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I am starting to get some of the main crops out of my vegetable garden. We have already harvested all our spinach and are continuing other early crops like lettuce, peas, green onions and our cherry tomatoes. I decided it was time to show you the vegetable garden. If you are not a gardener, this will be good for your insomnia.

My garden runs along one edge of the cultivated area of our mountain acreage.

The first planting is a perennial bed where I grow walking onions. They are an interesting plants that grow their onion bulbs at the top of the stalk.

The next bed is mostly for my garlic crop. I grow six different varieties of garlic. If you have only had garlic from the supermarket, you really should think about growing your own. It is vastly superior.

I also have my cherry tomatoes and a couple of jalapeno pepper plants.

The next bed are Pacific Russet potatoes. These are my main storing potatoes. The plants are just starting to lean over getting closer to harvest.

The next bed is my flower bed. I rotate my crops through my several beds and always set one aside for some flowers. I tell She Who Must Be Obeyed that I don’t see why she grows flowers, you can’t eat them. She points to this bed and says what about your flowers. My excuse is that they attract bees to pollinate my vegetables. Don’t tell her, but I enjoy a few flowers in the vegetable garden.

I plant my summer squash in old tires at the end of the paths between beds. I have zucchini and two varieties of patty pans.

The next bed are my Warba Potatoes. They are an early potato that doesn’t store well but they have a great flavour, texture and a papery skin I love. You will note they have fallen and can be harvested for new potatoes or let the stalks dry for full season potatoes.

The next bed is my tomato bed. I always grow stupice, a heritage variety. It is a very early tomato and that is important when you live in the short growing season of the Canadian Rockies. They have the bonus of being delicious! I am trying an early beef steak tomato called ultra sweet this year. I have a good crop of large green tomatoes and have my fingers crossed they will ripen in time.

The next bed are the beans. I have yellow, green and purple beans. I grew up thinking I hated string beans because my mother would open a can and boil them for 10 minutes. Now I grill or stir fry them and they are one of my favourite foods.

The last large bed in this line of plants is my strawberry bed. We refreshed it with new plants this year so we won’t be getting much of a crop.

I have a free standing large bed that has Norland potatoes in it. They are an early red skinned potato that stores reasonably well and they are She Who Must Be Obeyed’s favourite potato. I have started harvesting them for new potatoes.

I have three half beds for smaller crops. The first is jalapeno peppers. If you love stuffed jalapenos like I do, they are a must.

The second is where I grew my lettuce and spinach. The spinach is done but the slow bolting lettuce remains. I have a shade screen I can put over it on hot days.

The last smaller bed has peas planted down the middle and green onions on one side and carrots down the other.

I also have my haskap berry plants.

I’ll finish with my tayberries and raspberries. The raspberries have a few ripe berries and the tayberries are close.

Welcome to my garden. I fine fresh ingredients are a great part of great food!

The Old Fat Guy

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11 Responses

  1. What a fabulous garden, how I envy you and She Who Must Be Obeyed!! I’m in a condo with only planters, with flowers, tomatoes (cherry) and potatoes (whatever has sprouted in my cupboard). I’m a gardener at heart, but at 87 can no longer garden the way I used to. I’ll use your luscious pictures for remembering – thank you so much.

  2. Now you have me wishing we would have done garlic this year! We also moved and refreshed our strawberry patch this year, so didn’t get any with hopes of a really good year next year. Your whole garden looks great. So much variety and tastiness!

  3. Wow!!! What a beautiful garden David. I wish I had space for a big garden. We have a small yard but I do have tomato, pepper plants and an herb section. Sadly as of yesterday, the deer ate my tomato plants.

  4. Very informative & colorful post. Love your garden. Looks so green and productive. What a joy to eat home grown produce. I am inspired to grow my own next year. Thank you for sharing

  5. Greetings from Oklahoma! Loved today’s post and all the different varieties of potatoes you plant. I’ve never heard of walking onions- will have to “google” that! Ha
    Also, you have piqued my interest on your take of fresh garlic. I will have to add to my garden next year!

    Thanks again for your words!!

  6. As a gardener myself, I must say I’m impressed. You’ve got a lot going on there. Oh, and your so right about the green beans, I had the same experience with the canned version.

  7. Great garden! A co-worker is raising walking onions for the first time this year and is going to share so I can try them too. I’m excited for that. Your potato varieties are different than what we have here. Everything sounds good!

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