The garden and the orchard are going nuts! It is the heart of the spring gardening season and it's getting busy out there. I really can't wait to taste these pears, and since I have never grown a pear before I am very eager to taste how much better they are than the ones I pick up in the grocery store. After tasting home grown peaches for the first time I find it hard to buy the under ripe versions in the store. It's just not the same flavor and I have never had the peach juice run down my arm when biting into one from the store like I have my tree or out at Schnepf Farm.
The zucchini crop has been amazing so far this year. I did over plant a bit but have really had no problem getting rid of any of the excess squash.
This year I have been trying to irrigate a little more than I ever have before. It works best with the heavy soil I have and really holds the water well and the plants are enjoying it immensely. Even during the hot spell we had I was able to do the irrigation in the heat and not harm the plants since the leaves didn't get wet and really only had to do it every three days. Now that we have cooled back down a bit -90's-I can go almost four days if I really get a good soak.
Mother nature and I did cause the tomatoes a little bit of stress this season however. Tomatoes need a bit more consistent watering or they can split when they get watered after waiting a little too long and of course blossom end rot is such an easy problem to trigger, watering issues, calcium deficiency or even really hot spikes in temps can ruin tomatoes. I do have to admit I did not use bone meal when I planted the six fill in plants I used to replace the ones that got frozen out and if I were a betting man I would bet the ones that have the few rotted tomatoes are the ones that did not have a good dose of bone meal under their roots.
Kale is still going strong
Ball has a great recipe for pickled Zucchini
Heard about radish seed pods being edible and let the leftovers bloom, flowers brought bees and the pods are great! Like a very mild radish.
My season total for the zucchini harvest is at 131 picked so far!
If anyone has any questions feel free to contact me! I have been doing a lot of consulting in gardens lately but still have time and love to help people out.
