Thyme In The Garden

Peppers Anyone?

2009-09-08T23:12:00.019-04:00

I know it's been a while since I've posted, but it's been hectic with my husband recuperating from surgery. For those who don't follow my other blog, my husband had surgery on Aug. 19th for an aneurysm in his stomach. It had grown huge really fast, and was on the verge of bursting, so surgery was done immediately. He is home with me now recuperating, and doing very well. It will be a long recovery, but we are very thankful he is on the road to recovery.

We had a vendor friend who has been taking our produce to the farmers market for us. He is selling our things along with his, so it's been great. Can't beat friends like that!
Our tomatoes are winding down, but broccoli and peppers, and cucumbers are going strong. We also put in a fall crop of beets that are starting to produce.
Here's a few photos from our last market we did.

I love peppers. Especially the sweet ones. My favorite is called Big Daddy. It has a lemony flavor to it, and is so good roasted with lemon pepper, then mozarella cheese melted on top.
Did you know that peppers are loaded with Vitamin C? Three times more than one orange.

These are all sweet peppers. We also grow hot ones for those who like a little heat.

My perennial garden is winding down for the season, although I do still have a lot more color than I thought I would have from neglecting it these past few weeks.
The cutting garden is still going strong too. You can't beat Zinnias for giving you color all the way through fall.

And finally, our raspberries are in season. I stuff myself every time I'm in the garden. They are without a doubt my favorite berry. Tomorrow I'm planning on picking a bunch to make some jam. The rest I'll probably freeze.

It is wonderful to be able to get out in my garden again. There's isn't anything that makes me feel better. Hopefully my husband will be able to get out and enjoy it before it's gone too.

Till next time,
Happy Gardening!
Terry

~Cool Temps Breaking Records~

2009-07-19T20:54:00.015-04:00

We've had the best weather lately. My flowers are loving it, and are not stressed out like they usually are in July, but our Veggies don't care for it much. We are getting Tomatoes, and some Peppers, but I think once the weather goes back up in the 80's we'll start seeing loads of them ripen.
Saturday morning at market was very chilly. I wore a long-sleeve shirt with a jean jacket....unheard of for July around here. The people were out in hordes though, and we pretty much sold out.

Regardless of the cool temps, one tomato plant is producing like crazy and a good seller. Super Sweet One-Hundreds.

There is a vendor setting up at our market who does iron work. Most times he uses old garden tools, or car parts in his work. I suggested he try a scarecrow and told him I'd definitely be interested in something like that. This one I fell in love with and bought it last week. I had sold all of my flower bouquets and the price happened to be what I made selling them. I love when things work out that way.

Here's a few views of the new bed we extended out from my perennial garden to put Zinnia's and other flowers for cutting. I was running out of room in my other cutting garden, and now I have plenty of room.
The ladder in the center is holding up my Bittersweet plant right now. We have a split rail fence to put up for it, but probably won't get to it until this fall now.

This is part of my other cutting garden. There's Blue Statice, Strawflower, Bells of Ireland, Gomphrena, tall Ageratum, and more Zinnias, plus some Basil I use in bouquets too.

And here's some other things that are blooming right now.

We have a few more days of cooler temps, then it's suppose to go back up to the mid 80's. Our Farmer's Market is located in a college town, and we've hired a gal who getting her masters to help us out one day a week. She comes on Wednesdays, and it's been a big help with getting the rest of our pathways around the veggies. We are starting to plant our fall Broccoli crop. So far we've only gotten 25 plants in, with 215 to. You can see why the help is needed. We're trying to get them all in with shade cloth and drip irrigation before the heat kicks in.

That's about all that is happening here.
Hope you all are doing well.

Happy Gardening!
Terry

~I love Phlox~

2009-07-08T22:45:00.012-04:00

Phlox has to be my favorite perennial....besides Coneflowers. My garden just doesn't seem complete until they start blooming.
This year they are gorgeous! I'm guessing it the fertilizers we applied in the spring.

I have more I haven't photographed yet. Orange Perfection, Red Riding Hood, Nicki, Franz Schubert, and Blue Boy. They smell so good and when I'm in the garden, especially in the morning the fragrance is awesome!

Here's a view of part of one my cutting gardens. Those are Strawflowers planted around the Windmill.

I also have around 56 Zinnia plants, Blue Statice, tall Ageratum, and cutting Asters that are starting to bloom really good. I've been taking bouquets to market for the past 3 wks. now.
They are selling pretty good, and I'm happy with the variety I have this year.

We've been eating green beans, squash, tomatoes, potatoes, cucumbers and onions from our garden. It so nice to go out and pick our dinner. I'm sure I'll be tired of it soon, but for now it's wonderful!

Till next time,
Happy Gardening!
Terry

~A Walk Through The Garden~

2009-07-06T00:49:00.009-04:00

Olive O loves to wander through the garden. She'll stop every now and then and smell the flowers and has the best time. If only we could get her to chase the bunny that has been eating my newly planted flowers. She thinks its her playmate and wags her tail when she sees it instead of chasing it.

My garden is the prettiest it has ever been this year. I think it's probably from the amount of rain we've had, plus all the manure and feather meal I put down this spring. We had our soil tested last fall, and everything came back fine, except for the nitrogen levels, which the feather meal has helped.

Here's some recent shots of what's blooming.

I hope you all had a nice 4th of July weekend. We spent the 4th at the Farmers Market. The crowd was down which was understandable but it was still fun.
Our Tomatoes are finally starting to come in. We've been picking beans for the past week or so, and the peppers should start turning soon. Hope to get some produce pictures soon.

Till next time -
Happy Gardening,
Terry

~I Love June~

2009-06-21T22:35:00.011-04:00

At the beginning of June, newly planted things are beginning to take off and each day you can see them getting bigger, and taller. By the end of June, you're starting to reap the awards. We've been eating cucumbers, squash, and today I had my first cherry tomato. I've been waiting for that for a long, long time.

As you can see the cucumbers are beginning to grow up the trellis. We grow the little picklers which are our favorite. They only get 5 to 6 inches long, but are so very tasty. We've planted plenty for market too.

The Green Beans have flowers all over them so it's just a matter of time before they start producing.

And....my Perennial garden is getting prettier and prettier. I'm still waiting for my tall garden Phlox to open up, which is my favorite besides coneflowers, but that will be soon.

I hope you all are enjoying June as much as I do.

Happy Gardening!
Terry

~Cukes - Beets & Flowers~

2009-06-15T22:50:00.008-04:00

The cucumbers are starting to produce finally. We grew the little picklers called Diva which are our favorite besides the Lemon, but it will be a while before the Lemon ones to start producing. We got them in later. We had some of the Diva's for dinner tonight. Yummy!

The Beets have gone nuts this year. My husband is very proud of them. Would you belive I haven't had a beet since I was little. My mom use to pickle them, and I wasn't very fond of them back then. We've had several people who have bought them at market recently tell us to try roasting them. I guess I'll have to give it a try, although they still don't look very appetizing to me. ha!
Here's my husband cleaning them....well part of him anyway. He wanted all of them in the photo, and the only way I could was to cut off his head. hahaha!

Here's a few scenes from my perennial garden. I have a lot of things blooming, and a lot of things getting ready to bloom.

We're still trying to get our pathways finished, and I need to get mulch down in my perennial beds. It's been harder this year for both of us. We can't work outside all day like we did last year. We go out in the morning, work for a few hours, come in and rest. Go out after lunch, work for an hour or so, then come in and rest. hahaha! But...at least we're still able to garden, and we both do still love it.

Happy Gardening!
Till next time,
Terry

~Nasturtiums & Coneflowers~

2009-06-10T00:18:00.007-04:00

Things are really starting to bloom now that June is here. I've yet to get my beds mulched, and I still have my market sunflowers I need to plant. I'll be behind the other vendors with selling them this season, although they don't grow the same type I do. I grow the Pro-Cut type that is sold for the flower industry. They have a sturdier stalks, and the blooms are simply gorgeous.
I've been fighting allergies for the past 3 weeks with a sore throat, swollen eyes, and oh my gosh, I've sneezed so much I feel like my brains have leaked out. I haven't had much of an appetite, and no energy at all to go out and plant. I'm on my second package of sinus meds, and I am feeling much better today. Keep your fingers crossed this will be the end of it.

I started some Nasturtiums in the hoop house this spring right in hanging baskets, with the intention of selling them at market. They didn't get there. I love them so much I kept all four of them.
This one is called Lipstick. The flowers are larger than the regular ones, and are double blooms. I will definitely grow this one again next year. I've added a Bacopa plant - Snowflake - with them.

This one is Empress of India with Bacopa.

Coneflowers are one of my favorite perennials. They bloom all summer long, and my butterflies love them.

Here's some that's blooming now.

Our Farmer's Market is going great! We've sold twice as much as we did at this time last year, so we're really encouraged and happy about it.
I didn't make it last week since I was down with my allergies. My poor husband had to man the booth all by himself and he said it was the busiest day ever. It was also our most profitable day ever. We had picked a bushel of Snap peas to take...those sold out within the first hour. He also sold all of the Beets, Swiss Chard, Spring onions, and almost a whole case of his Pickled Peppers he canned last fall.
If there is ever another time I can't be there, we're going to have to get someone to help him out. Poor guy came home and collapsed in his recliner and slept for 2 hrs. ha!

That's about it for now!
Happy Gardening!
Terry

~June is finally here~

2009-06-02T21:13:00.010-04:00

I don't know about you, but May seemed to fly by. Weatherwise it was a strange pattern for us. Hot, then cold with freezing night time temps, then hot again. It went out with a bang though. Thunderstorms came through Friday night with rotating clouds, and tornado warnings in several counties all around us. Only a couple of touch-downs, and thank goodness not a lot of damage.

June came in hot and dry, and we could really use some rain now. We're expecting some tomorrow, and I've got my fingers crossed it doesn't go north or south of us like it has been.
The gardens are starting to produce. We've been picking Sugar Snap peas for over a week now, and the Swiss Chard is gorgeous. The tomatoes have nice sized fruit on them, and the peppers have lots of flowers. The Cucumbers, Green Beans, and Squash are starting to take off too.

I started my Zinnia plants early in the hoophouse, so I could get earlier blooms for my bouquets for market this season. They are starting to bloom and I'm very excited about a new one I ordered from Johnny's in the fall. They are called Queen Red Lime, and they are gorgeous!
This one is just now starting to open, but you can see that it is going to be a beauty.

My perennial garden is starting to come alive with color. Here's a few of the plants that are blooming.

I have a hair appointment tomorrow at noon, to get this mop cut. I've let it grow out a little this spring, but I think I'm ready for a shorter do for summer. It's so much cooler and easier to take care.
That's about all that going on around here. I still have some annuals I grew from seed to plant, and I hope to finish doing that soon.

Take care friends!
Happy Gardening!
Terry

~Veggies Are Ready~

2009-05-27T23:51:00.008-04:00

We were wondering what we were going to do for this Saturdays market since we sold almost all of our plants last week. The good Lord provided. Our Broccoli is ready to cut, pea's are producing like crazy, and a lot of the Beets are ready.

We only grew 100 heads of Broccoli this spring, and grew a different variety. It is very tasty, and we'll probably grow it again. We'll put in 200 heads this Aug. for fall.

I also had one of my perennials bloom yesterday that I grew from seed two yrs. ago. It did bloom a little last year, but this year it has doubled in size and has buds all over it.

Amber Wheels Gaillardia -

One of my container plantings. I need to take a picture of the whole thing because it's planted in an old seeder. I love to use old farm stuff in my garden.

That's about it for now!
Happy Gardening!
Terry

~A Nice Surprise~

2009-05-24T20:07:00.006-04:00

While walking through my garden tonight, I spotted my first Swallowtail Caterpillar in my dill patch. He's already pretty big, so I'll see a beautiful butterfly flying around my garden soon.

I also had a few more blooms open up today. I love this time of year when I go out to the garden and something else is blooming.

Japanese Iris -

Nigella -

Sante Fe Yarrow -

Today I got my bed of Everlastings planted, and tomorrow I'll start putting the 60 Zinnia plants in the ground. They're getting so big they are budding in the greenhouse. We're expecting some rain so hopefully I'll get them planted before it starts. We really do need the rain. It's so funny, a couple of weeks ago, we were getting so much rain, I was praying for it to stop.

Till next time,
Happy Gardening!
Terry

Lots of Blooms

2009-05-23T22:30:00.011-04:00

It's amazing what rain followed by a warm spell will do. We came home from market this afternoon and my double Knockout Rose buds were opening up.
It was sure a nice surprise.

Plus, a few other things too.

Gaillardias -

Geum - Mrs. Bradshaw -

I also got some of my annuals planted. Calibrachoa is a favorite of mine in containers. They are self-cleaning and easy to care for.

I have two of these buckets hanging on my shed fence. They are both planted with Amber Star Calibrachoa, and Snowstorm Bacopa.

And a hanging basket of Amber Star and Red Calibrachoa for my hummers.

I have taken my camera to market each week, but we've been so busy I haven't gotten any decent photos to share yet.
We have sold just about every extra plant we grew this year. I've heard that more people are growing a home garden this year because of the ecomony, and I can certainly believe it from what we have sold. All we have left are about a half dozen of pepper plants, basil, dill, and thyme. Hopefully the rest of our broccoli will be in next week so we will have something to put out to sell.

Last of all, I'll leave you with a picture of my gardening pooch. She hates to have her picture taken, and always puts her nose right in the lens. What a girl!
You can tell she was tired and had sniffed everything out there she could find to sniff. She was so ready to head to the house.

Till next time,
Happy Gardening!
Terry

~Spring Blues~

2009-05-11T23:35:00.005-04:00

It seems most of the first perennials to bloom every spring are blues...in my garden anyway. I love blues in the garden, especially next to yellows and oranges. But right now seeing these first blooms makes me realize that pretty soon my garden will be in full bloom.

Lupines -

Johnson's Blue Geraniums -

My Nigellas are getting heads on them so they will be opening up soon too. Another plant I adore. I dry the seed heads for arrangements and baskets.

Now, I know this isn't blue, but I couldn't resist taking a picture of the Blood Grass with the light shining through it.

Our second market was a success. We sold really well, in spite of the winds that caused a disaster. We decided to put up one of the side curtains on our tent to block the wind from the tomato plants we had for sale. We knew it was suppose to be quite windy, but didn't realize that our county would experience wind gusts between 55 to 60 mph. The side curtain acted like a sail, and as the tent flew up, my husband grabbed the center of it to keep it from tipping over into our neighbor. That saved the tent, but the table with tomatoes flipped over, and what a mess! We lost 10 of them. I'm just glad nobody was inside our tent at that time so they didn't get hurt! We have 6 in. pvc pipes filled with cement that we attach with bungy cords to each leg, then they are strapped around the leg so they don't 'bounce'. That's 35 lbs. on each leg, and the wind still picked it up like it was nothing. It was pretty scary!
What was heartwarming though was that several of the vendors came over and helped get the table back up, get the tomatoes that were okay situated, and help sweep up the dirt that came out of the containers. We'll have to figure something else out next time the wind is a factor.

Our garden is coming along. Today we got the cucumber trellis up, and we'll get the cukes in the ground tomorrow morning. We're a little late in getting them planted, but with all the rain we've had, it's been impossible. In fact starting Wednesday, it will rain 4 days straight again.
That means the dry days are full and long trying to get things in the ground before it starts up again.

Till next time,
Happy Gardening!
Terry

~What's Blooming~

2009-05-05T23:55:00.008-04:00

Happy May!
I guess the old saying April showers bring May flowers is really true. Once the rain stopped, I had a few thing bloom.

This started out as a small clump of Columbine, but this year it has spread and filled the area in nicely. Besides Lilacs, they have to be one of my favorite spring bloomers.

Blue Flax -

Forget Me Nots -

And a beautiful Iris which was a gift from a gardening buddy a few years ago.

Our first Farmers Market Saturday, and was a success. We sold all of our Gourmet Salad blend, all of the Spinach, lots of herbs, Tomato plants, and several of my husbands pickled peppers. Compared with last years first market we sold 40% more, so we were really happy about that.
I took my camera, but we were so busy, it didn't get out of the case, so I don't have any pictures to share. Hopefully next week I'll be able to take a break and get some shots.

We've had 4 days without rain, so we have gotten more beds ready for planting. We're hoping to get some tomatoes in tomorrow.

Here's a picture of the pepper bed. Since this has been taken we have the other rows done and ready to plant.

We have 17 bales of straw being delivered Thursday for the pathways, and hoping the rain holds off so we can get it done.

Till next time,
Happy Gardening!
Terry

~Garden Art~

2009-04-19T23:20:00.006-04:00

Wow! Two posts in one day! I forgot to share my new garden art for this year. They will go in my perennial garden. I love finding old things too, and have a couple of old plows, and an old gate post. I'm always looking for something new or old to add.

My SIL gave this to me for Christmas this year. I just love it! It looks pretty shiny because I put an extra coat of indoor/outdoor varnish on it so maybe it will last longer.

We've had some pretty nice days, so I divided, and moved several perennials that have been needing it. My muscles were screaming last night, but better today. I guess it's good we'll have a few more rainy days so they will get a little rest.
My tulips are blooming, and it's a cheery site even though it's dreary out.

Happy Gardening!
Till next time,
Terry

~Making Progress~

2009-04-19T22:23:00.011-04:00

I didn't mean to let so much time pass by. We've been busy, busy taking care of our seedlings, and planting in the garden. We put 100 broccoli plants in the ground the second week of April...a week late, but the weather has not been cooperating. Peas have been in a while and are about 14 in. high. We put the trellis up for them in the misty rain today. Three more days of rain, then a warm up is due. I'll probably be complaining because we need rain soon.
With this being only our 3rd year for doing Farmers Markets, we're still trying to get a planting schedule down.
Here's some photos of what's growing...

Lettuce and Swiss Chard -

Cukes & Squash -

Spinach -

I sold a lot of flower bouquets last year, so I started a lot more Zinnia's - 60 plants. Also more Snap dragons, Strawflower, Blue statice, Ageratum, Frosted Explosion Grass, and Cardinal Basil which is suppose to be an pretty red ornamental basil.

We didn't heat our greenhouse at night this year, but everything seemed to thrive regardless. If the temps were going to be too cold, we put lids on the containers, and covered everything with frost cloth. We haven't lost anything, so it has worked out great.

Till next time,
Terry

~More 2008 Garden Photos~

2009-02-23T21:31:00.009-05:00

I've been going through my perennial garden photos from last year to see what I need to move due to crowding, or which plants I don't like together.
Thought I'd share a some more photos.

We have broccoli, and onions sprouting, and I started some Aster's a few days ago, and some of them are coming up. My hubby winter sowed the broccoli, his first time trying it, and he's very excited when he saw the sprouts. None of my winter sowed perennials are showing signs of life yet.
We have all the herbs sowed, and next we'll start tomatoes. First Farmers Market is May 2nd this year. I hope we're ready.

~February Dreams~

2009-02-22T00:29:00.007-05:00

Welcome to my garden blog!
On this bitter cold, snowy Feb. day, I'm dreaming of my garden. Seeds have been started, plans drawn up, so it won't be long now. We're gearing up for a bigger summer market season. Although our market does carry on the third Sat. during the winter months, we only participated once, selling pickled peppers. We have plans to use our new greenhouse as a growing tunnel next year to extend our season. It was too late in the fall to put it up then, so that will be a new project this spring. We're anxious to get started.

Since there is nothing to show right now except for little seedlings under the grow lights, I'm posting some photos from our 2008 garden...and dreaming of spring.

Come back and visit again soon.
Terry