Garden Update
On the Saturday before Mother's Day, we finally got a beautiful weekend and though the garden wasn't quite dry enough to work first thing in the morning, by the afternoon it was working beautifully. I was able to mow around everything only getting stuck once. Then I started in tilling the garden so we could plant a couple rows of potatoes in that area to the left of the strawberry bed. Further to the left we planted five rows of various pole beans and I pounded in fence posts and strung up panels for them to climb later on. On beyond that, we planted another half dozen rows or so of various other dry shell beans. All these beans are test plantings to see what varieties grow well so that perhaps in the future we can winnow down our selection and plant what works best for us.
Unfortunately, I was too beat by the end of the day that I didn't really get much for other pictures, except one to rub in the face of Debby to show off all the asparagus coming out. This is always my favorite time of the year when we have more asparagus and mushroom than we know what to do with. For the last two days, we've eaten asparagus, morel mushroom omelets for breakfast! Because I pickled a lot of asparagus last year and still have a lot left, we are giving the bulk of it away this year and just keeping enough to thoroughly get sick of eating it.
P.S. Due to circumstances, I probably won't be able to get back to hunt any more morels mushrooms this week and the season will be over by the time I do. Fortunately my brother is visiting and he was able to pick about 3 or 4 times the amount of morels I have found thus far, mostly due to them being yellow and much larger than the gray morels I was finding in the early part of the season and partly because this has turned out to be a stellar year for morel mushrooms. He was so kind (because he doesn't like eating them) to give us a huge sack full and so our refrigerator is stuffed with enough mushrooms to last us until we are sick of eating them in everything.
I'll have to remember about pickling asparagus. I planted more this year in hopes of a better harvest next year, although mine has happily kept us in salads and omelets. It's never as good frozen, but on the other hand, having another homegrown vegetable for winter means would be welcome anyway. Leigh
ReplyDeleteAnother preservation method I use is to turn it into soup and pressure can it. I don't do it very often as we prefer out tomato soup that I pressure can.
DeleteThat top photo is impressive Ed, as are all your morel mushrooms! My God, you have more than you know what to do with and I watch people on Youtube treat their handful of them like truffles!
ReplyDeleteI've always heard they sell for around $50/pound fresh and $200/pound dried but have never sold any. If we get enough like we do this year, we opt to make a friend and give them away. But this will certainly be a year I remember for quite some time as a bumper crop year.
DeleteI just haven't been inspired to do much this year, so I'm jealous. I'd gladly help you with that asparagus! -Kelly
ReplyDeletePerhaps if I ever go big, I'll have an asparagus company that ships fresh asparagus weekly... when in season.
DeleteYou don’t do half-measures.
ReplyDeleteWe are more of the doing it while the getting is good so when we can't do it anymore, at least we have the memories.
DeleteGlad you got so many! I'll have to try them one of these days. The garden is looking amazing!
ReplyDeleteFor now. Wait until the weed season starts!
DeleteLooking good, Ed. Can't wait to hear and see how it all turns out. I am still waiting for a good weekend of weather to get yard/garden stuff done.
ReplyDeleteIt is hot and dry now so we'll see how long it will continue to look good.
DeleteMy little asparagus patch puts out skinny little asparagus which become tall fern shoots. It has been about 8 years but I am still "rooting" for them!
ReplyDeleteThere may be a variety difference. The all green asparagus is a lot thinner that those that are purple. All of them though put up tall fern like shoots at the end of the picking season. We burn those shoots in early spring to jumpstart production.
DeleteYou garden looks so open. Mine is just a small version of Fort Knox, as I try to keep out the deer. I have put up a row of fencing like that for my cucumbers, which I planted on Wednesday. I have tomatoes growing with a grow light in the basement. We should be past any frosts. Nice looking garden. I need to try asparagus, but it's a several year commitment.
ReplyDeleteWe too have fencing all around to prevent deer but have a lot more area inside the fence to be able to spread things out. This asparagus patch is probably fifteen years old so yes, it is a bit of a commitment. However, I know people who just grow it in their yard.
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