nefaeria

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

For the last few gardening seasons I have been participating in The Growing Challenge, and this is my '2010 crop report' to share with others in the challenge {or anyone else who would for whatever reason care how my garden did :) }.

Last year I used a rating system from 1 to 5 {1 being the lowest and 5 being the highest}, which was an idea that I got from Gumboot Goddess. Simple yet effective.

Beans {Bush & Pole}

5. I had plenty to trade/swap, give away and eat. Our freezer is full of them and we were able to collect plenty of seed too. The star this year was Contender bush beans.

Beets

4. We got amazing greens again this year and the roots did better than last year. Hopefully next year will be a 5!

Carrots

3. Better than last year. Still have a boron issue.

Chard

5. Same issues as the beans. More than we know what to do with. Our freezer is packed with it as well, AND it is still kicking after plenty of hard frosts.

Corn

2. Any fruit that grew was pretty much eaten by critters before we could get any. Got some nice stalks, that's about it.

Garlic

1. Complete failure. It died before it even got started.

Herbs

5. All did excellent and we have more new perennials.

Kale

4. Got a touch of powdery mildew, but was caught in time. Still doing well in the garden.

Lettuce

5. We had LOTS of salads this year!

Nasturtiums

5. They never disappoint me!

Onions

4. The Evergreens did very well, the Red Barons were a bit more of a challenge.

Peas

5. Plenty in the freezer and still growing.

Potatoes

4. Some of the tatters were a little runty, but overall we were happy.

Pumpkins

5. These guys took over the garden. Even after giving many away, and making plenty of pies, we still have gaggles. We also have a lot of blossoms in our freezer and craploads of seed. Powdery mildew lost the battle!

Radish

4. Nice tops and bottoms this year!

Spinach

5. No bolting this year! Still growing.

Squash

4. If it weren't for the powdery mildew, I think that they would have been a 5.

Sunflowers

5. We had gorgeous blossoms from August to the end of October. I want to grow more varieties next year. We got plenty of seed and cuts. Along with the pumpkins, they were my pride and joy this season.

Tomatoes

4. There was some late blight, but a fruitful season.

Turnips

4. Hobo did VERY well and Golden Globe did ok.

So there you have it. :)

Sláinte!

Laurel

Saturday, November 13, 2010

A Sneak Peek of Our New Esty Pretties!

In the next couple of days I will be adding a few vintage items to our Etsy shop. Here is just a few photos of what will be available shortly {and I hope to add some more soon!}.

Sláinte!

Laurel