Gardens of Eatin' Blog

Week of 10/3

Update: What wonderful summer-like weather we've been experiencing! And we've harvested a haul from the gardens! Crops include red and gold Swiss chard, 'Super Marzano' tomatoes, red and green peppers, 'Sugarsnax54' carrots, 'Red Delicious' onions, basil, oregano, marjoram, and 'Beauregard' sweet potatoes from the Eat Yourself Healthy garden.

We also harvested 'Virginia Sweets' tomatoes and 'Red Skin', 'Mohawk' and 'Bell Boy' peppers from the Incredibles & Edibles garden. From the Underground Veggies garden, we harvested 'Puerto Rico' sweet potatoes, 'Cherriette' radishes, 'Brilliant' celeriac, rutabagas, horseradish, and 'Lexton' leeks. Additionally, we harvested 'Burpee Big Boy' tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, lettuce, and beans from the Veggie Essentials garden, and two kinds of pole beans and cucumbers from the Great Mates garden.

Lastly, we harvested 'Big Beef' tomatoes, Brussels sprouts, 'Black Cherry' tomatoes, 'Orange Blaze' peppers, 'Burpee Butterbush' butternut squash, golden summer squash, and 'Honey Bear' acorn squash from the Cooks' Faves 'n Raves garden.

The Pumpkins & Melons patch is still thriving. We harvested another Toro Workman cart load of 'Hijinks' pumpkins. We also harvested 11 'Sun Jewel' melons, 7 'Angel' melons , 15 'Lambkin' melons, and 2 'Arava' melons. If you haven't seen already, the Great Hall at the Arboretum is home to Pumpkin Palooza this month. You may be interested to know that we've got over 130 varieties of cucurbits! Read about them here.

Week of 9/26

We are just days away from October. If you haven't already looked, be sure to see what's happening at the Arboretum during our "Autumn Unplugged" season. But back to the veggies. We are still harvesting! 

We harvested Brussels sprouts from the Cooks' Faves 'n Raves garden, and potatoes and rutabagas from the Underground  Veggies garden. Red onions, lemon cucumbers, string beans, pole beans, artichokes, parsley, Brussels sprouts, Butternut and Acorn squash, purple radishes, and 'Red Sails' lettuce were harvested from the Great Mates garden. 

Continue eating healthy with the tomatoes, peppers, red onion, Butternut squash and basil we harvested from the Eat Yourself Healthy garden! And we harvested 3 'Flower Baby' and 6 'Shiny Boy' watermelons, 10 'Sun Jewel' melons, 2 'Lambkin' Christmas melons, and 7 'Arava' Galia/Mediterranean melons from the Pumpkins & Melons patch. 

Week of 9/19

Update: The pumpkins are rolling in now! We harvested two Toro carts full of mostly 'Dill's Giant' pumpkins and a few 'Hijinks' pumkins. Remember what the cart on the Toro Workman looks like... Time for Jack-O-Lanterns and pumpkin pie! If you have struggles growing pumkpins, check out these tips from Jennifer Bradley, Assistant Gardener at the HRC. In addition, we harvested 4 more 'Shiny Boy' watermelons and 3 'Flower Baby' watermelons. 

We also harvested another basket full of Malabar spinach from the Cooks' Faves 'n Raves garden and two baskets full of basil, some coming from Faves' n Raves, some from Great Mates, and some from the Salad Garden. 

The end of the growing season is coming closer and closer, but we've still got a few veggies left to harvest. So far, we've harvested eggplant from the Great Mates garden, potatoes from the Eat Yourself Healthy garden, a 1/2 basket of yellow and red peppers from the Incredibles & Edibles garden, 3 rutabagas from the Underground Veggies garden, and 30 cherry tomatoes and 3/4 basket of Malabar spinach from the Cooks' Faves 'n Raves garden. We also harvested  9 'Shiny Boy' watermelons, 1 'Sun Jewel' melon, 8 'Lambkin' Christmas melons, and 6 'Arava' Tropical/Galia melons from the Pumpkin & Melons patch. 

Week of 9/12

There's a chill in the air, after that brief foray back into summer weather. From the Pumpkins & Melons patch, we harvested another bushel of 'Lambkin' melons, a quarter bushel of 'Sun Jewel' melons, and one Toro cart full of 'Shiny Boy' and 'Flower Baby' watermelons. Check out this link for the Toro Workman that we use to see a visual of what I mean!

We've now harvested cutting celery, parsley, red onions, green basil, red basil, carrots and tomatoes in addition to the beans from the Great Mates garden. Butternut squash, basil, tomatoes, peppers, carrots, rosemary and sage were harvested from the Eat Yourself Healthy garden, with pole beans picked the day before. It may have taken a while to mention this, but butternut squash is another of the awesome veggies. It is a dense, nutrient-filled Thanksgiving treat! 

We harvested onions and peppers from the Veggie Essentials garden; basil, chives and carrots were harvested from the Salad Garden. More tomatoes were picked from the Cooks' Faves 'n Raves garden, along with thyme, basil and fennel, all wonderful ingredients for that Pizza Sauce.  

Week of 9/5

Update: Wednesday, we harvested veggies from the Eat Yourself Healthy garden: 'Super Marzano' tomatoes, peppers, 'Aroma 2' basil, 'Kwintus' pole beans, 'Beananza' bush beans, and yellow and red Swiss chard. You can find other recipes from Chef Jenny Breen here. 

It's September! And we're harvesting more from the Pumpkins & Melons patch: a bushel of 'Sun Jewel' melons, some 'Lambkin' melon and 'Shiny Boy' watermelons. Don't forget - this patch is located by the Margot Picnic Shelter. If it's still warm enough for you outside, try this Melon with Port and Mint recipe, courtesy of Jennifer Bradley, an assistant gardener with the Grape Project at the HRC, and sit back and watch the sun set. 

More tomatoes were harvested from the Cooks' Faves 'n Raves garden, as well as spinach leaves. Do try Chef Chris Weglinski's Spinach and Pancetta-wrapped Scallops. 

From the Great Mates garden, we harvested cucumbers, lemon cucumbers, artichokes, red peppers, zucchini, pueple eggplant, white eggplant, red onions, Brussels sprouts, 'Royal Burgundy' bush beans, Italian flat beans and a pail full (5 gallons!) of green and yellow beans. 

We also harvested carrots from Underground Veggies, basil and parsley from the Salad Garden and green, red and yellow peppers from the Incredibles & Edibles garden.

Week of 8/29

Late summer and there is still an abundance of veggies. From the Cooks' Faves 'n Raves garden, we harvested English thyme, 'Berggarten' sage, butternut squash, 'Red Zepplin' onion, 'Jade Cross' Brussels sprouts, basil and 'Black Cherry' tomatoes. Make yourself some Bacon Brussels Sprouts, courtesy of foodie author Geri Wolf, or puree some squash for a hearty bowl of Nectar's Squash Soup from Chef Kevin Nordeen. 

The Great Mates garden continues to provide a bounty: 'Plain Leaf' Italian parsley, curly parsley, nasturtium flowers, cutting celery, 'Tasty Nuggets' Brussels sprouts, 'Burpee's Butterbush' butternut squash, 'Purple Ruffles' sweet basil, 'Vitana' and 'Atomic Red' carrots, 'Red Zepplin' onion, English rosemary, 'Redskin' bell peppers, 'Hansel' miniature eggplant, 'San Marzano' tomatoes, and chives.

From the Eat YourSelf Healthy garden, we harvested 'Super Marzano' tomatoes, 'Red Knight' bell peppers, 'Atomic Red' and 'Sugarsnax54' carrots, and 'Golden Sunrise' Swiss chard. If you've been keeping up with the nutrient-packed veggies in this garden, here's another one: red peppers. Red peppers are high in Vitamin C and Vitamin A, but did you know that Vitamin C doubles and Vitamin A rises 9-fold when the pepper ripens to red? Chow down, I say! 

We harvested 'Nelson' carrots from the Underground Veggies garden, 'Candy' onion and 'Australian Yellow' leaf lettuce from Veggie Essentials, and a bushel of melons from the Pumpkin & Melons patch. Autumn is drawing nearer, even if we don't want summer to end, so check out some recipes and decoration tips to prepare for Autumn Harvest.

Lastly, from the Salad Garden, we harvested 'Sugarsnax54' carrots, 'Red Mustard' and 'Green Wave' mustard greens, 'Astro' arugula, 'Cherriette' radishes, curly parsley, 'Bianca Riccia' endive and 'Red Russian' kale.

Week of 8/22

Tomatoes are ripening! We harvested some 'Big Beef' tomatoes, 'Black Cherry' tomatoes and 'Paste' tomatoes from the Cooks' Fave 'n Raves garden, as well as cabbage, radishes, and two different kinds of basil. You can make a couple delicious recipes with the tomatoes: one is Tomatoes with Orzo and Roquefort, submitted by foodie Sue Zelickson, or you can make the wonderful pizza sauce from Red's Savoy Pizza. And while you are busy stewing or dicing tomatoes, also cut up some cabbage to try the Asian Noodle Salad. There are many variations of the salad, but it is definitely worth it.

In the Eat Yourself Healthy garden, we harvested sage, pole beans, string beans, Swiss chard, red peppers and 'Super Marzano' tomatoes, and one butternut squash. If you're interested in a sauce other than pizza, try this Roasted Garlic-Tomato Sauce from Chef Jenny Breen. And, of course, tomatoes are one of those veggies packed with nutrients like Vitamin C and lycopene, which is a kind of carotenoid and also an antioxidant. 

Other veggies harvested include beets from the Underground Veggies garden, peppers, tomatoes and cabbage from Veggie Essentials, and 'Sweet Salad' basil and more tomatoes from the Salad Garden. If you lack a large, open space for gardening, the Salad Garden is for you; it's a garden designed for small spaces. And lastly, from the bountiful Great Mates garden, we harvested carrots, cucumbers, pole beans, string beans, Daikon radishes, zucchini, 'Cajun Belle' bell peppers, artichokes, and 'Hansel' and 'Gretel' eggplant, the All-America Selections of 2008 and 2009. They are fingerling type eggplants that can be grown in small gardens or patio containers. 

Week of 8/15

The Great Mates garden continues to produce a wonderful bounty with cucumbers, broccoli, cauliflower (four heads!), artichokes (four), zucchini, potatotes, and two tomatoes. Hopefully, we'll see plentiful tomatoes, considering how the cold spring and a searing hot July have interfered with the tomatotes' ability to ripen. 

From the Cooks' Faves 'n Raves garden, we harvested more beets and also leeks. That means it's time to make Baked Leek in Cream, and what a great time to do so now that the weather has cooled off.

A bushel of Candy Onion and more beets were harvested from the Underground Veggies garden. In place of the onions, we will be planting garlic or some bunching onions. From the Veggie Essentials garden, we harvested carrots and onions. 

Week of 8/1

The bounty is pouring in! It is beets galore from the Cooks' Faves 'n Raves, Undergound Veggies, and the Great Mates gardens. That beet salad sure sounds good... 

Additionally, we harvested carrots from Underground Veggies, and Swiss chard, eggplant, green onion, basil, parsley, pole beans, string beans and carrots from Great Mates. Whew! 

Swiss chard was also harvested from the Eat Yourself Healthy Garden, as well as beans and basil. Swiss chard is one of those awesome vegetables I mentioned last week. The nutrient properties are outstanding! It's a great source of vitamin K, which is important for normal blood clotting, and fiber, calcium and magnesium. So get cooking with this veggie! Here's a recipe from Chef Jenny Breen as a little incentive...

And if that's not enough incentive to get cooking, we harvested radishes, basil and Malabar spinach from the Cooks' Faves 'n Raves garden, too. This means it's time to make Sweet Cucumber and Radish Salad, submitted by our very own Arboretum Director Ed Schneider and Sandy Schneider. 

Last, but certainly not least, we pulled up carrots and picked string beans from the Veggie Essentials garden, and cut endive and parsley from the Salad Garden. If you haven't seen the MANY kinds of lettuce we've got growing in the Salad Garden, check out the garden plot sketch and then come see in person!

Week of 7/25

Update: Friday, we harvested beans, pole beans from the Eat Yourself Healthy garden.

We harvested a bounty this week, amongst all the gardens. In the Cooks' Faves 'n Raves row, we cut basil and harvested shallots and beets. Remember, those beets go great in Belinda Jensen and Bobby Jensen's beet salad! 

In the Great Mates garden, we harvested beans, pole beans, broccoli, parsley, carrots and beets. The Great Mates garden is one of the largest plots in the Gardens of Eatin'; there are just too many kinds of vegetables to name! Be sure to check it out.

Beets and carrots were harvested in the Underground Veggies garden, a garden full of root vegetables. Come for the veggies, but stay for the Steelroots Exhibition.  

In the Veggie Essentials garden, we harvested string beans and carrots; broccoli, carrots and basil came out of the Salad Garden. 

Basil, beans, Swiss chard, and string beans were harvested from the Eat Yourself Healthy garden. Now, this garden is located outside the Oswald Visitor Center, in case you've been wondering where it is. (Most of the other garden beds are located in the Home Demonstration Garden.) There are four raised beds here - come check out all of them for more information about the nutrient properties of five pretty awesome vegetables.  

Week of 7/18
This week we harvested Swiss chard, string beans and nasturtiums from the Eat Yourself Healthy garden. Don't forget to check out the Eat Yourself Healthy page for the one-cup-of-health cooking challenge, using recipes that incorporate at least 1 cup of vegetables or more.

And while out in the gardens, a volunteer offered the tip of using copper sulfate to spray on tomatoes to avoid blight. Thank you, volunteer! We want to keep our tomatoes juicy and plump. Copper sulfate is best applied as a preventive measure, so be vigilant!

One other tip -- if you're looking to grow your sweet potatoes with the vines climbing up a trellis or other such structure, you'll have to help them learn how to do that.