garden time-lapse

It's so easy to forget what things looked like, once they've changed. Here's a picture from last year, pre-garden. I didn't take many pictures of this area, because it was kind of ugly. No, I mean really ugly. More like this: Nothing would grow there! This, my friends, is what happens when your builder does not use good topsoil when doing the final grade. It's a mess.

You've seen the pictures of our solution. Just to remind you, though, here's the box garden, just built. Then with soil.

Early plantings and walkways.
Filling out.
Really growing into itself, now! There are blossoms on the sugar snap peas (who have grown tall enough to need a second tier of jute support twine) and blossoms and tiny tomatoes on some of the tomato plants! The scarlet runner beans have their first flowers and the red cabbage have quadrupled in size. See? The only bad news is that something is eating the eggplants and I can't remember what I planted - seedwise - in parts of the garden that are now sprouting things. They don't look like weeds, but I have no clue what they are.

This should be exciting!

first root

From seed, I eventually learned what was vegetable and what was weed. Here, these left are definitely vegetable. What is that hint of red? Radish. Is it full-grown already? Yes. Look at this! Like red marbles. It was delicious! I do hope we get more than one at a time in future, though. In other small beginnings, these are the melons. Wait'll you see them in a week or two.

Post-script - June 25: For a reason unknown to me, this pictured radish - and one other - were the only radishes [radishi?] I got. The tops continued to grow - but nothing else! One plant did develop a bit of a root but was horribly woody and so spicy-hot I quickly spat it out.

The rest of the radish tops were summarily pulled and composted.

So there.

But does anyone have an idea why this would have happened?! Help, please. . . .

more on the green beans

When last we talked, I had been told that green bean plants produce only some 12 beans per plant. This was not good news. I can eat 12 beans at one go!

I looked at the landscape and reassessed. I put green bean seeds everywhere I could squeeze some room. Good news, they all came up! We have pole beans, bush beans, and beans of many colour (although they all look pretty much the same right now). Then, I found this site - The Green Bean Backgrounder - which clearly states that green bean plants can produce up to 50 beans per plant.

I may have a few plants too many. . . . Oh well!

Meanwhile, I am concerned about the cabbage. They're beautiful! How will I ever bring myself to eat one of these?!

On the other hand, three aren't going to go very far. I'm going to have to start another crop of them.