The Year of PICKLES!!!

This year has been awesome for my garden - it's the first year I grew cucumbers. I don't know why I never planted them before.  We have been inundated with cucumbers.  So, what does one do when they have a gazillion cucumbers on the counter??  Make pickles!!

Here are some pictures of my harvest along with the pickle recipe I've been using (YUM):

2014 Garden Update!

So, this is late, but I decided to post it anyway to see how the garden progressed...

GARDENING TIP:  Never, ever work in the garden when it's wet - that means NO pruning, NO harvesting, NO fertilizing, NO walking through the garden either!  Stay out of the garden after a rain or even when their is AM dew on the garden.  Why?  Because it's a great way to spread disease/bacteria to your entire garden and lose it all!  So, enjoy your coffee/breakfast and do some other chores first thing in the morning.  Let the sun dry things out before you go out there!

The veggie garden is well under way...

I finally finished planting my vegetable garden - now if Mother Nature would cooperate and give us a little rain.  Here are a few shots of some of the things I planted:

Fresh Garden Salad & my 100th post!

Dandelion Greens, Arugula, Blue Kale, Purslane, Fennel, Chives, drizzled with a Garlic-Mushroom Olive Oil.

Hellooo Spring!  I'm starting off Spring with my 100th post!  Yesterday, I went to the Raleigh Farmer's Market to pick up all of my herb and veggie plants for my Spring garden.  I'M SO EXCITED!  My Mom and I found this adorable "Flip Flop Flowerpot" display to plant our herbs in.  It's so awesome to have all my herbs/salad ingredients on the deck for easy access. 

Homegrown Tomato Plate

We enjoyed homegrown tomatoes with breakfast this morning.  These were the gold and pink varieties and they were so delicious!

My backyard garden

Here are some shots of my veggie garden!  I'm pretty proud, I've grown everything this year completely organic with no chemical pesticides or fertilizers.  I used Bon-Neem Insecticidal Soap by Bonide when I spotted harmful pests and fertilized with Organic Gardentone by Espoma.

My Dusky Eggplant

Cherokee Purple Tomatoes