It’s been a few days since any real vegetable garden update so I figured it was time to show you a little of what’s going on out there in veggie land!
The cucumbers:
I always direct sow cucumbers, squash, and other cucurbits. Unless you have them in biodegradable pots they don’t always transplant well. I also like the cost effectiveness of growing them from seed. Cucumbers are one of the easiest vegetables to grow from seed – especially so if you have a trellis. I’ll show you my MacGyver trellis later in the week. I’ve had problems in the past with verticullum wilt which is transmitted by the cucumber beetle. So if you happen across a beetle the shape of a lightning bug (or firefly) but orange/yellow with either stripes or spots you’ll know that you’ve found the dreaded cucumber beetle! They spread disease as they nibble on the plants.
Here you can see the cucumber seedling with the first two leaves called cotyledons fully emerged along my 1/4 inch soaker hose.
Here’s another one that was planted a little earlier with the first true leaf all ready to go.
The Lettuce:
The lettuce has done very well considering our wacky weather. It won’t be long before it bolts and that will be the end of lettuce until fall … maybe. I’m going to try a few spots of lettuce underneath our cucumber trellis. The shade may helps us get an extra crop or two before the heat of summer makes it next to impossible. Lettuce likes to germinate in the mid 60’s and we don’t see that often until fall!
The Strawberries:
Strawberries are by far the tastiest of fruits from the garden right now! They are producing very well but will never match the size of the store bought varieties. What they don’t have in size though they make up for in flavor! You just can’t beat fresh from the garden. After the strawberries finish producing it’s a good idea to give them a nitrogen based fertilizer like bloodmeal to encourage new leaf/runner growth. Never, never, never do that before they set fruit or you may end up with lots of leaves and no strawberries
Other vegetables not featured in this post but are producing: The Sugar Snap Peas.
Hi Dave! Your veggies look great!Wow, your lettuces are way ahead of mine—I'm still picking spring mix! And I think your strawberry is HUGE! (Mine are just starting to transition from flowers to fruit.) Can't wait to see your cuke trellis!
Ack, Dave, I'm so sorry! This new picking system is driving me insane! I was of course trying to leave you three hearts by clicking each one, forgetting that you have to just click the one you want to pick. I tried to fix it but couldn't, and now I feel awful. I'll do better next time!
OFB,
No problem on the picks! I'm not sure I'm a big fan of the system but we'll see over time. That strawberry I think was the biggest! Most of the rest are between a dime and a quarter in size but are worth much more than that in flavor!
If I had known this cool weather would last this long I would of sown some lettuce. Oh well. 🙁 I always grow my squash & cukes from seed too, so easy. I find it easier to buy transplants of the tomatoes & peppers though. Everything is looking very good in your veggie garden especially those strawberries. Yum! 😉
The strawberries look great! Home grown produce is always the most delicious. I was thinking about trying to pant a few heirloom varieties next spring. It may be hard to come across good seeds but it should be interesting. The lettuce also looks yum! Cheers~