The cukes keep coming

The cucumber beetles came and went, the powdery mildew claimed the lives of all of Mickey's zucchinis. The sikkim cucumbers however, remain. They are fat cukes, about 6" long. As they ripen, they turn a mustard to brown color with a cracked skin like cantaloupe. They have a delicate mild cucumber taste with just enough sweetness. Sometimes during the hot season, I will find a bitter taste left in some of the cucumbers, but not with the sikkim variety. The last few days yielded just shy of a pound of them, with several more in the waiting.  We also harvested some okra (which is gearing up to be a heavy producer in a couple weeks), some tomatoes, and a few more onions that were hiding in the raised beds.

---

Total produce count for the year:

36 ears of corn

53 strawberries

17 raspberries(golden variety)

12 blackberries

10 blueberries

0.3 lb eggplant

0.2 lb okra

0.31 lb sweet banana peppers

1.01 lb sweet bell peppers

2.76 lb assorted (green)bean pods

20.06 lb cucumber

12.92 lb zucchini squash

2.25 lb yellow squash

5.62 lb butternut squash

3 lb pumpkin

1/2 lb muskmelon

2 cantaloupes

20.21 lb tomatoes

1.8 lb cherry tomatoes

1.7 lb kohlrabi

5.09 lb  onions (bulbs)

9.27 lbs carrot roots

1.25 lb beet roots

1.75 lb potatoes

12 heads of garlic

4 garlic scapes

7.6 lb sweet/snap peas

16.2 lb assorted dark greens

7/8 lb baby radishes/greens

1/4 lb mature radish roots

46.5 lb assorted lettuce

5.1 lb spinach

1/2 lb New Zealand spinach

4.8 lb turnip roots

2.63 lb miner's lettuce

3/16 lb mache/corn salad

5/8 lb baby greens

1/3 lb arugula

5 asparagus spears

3 trays of wheat grass(inside)

3 trays micro  greens(grown inside)

A countless amount of:

  parsley, basil, peppermint, spearmint, lemon balm, burnet, fennel, thyme, dill, green onions, chives, stevia

We got back from our trip at the beach to find an unkempt garden. Weeds were everywhere, tomato plants were toppling over at the top, and the vining okra with their sharp vines are out of control. We had a plentiful harvest waiting for us. There was a beautiful ripe cantaloupe, along with about a dozen cucumbers,  a few tomatoes, half a dozen yellow carrots, a fat zucchini, a green pepper, an ear of corn, and a 5 gallon bucket worth of kale greens. 

---

Total produce count for the year:

36 ears of corn

53 strawberries

17 raspberries(golden variety)

12 blackberries

10 blueberries

0.2 lb eggplant

0.12 lb okra

0.31 lb sweet banana peppers

1.01 lb sweet bell peppers

2.76 lb assorted (green)bean pods

19 .18 lb cucumber

11.92 lb zucchini squash

2.25 lb yellow squash

5.62 lb butternut squash

3 lb pumpkin

1/2 lb muskmelon

2 cantaloupes

17.65 lb tomatoes

1.69 lb cherry tomatoes

1.7 lb kohlrabi

4.96 lb  onions (bulbs)

9.27 lbs carrot roots

1.25 lb beet roots

1.75 lb potatoes

12 heads of garlic

4 garlic scapes

7.6 lb sweet/snap peas

16.2 lb assorted dark greens

7/8 lb baby radishes/greens

1/4 lb mature radish roots

46.5 lb assorted lettuce

5.1 lb spinach

1/2 lb New Zealand spinach

4.8 lb turnip roots

2.63 lb miner's lettuce

3/16 lb mache/corn salad

5/8 lb baby greens

1/3 lb arugula

5 asparagus spears

3 trays of wheat grass(inside)

3 trays micro  greens(grown inside)

A countless amount of:

  parsley, basil, peppermint, spearmint, lemon balm, burnet, fennel, thyme, dill, green onions, chives, stevia

Produce update, woah

Heading out the door for a short vacation. Before I go, here's the latest produce update:

---

Total produce count for the year:

35 ears of corn

53 strawberries

17 raspberries(golden variety)

12 blackberries

10 blueberries

0.2 lb eggplant

0.6 lb okra

3/16 lb sweet banana peppers

.91 lb sweet bell peppers

2.76 lb assorted (green)bean pods

12 .05 lb cucumber

11.17 lb zucchini squash

2.25 lb yellow squash

5.62 lb butternut squash

3 lb pumpkin

1/2 lb muskmelon

17.4 lb tomatoes

1.69 lb cherry tomatoes

1.7 lb kohlrabi

4.96 lb  onions (bulbs)

9.08 lbs carrot roots

1.25 lb beet roots

1.75 lb potatoes

12 heads of garlic

4 garlic scapes

7.6 lb sweet/snap peas

15.8 lb assorted dark greens

7/8 lb baby radishes/greens

1/4 lb mature radish roots

46.5 lb assorted lettuce

5.1 lb spinach

1/2 lb New Zealand spinach

4.8 lb turnip roots

2.63 lb miner's lettuce

3/16 lb mache/corn salad

5/8 lb baby greens

1/3 lb arugula

5 asparagus spears

3 trays of wheat grass(inside)

3 trays micro  greens(grown inside)

A countless amount of:

  parsley, basil, peppermint, spearmint, lemon balm, burnet, fennel, thyme, dill, green onions, chives, stevia

Peak summer enlightenment

I've discovered some miraculous information through means of Google. The bugs that Deb and I have been so frantic to fight this losing battle are actually not stink bugs! They are squash bugs. Apparently stink bugs don't even eat squash, cucumbers, or melons. (We have spotted some stink bugs in our tomatoes, but that is a different chapter. )

There is a light at the end of the tunnel, but it won't happen this year. We have passed the point of winning or losing this war against the bug, and it doesn't look favorable for us. We've already lost about 10 squash plants, and there are about 5 more left. For next year, I have found some very helpful information. There are several varieties of squash that are resistant to many of the pests that plague cucurbits. Several winter squash, and a few summer varieties are said to resist squash bugs and the other two pains in the rear; the cucumber beetle, and the squash vine borer. It just so happens that a few of these resistant varieties are also better about fighting off powdery mildew disease.

We ate an amazing yellow beet for dinner tonight. We purchased it from MOMS market. The beet had stiff flesh and tasted like corn. I don't know the name of the variety, but it will certainly be on my wish list for the spring seeds to buy.

---

Total produce count for the year:

35 ears of corn

53 strawberries

17 raspberries(golden variety)

12 blackberries

10 blueberries

3/16 lb sweet banana peppers

.85 lb sweet bell peppers

2.76 lb assorted (green)bean pods

8 .61 lb cucumber

11.17 lb zucchini squash

2.25 lb yellow squash

4.49 lb butternut squash

3 lb pumpkin

1/2 lb muskmelon

12.9 lb tomatoes

1.62 lb cherry tomatoes

1.7 lb kohlrabi

4.96 lb  onions (bulbs)

9.08 lbs carrot roots

1.25 lb beet roots

1/8 lb potatoes

12 heads of garlic

4 garlic scapes

7.6 lb sweet/snap peas

15.8 lb assorted dark greens

7/8 lb baby radishes/greens

1/4 lb mature radish roots

46.5 lb assorted lettuce

5.1 lb spinach

1/2 lb New Zealand spinach

4.8 lb turnip roots

2.63 lb miner's lettuce

3/16 lb mache/corn salad

5/8 lb baby greens

1/3 lb arugula

5 asparagus spears

3 trays of wheat grass(inside)

3 trays micro  greens(grown inside)

A countless amount of:

  parsley, basil, peppermint, spearmint, lemon balm, burnet, fennel, thyme, dill, green onions, chives, stevia

Produce update

---

Total produce count for the year:

35 ears of corn

53 strawberries

17 raspberries(golden variety)

12 blackberries

10 blueberries

3/16 lb sweet banana peppers

.75 lb sweet bell peppers

2.76 lb assorted (green)bean pods

7 .68lb cucumber

10.49 lb zucchini squash

2.25 lb yellow squash

4.12 lb butternut squash

3 lb pumpkin

1/2 lb muskmelon

10.9 lb tomatoes

1.6 lb cherry tomatoes

1.7 lb kohlrabi

4.71 lb  onions (bulbs)

9.02 lbs carrot roots

1.25 lb beet roots

1/8 lb potatoes

12 heads of garlic

4 garlic scapes

7.6 lb sweet/snap peas

15.8 lb assorted dark greens

7/8 lb baby radishes/greens

1/4 lb mature radish roots

46.5 lb assorted lettuce

5.1 lb spinach

1/2 lb New Zealand spinach

4.8 lb turnip roots

2.63 lb miner's lettuce

3/16 lb mache/corn salad

5/8 lb baby greens

1/3 lb arugula

5 asparagus spears

3 trays of wheat grass(inside)

3 trays micro  greens(grown inside)

A countless amount of:

  parsley, basil, peppermint, spearmint, lemon balm, burnet, fennel, thyme, dill, green onions, chives, stevia

Produce update

Today we harvested 3 ears of corn, 14 oz red onions, 3 oz zucchini, 12 oz tomatoes, 1 lb cucumbers, 4 oz carrots, and 2 oz beets.

---

Total produce count for the year:

28 ears of corn

53 strawberries

17 raspberries(golden variety)

12 blackberries

10 blueberries

3/16 lb sweet banana peppers

1/4 lb sweet bell peppers

2.76 lb assorted (green)bean pods

6 .68lb cucumber

10.49 lb zucchini squash

2.25 lb yellow squash

4 lb butternut squash

3 lb pumpkin

4.06 lb tomatoes

1.45 lb cherry tomatoes

1.7 lb kohlrabi

4.71 lb  onions (bulbs)

9.02 lbs carrot roots

1.25 lb beet roots

1/8 lb potatoes

12 heads of garlic

4 garlic scapes

7.6 lb sweet/snap peas

15.8 lb assorted dark greens

7/8 lb baby radishes/greens

1/4 lb mature radish roots

46.5 lb assorted lettuce

5.1 lb spinach

1/2 lb New Zealand spinach

4.8 lb turnip roots

2.63 lb miner's lettuce

3/16 lb mache/corn salad

5/8 lb baby greens

1/3 lb arugula

5 asparagus spears

3 trays of wheat grass(inside)

3 trays micro  greens(grown inside)

A countless amount of:

  parsley, basil, peppermint, spearmint, lemon balm, burnet, fennel, thyme, dill, green onions, chives, stevia