Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Today it's In Erika's Garden, not Kitchen

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My whole family pitched in last weekend to plant our summer vegetable garden. Tonight after dinner my younger son and I checked on it and took some photos. Now you too can dream of homegrown meals to come!

This first photo is a tiny baby fig, just getting started on our dwarf fig tree. We don't know what variety it is, but the figs are huge purple specimens and ripen around Labor Day:


Next we have some teeny tiny baby Key limes...


...and here is a Bearss lime-to-be (Bearss limes are the normal green ones, which turn yellowish when they're really ripe):


This is the first year we're trying to grow soybeans. They climb like, well, beans! so we put a cage in the middle to support them:


This is a bed with 18 lettuce plants (speckled, green leaf and red leaf, I think). Lettuce actually does better in southern California in the winter, but I didn't get to plant a winter garden this year, and this bed where I put the lettuce only gets a half-day of sun, so I think they'll be okay for a while:


These are green beans, which always do well. We planted some plants, and around them we put in seeds, to extend the harvest (but the seeds haven't come up yet).


This is my rangy herb garden. It needs a little TLC.


The star jasmine is blooming now, and the fragrance is incredible. Unfortunately, it's not great for my allergies, so I have to hold my breath when I'm near it. Everyone else loves it though.


The garden beds get a little too much shade, so this year I bought some pots and put them on the patio where they'll get more sun. This means I have to water them by hand instead of letting the sprinklers do the work, but that's okay.


Because we live in Santa Monica's "fog belt," our tomatoes and zucchini often get powdery mildew or root rot before they get really productive. This year I'm trying both in pots. We'll see what happens.


Hope you liked this garden tour! I'll take some more photos when things have started to take off. Which they'll do as long as I remember to feed and water. Feed and water. Feed and water. It's my new mantra.

2 comments:

Michelle, San Diego Vegetarian Examiner said...

Great photos, Erika - I love them! I grow a lot of the same plants myself. The Bearss lime is a wonderful variety; it goes nuts on our property in north county San Diego. We have over 100 fruit trees plus vegetables, herbs, and flowers. It certainly keeps us busy!

Erika Kerekes said...

100 fruit trees! I can't wait to come visit and tour your orchard! That's my dream....

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