Week 14, August 27, 2013

The new raised beds are becoming glorious. I love the backdrop of the old chicken coop.

Lisa picks some of the first Asters.

One of the six different tomatoes planted in the raised beds. 
Snacks close by for little helpers and the occasional adult!

New yarrow is starting to bloom.

Bees enjoy purple cone flower/purple echinacea.

Honeysuckle is looking stunning. 
Next year it will be much more prolific.

Purple Asters, wow. Stunning.

Brooks prunes. Some branches are loaded, others not so much. They sure are a treat.

Two different types of Asian pears. The trees are overlapping, these fruit are not on the same tree.

This type of Asian pear is huge and heavy.

Our littlest cherub today was sleepy, her blanket and a wooden box worked well for a nap spot.

My camera peeked in through the side slats of the box. 
Such a sweetie pie.

This Asian pear helps show how small she is. Cozy, too.

Grapes going into their bags.

Grapes and splendid helpers.

She woke up from her nap and man was it bright! Little guy gives the "thumbs up" that the cantaloupe is tasty. Riding in Grandpa's golf cart with Mom and Dad is a treat.

One of the ways to eat a fresh cantaloupe.

You still are pointing that camera at ME???

Pink yarrow.

A very small, delicate dahlia. 
Not too much bigger than a couple fingers wide.

Zinnia with various shades of color.

Angie snacks as she drives the golf cart in. Tasty treat!

She had many options for tasting. :)

Lemon cake, gooey, yummy lemon cake.

Watermelon from the garden. These seeds we saved to use next year. This is an heirloom open pollinated watermelon variety.

Anna's lunch. Full of garden goodness.

The volunteer sunflower is getting heavier and heavier. 
Zinnias in the background.

Purple Cayenne pepper plants. 
The purple peppers look a bit like Medusa's hair.

Bell peppers. If they go unpicked they will ripen to red. 
They can be eaten at any stage.

The tall tomatoes in the raised beds. 
The orange ones are Sun Sugar and the purple ones 
are Indigo Rose, they are purple on the outside, red on the inside.

Yukon Gold potatoes cut into 
home fries and BAKED. Delish!

Tadaaa. The carrots are portioned for 
each of our harvest boxes.
Grams shows off a curly carrot.

Lisa tidies up and multi-tasks while 
Florencio wheels in the freshly picked and washed lettuce 
right before people arrive on Tuesday.

Extra produce anyone?

She helps Daddy balance his load. Anything for the team!

One more look at the little one sleeping. 
Angie took this one out in the field.
So precious.

Week 13, August 20, 2013

Early morning picking with the heat to come.
Lisa and Pat pick Zinnias and put them right into water.

Bees working like crazy.
Lots of bees are a good sign for the garden.

Beautiful grapes with the sun behind them.

My friend, Chris, picks Triple Crown Blackberries.

This variety of grapes are loaded!

Sun Sugar tomatoes with a wayward cluster of grapes.

It's not a rock path, but a cart of Yukon Gold potatoes.

Tomatillas. Sometimes called "husk tomatoes". Their papery husks loosen up when they are ripening.

Purple tomatillas.

This one is so purple it almost glows.

Carrots look crunchy today.

Grams bunches the carrots. A full handful works!

Lemon cucs and their little black prickles. Ouch.

Two colors of zucchini.

A few hops make their way into the bouquets.

Costoluto Genovese are the crinkly edged red tomatoes. 
They are an Italian heirloom.

This one grew like a donut. It is see through!

Our first Asters of the year. 
The white ones almost sparkle.

The purple Asters are showy also.

Little pink yarrow with yellow centers join in with pink zinnias and pale roses. The green foliage is from the asparagus plants that are growing out their foliage to replenish the roots for next year's harvest.

A stunning zinnia. Picture p.e.r.f.e.c.t.

The green umbel with tiny yellow flowers are from the fennel bulbs that didn't bulb. They highlight the showy zinnias. 

Purple Aster with purple statice.

A plethora of "extra" items resting in the old berry "carriers" we used when the farm was mainly a strawberry farm. 
Back when Lisa and I were kids. (A couple days ago.)

Two kinds of tasty plums.

Pineapple variety tomatoes with Kellogg and German Breakfast. Many different colors and flavors and textures.

Sweet banana peppers with green bell peppers.

Pablano Ancho, Hungarian Wax, and jalapeno hot peppers. 
(They are hot to me!)

From the Totally Tomatoes seed catalog. This is one of the "extra" seed packages we received due to our large order of seeds. These are "Cherry Heirloom Blend". All different colors and tastes. 
A gardener's marble collection!

Long red cayenne peppers. Start out green, mature to red. These can be eaten at any point of their life.

Very showy summer squash. Summer squash don't store well like "winter squash" do. These skins are more tender.