Planning Ahead To Fall While Enjoying Early Summer Bounty

Strawberry Spinach 

Summer may have just started with the bulk of harvests still ahead, yet, now is the time to plan for the Fall/Winter garden. Most Fall plants benefit from a couple of light frosts right before harvest so planning is necessary to make sure the plants mature around the date of your first expected frost. I've found that I need to add about two weeks to the expected maturity date to compensate for slower growth later in the year.
Here is the garden this week 

Parsnips take a long time to grow to maturity (130 days) so I like to plant the seeds around the first of July so I'll have good sized roots to add to fall/winter soups, stews and muffins

I got too busy with other parts of the garden and neglected to harvest my leeks so they went to seed. Leeks are also winter hardy plants that take a long time to mature so I pulled out the old ones and planted new seeds. They should be ready by November

Though my cabbages are small they were starting to go to seed so I picked some of them. There was just enough to make a mini batch of sauerkraut. I'll be planting more seeds in about a month for fall/winter harvest

The beans are climbing their way up the trellises and I've noticed lots of little buds developing. Looks like I'll have a bumper crop this year

The garbanzo beans are flowering. Seeing the blossoms, I now know why they are also called chickpeas, as the flower looks like a smaller version of a snap pea blossom

The first of the pie cherries are ripe. I made a luscious tart with this picking. The tree set more than I initially thought so we'll have plenty for more treats and to freeze for later use

I picked the Cilantro  and Basil. I had just enough basil for a batch of delicious pesto. Click on this Link for the recipe

A couple of the sunflowers are blooming. They add such a cheerful air to the garden

Weekly harvest:

3 ounces cilantro
3 ounces strawberries
3 ounces peas
1 ounces strawberry spinach
1 pound 12 ounces cabbage
4 ounces basil
3 pounds 5 ounces cherries

Yearly total:

18 pounds 12 ounces