A Mid-October Harvest

Is it really mid-October already? In a lot of ways, it feels more like Spring as we've had so much precipitation lately that the garden is now covered with mud and standing water. This generally only happens in early March when the ground is still frozen and the water has nowhere to go. The soil in my growing beds resembles a saturated sponge. Hopefully, our veggies won't rot from the excess moisture.

Another great week for harvesting carrots and turnips - these have been very tasty roasted.


I harvested half of my cauliflower crop this week - 4 heads. They're not huge but are still the best I've grown so far.


I love cauliflower simply steamed and finished with a bit of butter. When you have veggies this fresh, it doesn't really make sense to add too much seasoning.


The broccoli is starting to produce a generous amount of side shoots. I like to harvest the young leaves as well as they are very tender.


Salad greens - I didn't grow a mix this fall like I did in past years. This time around, I just walked around the garden and just sniped what looked good - several varieties of lettuce, beet greens, baby spinach, basil, parsley and some Red Russian kale.


Yesterday, I found this little guy tucked away in the melon patch. I didn't have much hope that it would be any good but I picked it anyway.


To my surprise, it was ripe when I cut into it. Aside from having somewhat of a hollow heart, it was actually quite good. In fact, I dare to say that it was one of the sweetest and crunchiest melons I picked all year long. It was indeed an unexpected delight.


I also picked too lovely heads of tatsoi. The slugs have had a field day with my Asian greens this fall but these two have made it through relatively unscathed.


Finally, these Poblanos are undoubtedly the last peppers of the year. They're too small to roast and peel but will be tasting sliced and cooked in a stir-fry.

The fall growing season is just flying by. I can't wait to see what you all are harvesting this week!

This Week's Harvest

I harvested my first Red Detroit beets this week. They were very good, tasting pleasantly sweet and earthy. The beet greens looked nice and fresh as well, so different from the wilted and dull leaves you usually find at the supermarket. I plan on harvesting most of my beets this upcoming week so I will have to find a good recipe for all of these greens. Either that or I'll blanch them quickly and freeze.


I'm sad to say that our patch of Mesclun is nearing the end of its run. With the cooling weather, the mix has been tasting milder and delicious. We've been fortunate to get many cuts from it. Time to move on to the all lettuce mix, which is about ready to harvest.


I harvested some green beans and the first of my Hakurei turnips earlier in the week. Then yesterday, I pulled a good chunk of my turnips (about 30 or so) and shared some of them with my neighbor who commented that they were absolutely delicious and reminded her of Poland (where she was born and raised). I tasted a few raw and would describe them as having a very mild and sweet flavor. The texture is very crisp and fresh. They can be eaten raw in a salad or cooked like other turnips. I think I'll prepare them simply for dinner tonight - boiled or steamed and tossed with melted butter.


Hakurei turnips are best when harvested the size ofgolf balls. Wait any longer and their skins may crack.

If you'd like, check out and participate in Daphne's Harvest Mondays.

This Week's Harvest

This past week, I harvest another big bowl of mesclun. It feels nice not having to buy lettuce from the supermarket. I also thinned my hakurei turnips and harvested a nice bunch of turnip greens. I've never had turnip greens before and will have to find a good recipe for them. The turnips themselves should be ready for harvest later on this week.


I also harvested the last of my tatsoi and pak choi sowed back in July. These were devoured by August pests and look pretty damaged but have tasted really good (trimmed up of course). In a couple of weeks, my late August sowing of pak choi and flowering brassica should be ready. I can't wait!


Finally, as posted earlier, I harvested the rest of my red altaglobe radishes. I gave most of them away and with the rest, I quick pickled. Recipe to follow.

Today's Harvest

This morning I went out into the garden and harvested some red globe radishes. As I pulled them up, I was glad to find that they were in pretty good condition - no insect damage whatsoever. I have to admit, I don't even remember the last time I ate a radish. They're not that high up on my list of favorite vegetables. I ended up giving this bunch to my sister-in-law who was visiting for the day.

Once washed, I was amazed by their color! Talk about in your face - they seemed to radiate a kind of natural florescence. I hope they end up tasting as good as they look. I am excepting a bigger harvest in this upcoming week.


I also harvested a BIG bowl of mesclun greens for lunch. Picked and then eaten within an hour - doesn't get much fresher than this. They were delicious! Spicy, lemony and almost wild tasting. I served them with some homemade quiche lorraine. I will definitely be growing this again next year. Even my 2 year old son liked it. (He won't go near cake, but he'll reach for this oddly enough.)


As you can see, I harvested about half of what I have growing in the garden. Hopefully, it will regrow quickly and I'll be able to get a couple more cuttings after this.