Near record heat today, 90.1 F a little after 1:00 PM PDT, the record for the area being 92F. Last week, no record, but a high temp of 59F and overnight into the 30's. Welcome to Southern California: Today it is high summer, next week, it will be cool. March and April snow in the nearby mountains is not unheard of at all.
Spring planting is mostly done, and we are still waiting on the fall garlic to mature to free up the space for a late spring planting . . . Since I'd like to enjoy some of the spring space hogs before late summer, I am anxious to get the garlic beds back.
We have been eating green garlic from a small side plot, and the bulb formation is nil. The plants look like large green onions, and have a surprisingly mild, lovely garlic flavor. We also, of course, have been eating garlic greens all winter, stealing the odd leaf from various plants and chopping them like garlic-flavored chives.
Garden Tour
As a periodic check in, and for my own amusement down the road, it's time for the garden tour. Mundane, even boring if you aren't me, but this is as much my record as something to amuse any of you (grin). Clockwise around the garden then:
Boysenberries have doubled their fence coverage this year, and are deep in fragrant white flowers, buzzing with bees. Volunteers under the orange tree and further down the fence augment the canes growing on the fence and gate. July and August boysenberry feasts beckon!
Mandarin Orange is mostly played out for this year; a dozen late fruits remain, which I threatened to turn into marmalade. My hand has been stayed by the discovery that late-season, super sweet Mandarins are really good in a salad; the mandarin juice is quite good too, and I may just clean the tree this week and freeze the juice. Next winter's oranges are in bloom now, and the tree was a-buzz with California (and some European) honey bees. Since boysenberries were bee-full too, this is a good sign, as I had not yet seen many bees this season.
Peach trees are still dormant, a cause of some small concern as they were just planted this past spring. Some buds starting, some tell-tale darkening of stems, but no solid signs of life. Fingers remain crossed.
Loquat has large fruit and a medium heavy crop; last year was a heavy crop, but smaller. I like the larger fruit, as the seeds are so large the small fruit are a bother to eat, even if very sweet.
Apples are bloomin with the potential for a heavy crop in a couple of varieties. Much depends on how the others bud-out, and how bad the June Drop is this year.
Grapes have leafed up and have heavy fruit. The south side -- the neighbor's side(!) -- has the heaviest fruit, but the yield looks good. Researching raisin techniques, to, hopefully, repeat the successful raisin making experiment. And we are parceling out last year's Grape Preserves to make it to the next harvest (grin). Fortunately, we have apple butter and fig butter to keep us going on our own preservation work for awhile.
Figs are leafing in slow; it looks like a modest crop after last year's bumper. At least we are not yet as heavy with immature fruit as last year, so I am predicting a light crop.
Elephant Garlic is still going. Getting impatient to harvest, but done to soon and there will be no bulbs.
Yellow Onions have been adding to salads as we thin them (grown from seed) and use the very strong green onions; Green Bunching Onions are ready to use, but waiting for the yellows to be all thinned out before we go after the bunchers. The bunchers will stay small and "green onion" style even as they mature, whereas the round onions just grow badly if left too crowded.
Silver White and Cuban Purple Garlic currently fill about half the garden space. They are dancing close to harvest time, but the leaves are staying green, and so they stay in the ground.
Cabbage stuck into a couple of bare corners have produced a few nice heads; cabbage is one of those things that requires more space, however. One head of cabbage can be a couple of feet across, with all it's outer leaves.
Hannah planted a patch of edible flowers in the horse trough early this spring, which have greened up great guns but nary a snack-able flower petal yet. Hannah also planted a window box with shelling peas and carrots. Peas are up and looking for the promised trellis, and the carrot sprouts have been emerging all week. Her volunteer Sunflower is now officially taller than her, and should have an open flower any day now.
Kathryn planted leeks and some fascinating carnival carrots -- old style carrots that come in orange, white, red, and purple! Each is sprouted, and the waiting begins.
Bell Peppers in Red, Orange and Green have survived the transplant shock and are putting out flowers. We planted several plants, as we discovered bell peppers freeze really nicely if cleaned and cut first.
New Mexico Chili Peppers, really tasty and a special project by Leslie also are hanging on. We have five plants, so come fall there may be chilies for everybody.
My patch of Italian Basil is sprouting, and if we see a mature plant or two at TJ's we may find a pot for 'em. We really grew to love the home grown pesto last year! We also have some Lemon Basil seedlings inside, waiting to transplant.
Chives struggle. After going great guns as seedlings indoors, they are not thriving outside side. Frustrating, as these could be a perennial.
Bok choy starts have new growth after the transplant; bush bean starts are struggling but holding on, while the pole bean transplants from in the house have mostly all died. Amusingly, additional seed planted alongside the transplants has germinated and is doing fine. Go figure, same seeds! (The seeds are from last year's crop, saved by us.)
Pickling Cucumber starts are in, and hanging in; Slicing Cucumbers started in the house all died, and were replaced by store starts -- and some seeds from the same package, which have sprouted already.
Broccoli is a disappointment this year; planted 10 plants, expecting a bumper crop, but the output has been meager.
Snow Peas, originally a pair of volunteers, augmented by additional plantings of our own seed, produce a reliable bowl or two of pea pods every 2-3 days.
Asparagus has run its course, and the three stalks that shot up today have been allowed to go to seed; funny stuff 'cause it grows by INCHES per day.
Romaine Lettuce starts have been harvested from time to time, and the stumps are regrowing leaves for the second harvest. Need to do some lettuce starts inside ASAP if salad is wanted this summer! Oak Leaf Lettuce doing similar. Both are in red clay pots on the patio.
Celery, first time item for us, are quite pretty, and doing well in another big clay pot. One can pick the outer, strong flavored stems one at time, and it is hoped that the six plants we have will see us well along before they try to go to seed. For flavor in stews and chopped in salads the celery leaves are quite tasty.
Hannah has a strawberry plant that struggled all spring, and is now sporting a half dozen berries. The other plants did not make it over winter; the one big red berry she was eyeing vanished over night to backyard marauders.
Finally, last but not least in the back, the lemon has the last of a crop, a new green crop, and fresh blooms -- all at once -- as it often does.
The front yard herbs, and especially the rosemary, thyme and oregano, and lilac continue to produce reliably. The lime was all a-bloom, but we have yet to produce a single mature fruit. Mostly it is neglected and gets insufficient water.
Once the garlic is up and drying, lots more getting ready to go down in the same spot!
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