Garden update August 2014

Check out my August crop tour.  I have been getting a lot of stuff out of the garden this year.  I am really getting a lot of potatoes, squash, cucumbers, beets, green beans right now.  The tomatoes and peppers are about to start going though.

Herb garden- the bees love the Oregano.  You can also see some pepper plants on both sides of the herb garden.

My tomatoes are loaded with green tomatoes.  This plant is an heirloom speckled roma plant that I have been saving seeds for three years and regrowing each year.

My dill was getting out of hand in this area so I cleaned it up.  The plants have been broken in half and placed in the mounds you see here.  I covered the mounds with grass clippings.  The dirt areas have been replanted with fall crops.  Turnips/Lettuce/Kale.

My permaculture inspired garden.  The spacing is a bit tight but the garden is producing.

Elderberry plants.  There is also a nice chunk of clover to the left of the plants.  This is a nice area to sit in the afternoon because the bushes block the sun coming from the west.

Mullein plant.  This is a plant that grows wild and is very good for the soil I have learned from permaculture sites.  I am letting this one grow to see what it does.

Beets.  The leaves aren't looking too hot but the beets are a good size.  I am planting more for a fall crop this weekend.

Another pic of the permaculture inspired garden.

Blackberry bush year 2.  The red spots are the berries.  This bush is loaded.  I have already harvested probably 20-30 berries from this bush.

Blurry pic of a spider protecting my tomato plant.

My version of the three sisters.  The big leaves are part of a sunflower plant.  Climbing beans are going up the sunflower stalk.  A cucumber plant is surrounding the plants.

This is still the kale I planted last year.  These plants have been producing for almost a year except for a few months in the winter when they were covered.  I cut the seedpods off and they have yet to try to reseed.

A nice dark red ladybug on a dill plant.  I have hundreds of ladybugs in my garden.  Prior to last year, I hadn't saw a true red ladybug in years. 

Another nice colored ladybug.  You can see a bit of an orange one above this one.

Raspberry bushes.

Green beans mixed in with dill.  These green bean plants are a really nice dark green color.  This area was loaded up with pumpkins from halloween last year buried in lawn clippings.

I am starting to get some red tomatoes.  It won't be long now.

My garden is almost in full swing.  This does not mean that I am done for the year though.  I have replanted lettuce, kale, turnips, broccoli raab, beets for a fall harvest.  I am also saving certain areas to place my garden cuttings/weeds to compost down for nutrients next year.  All of these areas once full with cutting are covered with lawn clippings.