The Tangrens

With putting the retaining wall in and finishing the backyard, we didn't get our garden in when we usually did. We were going to put a ton of good rich dirt up in the garden area so we'd finally have plants that did well. The logistics of getting a bunch of compost to our house became a problem and so we just got some bagged Nutrimulch and planted our seedlings and seeds in a mixture of our dirt and the Nurtimulch. This is how it looked the day we planted it on May 21.

This is where I planted my corn. I'd read that corn and pumpkins,melons and cucumber were good companion plants sharing space well so I decided to give it a try. If you look closely in between the corn rows every other space there is something planted. I put the pumpkins towards the fence and the melons and cucumbers towards the wall since I knew I wouldn't be harvesting them until the end of the season while the cucumbers and melons would be along the way.

This is the upper half of the garden with the peppers and tomatoes. I planted two peppers in a row but stagger planted the tomatoes because I wanted to give them enough space. I planted them on the closer side to the range they give you but planted one in front and the other in back thinking that would give them plenty of space. I also planted a summer squash and a zucchini in between my peppers and different varieties of tomatoes.

This is over by the house. I planted broccoli and then I finally planted a strawberry pot with strawberries. Hyrum has been SOOOO excited for this. The tomatoes on the porch are the tomatoes I started from seed back in April. I started them late and they just stopped growing at around three inches and two sets of leaves It took me until July to plant these babies outside because I was sure I was sending them to their deaths.

Can you see them? As it turned out five of them survived. I was rather surprised.

This is what the garden looked like at the beginning of July. Towards the corn end

I had to replant one of the varieties three times. I did three rows each of three different varieties. (Humm there seems to be a thing with three going on here.)

This is towards the corn and peppers end

Pretty good I thought. I was getting excited for how it would look when it was all filled in. This is what it looked like at the end of July

I've never had zucchini do well here. The first two years we were here we maybe got 2 or 3. This year it is going CRAZY! It's so fun. I think zucchini needs to be grown every two or three houses and spread far and wide though. Our neighbors on both sides didn't have much success with their gardens this year and we are keeping them stocked in zucchini and tomatoes.

Hyrum helped me plant some of the seeds and the plant that he has been most excited about and has done the best is this.

The 'Casper' Pumpkin. Can you see his shadow in the picture. He LOVES to look at it. He checks on it every day.

Most notable difference this year has been our corn success. Sadly I was too eager on our first ear of corn and picked it before the kernels had fully formed

But look at those kernels ALL of them are there. And it's a FULL ear of corn.

This year I've just noticed the beauty of the garden. Maybe because it is such a focal point of our backyard now but I've just realized how magnificent nature is

This is what our garden looked like at the beginning of this month.

I LOVE it! I think it looks so amazing. Better than I ever imagined it would be. I love the way the vines dangle over the edge of the wall too. I thought I gave every thing enough space but it has been tough harvesting because things have grown into each other. It's going to look so bare when we rip it out after the harvest is over.

And my tiny little tomato plants are thriving and even have little flowers on them and tiny little fruit.

It's been a GOOD garden year. Much better than our first attempt. Wonder what next year will bring. Hopefully more of the same.