Grumpy Faces In My Garden

I never really liked violets. Until I noticed they actually have a face. A quick garden update.

Grumpy

I think violets are the funniest flowers one can grow. I never really liked them up until a couple of years ago, when I noticed they actually have a face. They look a little like grumpy bears, don't you think?

See?

I think they are so cute... almost to cute to pick and eat. Almost... 😁

Garden Update

Me and my garden started off on the wrong foot this year. Fortunately, I'm happy I can let you know that we've almost made peace again and - for now - the violets are the only grumpy faces around.

I repeated the treatment I came up with - spraying all plants with a neem oil/garlic/soap spray and covering them with a thin layer of lava rock dust a couple of days later - and although the thing that has been infecting my plants isn't completely gone yet, it seems like most of them will be able to grow up and provide us with some delicious homegrown fruits and veggies.

Are you ready for a quick tour? I promise I won't take up too much of your time. 😉

The Front Yard

Last year, I extended my garden once again, and because the backyard was pretty full already, I put 2 square foot garden beds in the front yard. The spot isn't perfect, but more than good enough for some easy-to grow veggies and herbs.

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Up until last year, I never tasted a fresh pea (sad, isn't it?!). OMG! They are so much more delicious than the frozen ones you buy in the store... Since I only have a few plants, there's never enough for a meal, but they are perfect as a little snack while working in the garden.

I'm also growing a radishes, carrots, lettuce an a couple of cabbages there.

By now I've already realized the spinash tree will need to be replanted. It is a newcomer this year, and it's gonna grow bigger than I had forseen. I really like those fuchsia top leaves. This one is going to look fabulous when it grows up.

The Backyard

The weather hasn't been playing along these last two weeks. Cold, cloudy and rain - not exactly what plants need to grow.

But I'm keeping the faith. Eventually, the sun will start shining and I will be running around, adding extra trellises.

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Both Chayote plants seem to be doing fine. The prickly chayotes I tried growing last year were so delicious... i just needed to try out the non-prickly one too. So two plants this year.

In the bottom right corner, you can see one of the two Yacon plants. This is the third year in a row I'm growing them. The roots are so juicy and taste like apples. One of my favorites.
A nice extra is that you can store the edible tubers for a long time. 2 weeks ago, we ate the last ones of our October harvest.

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In the top left corner, you can see the Paleleaf Woodland Sunflower and Jerusalem Artichokes grow like nothing ever happened. They are under have attack, though. Slugs seem to really like them.

The picture next to it shows another newcomer: parsley root. Both leaves and root are edible. I've already found a couple of recipes. I can't wait to try out parsley root chips. Doesn't that sound delicious??

I'm also growing three different kinds of potatoes this year. I need to grow them in bags because it is impossible to dig in our garden. It worked fine last year. I'm a bit worried because it has been raining a lot. But so far, so good.

And my ab-so-lute favorite: nasturtiums. Not only do I love to eat them, they are also a great companion plant. Just like calendula, they attract all the aphids. I have nasturtiums planted all around. (I even found seeds of one with black flowers.) About half of the plants I donate to the aphids, to make sure they leave my other plants alone. But the other half is mine! I spray those with a garlic spray regularly. Aphids really don't like garlic. 😉

I think it's a fair trade. You give some, you take some. I hope this year they will agree to our deal, just like the previous years.

More

I promised not to keep you up for too long, so I will show you around the greenhouse next time.

It's getting late here and I really need to get some sleep. Big day tomorrow: getting some injections that are supposed to make the pain in my back go away. I really hope they will.

Stay Tuned!!

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