Bumper Crop

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This was the first year that I ever grew potatoes and after looking at a few books, and talking to people I decided to go ahead and give it a try.  They looked pretty easy and everything went well.  The tubers sprouted and grew into lush looking plants.  Because I grew them in buckets, the woodchuck we have living here left them alone.  I was told that when the tops die off it is time to dig them up.

Because I grew them in buckets, all I had to do is dump them out and pull out the potatoes. I had 3 very large 25 gallon buckets.  And wow!  What a bumper crop!  I had to share the picture and let me apologize for the blurriness of it..












Wait for it.......
















Photobucket
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   I actually burst out laughing when I saw it!

Bumper crop?  NOT!   My whole garden started out looking really good but has gone the way of these potatoes.

To sum up...
1. Huge beautiful lettuce & cabbage plants wiped out by my woodchuck.

2. Huge, green leafy tomatoes - I pulled off the suckers & unproductive leaves and ended up with blossom end rot. Every single plum tomato so far is rotting on the vine. (4th year in a row).

3. Big Boy tomatoes so large that as they ripen they are splitting and starting to rot where they have split.

4. Peas - what a lot of space and work for very little production.

5. Green beans - Got 2 pickings off them until the above mentioned wood chuck wiped them out.

6. Peppers - took forever to blossom and now I have about 4 peppers on 12 plants.

7. Spaghetti squash - stupid me planted 2 hills of them and now literally have a number of giant-sized squash.  However, the plants themselves are dying off because it's been so hot & dry.

8. Butternut squash - same as spaghetti squash.

9. Cucumbers - same as squash.

Apparently I don't have a green thumb. I did get a bumper crop though....
Of WEEDS!

Comments

  1. ElizabethdAugust 12, 2012 at 7:39 PM

    I'm not sure what a woodchuck is...but it is obviously very naughty!
    We have grown potatoes in big pots and had very good crops. I think it depends on the variety.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kate @ Teaching What Is GoodAugust 12, 2012 at 8:55 PM

    Well, you are making me feel VERY encouraged that I didn't push more to get a garden in this year.

    ReplyDelete
  3. NadineAugust 12, 2012 at 10:35 PM

    What a bummer! Our garden has been the same way, we are finally getting some zucchini, but I don't have high hopes for harvesting much this summer before the fall weather arrives! :(

    Blessings!
    ~Nadine

    ReplyDelete
  4. Debbie JAugust 13, 2012 at 6:54 AM

    I think you did great! Working with nature is hard, between the bugs, weeds, and weather. Makes me wonder how farmers who depend on crops for a living do it! I'm thinking of "PA" on Little House on the Prairie. Did he ever get a good crop without hail or a tornado, etc.? LOL.

    I bet all your veggies tasted wonderful!

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousAugust 13, 2012 at 8:29 AM

    I bet they tasted great though! We have mixed results too, mostly coz of pests in the soil. It certainly makes us appreciate the surviving veggies! :) xx

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousAugust 13, 2012 at 1:28 PM

    I can grow great flowers, but my attempts at vegetables are discouraging. Good thing we don't have to live off of my produce!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Melissa GrohAugust 13, 2012 at 1:30 PM

    Well, look at it this way...Just imagine what that woodchuck is blogging! "I had the best eating this summer! This super great lady did an awesome job growing veggies for me! I'm gonna tell all my friends!"

    ReplyDelete

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