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A Garden's First Bounty!

A Veggie Garden Update...With Chickens!

As many of you know from earlier posts, I am quite an avid gardener! Well today was the first in what will definitely be many takes from my garden. There were at least twice as many cucumbers as the ones you see in the photo above! From the varying shades of green to the alternately bright and deep yellow of the squash, the photo does present the vibrant colors of nature. This is only what was ready today as the plants are laden with veggies. From the grape tomatoes growing in clusters on plants ranging from four to five feet high to the solitary maturing eggplant, this summer is sure to be filled with homegrown goodness; the kind that comes without chemicals. The strawberries are so fresh you could pick and eat them right off the plant! I wanted to share a few photos of both the veggie garden and the wildflower garden...and of course, there will be some new photos of the chickens!

The Veggie Garden!

The Wildflower Garden!

And The Chickens!

About the Author

If you are in the market to purchase a home or even refinance an existing loan and you want a loan officer that will walk with you every step of the way, then contact Danny or Rich of the Thornton Team at Home America Mortgage today. We can have you pre-approval in as little as 4 hours. You can visit our website or send an email to thorntonteam@homeamericamortgage.com or call us @ 865-951-0522.

Posted by Rich Dansereau on 07/03/2008 04:33 PM

Comments (50)

rich dansereau, home america mortgage, thornton team, garden, organic, wildflowers, chickens, cucumber, squash, okra, raddish, jalepeno

Originally posted at: Rich's Blog: A Garden's First Bounty!

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50 Comments on A Garden's First Bounty!

JUL

2008

Those Chillis look great...

Yum! Nothing quite as good as home grown fruit & veggies. Chicken eggs are awesome too especially when they are free-range. They look like Rhode Island Reds.

Are you the one who keeps leaving all the zucchini at my door?

LOL

Good looking garden there!

You sound very proud...and you should be! everthing looks delicious and I doubt you'll have any trouble havin people to help eat it! But I miss those cute little fluffy chicks!

Now you know what a garden is, I only planted tomatoes, bell peppers and cantaloupe and of course our grapes, I've only picked one peper to date, but soon we will be overflowing.

Have A Great Day

And okra, right? I have never known anyone who has grown okra! You are just enough farther south that you are ahead of us here in Indiana. Nothing to harvest yet but some herbs---well, I let the birds get the cherries.

Rich, That seems so fast--and they look wonderful! I haven't had fresh squash since my Grandmother was alive, she used to grow it (and many other things). Have a great dinner!

Great garden---We started gardening this year and it sure has been enjoyable. No chickens though but I do think it's a great idea.

Rich, the gardens look to be maturing well. And the chickens seem to be getting accustom to their new surroundings.

Hunter - I can't wait to have Mexican or Thai so that I can use the jalapeno, sweet banana peppers, and hot banana peppers! Might even put some of the hot banana peppers in a rice dish!

Sara - I searched everywhere for Rhode Island Reds (I had some when I lived in south Florida) but could not find any! These are Buff Orpington which are heavy breed chickens and lay about 200 eggs each per year (I did a lot of research before deciding on them).

Mike - Did you find the eggs...left them behind the pot by the front door a couple of weeks ago...<<<smile>>>

Joan - I gave at least 6 or more cucumbers to my brother today! Lettuce should be ready for this weekend!

Doris - I did plant some grapes too but it will be a while before they are ready. Did you know that if you deprive your cantaloupe (and any other melon) of water for about a week before you pick it, it will be sweeter!

Pat - That is okra! I live in the south so of course it will be sliced, breaded, and deep fried golden brown! Yum!

Carole - I has been very fast indeed! Stir fry, salad, deep fried, and raw! Yum! Yum! Yum! and YUM!

Diane - Either would be enough for me! But to have both, I feel lucky!

Danny - Everything is growing great! You will get your share for your help!

Hi Rich...A bumper crop!

Are you growing any corn so you can supply us with ethanol?

Kathleen

Kathleen - Funny you should ask...I have sweet yellow corn and ornamental corn. To think, I was going to feed the ornamental to the chickens and squirrels! But now that you have given me a way to raise some $$$...let them eat cake! Would that make the ethanol, ornamental ethanol, or will the cars look "bedazzled"!

JUL

2008

Rich--whaddaya mean--isn't okra for GUMBO?! I'm jealous--my little garden has produced only a few grape tomatoes and a pepper--although there are skads more tomatoes on the vines. I put mine in a bit late--next season I'll do better (we have 2 seasons down h'yar)--the heat of summer is not the best time for most stuff.

Garden ON!

Dang, Rich! Didn't you just move in? Mighty impressive. You are a man of many talents.

JUL

2008

Loretta - Gumbo too! I love me some Cajun gumbo! When I lived in south Florida (Ft Myers) I planted all the plants that were full sun elsewhere in the country, in the shade and had pretty good luck! It was all the rain during the rainy season that I had trouble with!

Elaine - Only been here a couple of months! Garden was a top priority for me!

JUL

2008

The garden looks great. Congratulations on your first crop.

Looks like you are growing cosmos in your flower garden. I just got some to grow in mine, but I don't know what color they are yet.

Julie - I honestly don't know the names of any of the wildflowers! I bought 2 bags of mixed wildflower seeds and hoped to get some good ones! I am happy with them so far! Seems like more emerge everyday!

Seems like that was fast! Those look great, now I'm going to want to make something really good for dinner. The chickens are so cute. Rhiannon's been naming our imaginary chickens as she's sure I'll cave at some point. lol

Rich, what a great first crop and I'm with Chris, the time seemed to go by quickly! Didn't you just start your new garden? Look at the chickens, I'm surprised how quickly they've grown. You are going to be eating well all summer. Thanks for the update!

Chris - I think she might have your number! <<<smile>>> How about a nice stir-fry over rice! I like to mix up my stir-fry sometimes and make it with Italian spices or Cajun instead of Asian! Fun twist! Also, try it over egg noodles or in a tortilla instead of over white rice!

Debbie - It seems fast to me too! I wonder if it is because it is all organic, I have never tried an organic veggie garden before! I will tell you, the veggie tray for the 4th got rave reviews (especially the cucumbers)!

Rich,

Wow your garden yielded great results. I (shame on me) got lazy this spring and didn't grow any veggies. So farmer's market here I come.

JUL

2008

Rebecca - And tasty too! There is a great farmer's market near where I live too but hopefully I will only have to go there to supplement what I am growing. My lettuce is doing okay but my spinach is a disaster!

Rich, It looks like a nice bounty. I go more landscape gardening myself but I have an old flower bed that had some pumpkins and gordes in it last year. Seed took hold and I guess I have a pumpkins patch this year. Looks Like I will be saving some money this fall. As we love to put out fall scapes. Thanks for sharing.

Rich - This is making me hungry! I'm finally getting to pick tomatoes that don't have blossom end rot. We've been getting squash for about 3 weeks now. We sat down this week-end to plan out next years garden (bigger & better). What type of cloth do you have down on the vegatable garden?

Jimmy - I haven't incorporated veggies into my standard landscape as the veggies tend to need protection from the local wildlife (i.e. deer, chipmunks, etc) who would love to eat them before I got the chance! I have seen everything from zucchini to tomatoes incorporated into standard landscapes and understand that it cuts down on disease and predation. I am growing ornamental corn that would be great for fall scapes!

Pam - My tomato plants are heavy with fruit but non of it ready yet! The squash is piling up, might have to deep fry some to go with dinner tonight! I am not sure of the brand, but is is a porous black cloth that allows for water penetration (and evaporation if necessary). I bought two huge rolls of it from Sams.

JUL

2008

Awesome Rich, those crops look wonderful...Pack it up and ship it northbound!!! I'll be waiting :-)... You will be canning soon with all that squash !!

Patrice - I have actually never tried canning anything. I will need to look into how that is actually done and see if it is something I might try. I have been sharing the veggies with family. I think I will be donating excess veggies to the local food bank. Tomatoes are starting to turn red!

Wow, Rich! I have a kitchen garden, too, and know just how much work you put in to it to make yours not only look so beautiful, but produce such wonderful bounty. We've yet to reap the rewards of our plantings - tomato, cucumber, jalapeno, serrano, corn, broccoli, onion, chive plus many herbs - and I'm praying the deer don't wipe it out before we get to enjoy the fruits of our labor, as they did last year. If the deer eat it all first, I'll have your pictures to enjoy. ;->

Rich, wow looks like a good haul, great job Farmer Rich!

Karen - It definitely was a lot of work but I made stir fry tonight with veggies from my garden and it was well worth the work! TIP: To deter deer from eating your veggies, plant marigolds on the perimeter or interspersed with the veggie plants. Deer and other wildlife can't stand the smell of marigolds and will be more inclined to leave the veggies alone! Good Luck with yours!

Duane - I was told that because I have chickens, I am officially a farmer!

JUL

2008

Farmer Rich, I was just cruising your blog and wow! Chickens! The look pretty happy - I'll bet you're going to be serving up some pretty amazing omelettes!

Patricia - Thanks for cruising by and commenting! I will have to look into getting some overalls at the Tractor Supply...<<<smile>>> BTW, I just bought feed for the chickens at Tractor Supply <<<smile>>> I can't wait for a yummy omlette with tomatoes, onions, and cheese! I supply 3 of the 4 ingredients, what could be better!

I was going to ask you yesterday how it felt to be a farmer, but it sounds like you are taking to it like a duck to water!

Julie - Quack! Quack! It is fun and honestly very little work! Just came in from the garden where I got 3 zucchini, 1 squash, 2 cucumber, and some strawberries! Did stir fry last night, might do some deep frying tonight!

My son hasn't gotten anything out of his garden yet. They are predicting 36 degrees tonight here in Idaho Falls and 31 degrees up in Jackson. Weather has been unusual this year. We went from the nineties to the seventies overnight.

Julie - It is a shame that he hasn't gotten anything from his garden yet. Your weather does sound very erratic! It was in the 90's here today and cools into the mid 70's in the evening! I did some deep frying tonight and may blog about it shortly! Was very good!

We really have different growing seasons. I grew up in Montana so the growing season in Idaho is similar to what I am used to. It was colder this spring and then this week than usual. We rarely get 70's for night time lows here. Maybe two weeks out of the year it is to hot to sleep at night.

Julie - The cool nights would be great; not to mention how much you must save on air-conditioning! I just posted on last night's stir fry instead of tonight's deep frying! I guess the deep frying post will have to wait.

JUL

2008

My house is so well insulated that I don't need air conditioning. We open the windows at night, and then then keep the drapes, and windows closed during the day. Some people aren't so lucky, and they have to use an air conditioner or a swamp cooler.

JUL

2008

Julie - That is awesome! I just read a post by Andrew Mooers about the benefits of insulation for both the environment and personal financial management. He is in northern Maine with its cooler climate as well!

Rich - thanks for the marigolds tip. I'll have to give that a try. I've been given so many other ideas - plant asparagus around the perimeter (have it, doesn't deter the deer); spread dog hair around the vegetable plot (that kind of grosses me out); spray an egg/water mixture on the plants (our youngest is allergic to egg whites, and the "veggie sell" is already hard enough). Co-op here we come to go marigold shopping!

Karen - I have heard the hair one too but with human hair! YUCK! Both hair tips are pretty nasty! The marigolds really do work!

JUL

2008

Rich - I got sidetracked by perfect lake weather :->, so no marigolds yet. We have someone helping us with sprinkler repair that says there is a mixture that contains blood that can be sprayed anywhere, that he verifies works. I think marigolds would smell a lot better, but we have a little over 1/3 acre, and want to spray the perimeter. It would take a LOT of marigolds to cover the various areas! But, I think I'll plant them just around the vegetable garden, then spray around the roses, flowers gardens and other delectable food sources for deer.

Karen - BLOOD MIXTURE! That sounds horrifying! Where does the blood come from? Is it human or animal? Nope, I couldn't use blood...would freak me out. I lost 95% of the leaves off a rose bush yesterday that I forgot to put marigolds around! I deadheaded several of the baskets of marigolds today and put several of the spent flowers around the base of the now pitiful rose bush.

JUL

2008

Rich - Yeah...even grosser than hair mixtures, huh? I haven't looked at the ingredients yet, but from what I hear, it is animal blood and acts as a liquid fence, since the deer won't come around after they smell it. We were away this weekend, and were thrilled to see the vegetable garden still exists. I covered ther plants with Dr. Bronner's Sal Suds and water before we left, to chase the earwigs away since we have artichokes to harvest. I forgot to put the protective covering back around the rose bushes once last year after I did some pruning, and came out to stubs on all 9 bushes the next morning! That's a lesson I never forgot!

Karen - LOL! A little grosser <<<smile>>> Hope you had a fun weekend away. Your roses will probably come back, I had one (away from my marigolds) that had all the leaves eaten by the deer last week and in the past few days a lot of new growth has appeared.

Your garden gnome made me want to hurry through my blogging and go play the Sims2. LOL. One of the things they do is steal each others gnomes, then sneak out in the middle of the night to go steal it back. hee hee.

JUL

2008

Lisa - LOL! That is funny! I saw an online game, not sure what iit is called, where you "pimp" (sorry Karen Anne, its what it is called) you gnome with all manner of clothes and bling! LOL! I think my flower garden has stolen my gnome...the wildflowers are so tall now you can't see the birdbath nor the gnome! Hope you got some good gnomes!

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