Broccoli

One of the easiest plants to grow in the kitchen garden. Plant it, water it and watch it grow.

Yellow Carrot More than Edible

So I grew yellow carrots during the summer for the first time. They started off great. Many warned I wouldn't be able to grow carrots, let alone yellow ones. Well, with all that negativity, after a couple of months, they did just seem to wither away - at least I thought they'd withered away.

The spot where they were originally grown, I planted other items in that spot, not realizing there was one lone carrot enjoying every minute of it and becoming a double legged, monster. This carrot was in the ground for many, many, many months. Of course it was finally realized that 'something' was growing there but had no idea until I began preparing the bed for something else and voila! A baby was born.

Of course, those same negativos told me not to bother trying to eat the thing as it would be pithy and tasteless. Who cares what someone else thinks? I scratched the surface of the carrot and was stunned by what appeared to be juice coming from it...so I figured what the heck - can't hurt to try it.

That was the best carrot soup I've ever eaten. Not only did it make a very good meal, for several days, I might add, the carrot actually ended up being juicy and tender and really quite delicious.

Nay sayers, bah! I dare anyone to buy a cup of soup as good as the one I had from that yellow carrot that had grown to the size of a baby's leg.




01.25.09 :: Update
I've updated another post to help you locate a supplier for yellow carrots.  You can find the information here.

Yellow Alstromeria

Alstromeria

My Alstromeria is normally flowering by December. Must be the unusually cold weather.

Peas

Everyone is eager to see how many peas get eaten this year versus those that end up in seed production. We start out picking peas on a regular basis and then end up not being able to keep up with the rapid production. Before we know it, the garden is filled with plump pea pods filled with seeds.

Stock

Stock is one of those garden jewels we keep around all year long. Although it probably prefers consistent cold, it tolerates our tropical climate and never disappoints.

Yesterday I cut several stems, placed them in a vase and completely forgot about them. In the middle of the night I found myself trying to figure out where the incredibly beautiful fragrance was coming from. It was enchanting. It was so enchanting I needed to make sure I didn't somehow leave a bottle of perfume somewhere that may have broken...room by room I searched until my nose led me to the kitchen where this long, thin circular vase stood with several stems of stock. I smiled and proceeded back to bed.

This morning I'm on my way back to the garden to cut more stems - I figure I'll place them strategically throughout the house - a couple of stems each should do it. This time I'll know where the fragrances are coming from and will sleep through the heavenly aroma that floats throughout the house.

This is a nice way to start the day.

If you're interested in obtaining seeds for these and other stock plants, feel free to contact me, I keep a healthy supply of stock on-hand at all times in different varieties. :) Feel free to take a moment to review the seed list. The particular variety to which I refer in this post is a single flowered, star shaped, magenta petals with dusty-miller-like grey-green leaves and stems that grow close to 3 feet tall.

Zucchini in the Winter

Each year we grow zucchini and each year we try to figure out the best way to use the mountains of fruit we get each day. Friends run from us during zucchini season because we are always offering it. This year we tried something a little different by growing it in winter. And I'm convinced this is definitely the way to grow it! Instead of buckets of fruit each day, at the end of the week, there's a nice selection available to make a nice meal. The fruit don't get as large and are delicious. Much to my amazement, this is has been extremely successful. We've had freezing temperatures and it's still growing. The plant had a bit of a set back during those frosty days but it's still viable and producing delicious fruit. Success!

Korean Garlic

One of my new favorite plants is this Korean Garlic. It's been in the garden for several years now and seems to grow without much effort. The weather has been a bit sketchy and inconsistent but you'd never know based on the growth of this plant.

Packets of Korean Garlic seeds are available on request. Check the seed list for other seeds as well.