It Happens Fast

On Monday I posted a photo of the raspberries that were ripe.....

And on Wednesday there were more....

And today there were even more!!!

They come on fast... I'm thinking that on Monday I'll be putting the "RASPBERRY" sign up at the bottom of the driveway!

So plan on coming out to the the U-Pick Garden next week for some ripe raspberries....or I'll pick them all myself!

An Outing

I basically ignored Lucy during the past few months while Ben was home. Now he is gone and she seems so bored, so I decided to take her on a little outing tonight.

We set off down the road........

Oh gross....two of my least favorite things....a slug and Indian Celery!

 Then down a quiet, secluded gravel driveway....

To Olga's house, to see her charming chicken house.

Visiting with Olga is always fun, and her chicken house is truly one of the nicest ones I've ever seen.

Her chickens are very happy.....

And after our visit, Lucy and I walked back home.... UP HILL! Both Lucy and I are old gals....and even though I work all the time and am fairly strong, I rarely get any cardio exercise....so we were both panting by the time we got to the top!

 Note to self: Get more exercise!

God Gave Me A Turnip!

The most amazing thing happened the day after I posted THIS ......

I was working out in the garden, and as I walked by a neglected  flowerbed, the sun came out and I saw something purple amongst the weeds....

"What in the heck is THAT?" I wondered...... I knelt down, pushed aside the weeds, and found....

An absolutely HUGE purple turnip!!!!

Without a blemish on it!  I was so flabbergasted I could hardly believe my eyes. It was like God said, "So she wants a large vegetable? I guess I can do that."  And there it was....hidden in the weeds where noone would see it to pick it....where it could just grow and grow!

So now the question has to be asked....what do you do with a giant turnip that God gives you? Enter it in the fair? Feed it to the hungry? Sell it? Put it in a gift basket? Let it grow to see how big it gets? Feed it to my family? Display it at the Farmer's Market?

Hmmmm....I don't normally face decisions like this. There's no question about whether or not to pick something in the U-pick business. At first I felt insanely happy....then I felt conflicted about what to do with it.....Maybe there is a lesson in this for me.... that my garden is not for pride or display, but to honor God and feed mouths and souls.

For now I think I will let it stay there to remind me to keep my priorities straight......

 AND SEE JUST HOW BIG IT CAN GET!!!

More Random Tidbits

1. Mr. Adams and the crew left town on the boat this past weekend for some Summer work.....

Both of the boys are out of town too, so it's very quiet around here.

2. The fireweed is blooming.....they say once the blooms reach the top of the plants Summer is over.

It's quite true.

3. The Delphinium is in rare form this year....

4. A couple of weeks ago a little girl named Fiona was here with her family picking produce. We were discussing how fennel tastes alot like licorice, and how we both disliked licorice. I explained to her that when you cook it it tastes completely different....really delicious. Her mother harvested a fennel plant to take home, and as they were leaving I heard Fiona say, "I just can't WAIT until you get home and cook that fennel!"
When I overheard that I suddenly realized - that's why I was put here on this earth.

5. July is our rainiest month of the year....the Lord has been merciful.....the sun actually comes out once in a while!

6. I am now growing cedar kindling sticks....

Just kidding....I stuck them in the ground to stop the cat from digging in the garden....so far it's working.

7. I picked about 10 ripe raspberries this morning....

 The bushes are just LOADED with raspberries this year....they're going to be awesome!!!

.
8. The carrots are not quite big enough yet to pick....

But I'm a sucker, so I let the kids that visit the U-pick garden each pick one.  They're so delicious!

9. I'm still mourning the loss of the garlic scapes.....

photo courtesy of Psalm Oines

Psalm....go get a cheeseburger and a milk shake for crying out loud!

and....

10. The honeysuckle is blooming and its scent takes me way back. I don't know why, but it reminds me of my Grandma Schweitzer. 

Picked Clean

When I visit other people's gardens, or look at their tables at the Farmer's Market, I am always jealous and depressed at how bad things look out at my place.  My produce is harvested the instant it is mature....and many times before! There is not a cucumber or tomato in the garden that is safe!  Just once it would be fun to see how big something could get.....

On the other hand...it feels so great to feed people, and to see kids picking vegetables and loving it. It's just hard to come to terms with having a garden that is always picked clean.

Broccoli heads:

Kale:

Zucchini:

Peapods:

Swiss Chard:

Lettuce:

 And Garlic Scapes....oh, how I mourn the loss of the Garlic Scapes..........

But then the eternally optimistic farmer inside of me says, "Whoa, wait a minute...look around you....there are more things maturing and the best is yet to come!"

More Broccoli heads and sprouts:

Cauliflower:

Radish pods:

More Peapods:

Raspberries:

Carrots....sweet, sweet, Carrots:

Fennel:

Leeks:

Cabbage:

More Zucchini:

Sunflowers:

Cucumbers:

And Tomatoes:

The U-pick garden is a well used little plot of ground.....it will never be a showcase garden. It's a place where kids step on plants and pick the wrong thing. It's a place where Carrots are picked when they are too small and Zucchinis don't reach foot long status. I will never win any blue ribbons at the fair or grace the cover of a glossy gardening magazine.....but I LOVE this little place......it feeds my heart and soul.