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"Possibility and promise greet me each day as I walk out into my garden. My vigor is renewed when I breathe in the earthiness and feel the dirt between my fingers. My garden is a peaceful spot to refresh my soul." Meems






Welcome to my Central Florida Garden Blog where we garden combining Florida natives, Florida-Friendly plants, and tropicals.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

What Organic Gardeners Eat For Lunch


A basketful of freshness is as close as a few steps into the garden.

Spring-like weather in Central Florida is signaling the edible garden to come alive in all its glory.

Cool season vegetables like Blue Curled Scotch Kale (Baker Creek Heirloom seeds) planted in November are all of a sudden putting on growth quickly.

Wando Garden Peas (Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds) are responding to plenty of warmth and sunshine while loving the cool nights.

Georgia Southern Collards (Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds) are truly effortless to grow! Really. They are. And if you like greens ~~ their mild, tender leaves will remind you how glad you are to be southern.

Succession planting of a few cooler season edibles were seeded this week:
Petite Rouge Lettuce (Baker Creek)
Little Gem Lettuce (Baker Creek)
Carrot Sweet Treat Hybrid (Burpee)
Radish Cherry Belle (Pinetree Garden Seeds)
Spinach Monstrueux De Viroflay (Baker Creek)

Only a couple of warm season edibles were also seeded:
Rattlesnake Pole Bean (Baker Creek)
Blue Lake Bush Beans (Baker Creek)
Bartering space for squashes and cukes ... hopefully next week I'll get those in the ground.

Bulbine as a perennial border offers plenty of nectar for visiting pollinators.

Existing edibles received another side dressing of Peruvian Seabird Guano Pellets for another layer of organic fertilizer.

Besides the beauty of being in the garden this time of year there is another remarkable gift it affords. It is one of simplicity and yet so ultimately satisfying!

Decide to take a break and cull a harvest right from the ground to prepare a meal. A healthy organic garden salad for lunch in a matter of minutes. From garden to table. What could be better!

What's your favorite edible from the garden? I know I'll be happy to have bush beans again this spring.
Meems

13 comments:

  1. Meems, your pics are making me hungry. It has been years since I grew any vegetables. I need to get back to it, especially since we eat so many veggies. I am starting with some leaf lettuce. Planted it in pots so I can move them to shadier areas when the heat starts.

    Have a great weekend!

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  2. Your veggies look absolutely scrumptious! I'm afraid I was a bit late getting my winter veg in, but I see some lettuce coming along now. That's gotta be my fav. I love salad!
    Beautiful, inspiring photos, as always, Meems.

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  3. Siesta Sister,
    Leaf lettuce in pots is a perfect idea. I have some romaine growing in pots along with some pernennials/annuals just for pretty. I planted my last lettuce seeds in a shadier spot, too.

    Daisy,
    Not too late for lettuce. You're gonna love that freshness from the garden. I'm planting more and more of what I like best. Big salad eaters here!

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  4. These veggies look yummy. I can't wait for warmer weather so I can at least plant some lettuce.

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  5. Meems,

    Fattest carrots I've seen anyone grow. You garden yeggies look great. We are eating all the greens we can eat from the cold frames.

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  6. Until a friend share a couple of bulbine with me I had never heard about it. Since then I see it mentioned in many blogs, see it in nurseries...it is everywhere. I was so happy that the frost did not bother it this winter. I think I need more. It IS a great border plant.

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  7. Lisa,
    Warmer weather is surely just around the corner for you. Happy planting.

    Randy,
    Carrots are a 5" Kuroda type/slightly tapered root/blunt tips... hybrid that can take a little more heat than some others. Also grow Danvers heirlooms.

    SiestaSister,
    Bulbine is really easy to dig up/split/transfer. It is how I am getting more and more of it elsewhere in the garden. This border gets very filtered sunlight and the blooms on them are almost as profuse as the ones in 4 hours of sunlight. Just wanted to test them here and they have done well. Frost does not hinder in the least. It's been my observation they seem to like the cooler months better than middle of the summer when the blooms retreat.

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  8. Your photos really make me want to try more edibles in the garden... if only I visited the garden more than once every two weeks! Just to let you know, I posted a belated 'thank you' to you for all of your comments over the last year (even though my slow computer takes a full minute to load your blog so I don't leave as many comments as I'd like to!) Your support has been much appreciated!

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  9. Hi Meems! it is amazing how much good stuff you can have in your garden so early! I have plenty of parsley so far, that's all. My favorites are tomatoes and pole beans. Happy spring gardening to you!

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  10. Meems, I love this post! In fact, I must do something similar. What amazes me is how much can be grown in a small place. The only veggies I've bought recently are things that won't grow here, like parsnips and leeks.

    My zucchini, squash and cukes all succumbed (as usual) to powdery mildew, so, even thought the end of the season is approaching, I just ordered some resistant seeds from Johnny's Seeds. I'll give them a go as soon as they arrive and hope they survive.

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  11. Do you grow your lettuce in full sun? I would like to try growing some but really don't have any space that is not in the sun all day.

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  12. Meems, I forgot how much I enjoy your veggie photos. If I didn't already love vegetables your gorgeous photos would change my mind! gail

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  13. Steve,
    You know could put some edibles in a container on your balcony.

    Tatyana,
    Most of what you see was growing all winter. In fact it prefers the winter season for good growth. It is nice we can do that down here.


    Penny,
    I've grown leeks here but it takes a really long time. I'm going to look into those mildew resistant varieties. I have had the worst fortuen with cukes... and I love them.

    Sanddune,
    Nothing at Hoe and Shovel is in 'full sun'. My lettuce gets about 2-3 hours of sun. The seed I just planted gets less than that. Our sun is brutally hot so you will not want to leave it in the sun all day.

    Gail,
    Vegetables are delicious looking! I'm with you... I'm glad I like them already but they are so attractive they just must be good to eat!

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Have a blessed day,
Meems


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