New Chicks, Garden Update 5/30/13

About a week ago I was picking up chicken feed at the feed store and they had all their chicks for half price. I couldn't resist those sweet little peepers so I bought six of them, three leghorns and three barred rocks. This brings my flock total to 20 birds. 

 



 

The garden is growing slowly due to cool temps (we have been in the upper 50's to low 60's) here in the PNW for the last ten days. The weather is supposed to warm up starting tomorrow so I expect everything to take off. Here are pictures of the garden and what I have growing there.

 

Potatoes

Yellow Finn

All Blue and French Fingerling

 

I planted red and yellow shallots and red, white and yellow onions

 

Snap Peas, Green Onions, Bulb Onions, Leeks and Shallots

 

The raspberries are here temporarily until the fruit garden is ready 

 

Ever bearing Raspberries

 

I planted lettuce between the broccoli and cabbages

 

 

 

I have 66 (I think) tomato plants in 15 varieties. I planted lettuce, red onions, basil and peppers with them. These plants are great companions for each other

 

Tomatoes

Tomatoes

And more tomatoes

These two tomatoes are the same variety (Rose) but the front one is a grafted plant. I can't wait to see which one produces more, and if the extra cost (about 3X) for the grafted tomato is worth it.

 

 

 

Yay! Little green cherry tomatoes

Jenny cherry tomato

 

I save about $150 dollars a year by making my own pickles, plus they taste way better than most of the store bought ones

Pickling Cucumbers, Slicing Cucumbers and Lettuces

 

Here is a mixed variety of summer and winter squash 

Sugar Pumpkins and Delicata, Banana, Butternut and French winter squash
Striped and Gold Zucchini 

 

Artichokes in the lower garden bed

Globe Artichokes

 

Samwise the Brave planted twenty sunflowers in five 15 gallon tubs

 

Mammoth Gray and Pike's Peak Sunflowers

 

I have two varieties of mint

Chocolate Mint and Spearmint

Carrots and Kale

Ingot Carrots and Tuscan Kale

Ground Cherries a.k.a. Husk Tomatoes a.k.a. Cape Goose Berries

Aunt Molly's Ground Cherries

Close up of ground cherry blossoms

 

Garlic

Incheliam Red Garlic

Cauliflower, cabbage and beets

I planted three varieties of beets. Golden, Red Ace and Chioggia



 

Well that's the garden this week. Have a great day!