My garden, to date

My friend Dr. Monkey is enjoying the fruits (and vegetables!) of his labor in the garden. He lives in the South where author Bailey White says vegetation "doesn't know it's place". I'm having some pretty good success too here in the frozen tundra of Minnesota. These images are NOT mine - they are shamelessly stolen from the interwebs. I have lost the USB cable to my camera so my own photos will have to wait.

Daily I marvel at the miracle of seeds, stuck into the dirt, that grow into actual edible plants.

We harvested all our beets - my sister made a lovely beet/red potato salad from them and I pickled the rest. YUM! What this beginner gardener didn't know was to plant several rows about 2 weeks apart. But I have more in the ground now.

The spinach and lettuce just grew themselves. Seriously, if I owned a pig to slaughter, we'd be eating BLT's forever. More spinach will go into the ground at the end of July. Johnny C is making cold frames so we can harvest into the late Fall.

Carrots are up as are onions. I've harvested a few onions, little as they are, and used them in a salad. Italian tomatoes are there, but too green - I suspect this is from this summer's lack of hot sunshine. Cucs are growing nicely on Johnny C's homemade trellis. Peppers, both sweet and hot, are coming along. Three varieties of basil are already in use. We have two baby-size green pumpkins and many siblings on the way. Red raspberries get eaten as we pick them - they rarely make it all the way to the house.

From now on, I can't imagine not having a vegetable garden. Now I'd like to add chickens and some fruit trees. I'm riding the Urban Homesteader wave!