Some Vegetables, Ollas, and Flowers

 It has been a crazy busy spring around out house, so I haven't done much blogging. I have been busy in the gardens. 

 Once again the fresh food from the garden bug has got me and although my dream is to try once again to create a big beautiful kitchen garden, it is just going to have to wait. Summer is just around the corner and I try to wind down my projects and focus on relaxing and enjoying the fruits of my labors in the summer. I always have some vegetables growing here and there and the fruit trees just carry on all summer without too much attention so I can't complain too much. I got some onions in the ground finally, better late then never!

 Thanks to my sister I have quite a few tomato plants this year. I planted some in pots outside the kitchen, but about a dozen went into an empty raised bed. I added ollas to see how they worked. Ollas (pronounced “oy-yahs”) are unglazed clay/terra-cotta pots with a bottle or tapered shape that are buried in the ground with the top/neck exposed above ground that are filled with water for underground irrigation.

We couldn't find any large ones so we went with a bunch of smaller ones. Usually tomato plants require a lot of water, although with our gloomy weather I guess I should be more worried about mildew than wilting! The tomatoes are bred to handle the May Gray and June Gloom we typically get this type of year so we'll see how they do. So far so good.

 

 I also put in some squash mainly because the rabbits leave them alone. I think the trick to enjoying squash is to plant a number of plants and harvest them when they are small and tender. Anyone who has ever grown zucchini knows they can grow to scary proportions overnight! A bowl of tiny squash with grated cheese is a meal for me. I haven't tried frying the flowers, but who knows?

 The rest of the garden is looking especially nice this year (mostly) due to the rain that we have had. It's not enough to say the drought is over, but my garden is certainly basking in the bit of extra percipitation.

Finally Ripening!

 Into the later half of July and we still have overcast mornings, some much needed but unexpected rain, and it is finally starting to get hot enough to turn the tomatoes ripe. I even picked my first fig this morning and will savor it in a couple days with some cheese and honey.

 The tomatoes finally got staked by my son who stopped by a couple weekends ago and made a run to the nursery for me. 

 I have tried to make it as inconvenient as possible for the dogs to get to them and enjoy them before we do. 

 
 The red among all the foliage is a welcome sight! Along with the different basil that also appreciate the sunny days there is a carpese salad in the near future.

 These oranges have been sweet and tasty for a while, which usually doesn't happen until the heat kicks in to give them some flavor. Must be an excellent variety (that I can't remember) for the coast. It is always a good idea to shop the local nurseries that know what varieties do best in our fickle climate.

Summer Fennel Flowers

This morning I found lots of things wrong in the gardens to take pictures of that will make good subjects for future posts, but today I'm just going to focus on one thing that is doing really well. My bronze fennel is lovely! I don't like the taste of fennel and don't ever harvest it. I don't really know why I planted it years ago back here when I put a vegetable garden in before I gave up and turned this area back over to the rabbits that rule the domain. Obviously the varmints feel the same way I do about fennel and so it lives on untouched, year after year. It is now about six feet tall and blooms profusely all summer with flowers that attract songbirds, butterflies and beneficial insects. The bronze foliage has reverted back to mostly green this time of year but it is light and feathery and pretty. I guess I really do like fennel after all - just not in my salad!

Maybe Some Container Veggies

Sooooo.... I went to the nursery yesterday to buy rose fertilizer, but I have to go  back today because I came home with everything but fertilizer. Mainly I stocked up on one gallon lavender which it seemed like I looked for all last fall and couldn't find at all, although I still couldn't find any Spanish lavender yet. I also was seduced by a beautiful camellia and some complimentary azaleas because let's face it, the window to plant them is going to close soon. A few flats of fairy primrose also made it home with me because I plant them every year this time. 

But I really wanted to buy some beautiful lettuces and peas that I haven't planted in years due to being discouraged by the rabbits that have their way with most of my gardens. But I have really been missing the vegetables and now I think I will try to grow them in containers around the fountain on the back patio. The fountain splashes everywhere, making it rather damp and I started putting plants around it years ago when one of the dogs was a puppy that kept climbing in it and to discourage toddlers from getting too close. I am not crazy about the choice of prickly plants that my garden helper has grown from slips there and I think I will try to replace them with veggies and see how that works out. It is right outside the kitchen, gets lots of sun and is a ways away from the rabbit territory so maybe it will work. I'll let you know!

The Artichokes Have Arrived

A sure sign that we are in the middle of Spring (although you wouldn't know it by the weather today) is the beautiful artichokes are in full bud. I grow them for their amazing foliage and blooms, because these ones are just not that tasty.  If I am looking for a little drama in a garden bed, they are hard to beat, although they do take up some room. Stuffed artichokes will be on the menu next week, but I will have to pick up some good ones at the market and these lovelies will get to go all the way through their bloom cycle so we can enjoy their purple thistle flowers!

My Nemesis

If you enlarge this picture (double click on it) and look right in the middle of the grassy path you will see my nemesis, Bunny. He is a tricky little devil, disguising himself as a sweet little fluffy fur ball with big brown eyes and a cute cotton tail, but he is a chomping machine. He alone (well with many siblings and cousins I suspect) can make me give up on dreams and abandon weeks of hard work in one night of decadent foraging through my vegetable beds. He is cavalierly hopping around in the early morning even though he can clearly see me and the dogs on the other side of the yard. A bold creature, this Bunny. Well I've outsmarted him. Where the lettuce and carrots once grew there are now rose bushes and he is forced to nibble on the grassy paths. Not quite sure who won this battle but we are now at peace.

Tall Tales

If you think all artichokes are tasty, think again. I don't know what kind this one is, but it is not very meaty or tasty, which is why I am happy to let it go to flower every year. It is such a dynamic plant with huge leaves and flowers over six feet tall that I love it mixed in the perennial borders, but I have learned the hard way not to try to cook it up for dinner. If you are planning on growing artichokes to eat, I suggest you do your homework and buy ones that are grown to be tasty, not just random ones that you pick up at the nursery.

Relocating Tomatoes

It is with a heavy heart I have been transitioning the vegetable garden into a rose garden. Well, maybe that's a bit dramatic because I have been having fun searching for roses and clematis (who wouldn't?) but the other day at the nursery I wandered into the vegetable section where the isles were filled with eager gardeners, mostly new gardeners, based on their questions, and I was a bit sad to not be able to join in the frenzy of peppers and eggplants. Then I reminded myself that I was still going to grow anything I wanted, just not in the same fashion. So now I have reverted to growing the tomatoes (I did not get a single one last year due to the cool weather and foraging animals including my own dogs) among the perennials. This is where the first tomato lives (see the obelisk?), hopefully tucked away and in disguise from hungry predictors. Now if only we get some warm weather this summer!

Rabbit Proof

The only thing in the garden the rabbits don't eat seem to be the nasturtiums and the strawberries! (Note the empty vegetable beds behind the strawberries!)

The Dilemma

See this picture of my darling grandson in the vegetable garden? This is my problem area (well, one of them anyway) in SJC. A couple years ago, inspired by photos, books, movies (when "It's Complicated" came out I got all kinds of calls and emails about the beautiful vegetable garden) and visits to other people's gardens I was inspired to put in a formal vegetable garden. Before that I tucked them into ornamental beds here and there. Tomatoes and artichokes intermingled with roses and iris. Small borders of parsley and lettuce, etc.. I removed all the ornamentals in a section of the yard that got full sun all day and put in raised beds, gravel paths, towering obelisks and a birdbath. I filled the beds with vegetable seeds and seedlings and companion flowers to attract beneficial insects. It was beautiful, I was delighted - for about a week. Then almost everything disappeared from foraging wildlife. Who was I to complain? I loved to graze there too! Anyway we have been talking about putting in fencing above and below ground to keep out the rascals (that includes my dogs), but it is such a job and it is an awkward shape. Then my DH asked me why I didn't just make it a rose garden. I must confess that I am much more crazy about an armful of amazing roses brought in from the garden than a basket of zucchini. Great tasting organic vegetables can be found at the local farmers markets, but it is hard to find garden roses for sale! Well, anyway, that is my dilemma. What to do about the veggie garden?

The Leftovers

My sweet granddaughter is always eager to wander the gardens with me, even if it is freezing and she needs a heavy coat. Her favorite thing to do there is to harvest whatever is ready in the vegetable garden, but this time the pickings were slim due to the hungry rabbits that have been visiting. The only things they don't touch are the lemons (naturally, too high), the onions, and...

...evidently they aren't fond of bok choy! Project for this spring? Install some attractive and effective fencing!

End of Summer 'Chokes

There is nothing I don't love about artichokes. I love to eat them, I love their foliage and I love their amazing blooms. They add a lot of interest to the garden and I grow them mixed in the perennial beds throughout the gardens. The even make great cut flowers in all stages of their development. Not a lot of plants in the garden can deliver on that many levels.

Tomatoes on Hold

It has been a tough year for tomato lovers that live near the coast in Southern California. The weather has been so cool and overcast that there has not been enough heat to ripen the tomato crop. There is hope however! It looks like we are expecting a heat wave which may do the trick and turn those green tomatoes red quickly, but we'll have to wait and see. Of course it will be just in time for us to go on vacation and miss the whole crop!

Rogue Veggies

I cannot help but be amused by the interesting places vegetable plants pop up in the garden beds. There are a number of squash plants like this one, here and there throughout the property, most likely the results of viable seeds in from the compost pile. You can see by the mildew on the foliage the results of this cool, damp summer we are having. We may not have much sunshine, but I guess there is enough to keep rogue vegetables happy enough!

The Garlic Harvest

We harvested some garlic from the garden that was ready to be pulled up and be cured. I plant it in the fall around where the tomato plants are going because there is a rumor that it discourages hornworms. I don't know if this is true, but I never am bothered with the nasty buggers, so I'll continue the practice. Now if only I could find a deterrent for all the furry mammals that are eating the tomatoes before they even ripen!

Radishes are All Right!

I am a passionate gardener, have been all my life, but I will admit that I am a lousy vegetable gardener. Which is kind of ironic since I am a vegetarian. Somehow the thrill I get from gardening is more associated with the experience I get from being in a beautiful setting and not from eating the plants. I always grow vegetables and fruits and I have lots of herbs I use all the time (I also love to cook), but they are just not a priority. That being said, I am experiencing great joy from my little radishes that are ready for eating right now in the garden. They were planted from seed last fall and quite happily they are thriving with few problems! Most of my edible crops are enjoyed by the native inhabitants of the garden, rabbits, raccoons, opossums, birds, mice and even our dogs. But I am the only one that is a fan of radishes as it turns out. Works for me!

Artichokes Are Back

One of the things I love about blogging about my garden is that it is an excellent way to keep records. In fact I have realized it is about the only way I am going to keep records despite my best intentions. For instance, I was going to write about how big and bushy my artichoke plants are this month when I noticed a post I did last February about them actually blooming that time of year. I guess I should be watching for blooms any time now. I certainly hope they are better on this plant than they were last year. They were a big disappointment as far as meat and taste go. I am hoping it is because it was their first year, although a friend mentioned that the 'Green Globes' never do well for her. Regardless of the quality of crop, I still love the huge bluish green foliage in the garden this time of year.

It's A Jungle Out There

It's amazing how different the garden looks after being away for a couple week, especially in the summer. Coming home, everything looked bigger and fuller, especially the tomatoes that are out of control! I usually grow tomatoes on slim, spiral supports in the flower beds and keep the excess foliage removed so all the plant's energy goes into the fruit. This year with the new vegetable garden beds I gave them their own space and large supports. As big and robust as they look, we haven't gotten many tomatoes off of them. The dogs think medium green tomatoes are tennis balls on a vine and neatly pick them off for play. Raccoons, possums, birds and who knows what else are making meals out of everything the dogs miss, so we are last in line. A garden always gives us lots of challenges and this is one I intend on overcoming next year! It's good to be home!

The Not-So-Successful Veggie Garden

With all of the best intentions starting out, the pretty little vegetable garden in SJC has been less than what I would call successful. Between the rabbits, birds, raccoons, opossums and our own dogs there has been little produce left over for us! We have not had one tomato off these enormous plants mainly because when they are green and of good size they start to resemble tennis balls and my dogs remove them to play with them.
All the other fruits and vegetables seem to disappear in the night with the exception of these big red cabbages and garlic. We will definitely need to put up a lot more fencing next season! Somehow having a Wildlife Sanctuary and a vegetable garden do not work well together. Thank goodness for farmer's markets!

Guess What's For Dinner?

If you guessed stuffed artichokes, you're right! This year I added a couple more plants that I grow in the flower beds because they are so dramatic and lovely all year round. That way we can have them fresh from the garden a number of times during spring and summer!