Monday, May 7, 2012

Lots of Squash

It looks like I will have lots of squash to share with friends. Like I said in a previous post, it always amazes me how much fruit comes from such a small seed.

Grape Vines

I got some grape and berry vines at Wal-mart and thought I'd see how they would do in a Garden Anywhere box. We tried growing berries in a raised bed years ago, but did not have much luck. So far, the vines are doing great. Our goal is to have them grow up the pergola and some day have our own little grape clusters right outside the back door. We have other boxes in between for squash and peppers.

More Boxes

This is the view from our back deck. More boxes. We've got tomatoes, kale, Globe zucchini, chocolate mint, pineapple sage and rosemary planted here. We are doing an experiment of sorts. We have tomatoes planted in the garden out in the full sun. These other boxes are in partial shade. Because of the pergola, they don't get the full noon-day sun, but they do get the HOT afternoon sun(around 3:00-dusk). Last year our tomatoes burned up. That was in part to a not yet perfected watering system and partly because we had over 60 days of 100+ degrees outside. We want to see the yield this year with a better watering system. We also want to see if the plants will thrive in full sun or do they like a little shade from the heat.

Our first cucumber of the season

I picked our first cucumber of the season today. It never ceases to amaze me that such a huge plant with an abundance of fruit can come from such tiny seeds. I know how it works. I've had gardens before. But each time I see that first sprout all the way to harvest time, I get excited.