Week 5

Our tea "hedge" that Dad planted many years ago. A friend of his wanted Dad to try it to see if it would grow here in the Willamette Valley. Since it is taller than 6 feet and flourishing, I'd say it was a successful experiment!

Marionberries ripening. The end berry always ripens first. Mmmmm.

Florencio has been busy picking blueberries. 

Asparagas after its cutting season has ended. It will grow tall and shrubby. The multitude of little leaves will allow it to do photosynthesis and replenish the roots for next years' crop. If you pick it too long it will lessen the vigor of the root and result in a puny crop.

Delicate head lettuce. I really enjoy the colors of this one.

Scott, my nephew in law, picks raspberries for this Tuesday. He has just completed his first year of Veterinary school at OSU. So proud of you Scott! 

Two colors of kohlrabi. 

The tea is picked for the day. We pick the tender new growth at the tips of each branch.

The first eggplant. Not all eggplant are round and dark purple. Some are long and pale.

Tomatoes from the greenhouse. Such a nice treat this time of year.

We grow different kinds of cucumbers in the greenhouse, too. The top ones are supposed to be pretty long. The middle ones are supposed to be short and tender through and through. The ones that look like spiny tennis balls are Lemon Cucs.

Things we pick first await the ladies sorting, counting and weighing. These rest in the shade while they take a well deserved break and get in a good laugh. In the background, Sheila the puppy, is visited by Scott and his kiddos.

Sometimes it seems like as much of the plant is left behind as is harvested. To the right of the container is the row of cabbage AFTER they have been picked.

Second and third plantings of broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage are planted with hopes of a steady supply for the summer. Too much heat, too much rain, and or too many bugs could all throw off the timing. So could too little heat, too little rain or not enough sun. A balancing act with nature in charge.

This row with the black drip tape showing is planted with 3 colors of potatoes. To the right are the sunflowers.

Different varieties of sunflowers grow to different heights. Thank goodness the weeds to the right are still short!

The beginning of a sunflower bloom. So spikey at this stage when it is covered with its green protection.

Potato plants up close. They still need to bloom and grow more before they will have big enough potatoes to dig.

Three rows of sunflowers, then tomatoes on their red plastic mulch behind them. We water everything with drip irrigation.

Beautiful purple cabbage forming heads.

Savoy cabbage forming heads, too. I love the crinkles in this cabbage. 

Other Mary, Bill and Mary package the tea.

My great niece gets in on the packaging of tea. She likes to help.

Anna made a wonderful lunch AGAIN! Fresh veggies with kalamata olives, basil from the greenhouse and pasta. Delicious.

Raspberry lemonade is really refreshing.

Pretty raspberries.

Shiny Marionberries. Great for jams, jellies, cobblers or on oatmeal all winter. We freeze ours on cookie sheets and once they are frozen put them into gallon freezer bags. That way you can grab out a handful at a time because they won't freeze into a solid lump, they stay loose.

My daughter, Alex, became engaged to her sweetheart Nick, on Friday. We are going to celebrate with a toast to them at lunch time today. They are on the other side of Oregon so we will toast them from a distance!

Anna thought we could use some refreshing watermelon today. The watermelon in the garden is a few weeks away from being ready so we are supplementing from the store. It was a good one too!

Healthy green onions.

Purple coneflower we grew from seed last year. Our second year plants appear to be large healthy plants with many buds and blooms. The butterflies are going to love them!

Lavender from seed made it through the winter, too. Red coneflower plants like this spot, too.

The many colors of a rose. 

This rose is extremely fragrant. 
Ahhh, if only we had "smell-i-vision" on our computers. :)

Blue scabiosa or pincushion flower along with Black-eyed Susans.

A plethora of zinnias. I love all these vibrant colors.

A large pink astilbe. All the little, tiny flowers add a different dimension to bouquets. Bi-color lupine surround the astilbe.

Blueberry cheesecake bars. Anna really is spoiling us today. Oh my gosh!!!

I think I may have inherited my Dad's love of all sweet peas. Here are a sampling of the ones blooming today.
Ruffly purple edges.

Two colored or bi-colored sweet peas. The edges or "margins" are darker.

Pale washed to darker. Margins are solid colored.

Two different colors of bi-colored sweet peas.

This one looks like it has purple freckles!

This one looks like it has whiskers in the middle. 

Today's crew toasting Alex and Nick on their engagement. Next summer we will be getting ready for a wedding. Oh boy! Congratulations you two. :) 

Faith, Other Mary and Mary are hiding behind the kale bouquet.

So healthy and healthy for you!

Baby's Breath corralled by the flower cage.

This ages old lavender survived the winter in good stead.

We only had one Rosemary plant survive the harsh winter. Many very old plants that had survived 10-15 winters didn't make it through this past winter.

Lavender bundles smell so good.

Today's box includes: 
Top row from left to right: beets, rosemary, cucumbers, celery, kale, lettuce, green onions, zucchini, tomatoes in the bag, cabbage, snap peas, tea in the cello bag, kohlrabi, eggplant, sweet peppers. 
Bottom row: Snow peas, Marionberries, blueberries with raspberries in the front.

The next photos are of a few of the beautiful bouquets Lisa put together today with the flowers she picked here at The Farm. Everything in the box along with the flowers is always grown here at Shady Maple Farm.

Bill likes this bouquet. Yellow calla lilies, white astilbe, fern fronds and on the right is a lupine with a greenish top along with a few purple delphinium. 

Tall orange and sherbet gladiolas (glads), snapdragons, roses and yarrow. The greenery is foliage from lovage, a tall herb that is related to celery.

Pink roses with astilbe and pink and white lupine.

The green at the top is Sweet Cicely. Yellow and purple snapdragons, roses and the long one dangling down is amaranth or Love Lies Bleeding.

Blue and white lupine, white astible, orange zinnias and the flowers with yellow petals and dark centers are Black-eyed Susans.

Starting at the top are blue and white lupine, yellow dahlias, green Sweet Cicely leaves, small button like flowers in a flat umbel shape are pale yarrow, orange and dark pink zinnias, blue pincushion flowers and a multi-hued pink/yellow/white snapdragon.

Roses with Baby's Breath and pale pink yarrow.

Purple alliums, white astible, pink asters and a pink rose. This one reminds us of fireworks!