A Year Later in an Idaho Garden

Yes, the blog took a leave of absence. That's what happens when life gets in the way of pleasure. Suffice it to say that a lot has happened since October of 2013 and we need to get on with the postings of random Idaho musings.

This one concerns our garden. Karren and I decided we were not happy with a small plot anymore so we tripled the size. Our neighbor Hal came over and tilled the square with his tractor (what a gift!) and we commenced to plant our crop. All was going well at first but we learned our shortcomings quickly. In a nutshell - WATER! Crops need lots of water to flourish and we had to divert much of our well use to the garden. Nothing was left for the lawns or trees.

Here is the state of the plot right before we left for vacation at the middle of July. We had watered enough to keep things alive but not enough to generate consistent growth. This is also after the great weed genocide. The weeds had struck our last nerve so we took the plunge and invested (that's what married couples call it when they buy something they both covet) in a rear-tine tiller. Notice the footprints in that dark Idaho alluvial goodness. Tilled soil is the bomb! Gringing weeds is soooo gratifying.

Next is the garden after we got back from vacation. Our friends the Mylers watered for us and showed us what can happen if things get the moisture they need:

That's progress! The zucchini could now hide a family of Cambodians with no problem:

That's my corn in the back, still struggling with enough water. But behold, a cloud arises in the background! For the last several weeks it has rained almost daily. Cool, drenching, sometimes all night rains. Gardens like that stuff. The corn got blown over, but I learned another lesson. Leave it alone! It will right itself and come back even stronger.

This has brought us to the next phase of the food cycle: Storage! We began canning some pickles of one kind or another and have now graduated into the full-blown pressure canner storage kitchen. Here is Karren trying her hand at Pickled beets for the first time:

After working with those red balls it looks like we killed somebody in the sink! Here's a rundown of what we've been canning so far:

Pickled Beets
Green Beans
Bread and Butter Cuc Pickles
B&B Zucchini Pickles (strangely tasty)
Dilly Beans
Sweet Pickles
Cherry Jam
Cherry Preserves
Cherry Pie Filling (the cherries were from the Dean's tree in Poky)

The above Dilled green beans were done using fresh dill from Hal's garden. He's a great guy and recommended the dilly beans. Check out the dill seed heads! A clove a garlic too.

The pickles below are my favorite - Bread and butter pickles. We are averaging about four to six cuc's a day out of the garden, so the pickles are just getting started. We are going to eat so many pickles this winter we will die of vinegar poisoning! Death, where is thy sting?

I can't resist a parting shot of me in my work clothes, outstanding in my field. Notice the height of the corn now. This is Silver Queen and boy is it going to be good!

We have also got:

Cilantro
Pumpkins
Summer Squash
Butter Beans (kind of a bust this year and last - must be an Idaho thing)
Peas (the deer's favorite)
Carrots
Turnips the size of volleyballs - we eat the greens
Swiss Chard
Cantelope
Green Peppers
Jalapenos
Several different tomato varieties
Raspberries (previous owner's patch)
Strawberries
Radishes
Spinach
Golden Bantam Corn

So, what's in your garden? We are already making plans to go bigger again next year. I want to plant tomatillos for salsa, and more peas to distract the deer.

Check back soon for another installment: The Streagle's go to the driest place on the planet at the moment - California! Smoked out and stoked by the Sierras.

Ciao!