After a week away, I went to the garden expecting that I would be able to harvest a few things. I was not disappointed. There is a really lovely mix of summer crops nearing the end of production and fall crops just beginning their long season.
The pepper plants will bear until hit by frost–not too soon, I hope.
The peppers were still growing and I took three. The black beauty eggplants were looking good. I took two of those, leaving several others to ripen as well as an Asian eggplant that had grown quite a bit in the previous days.
One of the eggplants I picked will be going into a curry.
My chard has been attacked by harlequin bugs, which I picked off. I expect that the chard will continue to be part of my diet until we get snow or freezing rain, so I wanted to get it insect-free.
This is a very spicy, peppery arugula.
My arugula, well protected from voles and rabbits by bird netting, is thriving, and I will be having a salad from that today. I hope it grows well into the fall and winter, since it is a lovely tonic against the onslaught of cold weather. The peas, also protected, are beginning to blossom, and the turnips now are showing little purple tops above the soil. Fortunately, the rabbits and voles seem to find other things tastier, so these are growing without cover.
I hope to have peas this fall.
My haul also included some leeks and the cutting celery I have enjoyed so much this season. It seems to be perking up in the colder weather.
I took the opportunity to redistribute the bird netting, tacking it down over my parsley and carrots, both of which have been mowed by either rabbits or voles—I’m not sure which. I also created a bird netting shelter over my lettuces. Then I pulled out the tomatoes—kudos to Amana Orange and Cherokee Purple for surviving the season—and the eggplants that had stopped blossoming or didn’t already have an eggplant forming. This will help make the space a bit more open and riskier for the voles to venture into.
Leeks, chard, and cutting celery were among my take home crops.
Soon I’ll have to get back in and weed and mulch and I may plant a few more seeds yet when I bring the cold frame back into the garden. That will require a little more open space though. So far, I’m still savoring the last of the summer crops.
AND a fellow gardener gave me some of his dahlias…
arlingwords 