The Benefits of Organic Gardening. Garden Lessons.

I'm convinced our garden harvest lasts so much longer than the neighbors because we don't put poison on anything. While most area gardeners are putting their gardens to bed for the season, we are still harvesting our crop. Zucchini, summer squash and regular tomatoes are almost at an end. Yet the yellow grape tomatoes and heirloom Cherokee Purple tomatoes are still filled with green, growing tomatoes.

One of the rutabagas in the raised bed is almost as large as a soccer ball. Two basil plants are still going strong and only one of the peppers has turned red. The carrots... Ooh, lah lah!!! Dozens of sweet, finger-length carrots await their harvest. We've been thinning them out for several weeks and enjoying the baby carrots for snacks. We still have cabbage and swiss chard to harvest. The purple cabbages did much better than the green.

I'd show you the thumb-sized raspberries we pulled from the vines yesterday, but someone ate them all before we finished harvesting.

We plant marigolds and other flowers with our vegetables to attract bees and repel harmful insects. We use grass clippings from the lawn to mulch the raised beds for moisture retention. Our in-ground beds were amended with black cow, perlite, vermiculite and peat, then tilled to a depth of at least 12 inches and covered with landscaping material. Where possible, natural ground cover (in our case mint and buttercup) has been allowed to grow freely between vegetables to deter weed growth and help retain moisture. All planting areas are fed compost, peat and black cow yearly.

Easy dinner

Our dinner last night was simple. We picked up some real BBQ chicken on our way through Roulette. Boiled up a few 'taters. Heated some beans. Sliced some tomatoes and plucked a little basil and parsley. Yum, yum, yum!

Nothing beats fresh from garden to table. This year the grape tomatoes are so sweet they taste like candy.

Yesterday's leftovers will make a two great meals today. Cold beans on toast for lunch. Later tonight we'll have shredded chicken baked with fresh basil, tomatoes, garlic and dill. More than likely served over a bed of brown rice fried with onions, peppers and sliced carrots. A nice healthy meal.

We've learned a lot this year in the garden. 

Basil does well in raised beds with full sun as long as they're pinched back and temperatures are in the 70s with regular periods of rain (or watering). Once temperatures reach the 90s for an extended period, you may as well harvest the entire plant.

Basil planted in shade on the southwest side matures at a later date thus extending the harvest.

Swiss chard does well planted from seed with morning shade and afternoon sun.

Squash does not do well in shallow raised beds.

Zucchini does surprisingly well in both full and partial sun.

Fall planted onions get big. (We'll try fall-planted garlic this year.)

Strawberry plants don't do much the first year except throw runners.

Mint does not do well when planted with zucchini. The zucchini takes over.

The kohlrabi is HUGE. It takes as much space as zucchini. When planted in west-facing raised beds with partial shade it does well. With full-sun -- not so much.

I leave you on this damp, chilly morning to bake zucchini bread, stir up some potato salad and dream of next year's garden. Y'all enjoy your day.

Blessed be.