Gardening -

[nolabelle]

I've pursued a lot of passions in my lifetime, most of them animal oriented. I find that gardening is something I always come "home" to. I'm not good at it. I can buy stuff way cheaper than I can grow it. But there's something about having grown it yourself that makes all the difference. Even flowers. What more can I say?

[Kazfam]

Scott - we are neighbors, I am in Upstate South Carolina. It's the nature of our location. Still worth it though - even though t he challenges are always there. I have learned to take much of what I can't control in stride.

Keep praying...Linda

[b54red]

With limited garden space if you limit what you grow to only the plants that are economically viable in your location you can just about come out even but you do get the bonus of much better, and fresher tasting produce. For me the ones that really pay off are tomatoes, onions, lettuce, broccoli, peppers, spinach, cucumbers, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, okra, beans and squash. If I had a much larger garden and a lot better health I would also grow all kinds of potatoes, peas, corn, butter-beans and garlic. I used to grow all of that and more when I was younger and had access to more land for planting but it was hard work and you really had to keep on top of putting the stuff up for the winter. It only took me one summer drought to drop the field planting and concentrate on my small home garden with the raised beds with readily accessible water. Looking out over two acres of stunted and dried up crops from which we got nothing was just too much of a disappointment.

Bill

[Deborah]

This is a truly great topic. Not only are we sharing our disappointments, we're sharing our strengths and talents.

[Tom A To]

Many of the previous comments also apply to beekeeping. Rarely do the stars align to where most of my beehives produce excess honey. Some years I get no honey (out of 7 hives) and some years I get 50 lbs but almost never do all hives produce the desired 66 lbs per hive.

[Father'sDaughter]

The other factor that really comes in to play for me is, what do I want that I can't buy just anywhere or that will cost dearly?

All the different tomato varieties are one example. I can grow whichever varieties I want to try, versus paying $3-4 per pound for whatever the local farm stand produces.

Hard neck garlic and the scapes is another example. Good luck finding scapes anywhere, and if you do, you'll pay dearly for them. Pasta with garlic scape pesto is one of our favorite dinners, and it takes about ten scapes to make a cup of pesto. From my garden I can make enough to give some away, and still enjoy it once a month. Hard neck garlic is a bit easier to come by, but still pricey. What I grow is so much better than supermarket garlic, and I haven't had to buy any in over three years

Then there's the wild (herb) fennel that I grow for both the pollen and the seeds. I know it grows wild in some states/countries, but not around here that I know of. If you've never had sausage made with wild fennel seeds, you don't know what you're missing. It's a totally different flavor from the fennel seeds you typically find in the spice aisle. And fennel pollen rubbed on a pork tenderloin which is then roasted is to die for! I just don't want to pay $15 per ounce plus shipping when I can plant two seeds and harvest the same amount of pollen from plants that need no fussing over. And if you want to attract pollinators to you garden, wild fennel flowers work wonders!

I grow italian sweet peppers for drying and grinding into what is known as Calabrian Paprika. This is next to impossible to find on the market. I've heard Aleppo pepper is a good substitute, but it's pricey and hard to find as well.

Basil, sage, thyme and parsley are easy to find in any supermarket, but picking just what I need for a meal is a heck of a lot cheaper and easier than buying a whole bunch only to throw the rest away after it rots in the fridge.

And every year I make jars of pickled hot peppers stuffed with prosciutto and sharp provolone cheese to give as Christmas gifts to select individuals. I know of exactly one farm stand around here that grows a cherry pepper suitable for stuffing, but his hybrids don't hold a candle to the strange, cone shaped Calabria Peppers I ended up with a couple of years ago from Seeds of Italy.

This year I am attempting to grow Rugosa squash. It sounds very good. Good luck finding it in a supermarket produce aisle!

When I combine all of the above with something I thoroughly enjoy, regardless of how challenging it can sometimes be, every minute is so worth it!

[habitat_gardener]

Originally Posted by Father'sDaughter

The other factor that really comes in to play for me is, what do I want that I can't buy just anywhere or that will cost dearly? ...

Exactly! I'm growing Butternut Rugosa, too, and I'm eager to try them. I tried my first Teot Bat Put avocado squash this week! It's a summer squash, but C. moschata rather than C. pepo.

I've never seen purple snap beans at any store or farmers' market, yet they are the most productive beans this year. (The downside is that it's harder to donate unusual vegetables.)

If I weren't growing tomatoes, I wouldn't be on a first-name basis with dozens of varieties. And I wouldn't be eating several luscious heirlooms a day; maybe I'd get a couple each week at the farmers' market.

I'm growing more than a dozen varieties each of cucumbers and beans, few of which are available at local markets.

And my favorite vegetable, perennial kale, is never available anywhere, either. It's the best-tasting kale! I like to eat a leaf or two directly from the plant, so I have some growing at each of my 3 gardens. Whenever I bring perennial kale with peanut sauce to potlucks, it's the most requested recipe. (And it's not the peanut sauce: I've brought the same peanut sauce with pasta, and though people like it, they don't ask for the recipe.)

[NarnianGarden]

That's what gardening is about. Reading about fennel seed sausage and perennial kale makes my mouth water. It is wonderful there are so many people still willing and able to grow their own food, instead of depending on the grocery store.

My only reasonable crop so far this year has been the carrots and zucchini - kale has been so popular with butterflies that I haven't been able to eat much of the leaves until the beginning of August. Thankfully, the kale season is long and those pesky terrorists will die away in the first frost...

[newatthiskat]

I have to say I have never tried Kale. I have heard a lot of people talking about it though

[Redbaron]

Originally Posted by newatthiskat

I have to say I have never tried Kale. I have heard a lot of people talking about it though

For years I had never grown it either, seeing as how my Mom is from very old very traditional North Carolina stock going back to before there was a USA and it was just a colony. We always had Collard greens. Cooking a good mess of greens is second nature to the family, but always collards. I did finally try kale a few years ago. I love it. Just fancy collards IMO.

[NarnianGarden]

Never understood the difference between the English words 'kale' and 'collards'. Both are a part of the famous Brassica family and practically the same...

[ScottinAtlanta]

Originally Posted by NarnianGarden

Never understood the difference between the English words 'kale' and 'collards'. Both are a part of the famous Brassica family and practically the same...

Come on down to Atlanta, and you will enjoy learning the difference. Their taste and texture are quite different, each good in its own way.

[Riceloft]

Wow. I'm thankful I don't have that many problems here. As I stated in another thread, this has been one of the most challenging seasons I've had. Several pest and disease issues (mostly pest) whereas I normally don't have much of a problem at all. Its a given that my tomato plants will start to decline in early August and be near death by the time the first frost hits, year in and year out. The same is holding true today.

I've lost maybe ~8 fruit to BER, ~5 fruit to some sort of insect that decided to lay eggs in ripening fruit, 1-2 fruit that mysteriously vanished (likely to Squirrels) and had 2 plants with minor deer damage. The most heavily affected plants by aphids (2 plants, really) have a lower than normal yield, but all is not lost.

I haven't lost any plants totally to disease. I haven't broken any on my own.

[Riceloft]

Originally Posted by newatthiskat

I have to say I have never tried Kale. I have heard a lot of people talking about it though

My wife makes a fantastic Kale salad. This recipe. We also make Kale chips in the oven. small pieces drizzled with olive oil and sea salt. Delicious.

[NarnianGarden]

Still haven't tried any Kale chips this summer, have made a mental note about it but it has been so hot that messing with the oven hasn't been an inviting idea. Will try soon!