Garden Update

Before thinning

After thinning

Yay! Our very own greens...

Two months in and our Huntington Beach community garden plot is growing well! Lot's of things are happening; however, most (but not all) of it is underground...lol...but we are seeing satisfying progress :)

Lettuce is busting out of their squares, so we chatted up the gardener to the north of us to find out when we should/could eat this gorgeous lettuce and she said she's been harvesting for a couple of weeks now. The trick, she said, was to trim the big leaves from the outside and the core will continue to produce until end of summer. Sounds like we will be eating mega-organic-salads throughout October! We planted a 'salad mix' so we have a mix of red leaf, green leaf, romaine and butter leaf.

Also, of note, are the broccoli sightings. They are just now making their appearance, so keep a look out in your own gardens.

Seeds are still doing well. The Mammoth sunflowers are sprouting up so fast that I decided to devote the whole third box to 'Autumn Beauty' sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) which is a shorter variety (4'-5') with mixed colors...bright yellow, bronze, and purple shades with some bicolors. They are good for bee forage, which is a major plus, and are supposed to germinate in 14-21 days and bloom within 75-90 days. I planted them on Feb 1st, so start the countdown:)

We are still getting a handful of cherry tomatoes each week and there are still plenty of green ones on the vine in the que.

Lastly, we had a trespasser! Not to worry, we did not squish him. We just threw that nibbler out on its ear:) Oh, does anyone have any suggestions as to what I should plant in box number 4?

If you like this blog experiment, please like and share so other fellow garden nerds can join the conversation and delight us with their veggie adventures.

#broccoli #veggievirgins #beginninggardeners #organicgardens #sunflowers #autumnbeauty #gardennerds #lettuce #squarefootgardening #caterpillar