Harvesting and fall cleanup

Grandma Olive was a big help today in the garden.  After we got home from having lunch at school with Kaitlyn we went out and harvested most of the herbs, the broccoli, celery, beans, and a bunch of arugula.  I didn't think the big pumpkin was ready because it doesn't look completely orange, but when we knocked on it the pumpkin definitely sounds ripe so we cut that off of the vine.  I'll have Al bring the pumpkins into the garage tonight so they don't freeze.  While harvesting the herbs I potted up 3 rosemary plants and a sage plant to keep growing inside over the winter.  We also pulled a whole bunch of weeds to clean up the planting boxes before I turn the soil over before it snows.

Tomato Harvest and fall cleanup

The weather has been so warm I hate to think about the garden season ending.  I thought I better get out and harvest what I can before the weather gets too cold.  I harvested the rest of the tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers that were out there.  I'll just ripen the tomatoes downstairs on the bar and can them when they're ready.  The celery and broccoli will be ready to harvest in the next couple days but I'll leave them out for now.  

As I was clearing out all of the squash vines I discovered a radish that I missed when I harvested them.  It seems too woody to eat so I'll throw that in the compost pile.

I had to throw in a couple marigold and petunia pictures.  It's so nice to see these bright colors remain even though there's a lot of brown around the neighborhood.  I've been watering the lawn just so it stays healthy going into the winter.

Celery

Broccoli with side shoots

Radish I missed earlier this season

Marigolds and petunias

Petunia and marigolds

Petunias

Tomatoes harvested to ripen inside

Tomatoes, Peppers & Cucumbers

Harvesting and canning

I harvested another pumpkin and set it out to cure.  The biggest pumpkin is almost ready to harvest but not quite yet. It's supposed to be warm & sunny this weekend (temps in the 80s) so it should help ripen that one.  There were more wax beans and lima beans to harvest so I picked those as well as a bunch of arugula.  The sunflower is developing nicely. 

I blanched, peeled and canned 3 quarts of tomatoes.  Kaitlyn helped me put the lemon juice & tomatoes into the jars - her first canning experience.  She also helped by spinning the salad spinner after I washed the arugula and she helped me shell the lima beans.  I froze a quart of wax beans and some lima beans.

another harvested pumpkin

lima beans

wax beans & lima beans harvested

big pumpkin almost ready

sunflower

lima beans in the shell

First pumpkin harvest and deer

I harvested our first pumpkin today.  I was going to harvest another one but the bees decided it was time to pollinate in that area so I left it alone.  It looks like a deer visited our garden last night.  There are hoof prints in one of the raised beds.  If it ate anything it wasn't much because I didn't notice any significant plant damage.

The first harvested pumpkin

sunflower

deer tracks

More harvesting and progress report

broccoli

parsley

tomato & pepper harvest

The sunflower is blooming!

pumpkin

Lots of harvesting today

tomato harvest

cucumber blossoms

sunflower

broccoli

sage

Funny looking carrot

buttercup squash

Freezing carrots

Harvest and pumpkin issue

I harvested more tomatoes and some carrots today.  Hopefully the pumpkins will be ok.  Many of the leaves have developed what I think is powdery mildew.  The pumpkins themselves look ok but the leaves have a powder on them.

Carrots

Pumpkin plants

Labor Day

We just got back from a relaxing weekend with the family in Northern Minnesota.  Kaitlyn and I went out to the garden to check on everything and ended up harvesting our first two buttercup squash, two broccoli plants, some large banana peppers, some arugula, and a whole big bowlful of tomatoes.  One of the smaller pumpkins is almost completely orange, one of the larger pumpkins is about half orange, and the biggest pumpkin is starting to turn orange.  While we were harvesting the tomatoes Jayne came out and commented on how healthy the largest pumpkin looks.  There are more wax beans ready to harvest but I was too sore after harvesting the rest to pick them.  I'll go out after I pick Kaitlyn up from school tomorrow to pick those.

This hosta has pretty purple flowers

Kaitlyn harvested our 1st buttercup squash

Lots of ripe tomatoes

Banana peppers

This pumpkin is almost all orange

Our biggest pumpkin starting to turn orange

Rosemary

Thyme

Harvesting before the long weekend

Kaitlyn helped me harvest a bunch of tomatoes, wax beans and jalapeno peppers before we go up North for Labor Day weekend.  The broccoli is ready to harvest too but I'll wait until we get back to harvest that.  I think a couple of the buttercup squash are ready - I'll check those when we get back too.

Kaitlyn with one of the ripe tomatoes

One of the tomato plants

This pumpkin plant is taking over the garden

Broccoli

Wax beans

Green pepper

Yesterday's Harvest

I'm finally feeling well enough to do a little light work in the garden.  Yesterday I harvested some tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, cayenne peppers, banana peppers, basil, parsley, and our first cucumber.  I'll make some salsa in the next day or so.  I also noticed there are several pumpkins and squash growing.

Thanks Grandma!

My surgery went well yesterday.  Since I can't do much but sit here and recover Grandma Olive went out in the garden and pulled a bunch of weeds, especially that darned crab grass.  She also harvested a bunch of onions, garlic and peppers.

Some of the peppers, onion & garlic Grandma harvested

Some of the onions Grandma harvested

Pulled lots of weeds, harvested carrots & beans

I harvested a bunch of carrots, wax beans, and some peppers today.  There are still a bunch of carrots ready to harvest, but I'll leave them in the garden until we're ready to use them.  Al took Kaitlyn to Hazel's birthday party so I could get some gardening done.  I want to get as many weeds pulled as possible before my surgery on Friday.  I managed to clear the rest of the walkways and weeded around the beans.  The pumpkins are spreading out so far I can't get through the end of a couple walkways, but we can get around other paths so it's not a huge deal.  We should have some nice pumpkins from those plants.

Today's harvest