gardening – Page 4 – Planet B Gardens

pickled summer squash

When summer squash comes on, it’s amazing how many gourds mature quickly from each plant. I happen to love fresh summer squash, but even the yield from my little garden was too much for eating fresh. I decided to pickle some. Happy experiment — summer squash makes the best pickled veggies ever! Here’s what I did: Sterilize canning jars and lids in boiling water Slice each gourd in half lengthwise and into slices 1/8″ – 1/4″ thick Pack sliced summer squash into canning jars with a dozen or so whole black peppercorns In a saucepan, mix 1 cup of white distilled vinegar with 1 cup water (adjust this amount and the following for

August 13, 2016

purple cauliflower

Note to self (really, this whole blog is a note to self, but I’m cool with you looking over my shoulder), check every plant for its readiness to harvest. Based on my spot-checks of cauliflower I’d assumed all were the same ping-pong ball size at this point. Almost missed one that was ready for harvest a day or two ago. Thankfully it’ll still be good in the cauliflower casserole I’m making this weekend.

black beauty tomatoes

First summer tomatoes starting to ripen — black beauties!

small broccoli

Brassicas this year — broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage — could be doing better, at least as far as vegetables for eating goes. The purple cauliflower and red mammoth cabbage plants are large, but the flowered heads are almost nonexistant 14 weeks after planting. The broccoli plants are putting out shoots of small broccoli heads similar to broccolini instead of big compact heads, and are bolting and flowering quickly. The bees love the broccoli flowers, and the little heads taste good, so all is not lost. Still, wanted to know what I could do to encourage larger heads next year. I asked one of our local farmers’ market organic farmers what might

August 8, 2016

august jungle

Harvesting veggies is like a fun archeological expedition this time of year. I’ve been admittedly lax on the pruning and staking, and let a dozen or so sunflowers seeds take root from the leftover sunflower greens seeds in the composted soil. The result is a bit of an August jungle garden. I kind of like its wildness. Two days ago I harvested all the summer squash but the tiny starts. Today I harvested a bucketful of new mature ones. These babies grow quickly! Purple jalapenos have been my best producer so far this year. I pickled a few jars of rings so far and it looks like I have many

August 2, 2016

chioggia beets

Harvested fresh from the garden this morning for a lunchtime salad — chioggia beets. First time I’ve grown them. So pretty, with a mild flavor that’s perfect fresh in a salad.

collard wraps

What to do with fresh collard greens? Turns out they make a fantastic wrap material. As a bonus, this recipe fits the criteria for a range of diet-restricted guests: gluten-free, vegan, paleo, and organic (if you use organic ingredients). I use fresh red cabbage, carrots, collard greens, jalapenos, and garlic from my garden — and the gardens of my community of local, organic farmers — supplemented by organic lemons, shredded unsweetened coconut, coconut oil, and Braggs’ Amino Acids. The recipe is simple: shred the red cabbage and julienne the carrots. Chop fresh garlic (early young garlic is best) and fresh jalapeno. Add to the carrot cabbage mix. Mix in a couple tablespoons of

July 10, 2016

spring blooms

Summer is coming….

roasted radishes

Radishes fresh from the garden are good for adding a crunchy bite to a salad or sandwich, but my favorite way to eat radishes is roasted. Preheat your oven to 450F, halve and quarter the radishes, toss with a little olive oil and coarse salt, and place on a cast iron skillet. I added a few whole garlic cloves and sprigs of fresh thyme, too. Roast for 7 minutes, turn, and roast for another 8 minutes or until soft. The roasted radishes taste nothing like their fresh counterparts. They’re juicy and slightly sweet with a satisfying pop when you bite into them.

first 2016 radish

Will leave the rest to get a bit bigger, but couldn’t resist an early sample.