fruits of our labor

FRUITS OF OUR LABOR
this is the time of the year when we get to harvest the
fruits of our labor
i use to call it garden p(*&^ but when i write that in my
blog it gets so many hits from adult websites that i quit
calling it that
so its
fruits of our labor

i grow most of my stuff in 4 ft x 12 ft raised beds
this year i dug them all out and using the anthill or
hugelkulter method of cardboard newspapers
tree trunks limbs in the bottom then layering it
with leaves compost garden soil newspapers etc
then topping the top off with 3-4 inches of good
compost

then i added cottonseed meal over the bed and added
an organic fertilizer called lady bug brand 8-2-4

each bed has its own drip system of 3-4 lines of drippers
which i drip regularly based on how much rain weve had
only using of course natures own cloud juice
rainwater

now that the plants have gotten larger and its gotten hotter
here i add a 3-4 inch layer of mulch
this year im using oak leaves ive collected from friends

ive tried to plant enough for my wife she and i to use so
we dont have to put so much up in the freezer or can so much

here are the fruits of our labor

this is my first tomato
its for some reason red on one side and green on the other
we ate the red part then let the green half ripen
the flavor was fantastic
its a heirloom called pruden purple
it grew on the mitey mater plant
the pruden purple was grafted onto a stock native plant that
was resistant to a lot of diseasees
it so far is twice as large as my other tomatoes
i planted my tomatoes a month early using methods of
protecting it from the cold
planting deep in a hole then adding soil as it grew
keeping it covered when the temps got low
so i got a big boost on the growing season

theres more tomatoes on the way

then i harvested my garlic
it was planted last november
all 100 of them
i harvest them and let them dry for 2-3 weeks
then i we braid them together and hang them from
the rafters of our garage or grill area
last year we put each one in the leg of a panty hose
i go buy the cheapest ones i can find
then tie a knot after each is placed in the hose
place another one then tie it off
when a leg is full i then hang it from the rafters

then i harvested my onions
they are mostly 1015 sweet onions with a few red onions
for my wife she
i planted close to 300 onions in mid january
we will let them dry for 2-3 weeks then will either
braid them like the garlic or use the panty hose method
when they are hung on the rafters i call them my
garden onion chimes

then i harvested my potatoes
i planted 30 potatoes in mid january
this year i planted them in my keyhole garden made from
an old watering tank
last year i left them in the ground too long and they all
rotted
one sad organicgreen doctor last year
so
this year i began eating them early on and decided to go
ahead and harvest them earlier so
i did not get as big a harvest as i wanted to but at
least i got ones that are not rotten this year

we were able to get a 5 gallon bucket of potatoes in
this years harvest plus what weve already eaten over the
last month

so now weve harvested our first round of the fruits of our labor
and are waiting for round two
cucumbers cantelope purple hull peas beans squash tomatoes
okra christmas beans peppers basil egg plant and for salads
malabar spinach arugula purslane

when we harvest this fruits of our labor
its all worth the effort
eg organic onions at $2-3 an onion x 300
organic garlic at $1.5 a piece x 100
great flavor
chemical free

and its all organic

the organicgreen doctor