Sunday 6 October 2013

Fresh

Notwithstanding the haphazard nature of our first planting we are greeting our mini harvest with delight.

The single row of blue lake beans has produced far beyond my expectations. So tasty we eat them like asparagus. A goodly portion has gone into the freezer for special occasions. I'm picking the last of them tonight to go with baked ham. 

Turnip greens are becoming our favourite food. Nutritious and delicious we eat baby leaves in salads and the rest lightly steamed. I'm using them in place of spinach in recipes. FYI Turnip greens are an excellent source of many vitamins including vitamin K, vitamin A (in the form of beta-carotene), vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin B6, folate, manganese, fiber, calcium, and copper. In addition, turnip greens are a very good source of potassium, magnesium, iron, and vitamin B2. They are also a good source of phosphorus, vitamin B1, vitamin B3, vitamin B5, omega-3 fatty acids, and protein. We plan to cut from them as a Fall/Winter crop.


The beets are waiting for a light covering of straw so we can store them in the ground for later pulling. A few leaves make it into salads too. I've heard storing this way results in woody, tasteless beets while others say it is the best plan. I guess we'll find out won't we?


In the stand-off between man and bear over apple readiness we blinked first. It was a pathetically small crop anyway.

Enough for two pies and some taste testing. Professional advice and pruning has been booked for after Christmas.


I can't imagine ever losing the delight in the freshness of it all.

33 comments:

  1. The freshness of fall is like no other! Your crops are fantastic! I have never used turnip leaves in my salads but they look so green and wow are they loaded with some mega vitamins! And your pies are beautiful!!! Happy harvest friend!!!

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  2. Your produce makes my mouth water, especially those apple pies! I'm really trying to add the most healthful foods to my diet, but I forget about the greens from turnips and beets. Thanks for the reminder about all the good nutrition they offer. I I will definitely be including them in future meals!

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    1. Hopefully next year I will have a freezer full of apple pies.

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  3. Jealous of those apples they look so good. Would love you to join the Garden Share Collective its a group of bloggers doing a blog hop once a month -http://www.strayedtable.com/grow/garden-share/

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    1. I am not a great deadline person Liz but I'll do my best.

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  4. Those pies look delish! I'm glad your beans are so prolific. I've broken up with my beans. Our fling is over and I've moved on.

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  5. Isn't it rewarding?
    Our apple harvest this year was pathetic. A family of deer moved in and ate every last one.

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    1. I'm sure you feel like me-frustrated at the time and then so glad to live in the heart of nature.

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  6. Your pies look great! Despite even small crops, it is still quite exciting to be able to grow anything edible!

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    1. Hi Kate, yes even one mouthful of fresh, tasty homegrown produce is immensely satisfying.

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  7. Wow good job with the late garden! But bears... I can't imagine. And I whined about deer. The raccoons eat our cherries, but they aren't so scary as bears. You inspire me to apple pie creation.

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    1. So far the deer have stayed in the meadow. The racoons however come right to the back door and stare at us through the window.

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  8. Dear Susan,
    If their is something I like, it is home grown peas and beans.
    I long for the time when we too can gather in our own harvest.
    Kirk

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    1. . . . and of course, when I typed 'their' I meant 'there'!

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    2. Many of my childhood friends avoided the task of shelling peas but I loved it. I'm sure a garden will come to you in the course of time.

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  9. These two pies look delicious! Even when you have small crops, your own grown veggies and fruit give so much satisfaction.

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  10. Mmmmmmm. I had not thought of growing turnips for greens. I will give them a try next year.

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    1. This is the first time for me and I'm really pleased with the result.

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  11. I don't grow turnips normally - so now you've got me thinking. However small a harvest you get it is always worthwhile.

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    1. On the farm we grew them commercially so I rather went off them. The greens are a pleasant surprise, I even like the turnips again.

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  12. How wonderful. I so miss having a yard to grow my own fruits and vegetables. xo Laura

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    1. You are very creative in other ways Laura and who knows, maybe a garden is in your future.

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  13. Wowzers. You are the bomb. I'm very impressed with your harvests. Those beets, the photo looks like it belongs in a magazine, actually all of the photos are impressive and now I'm hungry. Actually I went out for drinks (Sprite for me the teetotaler) and hor des vors (sp) with coworkers last night and one of the options was this yummy pickled beets with roasted hazelnuts and it was delish. Unfortunately I don't grow beets. The bugs enjoy them too much which makes your feat all that more impressive.

    Btw, loved your comments on my blog. It was definitely the farmer's fault and he owes me an apology and a few plump artichokes. Maybe then I'll think about forgiving him for planting those pretty things in a "sudden stop" zone. Idiot. :)


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    1. I'm hoping Santa will bring me a better camera this year. Since I started taking pictures for the blog I've discovered I really enjoy it.

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  14. Like you, I'm leaving my beets in the ground for winter picking. Mine are already huge, but they aren't woody. From now on, they seem to just maintain what growth they already have. My leaves are a bit large for eating, but my red-leaf chard is still producing. To me, it seems to be the same as beet leaves without the beets. You mentioned doing a guest post about my float garden in a comment over at my blog. I would be honoured. Let me know what you would like and when. I only have Internet when we come into town, so it may be a week before we come back down the lake. - Margy

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  15. Fighting bears for apples sounds like the title of a book. I think that although I love my apples the bear would win here!

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    1. We have forest at the back of our place and it is easy to see the route the bears have taken as they stop by all the orchards. For the most part they have transferred their attentions to the salmon. After that they will be off for a winter nap.

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  16. Beautiful harvest!
    I grew Kentucky Wonder Pole Beans in my garden. Just wonderful to go out and pick them, then come in and cook them immediately. Only thing fresher is to pull a tomato off the vine, and eat it standing right there in the garden!
    Have a wonderful week-end!
    Lea
    Lea's Menagerie

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    1. You are so right about the tomato. Peas straight from the pod too.

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  17. it all looks so good. I'm surprised about the turnip greens. I love turnips but it looks like your greens are all nice young bits ... so then the turnip itself must not develop I suspect?
    I have a small garden spot and one pot for 'gardening' so I'm already planning for next year. I plan to load one of my pots tomorrow with garlic -- first time I've ever planted garlic. Wish me luck.

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    1. Have fun with the garlic. I got the turnips in so late I thought the best thing was to use them for greens. I'll leave a few to see if the roots amount to anything.

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