PaperWhite Bulbs Steal

I got these 8 bulbs at the supermarket for a grand total of $2. What a steal!! Now lets just hope that they bloom.

First Visit to the Community Garden

Community Garden Lot 3/10/13

I could not get to the gate of my lot due to a huge puddle on top of the grass. I went into the next row and manged to take a shot of my lot. It was sad to see the snow covered lot and the two "rivers" in the walkways.

A Start to the Growing Season

We had another huge snow fall in Massachusetts this past week. Hopefully, this will be the last of the season as I am excited to get out into the garden and start my bidding. I doubt the snow will melt in time for any garden work to get done tomorrow. I had to start SOMETHING!!! so i sowed some onion seeds (Botanical Interests Flat of Italy) indoors. I also read that Waltham 29 Broccoli can germinate in as low as 40 degrees F and planted a row outdoors on the balcony.

Super Early Tulip - in New England?

Tulip Bulbs 2/1/13

I had some Tulip bulbs that I intended to plant in the fall but  never got to it. They were stored from November through December in a dark cold place. I was very surprised when taking out the bags to see that they were growing! No roots on any of them but the stems were half an inch at least. Any suggestions as to what I do with these? Maybe I can try and force them in a glass jar.

Newest Obsession: Macarons

Since there is nothing left to do in the garden, I decided to spend some time refining my cooking skills. My newest obsession is macarons. Unlike macaroons these little delicacies are crunchy and melt in your mouth. The first three tries were total flops and the macarons were messy and clung to the baking sheet. The fourth try was by far the best! I used cinnamon in the macaron shell and butter cream in the center.

End to the Season

We have not been going to the garden as regular as before and I apologize for not posting as much.  The lot has been run-over by weeds and is really a mess. My alpine strawberries have continued to fruit and flower. The raspberries taste divine. The second batch of carrots it just about ready and today we planted tulips for the spring. Below are some pictures I have been holding on to.

Daffodil Bulbs Planted 10/6/12

Tulip Bulbs Planted 10/6/12

Carrots almost ready for harvest - 9/16/12

Yellow Pear Tomatoes - 9/16/12

Candy Stripe Cosmos - Still blooming

The lot 9/16/12 Overgrown by weeds

Yellow Russian Oxheart Tomato

We harvested these green tomatoes and let them ripen at home.

Tomato Experiment

Early in the season I had noticed that the tomatoes which I had grown from seed had very wobbly / unstable stems. I figured this was due to having started the tomatoes indoors with little air movement. So, in July I started a second batch of tomatoes from seed outside. I was not expecting much from these and planted the seeds in little soil. Right now, 6 weeks later, I have four good plants that have come out of this with seven green hanging fruit. We are excited to try these late season yellow pear tomatoes.

Yellow Pear Tomatoes 9/1/12

Yellow Pear Tomatoes 9/1/12

Yellow Pear Tomato Seeds

 On another note, this week I was very surprised to see that my bonsai raspberry plant had started producing raspberries for the very first time ever!!!! This will also be a late harvest but boy are they delicious.

Bonsai Raspberry Plant 9/1/12

Almost Empty Garden

Most of the bounty has been collected and the garden is near empty for the year. Here is one of the last harvests of the year ... not much to look at.

8/28 Cucumbers & Green / Yellow tomatos

Wilting Cucumber Plants

My one tomato that grew from seed

Woah ... Huge Cucumber

I have thought about writting a lot but have not had the chance to do so. However, for now, here are some picture updates of what is going on in the garden.

Harvest 8/11/12

Huge cucumber found on 8/11/12
Too bad that someone has already
been snacking on this 14incher 

8/11/12 - Green Ox heart tomato

Harvest from 7/28/12