Monday, June 4, 2012

Harvest Monday

We just returned this evening from vacation. While away, friends of ours tended the garden, picked up feed, moved the broiler tractor, fed the layers, took care of the tree frogs and Sydney cat and, last but not least, kept harvest totals. Thank you Brett, Debbie and David. We know you worked hard! Knowing you were there made a relaxing vacation possible.
C. James flying a kite. A perfect moment!


I love the deep purple color of this Waltham 29. It's around 6 or 7 inches across.

Broccoli is my all time, hands down, no question about it, favorite vegetable to grow! Plus, Q. James loves it.

Here's what they harvested:

Dwarfed Blue Kale     4 oz
Thompson Broccoli    1 lb 2 oz
Waltham 29 Broccoli  3 lb 2 oz
Little Gem Romaine    6 lb 4 oz
Red Sails Lettuce        1 lb 4 oz
Strawberries               6 lb 8 oz

Total                           19 lb



Stop by Daphne's Dandelions and see what other gardeners around the world are harvesting this week.

22 comments:

  1. That is an amazing head of broccoli. Loved the picture of C. James flying that kite on the beach. Happy days and fond memories from vacations like that.

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    1. We were so happy to come home to a head of broccoli like that! Our vacation was very fun for the kids and restful for us. Wonderful!

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  2. I love broccoli but I have never grown it. I would imagine if I grew it, it would be my favorite too. Perhaps it will appear in my garden this upcoming year.

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    1. Some gardeners stay away from broccoli because its such a heavy feeder, takes up a lot of space and gives only one little head with a few shoots. I don't look at it that way at all. We see it as a very nutritious alternative to store bought stuff, great tasting with an early season and short number of days to maturity. In about 2 weeks when the broccoli is pulled up, we'll have two long, empty rows to plant whatever we desire. Broccoli is well worth the effort.

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    2. I agree that it is well worth the time for it! When you consider the edible 'collard' like leaves and even the stalks if you get them young enough. You could chop up and freeze the stalks to be used in soups etc. The fact that they can be planted in 15" spacing really does mean it can be a productive bed.

      BUT, as you add, it tastes great!

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  3. Now your making my broccoli look pretty pathetic - i havrested the smallest head of all time this week.

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    1. I'm sorry to hear about your broccoli Liz. For your comfort, we planted about 50 plants. Believe me, we have a many tiny heads too!

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  4. I hope that you had a nice vacation! You sure do have some good friends to take care of everything and weigh your harvests too!

    The broccoli looks great! Mine was started later and is just starting to form little heads. I'm hoping that this cool weather and rain will be beneficial for it.

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    1. I think the cool weather will. I look forward to reading of bountiful harvests there.

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  5. Oh to be a child again without a care in the world and fly a kite, great photo.
    Your broccoli looks fantastic, i have 2 varieties planted and fingers crossed they grow like yours!

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  6. Wonderful harvest. I couldn't say broccoli is my favorite, but it is up there. And you have picked so much. I just dream about picking that much in a week.

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  7. Thanks Daphne. We definitely put a big emphasis on broccoli.

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  8. We were on vacation too last week and had daughter harvesting for us. Great looking broccoli. I missed having ours.

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    1. Isn't it hard to put your garden in another person's hands? Thankfully, things went well, as I'm sure they did at your place too.

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  9. I love broccoli....just can't get it to grow well for me.

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    1. I wish I could help. We use lots of fish-kelp fertilizer.

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  10. Beautiful broccoli! And it's wonderful that you had such a good vacation :)

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  11. Your broccoli is beautiful! I am growing it for the first time this year and I know it will be a regular from now on. I just have one question - How do you know when to pick it?

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    1. We pick it when, upon close inspection of the head, we see signs that it going to bloom soon. We like to wait until the very last minute to pick it. That way, it's as big as it can possibly be. We're not afraid of eating a few flowers on the head too.

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