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Back on April 18th you read about the vegetable garden I started this year. There was a brief spell of warm weather and I took advantage of it to put in some young plants and seeds. I also tried a different garden plan, using mounds, rather than flat ground. I had a mixed bag of success by starting early and by using the mound method.

First of all, next year I’ll listen to the farmers who told me to wait until a week into May before planting. Cold nights came for me and I spent a lot of time covering tender plants. Not all of them survived and only the ones that like cold weather (i.e., onions and cabbage) didn’t seem affected by it. Melon and cucumber seeds didn’t sprout until the ground warmed up.

I’m not real happy with the mounds for plants. Too much erosion and exposed earth (3 sides) that requires more watering than it normally would. Next year, should I do raised gardening, I will invest in wood for building boxes.  The cardboard keeps the weeds down, but a PITA keeping it from lifting up in the wind (thus, the rocks you see in the pathways).

However, some plants love the good drainage the hills provide. My watermelon, cucumbers, and zucchini have taken off. The zucchini plant is one of the largest I’ve grown, measuring nearly 6 feet across and already producing large zucchini, one of which I already removed.

I grew large turnips that have already been pulled, with some more than 3″ in diameter. The beets, however were disappointing. The largest were only slightly larger than an inch across.

I’m hoping for some good corn. If, “knee high by the fourth of July” is any indication of a good yield, my corn is already over 3′ tall, with a second planting that should reach the “knee high” height in a couple of weeks.

I let the asparagus fern out again this year to ensure I get large cuttings and a strong root system next year. This year will make the roots 3 years old. The asparagus will then produce every year for at least the next 30 years and I can then cut continuously until the end of the season. It’s a vegetable that requires patience for a couple of years, but the wait is worth it.

Tomatoes, potatoes, beans, carrots, peppers, and the rest seem to be headed toward a bumper crop, which is likely due to the compost tea I make and give to the plants once each week. Also, I’m not seeing damaged plants and cat scat buried in the garden. Two feral cats now in a shelter won’t be leaving me their calling cards any longer.

Want to make compost tea? Put about 4 cups of compost in a nylon sock, drop it in a 5 gallon bucket of water, add 2 tablespoons of molasses, and 2 tablespoons of fish emulsion. Aerate for 48 hours and you’ll end up with a black compost tea that’s better than Miracle Grow.

Below are some pictures.