Challenge Accepted - Great Garden Experiment, Update 1

It's time to report on my success in the Great Garden Experiment Challenge. Carrots are sprouting! The seeds in the container are doing great and I'm even seeing life from the seeds in the ground, planted in my new raised flower bed. I am grateful for the heavy rain we've been getting here in Southern California.

I'm having a little more trouble with the Three Sisters method since I can't tell what is a bean sprout and what is marigold, but I'm confident that in just a few weeks I'll be able to figure it out and hopefully see even more growth. I'm pleased that the corn is showing the most growth. Again, thank the heavens for all this rain!

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Food Garden Friday - April Showers

Unfortunately my carrot and brussel sprouts are showing no signs of life, but the rest of this area is doing quite well, especially the radish. I've never been a huge fan of radish but I have read about a radish soup which I am ready to research and try.

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Challenge Accepted - The Great Garden Experiment 2019

I spend a lot of time on YouTube and came across a new garden challenge posted by Cara Grandle that I was grabbed by. The Great Garden Experiment 2019 has three parts, with a question associated to each.

1. What are you doing for the first time?
2. What frustration/challenge are you determined to conquer?
3. What are you growing into or is there a new skill you're bringing to your garden journey?

The Three Sister's method of planting is a first for me as well as corn, which is an integral part of the method. As mentioned before, I spend a lot of time on YouTube and a lot of it is watching videos of other gardeners. Many use the Three Sister's method which, upon doing some research, has been a method used by Native Americans for a very long time. You can read more from The Farmer's Almanac. This combination of corn, beans and squash will be seeded in my front flower bed that I'm sacrificing for the food garden expansion. It's not a real sacrifice considering I couldn't win the battle with weeds in that area - I just can't understand why that area gives me the most trouble with weeds!

Now on to the carrots. The first time I tried to grow carrots from seeds, they came up very tiny and had a small yield. Within the last year I went forward with a second attempt - it was a complete fail. Needless to say, carrots absolutely fill the requirement for question number two; a frustration I'm determined to conquer. This time I plan to plant a few different types of carrots, each in the ground and in a container. I want no room for error!

The third question was addressed with my new raised bed, but I think it can be addressed better with another new addition to my garden that I will reveal in a future post. Stay tuned!

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Local Happenings - Veggiepalooza!

On March 16 and 17, Veggipalooza attracted quite the crowd of "green thumbs" to browse nearly 300 home-garden friendly plants for sale. I managed to buy a few types of tomatoes and beans but it was a hard decision. I passed up Clint Eastwood's tomatoes but will hopefully try them next year. I'd also like to thank my best friend for accompanying me on this day trip.

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Food Garden - Fall/Winter 2018

(L-R) Dragon Tongue beans, Green Arrow peas, Blue Lake beans, Oregon Sugar Pod peas.

Blue Lake bean being planted.

Left: Dragon Tongue began to sprout a week later. I also planted Royal Burgundy beans to the right of them but they weren't showing signs of growth. I decided to pop in a few more seeds, this time I disregarded the instructions that said to soak them before planting. Whether that was the factor that caused them to grow, I do not know, but they finally showed growth a week later.

You can see a bean sprout popping up on the bottom here. These popped up in less than a week and I didn't soak these beans before planting, so I think I'm not going to worry about that step with beans in the future.

And here is the newest photo of the Burgundy bean sprout taken this morning. Quite a start.

Oregon Sugar Pod peas have done quite well. They look very similar to snow peas in the photo on the seed package so I'm hoping they taste similar because I love those.

Top row: Bibb lettuce, looseleaf lettuce blend, red and green Romain blend. Bottom row: Brussel sprouts, Black Seeded Simpson lettuce and Buttercrunch. I also purchased some garden labels to help keep track of what is where and they've proven to be very helpful.

I planted my Gold Mighty Mustard in this container which was already housing a sweet Lilac bell pepper which I purchased as a tiny plant at the Green Scene Expo back in April.

This is how the purple bell pepper looked in April. I've read on the internet that many people have had problems with bell peppers coming through this year, so at least I know I'm not alone. 

Not long after planting the mustard, I noticed tons of plants popping up. I was so surprised and confused until I thought on it a bit and realized these are not all mustard sprouts. After a little more time (and a bit of a taste), I could tell the difference between the mustard seedlings and what I've determined are radish sprouts, reviving themselves from Spring. A tiny snail managed to sneak into this photo, on the right  rim of the container.

I've also put these seeds in a container but they're slow to grow, so no progress pictures yet.

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Unboxing - Seed Bank Box - September 2018

King Richard Leek - Depending on how much you love leeks, or how impatient you are, these leeks can be harvested at 3-4 inches or you can wait until they reach their full length of 1ft. Whenever you choose to harvest, they suggest trying your new leek in mashed potatoes, soup or even roasted.

Walla Walla Onion - Mild and extra sweet, these are not your typical onion! People have been known to eat them "like an apple" but I'm not sure how I feel about that. These along with the leeks will be the first time I've ever attempted growing onions (if you can believe it)!

Touchstone Gold Beets - Have you shied away from cooking with beets because they are known for staining kitchen ware that you do not want stained? Unlike other beets, the Touchstone Gold Beet is notorious for just the opposite - NOT staining things! This fact coupled with their mild flavor makes me more likely to attempt this root vegetable in my garden and hopefully have my mind changed on my dislike of beets.

Green Zebra Tomatoes - If this light green fruit with dark green stripes doesn't catch your attention, the bold, sweet taste surely will! This unique addition to the garden will have visitors requesting to take a few home to try and you'll be able to oblige because this plant is a heavy producer! 

Jewel Mix Nasturtium - This edible flower blooms in beautiful clusters of red, orange and yellow and I'm very excited to plant these in my garden since they are one of my favorite flowers.

Royal Burgundy Bean - I was just getting ready to plant some beans the week this box arrived so this is pretty exciting. After I'm done with that I'll need to sweep my house for cameras and microphones because I don't know how this company keeps knowing exactly what I'm planning to plant!

White Gold Mighty Mustard - To add to my list of "I've never grown this," this particular mustard plant is a jack of all trades! The plant serves as ground cover and suppresses weeds, attracts beneficial insects, the leaves are edible and its deep roots enrich the soil. What a power plant!

Surry Arugula - This fast-growing plant has a spicy kick to it which will be a punchy surprise to add to a salad. Potassium, Calcium, vitamins C, B, K - what a great addition to my garden and with great timing, I'm preparing an area to grow a salad mix already.

Seed Bank Box continues to impress me with their unique plants and vast variety. Like I always say, if I won't eat it, someone I know will (although of course I am willing to give every plant a fair chance). If you'd like to subscribe to the Seed Bank Box and have a mystery box of edible future food delivered to your door, please follow THIS LINK and let me know how you feel about what you receive. If you send me some pictures of your Seed Bank Box garden, I'd love to spotlight it here on my blog.

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