Garden tour August 2023

My goal/experiment with the home garden this year was to let everything grow that came up. I did not have many weeds at all, it was mostly covered with tomatoes, beans, and squash in my bed areas—and actually ended up getting completely covered up and unnavigable. Thus, I have it a haircut. I will keep the home garden more pruned in the future—that was the value Learned this year, pruning. I chose to do this experiment as I was a little bummed out at getting started with seeds very late. Even when you get started when you think it’s late, you can still get a shite ton of growth. Too much. So when it needs to be managed, manage it. (Though, I also had a lot of time restrictions on my plate this year…) For next year, I already have a different plan. Stay tuned to hear what it was. Also, I did want to share what I was most proud of this season, which was my cushaws. Cushaws are a type of squash crossed kind of like between a pumpkin and a zucchini, and I cook it in either pies or breads. Just skin, roast, blend, and substitute 2 cups for a can of “pumpkin” (which is usually actually just butternut squash).

Before garden-haircut

After the haircut

Mid-work pictures

Bounty

Basil salt

Leather Britches (strung beans)

Oregano infused olive oil

Boneset and Pokeweed for dye

Various sunflower heads drying for seed

Calendula salve which I had made with calendula petal infused olive oil, and thus, needed to make more calendula olive oil

Cushaws

Fiber fun in the garden with alpaca wool from my cousin!