Last night before bed I went to bed I watered the greenhouse vegetable garden.
If you don’t do garden chores in your pajamas, you should reconsider it because it’s really a lot of fun. Plus it makes the neighbors who stare at you through their back windows {because they don’t have cable?} think you are a total nut. Which is fine by me.
Look at Lemon. Isn’t she beautiful?
Ever since I planted my Meyer Lemon Tree in January I’ve been wondering if I would get any lemons the first year. Well folks, it looks like we just might. Erin sent me a picture of her lemon tree loaded with lemons in January and if all goes well, we should have a few too. I couldn’t be more excited!
A fresh batch of Swiss chard went into the garden gutters last night. Since Swiss chard grows really well in the fall and winter months I’ll transplanted it to the garden as soon as it gets big enough.
It’s official, we now have baby cucumbers growing in the greenhouse. I think these are the burpless ones {my favorite}.
And holy smokes! Look at at how tall the greenhouse tomatoes are getting. I planted 2 green zebra tomato plants in the old chicken broader early this spring and now they are at least 8 feet tall.
I’ll have to give them a trim {which I hate doing} pretty soon so more energy will go to producing tomatoes rather than new leaves and shoots.
Heirloom tomato season is just around the corner… and I couldn’t be more excited.
~Mavis
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Kelli says
Hi Mavis! Quick question: Did you make your greenhouse or purchase it? I would really, realllllllly like one, and yours seems perfect for our space.
Mavis Butterfield says
We purchased it. 🙂
Deanna says
Hi Mavis,
Seeing your picture watering begs me to ask the question I have been wondering…. With property and a garden the size of yours, how do you manage your water bill?
Do you factor that expense into your over-all costs of garden operation?
Curious!
Cecily says
I’m with you Mavis. I am sooo looking forward to loads of heirloom tomatoes. I harvested one (Dr. Wyche’s Yellow) on Monday and I was in heaven. The Cherokee Purples are starting to color up and I am out there daily speaking all kinds of encouragement to them. I’m sure my neighbor thinks I’m a nut too!
Mavis Butterfield says
Ha! Us nuts have to stick together. 🙂
Cecily says
Mavis I was wondering if you grow pickling cucumbers or just the sweet ones? My garbage disposals, I mean kids, eat pickles like they are going out of style, and since they only like Clausens and mine, I grow my own pickling cukes and make 60 to 70 pints of pickles every year.
Mavis Butterfield says
This year, I am growing Marketmore, Lemon, and Burpless. We love pickles too! Here is the link –> http://www.stage.onehundreddollarsamonth.com/how-to-grow-cucumbers-start-to-finish/
Cecily says
Thanks for the link. Those lemon cukes would make cool looking pickles! I’ll try them next year
Madam Chow says
My sad story:
Inspired by Mavis, I was determined to grow tomatoes this year. Every year that I’ve tried in this area, they have died due to rust or late blight. So, I bought clean, new dirt. I bough grow bags. I enriched the soil with gypsum to prevent blossom end rot. Several hundred dollars later, I had magnificent, 8-foot tall tomato plants, loaded with tomatoes with more coming.
Then Independence Day weekend happened.
Apparently, on that date, the local voles (I thought at first it was squirrels) discovered my plants and decimated them. Literally. I’ve tried everything I can think of, and no luck. Yes, I managed to rescue a few tomatoes, but that’s it, and I figure they’re about $125 each. No green zebras, Brandywine, Cherokee, Celebrity, San Marzano, etc., etc. Over the winter, we will be building PVC pipe cages to put over each plant next year.
Cecily says
That stinks Madam Chow:( I wish I could offer advice but It sounds like you’ve tried everything to get a successful harvest. I really hope your cages work and you get a bumper crop next year!
Paul says
I have a question about your ‘trimming’ of the tomatoes…so you basically ‘top’ them so they don’t grow any taller? I grew 15 heirloom varieties in San Diego and they were 6+ ft tall and healthy, but once they started fruiting, all the lower leaves started to die. I noticed as time went on, the tops of the plants were growing but not putting out any fruit. When they get 6-8 ft tall, am I supposed to cut off the main vines near the top?
Lisa says
I am right there with you about the PJ’s…. I went out to check my chickens in my bathrobe… big blue and white stripes… get a message on facebook later from a cousin making gentle fun of my outfit as she had been driving past and ‘couldn’t help but notice’
RE:hothouse… when we bought our place there was a green house here. We took down the shadecloth and covered in plastic.. Voila! Hothouse! Its been fantastic! Here in Tasmania it is the last month of winter and I am about to go out and pick a few fresh tomatoes!! Amazing!