teepees for the beans)! Lovely harvests by the way, and congrats on the habaneros!
ReplyDeleteMulti-day harvests during the week must be a sign that your garden is doing really well. I should try growing a variety of basil like you, instead of my plain "green" basil - I don't even know the variety of mine!
ReplyDeleteI've read that fluctuations in watering (or rain) can cause tomatoes to crack and split. My first tomato was a bit cracked, too. I think they are okay to eat, as long as they are not mushy and/or spoiled on the inside. I sliced my imperfect tomato in half, saw that it was perfectly fine on the inside, and ate it. My boyfriend at the other half. We're still okay! :)
Yes, yes! Your tomato is just fine. You'll get a lot of heirlooms with cracks and creases and funny shapes....they are all good. Just cut the cracked part off when you're ready to eat the tomato.
ReplyDeleteYour little garden is performing big things! Those melons look great. Everything looks great.
I read that the cracking of tomatos is due to the plants having lots of water at once causing the skin to break. That's what I read on other blogs.
ReplyDeleteClare~ I had a big fat, "Duh" when I read your comment! I completely forgot about the 3 Sisters growing method. I'd love to grow corn if I had the space... I grew up on the east coast where stores have bins full of corn, and another bin to shuck the corn before leaving. Here the stores rip half to husk/silk off so buyers can see it, then display it under the misters. Grr! But I digress... With all the other lovely CA produce, I can get by w/o fresh corn (and okra for that matter). ;-)
ReplyDeleteThyme2, Granny, and Meemsnyc~Thanks for responding about the tomato. I suspected it'd be fine to use, but needed to be sure...
ReplyDeleteMomma S, everything looks great! The tomato is fine! I grow almost exclusively heirlooms and they all crack and are misshapen, but the flavor difference is worth it. As a matter of fact, perfect tomatoes are suspect to me...!
ReplyDeleteOh melons. I so wish I had planted them this year with all the heat we are having. But after last years cold I didn't think it was worth even trying.
ReplyDeleteWhite Habanero huh? Can't wait to see that!
ReplyDeleteI was going to mention the three sisters two but the advantages of that was supposed to be that the beans grew up the corn, the prickly leaves of the squash protected the corn from pests and the beans helped to 'feed' the ground (though it was also traditional) to bury something nitrogen rich at planting time. I bet it's the sun but maybe it is something to do with root exudes??
ReplyDeleteDaphne~ Isn't that how it always goes? If you'd planted the melons, you wouldn't be having the warm weather! hehe
ReplyDeleteShawn Ann~ Me too! They're the one crazy thing I'm growing this year. Everything else is stuff I know we'll eat, lol.
I am so jealous. Last year I tried and had a case of bacterial wilt, this year they were looking so good in my earthbox, and then the vine borers got them. Maybe next year 3rd times a charm!
ReplyDeleteps,,, if they begin to smell melonie and most of the green has faded then they should be done. They only get to be a few pounds each I think.
Looks so good! Your melons are going to be lovely. I have my butternuts tied up with shirts! Great to see the different approaches.
ReplyDeleteHey, I guess I have a 2 Sisters bed as well, with beans and squash (melons and cukes too). Your melons look so much more comfortable in their hosiery than I have ever been in mine. :-)
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely summer harvest!