Well, the weather here has been fairly gross for the past week or so, meaning that it has rained basically all day every day, with temperatures ranging from 35-55 F. Surprisingly, however, the plants have not been nearly as put out by this development as I have. 
The cilantro is doing fabulously, so much so that I am tempted to pick some of it for use in the tofu tacos I plan to make this evening (more on that next time!). This is pretty surprising, given that Josh and I managed to kill our first cilantro sprouts earlier this summer with too-strong compost. Who knew plain soil and dreary weather was just the ticket?
The rest of the garden (with the exception of the broccoli, which I’ll come to in a minute) continues to do well. The collard greens in particular seem to be thriving, and we plan to eat some spinach soon. We may also consider picking the collards a bit early, rather than risking their untimely end due to a killing frost…but I’m unsure of whether this would be a good idea. If anyone has experience with cooking/eating young collards, let me know. My hunch is that it would be fine–and perhaps even better than fully developed collards, which are usually so tough that they require quite a lot of cooking.
The broccoli, as I said, aren’t looking so hot. They’re trying, bless their hearts, but until whatever critter in the yard (who apparently likes broccoli as much as I do) stops munching on them, I fear they won’t amount to much. I realize that this is probably something that I, as gardener, should try to take care of…but short of covering the entire garden with chicken wire (which, let’s face it, is not going to happen), I’m not sure what can be done. For a time, I was using Dewey as a living scarecrow, but it’s unclear how well this worked–given her general disinterest in birds, who I believe to be the culprits–and I’m dubious on its future prospects, since Dewey appears to feel the same way I do about being outside when it’s cold and rainy. As always, suggestions are welcome. Especially if they involve minimal effort.
So, it’s beginning to look like we actually will get something edible out of this garden, even if it only amounts to a salad or two and a taco garnish. And that, as my father would say, is better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.
Something is eating my broccoli. I am not pleased! Neither, however, am I sure what it is. This particular shot makes it look like the work of insects, but other pieces–chewed down to nubs–look like they’ve been attacked by any of the millions of birds that are constantly flying around my backyard. I have yet to put anything on them, in part because I’d prefer not to do the pesticide thing, and in part because (as you may recall) this is a minimal-effort-and-money garden project, so I haven’t even looked into possible fixes. At the moment, things aren’t looking so good. At least for the broccoli.
The collards and spinach, on the other hand, are doing very well. In fact, it looks like the spinach (on the right) may be ready for a salad harvest in the next week or so. The collards are still quite small, so I’m not sure how long we have left with them. Hopefully they’ll make it through the cooler weather we’re expecting later this week (highs in the mid-upper 50s and lows in the mid-upper 30s!). I would love love love to make some nice Southern-style greens to bring in the fall!
In other garden-related news, the carrots seem to be moving right along, though it’s difficult to say for certain, since almost all of their growing happens below the surface. We do know that whatever is happening is a long way from being edible though. Today marks 4 weeks since planting, and the carrot growing season supposedly clocks in at around 120 days, so–provided they don’t all die before then–we have at least 3 months left. Much closer is the cilantro, which has done a shocking bit of maturation over the past week. My favorite part of any growing season is at this stage: when the sprouts, like puppies or infants, show signs of becoming what they are. 
In the case of other living things, it might be a new facial expression or a way of moving–something that moves the new life out of the realm of generic youth and gives a sign of its unique personality. I like to think that the Cilantro is right there now, moving from life as a generic sprout to life as a cilantro plant, with its miniature maple-shaped leaves and fantastic smell. I’m so proud of these little ones–they grow up so fast!
Today is a chilly, dreary day: perfect soup weather. Plus, since it’s a Saturday, there was time enough to make a good one while doing some chores and watching the LSU game on the internet (no SEC football on my limited cable, unfortunately!). I’d gotten a butternut squash on my last trip to the store for just such an occasion, and I have to admit that I was more than a little excited to use it.
Last summer, Josh and I actually grew (several!) butternut squash in our garden in Nashville, and we love using them in the fall. They keep a really long time in the pantry, and since they’re also super-delicious and 
Well, the temperature dropped into the mid-low forties this weekend (that’s somewhere around 8 Celsius, for the Canadians in the audience), and I was worried we might lose these little guys. Fortunately, they’re trucking right along, and I’ve now remembered how well my Cilantro did in Nashville’s early spring days (until, that is, the freakish April Fool’s Day snowstorm of ’07). Anyway, as long as things stay above freezing, it seems like these will be ok, so I am hopeful for some fresh Cilantro to be in my life very soon.
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