Garden Chat in August
By 8 o’clock on Saturday night, my husband and I had finished the kitchen chores, put up the day’s harvest, and we were ready to crash!
Our sons were backpacking, our daughter was on a rafting trip. We had the entire weekend to ourselves to work around the house, in the yard, and harvest some of the garden. (If you want to read about our raised beds and how we got started, you can, here.)
I told Paul that these are my favorite days. A day when I get to putter, can, clean, and do things I would normally not do. We were having friends over for dinner, two of the friends being master gardeners, so you bet! we worked hard in the yard and garden. Not for perfection, but for satisfaction. And … it was time. Time to pull the potatoes, the beets, clean out some of the lettuce that had gone to seed, prepare the beds for fall crops.
Learning how to grow, cook, preserve, and work the soil is nothing short of a revolution in its tastiest form.
We appreciate it, our kids love it, and our guests are always enthralled by the farm to table approach, as a unique dish is placed in front of them at dinner, even on a city lot.
Tomatoes: Mostly green, a few are starting to ripen.
Rutabagas: We picked some big ones.
Potatoes: Harvested, but left some potatoes in the ground for next year’s crop.
Sweet Potatoes: I. Cannot. Wait.
Fig tree: An aborist told us we had our fig tree planted in the wrong place. We transplanted it this year and it’s thriving!
Peppers: Still pretty little.
Green beans: Slow growing this year due to a very mild, late summer.
Beets: Harvested and we’ll be enjoying over the next few weeks.
Lettuce: A few heads are popping up, but most has been already harvested. We are growing new starts in our AeroGarden and will plant for a fall crop. And we’re still eating the Italian lettuce.
Swiss Chard: Beautiful and a tasty treat (one our kids are still trying to form taste buds for).
Raspberries: Taking off. We’ve harvested most of them, but still a few stragglers.
Strawberries & Pumpkins & Squash: Season pretty much over. Pumpkins are starting to grow! Squash is taking off.
August is a crazy month for gardens and cooking and preserving. You really have to stay on top of it all and have a plan and rally the troops to get in and help.
It takes commitment and work.
But it’s so rewarding.
I’d love to hear what you are looking forward to harvesting, canning, or cooking with in August?
Hello and welcome to my home and table!
I’m Sandy—lover of food, family, cooking, THE BIG BOARD, travel, and bringing people together. Through great recipes and connection around the table, we become better, stronger, and more courageous people. Feasting on Life is real, and every time we do it, we grow a little more. Read more...
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Sandy, I wish I had a sunny enough spot for a garden. Too many trees out back and something tells me my neighbors might not like a veggie garden out front. Maybe I can disguise it. :)
Lots of good eat’n going on at your home!
I’m looking forward to next year when I have a garden again. I really missed not having one this year, so I am determined to have one next year!! Your harvest and plants look awesome!
Well, we out our garden in late this year (due to a family wedding that consumed all our time!), and so far we’ve only really harvested cucumbers and yellow squash. Still waiting -not very patiently- for my tomatoes to start ripening, and the peppers to get their groove on! Also on the horizon: eggplant and zucchini! Can’t wait! Oh, and I’m determined to get a fall crop in this year (we always say we will and never do). Hopefully lettuce, spinach, and sugar snap peas. What will you plant for fall?
It is absolutely commitment and work, and well worth it! Your garden looks lovely! For me, August is all about peaches and concord grapes. I don’t can anything, just love the flavors as they remind me of my childhood. :)
It looks so pretty! It has been so hot and dry in the south that our’s is shriveling up. We really have to stay up on the watering. We have been blessed with cucumbers and tomatoes in spite of it all. =)
In a future blog post, could you please offer some tips on enjoying activities like gardening and still entertain, keep house and blogging. I seem to let one thing consume me and lose track of everything else.
Thank you for the inspiration,
Jennifer
wow that is absolutely amazing! fantastic! What a huge commitment. I am now inspired
Sandy,
We planted our first garden this year, all inspired by your blog. Our kids have loved seeing what comes up and we are patiently waiting for tomatoes to turn red in Colorado too. We also joined a CSA this year and it has been fun trying veggies we don’t normally buy. I was wondering what are your favorite recipes for swiss chard and beets? I have looked on-line for recipes and their are a gajillion, we have made most of your recipes from your book/blog and they are all delicious so I’m thinking whatever you do with them must be yummy. :) We made your pear vanilla french toast this weekend~oh my~heaven on earth and not a crumb of it left.
Your sister in gardening ;)
Becky
Sandy, you and I would just have a TIME chitty chat chatting about our gardens, canning, decorating and cooking. Why don’t we live closer?
Wow everything is so lush and pretty. You must not live where it has been 105…108 expected today. We’re melting!!
“…due to a very mild, late summer.” Can I come live with you? :) We are down in Southeast Texas, where it’s been at least 100 degrees, or a heat index of 105 or so for days and days (with dangerous drought conditions.) I still wonder why we live here sometimes. :) I love reading about your garden and dream about the day we can have one. With three littles, it’s hard to think about adding something else into the mix right now…one day. Thanks for sharing.
Sandy, you’ve probably written about this already, but I was curious about your garden. It looks like you’ve gotten a ton of produce just out of a few small plots; am I seeing the pictures right? How did you do it? I have a shady yard with only a few spots that get direct sun…I’m envious of your garden!