Sugar Daddy Peas = Yummy Sweetness!

My sugar daddy peas usually don't make it inside to measure the harvest. To me they taste best straight from the vine to my mouth!! But today I had just finished lunch so these guys will wait and be enjoyed with my supper tonight.

Sugar Daddy Peas - 6 oz.

I also found this little guy enjoying the sun.

Debbie

Hooray for Weed Eaters!

My garden has been much neglected this spring. I started a month ago working on the weeds between the beds with the weed eater but ran out of string. Then the weather has been crazy and so has our family schedule. Today I decided to conquer the weeds.

Here are the before pictures.

Here is the after picture.

I am also thankful that the weed eater found the snake 

before I saw it and the snake saw me. 

He was small only about 14 inches long but

enough to scare me and get my heart rate up 

especially since I had just reached down in that area

to move something.

Check out HARVEST MONDAY to see what delights others are gathering from their gardens.

Blessings,

Debbie

Harvest Monday 07-16-12

The word for this week was R A I N ! ! ! !  I think we tried to make up for all the weeks without rain last week!!! My garden was happy for the first two days!!

I did make a wonderful BAKED ZUCCHINI AND TOMATO PIE using veggies from my garden. YUM!! Thanks, Kristen at We Are That Family!

We are enjoying all the tomatoes! Harvest was on the low side this week.

Okra 7.8 oz

Tomatoes 75.9 oz

Peppers 0.6

Total this week 84.3 oz

I am linking with Monday Harvest! If you love garden blogs or just want to learn more about gardening, check out out the other blogs!

Debbie

Harvest Monday 07-09-12

It was a great week in the garden. I think this has been my largest harvest ever! This with extremely dry conditions. Yesterday and today we have received a good rain and my garden looks so happy.

I didn't get pictures of everything but here are some...

The Juliet Tomatoes are happy even with the heat and dry conditions.

The Juliets above were harvested in one day.

Lots of tomatoes make my boys and their mom happy!

I was down one day and my sweet husband harvest this for me.

The heat is causing me problems with the peppers.

I can't figure out how to rotate this picture of my Louisiana Purple Beans (which I had to shell because they stayed too long on the vine) and my Florida Speckled Butter Beans.

This was my first year to grow yellow onions. I am pleased. 

They are drying in the garage and will be weighed later.

Harvest Week of 7-3-12 to 7-9-12

Okra 51.9 oz

Tomatoes 162.9 oz

Bell Peppers 17.8

Zucchini 16.2 oz

Beans 15 oz.

TOTAL 263.8 oz = 16.49 lbs

YTD Harvest 44.82 lbs

Check out what others are harvesting in their gardens at Harvest Monday at Daphne's Dandelions.

Debbie

Harvest Monday 06-13-11

It's MONDAY and that means another time to celebrate what is happening in our gardens with HARVEST MONDAY on Daphne's Dandelions.

This week I enjoyed my first ever harvest of soybeans. They quickly became EDAMAME!!!

I also had my first harvest ever of Cherokee Trail of Tears beans. Now... all the beans I planted were black but ... as you can see... some of the beans harvested were white. I knew something was wrong when one plant had white flowers but all the others had beautiful lavender flowers. I bought these seeds from a company online. Annie's Granny sent some to me that I will plant later this summer for a fall harvest. Although this was a small harvest, the amount will be add a nice touch to our supper tonight of MEXICAN PILE-ON.

I also harvested my first tomato of the year. My okra continues to produce. The okra loves the hot, dry weather!!

HARVEST TOTALS

Week ending 06-11-11
Okra	8.30	oz.
Tomatoes	0.30	oz.
Beans	20.00	oz.
TOTAL	28.60	oz.	1.79	lbs

2011 Year to Date
Okra	15.40	oz.	0.96	lbs
Tomatoes	0.30	oz.	0.02	lbs
Strawberries	4.80	oz.	0.30	lbs
Mustard Greens	26.00	oz.	1.63	lbs
Beans	20.20	oz.	1.26	lbs
TOTAL	66.70	oz.	4.17	lbs

Debbie

Monday Harvest - 06-06-11

June has arrived and I am hoping to participate in one of my favorite events on a regular basis. Sharing with my other garden friends at Daphne's Harvest Monday. I so enjoy reading what is happening in other gardens and I gain so much in the knowledge they have to share.

I harvested my first okra (6.3 oz) this year! YIPPEE!! 20 days earlier than last year!!!

Oh.... Do you see what I see?

In other news, it is HOT!! We have had 4 days of 100+ temps. The okra loves it but my tomatoes and beans are not feeling the love.

Be sure to check out the other Monday Harvests at Daphne's blog.

Excitement Followed By Disappointment

I was so excited today when my seed order from Urban Farmer arrived. I ordered Red Pontiac Potatoes, Butterfly Bush Mix Seeds, and Christmas Bean Seeds.

But when I opened the package for the Christmas beans, the disappointment came...

 Yep.. just 10 seeds. I went to the website and it very clearly says 10 seeds. My mistake!!! I didn't look closely at the description. I had been looking at other seed stores on the web and for the same price and item I would receive 25-30 seeds. In trying to finish my order quickly, I should have read better. I will know for next time. Live and learn. I had purchased Christmas beans back in January on a trip to visit my mother-in-love and promptly came home and misplaced the seeds. I think they are probably hiding with the seeds that EG sent me and I can't find. (sigh)

Now... how much yield do you think I will get from 10 seeds?

Blessings,

Debbie


and, yes, for those of you who have been reading for a while and are wondering, my google ID has changed from debiclegg to Debbie in MS

Harvest Monday 03-21-11

The weather has been beautiful here!! The temps most days are reaching into the 80s and I think we are now to the point where the temperature will stay above 50 at night. We are adding 7 4x4 beds to our garden. I am so excited!!!

The mustard greens have sprouted...

And the garlic (I was very late getting these into the ground!)...

The strawberries are blooming and I even have a few strawberries. This plant sprouted outside the box!

I transplanted a fig tree that my mother-in-love rooted for me...

I love spending time in my garden. I am eagerly looking forward to spending time preparing the new beds and planting seeds this week.

Be sure to hop over to Daphne's site and see how other gardeners are celebrating the coming of spring and anticipating Monday Harvest!!

Blessings,

Debbie

Harvest Monday 02-21-2011

Hello everyone!!! I have missed all of you. I am still not completely recovered from my surgery. I have a few minor problems that are still lingering. My sweet husband had surgery for a cervical herniated disc in early January. Thankfully, he woke from the surgery PAIN FREE and only needed tylenol twice after surgery for a headache. He is doing great! I had an emergency room visit in mid-January for what we all thought was a stroke!! VERY SCARY!!! After many tests, I was diagnosed with a COMPLEX MIGRAINE that caused the stroke-like symptoms. They think it was triggered from the hormone medication that I was given after my surgery in October. Needless to say, I am off that medication and I think my body is getting back to normal.

For over a week the temp each day has been at least 70s and very sunny. ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL!! I even saw my first daffodils on Friday!! It must be spring here in the south. The blue birds have even been spotted working on their nests. Saturday I spent time in my neglected garden. My youngest daughter told me that my garden looked sad. It has been so neglected since early September since I have been sick.With the help of my oldest son, we cleaned out old plants and I turned the soil in a couple of beds. I also planted some garlic and potato onions. I had hoped to get these in months ago but life did not allow that to happen. This week I hope to plant spinach, broccoli, and mustard greens. I also hope to start a few seeds inside. We always get a COLD SNAP but, hopefully, it won't be too bad.

Be sure to "hop" over to Daphne's site to check out all the other posts at Harvest Monday. I am so behind in reading everyone's posts for the last few months but I have been a little distracted. I am looking forward to Gardening 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

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