Tuesday, April 19, 2016

How Does Your Garden Grow?

So far my garden attempt this year is going better than last summer, but it's not without its disasters.

 

 

 

The new bed (in the back) isn't fenced yet to keep the deer out, except for those tomato towers.

 

I planted the bed figuring we would have the fence done before the plants came up and the deer bothered it.

I didn't know the armadillo would climb up there and root it all up during the night, looking for worms and bugs in the nice loose dirt.

So I lost most of my specially ordered seeds to her. Including my precious purple carrot seeds!

I won't replant until we get the fence up. Hopefully soon.

 

 

The French beans have their first blossoms today. So exciting!

Home grown fresh beans taste so good. Why do they let them get so big before they pick them for the stores and farmers' markets?

Behind the beans are onions, spinach, and radishes which we have been eating already.

 

 

 

There are lots of these little guys on the tomato plants.

 

Until I moved to a rural, poor area of the South, I had plenty of places to buy good food, including reasonably priced natural food stores and co-ops, organic and local food available in several supermarkets, an Aldis, farmer's markets, farms where I could purchase meat, maple syrup, honey, and eggs within a few miles of my house, CSAs where I could subscribe and have a box of just-picked vegetables delivered every week in spring, summer and fall.

Living here, not so. To shop organic groceries involves 2 hours of driving. That market is a Whole Foods store on a popular tourist island and the prices reflect it. Mostly, they are outrageous!

Just to shop at an ordinary supermarket is a minimum hour and half of driving, and that also has inflated tourist prices. I can shop in a small store in the nearest small town ... if I want to eat pigs feet, snouts and ears, processed and canned foods, wilted imported produce, and packaged pies and cakes. And because it's a small store, its prices are also high.

The closest farmers' market where local farmers sell their food (rather than bringing in food from a wholesaler and reselling it) is 45 minutes away. We like it but it's expensive, too. Last week we bought a bunch of radishes local but not organic for $3. When we got home we realized there were only five radishes in the bunch so each radish cost 60 cents.

Holy buckets! They're radishes, not gold nuggets!

Anyway, because of where we live, our garden is even more important than mine was in Minnesota and I'm really hoping we can make our little raised beds and deck pots produce some good food for us this year.

 

21 comments:

  1. Cynthia you are doing your best. You are well prepared to fight with animals and other creatures.

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  2. That sounds like hard work. You must miss the convenience of good shops.Good luck with your subsistence farming. Get those fences done.

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  3. Makes me thankful for the abundance of local food and retail markets that are avao;ab;e tp me.

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  4. Having read your report on the fresh food situation in your area as compared to the
    Minnesota situation, then "KEEP FENCING and TRAIN THAT CAT - ROSIE".

    It is really highway robbery that stores/shops in resorty areas are allowed to
    put their produce prices up to highlight the "ritzy" holiday situation.
    After all a freshly grown carrot at Boca Rotan, Florida or Newport, Long Island is no different
    from a freshly grown carrot in back blocks of Tennessee??
    I am sure if you were blindfolded I bet you can't tell the difference!

    So Cynthia and Paul, looks like a bit of "HARD YAKKA" with the fence building activities.
    I suspect that all Ana and Don's young ones are a bit to young to haul across to assist,
    but I am sure Young Mason would like to cheer you on to great anti-critter fortifications.
    Cheers from afar - sorry I can't assist - the Pacific is in the way!
    Colin

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  5. Hope all goes well for your garden this year. Boy you must be more rural than we are! Love growing our own veggies. We have a possum/armadillo trap. Mac catches them and releases them in the state park.

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  6. Wow you really have your challenges with keeping the garden free of poachers. I hope your fences will work since you have a lot of challenges buying reasonably priced foods too.

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  7. Now that really does sound like a challenge. Such a long way from a supermarket, hope it all goes well.

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  8. Sure will be better when the fence is done to keep the animals out.
    We came across many tourist towns in our travels and some not touristy place where the food cost a little more - but we all have to eat.

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  9. That is quite a problem you have to get fresh vegatables. I hope your gardenwork will improve without the naughty visitors.

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  10. I had no idea grocery store were so sparse in the rural south. No wonder people have such poor diets. Good luck with your gardens. Your climate should be conducive to a good crop if you can keep the critters out.

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  11. It makes me realise how lucky I am to have everything I need on hand and within an easy reach from home. It would be really frustrating to lose your seeds to an Armadillo, but I did have a little smile (sorry!!) it sounds so exotic. Those radishes are day light robbery, I hope you enjoyed them!
    Have a happy week, pottering in the garden!
    Wren x

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  12. Quite a challenge indeed. I hope it is a great gardening year for you :)

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  13. What a difference a few degrees of Latitude south can make! Wow. You have a lot on the way already. I haven't even moved my Simon and Garfunkel herb pot outdoors yet.

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  14. Everything you grow must be so precious. You must have nearly wept when you saw the armadillo damage. I thought we had problems with pests - but yours are far worse!

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  16. I didn't realise it was such a necessity to grow your own veggies, I thought it was just a hobby. I hope all your hard work is rewarded once you get those fences in place.

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  17. Good grief. Talk about the Middle of Nowhere. You practically have to be a survivalist on the food front...:)

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  18. Yes you should grow lots and sell your extras! Hope your expensive radishes tasted good:)

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  19. Before I had some medical issues I had a fenced in vegetable garden that looked a lot like yours. Each square was fenced in to keep the deer out. They drove me crazy. I started putting a wire cover over it. Then I used an electrified metal fence. It looked very strange for such a small square of garden.
    I hope you enjoy a productive garden.

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  20. Before I had some medical issues I had a fenced in vegetable garden that looked a lot like yours. Each square was fenced in to keep the deer out. They drove me crazy. I started putting a wire cover over it. Then I used an electrified metal fence. It looked very strange for such a small square of garden.
    I hope you enjoy a productive garden.

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