Merry Christmas

I wanted to stop this day 

and wish all my gardening friends a 

Merry Christmas! 

Looking forward to sharing glimpses of your garden in 2011.

Blessings,

Debbie

Batting 1000 and Still Going Strong

I am late for Monday Harvest (It is Wednesday!) but since I had surgery on Friday, I hope I will be given some grace. BTW thanks for all the prayers for my surgery. Surgery was successful... now on the road to recovery!! YEAH!!

Many of you have followed my delight of the ENERGIZE BUNNY tomato cherry plant. (For more info look for posts that have the Energizer Bunny label in the right column of my blog.) The plant earned its name not only because it keeps going and going but because it was mislabeled when I bought it and I don't know what it is!! It was supposed to be a determinate patio variety reaching a height of 4 feet. However, this plant has grown out of control!!! If I could stretch it out, it would be at least 12 feet high. As of today, we have picked 1009 tomatoes from this one plant. And to think I was so excited when we reached 100. I am glad I decided to count the tomatoes this year.  I apologize for the picture but I just had my daughter grab a quick picture with my phone.

I believe my sweet husband has enjoyed bringing in the harvest for me. Of course, his delight may be in watching my joy at the harvest. I love this man!! And I am so blessed!!!

Blessings,

Debbie

MaMa's Cornbread

This isn't a garden post but I wanted to share something exciting. Well... exciting for me! My mother's cornbread recipe was featured on the Southern Bite blog. My mom loved to cook for others and there was always room for one more at her table. I miss her!!

Blessings,

Debbie

Harvest Monday 10/18/10 Not Much Happening

There is not much happening in my garden. I still have tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers growing. My youngest son did harvest another 49 cherry tomatoes and my sweet husband harvested a couple of peppers. He said that I have lots of tomatoes starting to turn colors so I am hoping to have more tomatoes this week. The weather has been so nice. Highs in the low to mid 80s and lows around 50. I wish that I could get out to enjoy it more but I did make it to the deck a couple of times to sit on the swing. I couldn't stay long but it was nice.

I will have my surgery this Friday. I am ready to get it done and start the road to recovery. My family has been wonderful. Tonight they cooked a new recipe that I found on a wonderful blog called Southern Plate. Check out this recipe:

Slow Cooker Chicken and Wild Rice – and YOUR Cheering Section!

My kids gave it the special label of KEEPER. They were excited about how great it tasted and how EASY it was to make.

My harvest totals this week:

Peppers 3.6 oz

Tomates 6.1 oz.

Sorry no pictures this week. 

Be sure to check out the other posts for HARVEST MONDAY!

Blessings,

Debbie

Harvest Monday 10/11/10 Stepping Up to the Plate

It's MONDAY and that means it is time to join Daphne and the other gardeners for Monday Harvest. Take some time to see what others are growing, planning, or creating in their gardens.

My guys are stepping up to the plate and taking care of things in my garden since I can't do it right now. Larry did a super job of harvesting the last of the okra. It was so tall that no one else could reach it!

Joshua tackled the job of clearing the okra plants (or should I say trees) from the garden. I think he enjoyed using the clippers...

and pulling the okra stalks.

He was amazed at the roots on this okra plant. I guess when it hit the harder ground at the bottom of the raised bed that it took a turn to easier territory. (Ummmm... He needs a haircut!)

Caleb continues to take care of the tomatoes. This day he picked 128 cherry tomatoes from the mystery Energizer Bunny Plant. He was eager for step 2 of harvest - EATING! (Side note: We have harvested 815 cherry tomatoes to date from this plant and it is still going strong! I think we may hit 1000!!!)

I so appreciate MY GUYS for stepping up to the plate!! They are awesome!!

We still have cucumbers, tomatoes, and bell peppers growing in the garden. We had about a week where the thermometer did not creep into the 90s but the mercury pushed back to the 90s on Thursday and has remained there. My tomatoes and peppers bounced back with the cooler temps and are still going strong. Still no rain and no rain in the forecast. Everything is so dry and there is great concern for fires across the state.

Year to date Harvest
Okra               31.9 lbs
Bell Peppers     6.27 lbs
Garlic               2.14 lbs
Onions             0.25 lbs
Cantaloupe     12.5 lbs
Squash             0.19 lbs
Cucumbers       3.25 lbs
Green Beans     0.48 lbs
Tomatoes       18.69 lbs
TOTAL          75.67 lbs

Blessings,

Debbie

A Day Late and A Dollar Short

Well... that is an expression that I heard my grandfather say more than once. I am a day late for Harvest Monday but I didn't want to miss another week of sharing with my Garden Blog Friends. Also, it has been a while since I linked to Tuesday Garden Party.

I spent most of Monday at the doctor's office. I am now on limited activity until surgery sometime later this month. Surgery will keep me down for a few more weeks. This means NO gardening for me and I will need to depend on my family to keep an eye on things. I still have tomatoes, cucumbers, okra, green beans, and peppers growing in the garden. Eventually I will need to remove plants that are no longer producing and I MUST get my garlic and a few other things planted in the garden. I may have to pass on a few things that I had planned for my fall/winter garden this year.

This is my harvest from Wednesday. It seems like it took FOREVER for these peppers to turn a GOLDEN color.

We have had 109 days of 90+ degrees weather. Long HOT summer!! And we have had less than a half inch of rain for the last month! So HOT and DRY!! But finally that came to an end yesterday. The high was in the mid 80s and lows in the mid 50s. NICE! Still no rain and none in the near future. I think the Energizer Bunny tomato plant is enjoying the cooler weather. It has its second wind. My youngest son picked 66 cherry tomatoes yesterday. They were so pretty!! He told me there were a few that he couldn't reach. He was very proud of his harvest!! He even shared a few with me.

Harvest totals for the week:
Okra 101.85 oz
Cherry Tomatoes 12.2 oz
Bell Peppers 6.9 oz
Cucumbers 15.7 oz
Green Beans 4.1 oz
TOTAL 140.75 oz = 8.8 lbs

Blessings,

Debbie

Long Time No Post

I can't believe it has been over a month since my last post. I am still busy with my garden but with the start of school my days are full to overflowing.

I continue to harvest okra, bell peppers, and tomatoes from my garden. I have also harvested my first cucumbers since my last post. It is a race with the pickle worms to see who gets them first! The "Energizer Bunny" cherry tomato plant has given me 540 tomatoes to date. I have no idea if this is a normal but I am delighted with the crop from this plant. It is still loaded with green tomatoes and I expect to get many more before the weather gets too cool for tomatoes here in the South. I hope to harvest my first GOLDEN bell peppers this week. It seems like it has taken FOREVER for these plants to turn yellow. I am also getting a few green beans from my 3rd planting.

My harvest to date:
Okra         24.22 lb.
Tomatoes   16.07 lb
Bell Peppers 5.67 lb
Garlic           2.14 lb
Onion           0.25 lb
Cantaloupe  11.4  lb
Squash          0.19 lb
Cucumbers    1.64 lb
Green Beans  2.2  lb
YTD Totals   63.78 lb.

I have missed visiting everyone at Daphne's Monday Harvest. Hopefully, I will not have to miss another week with the friends I have met through a shared loved of gardening.

Blessings,

Debbie

Harvest Monday 08/16/10

With school starting for us next Monday, I realize that I still have many summer projects that need my attention. This week we painted our schoolroom. All the kids helped and we felt good about our job. Now we are busy organizing for the new year. As soon as we are done, I will post a picture but here are a few pictures of the work-in-progress.

Here are a few harvest pictures from the week.

My totals for the week: (in oz)
Okra            62 oz
Tomatoes    30.25 oz
Bell Peppers 1.75 oz
Cantaloupe   67.25 oz
Weekly Total 161.25 oz = 10.08 lbs

YTD Totals: (in lbs)
Okra 8.5 lbs
Tomatoes 8.7 lbs
Bell Peppers 2.8 lbs
Cantaloupes 8.2 lbs
Garlic 2.1 lbs
Onions 0.25 lbs
Squash 0.19 lbs
Total  30.74 lbs

As of today I have harvested 200 pods of okra this year and 328 cherry tomatoes. I am totally WOWed by this number. I am so glad I decided to keep an account of my harvest this year. It has been fun to watch the numbers grow.

Now if you want to see an amazing harvest of tomatoes. Check out Daphne's kitchen counter at her HARVEST MONDAY blog. While you're there, check out all the amazing harvests across the country.

Blessings,

Debbie

Harvest Monday 08-09-10 Okra and Tomatoes = GUMBO!

For a girl raised in Cajun country, okra and tomatoes in the garden means one thing . . . G U M B O !!!!! My kids have watched me save the okra harvested this year in anticipation of the BIG announcement - enough okra for gumbo!! You must realize we are a big family (7 kids) and even the adult children want to have gumbo made with mom's okra and tomatoes from the garden. (Don't worry Rachel I will send you some!) So as the okra trickles in at first, all the okra is cut and saved in the freezer. BUT today.... I cut 17 pods of okra!! We now have ENOUGH for a big pot of gumbo!

I don't have many pictures this week from my harvest. I have been busy completing this project. A friend asked me to make a t-shirt memory quilt as a graduation gift. The picture on Lauren's face makes my heart happy!

My harvest totals this week:

Okra 33.0 oz

Tomatoes 21.75 oz

Bell Peppers 9.25 oz

Squash 3.0 oz

WEEKLY TOTAL 67.00 oz

YEAR TO DATE:

Okra 74.5 oz

Tomatoes 108.5 oz

Bell Pepper 43.5 oz

Garlic 34.25 oz

Onions 4.0 oz

Cantaloupe 32 oz

Squash 3 oz

TOTAL YTD 299.75 oz (18.73 lbs)

Check out Daphne's blog to see what's happening around the world on HARVEST MONDAY!

Blessings,

Debbie

I HAVE GRANDBABIES.... of the Garden Kind!

Well.... what do you call the fruit from the suckers rooted from your tomato plants?

The cherry tomato plant of unknown variety that I have dubbed "the Energizer Bunny" continues to produce. I have now harvested 201 tomatoes from this plant and it continues to go strong. I have had to be creative in staking it since it was NEVER supposed to get this big. I think it likes being planted next to my okra.

And now the suckers that I rooted earlier in the season have fruit and the first one is starting to ripen. YEAH!

I actually have 2 suckers that have fruit. In the picture below, the suckers are in the front and the original plant is in the back.

I hope the sucker plants produce like the original plant. AND... I hope that if I save seeds I will get more of this plant next year.

Enjoy more gardens at the Tuesday Garden Party and Oh, How My Garden Grows.

Blessings,

Debbie

 

Harvest Monday 8/2/2010 My First Cantaloupe

I missed Harvest Monday last week because we were out of town for our annual Vacation/Family Reunion. A week of celebrating family with lots of delicious food and laughter mixed with joy of life moving at a slower pace. This was our 24th year to spend time at Clarkco State Park in Quitman, MS. The Beckman family filled 6 of the cabins at this park.

The excitement for me this week was the harvest of my first cantaloupe ever! And it was grown on a trellis!!

You can see the cantaloupe growing in the top right corner of the picture below.

I also weighed my garlic and potato onions this week since they are dry.

My harvest total this week

Okra 7.5 oz
Tomatoes 11.5 oz
Bell Peppers 14 oz
Cantaloupe 36 oz
Garlic 34.25 oz
Onions 4 oz
Total this week 108.25 oz

While I was gone, my daughter ASHLEY was happy to pick these from my garden.

Make sure you head over to Daphne's to enjoy other Harvest Monday posts.

Blessings,


Debbie


P.S. Thanks, Erin, thanks for following my blog.

Criminal Investigation

While enjoying a stroll through my garden, I stopped in my tracks when I saw...

THE EVIDENCE

(that a crime had been committed)

I franticly started searching for....

THE VICTIM

(beautiful tomato leaves cut short in the prime of their life)

So the hunt began. I knew the dark pellets that looked like tiny grenades were left behind by none other than "The Evil Tomato Hookworm." I searched and searched and stopped only to capture....

A CRIMINAL ON THE MOST WANTED LIST

(THE ARMYWORM)

Back to the hunt. Finally...

CAUGHT IN THE ACT

(Tomato Hookworm aka Hornworm)

The criminal was quickly apprehended, found guilty, and sentenced to...

DEATH BY TENNIS SHOE

(aka "The Victory Dance")

Hope this wasn't too boring. I hate most worms in my garden. Join other gardeners at the TUESDAY GARDEN PARTY and  OH, HOW MY GARDEN GROWS!

Blessings,

Debbie

Harvest Monday 07/19/10 Ups and Downs

Each week I enjoy checking out the Monday Harvest on Daphne's blog. So hop on over and check out what others are harvesting in their garden.

This past week I drove many miles making two round trips to Nashville and one to Mobile. This week I hope to spend very little time in the car.

My harvest totals this week was 38 oz.

Okra                  7.5  oz        Count 11                    

Tomatoes       19.75 oz       Count 32 Cherry, 3 Early Girl, 5 Roma

Bell Peppers   10.75 oz       Count 3 Big Bertha, 1 Red

Blog will be short today. I need to take my new laptop to see the Geek Squad. Problems with blue screen of death and the video adapter. (sigh)

My UP... I have been watching this red pepper anticipating picking my first ever RED bell pepper.

My DOWN... when I picked it and turned it around to inspect it, I found this unpleasant surprise...

Such sadness... but I have others that are starting to turn red and, hopefully, they will be without blemish.

Blessings,

Debbie

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas... well... sort of...


Look my green peppers are starting to turn red! Yippee!!

Busy day but wanted to share my excitement!!


Blessings,


Debbie

Do Frogs Eat Aphids

I found another frog sitting on an okra leaf as if he had found a giant lily pad. I searched the net and can you believe that some people grow aphids to feed to frogs!! I sure hope that all the frogs that I am seeing in the garden will keep the aphids out!!!

The cantaloupe has reached the top of the trellis. I find myself looking at it and thinking... REACH FOR THE SKY!!

Check out the Tuesday Garden Party at An Oregon Cottage and Oh, How My Garden Grows!

Blessings,

Debbie