Once again it’s time for Harvest Monday, where we celebrate all things harvest related. I got a big haul of tomatoes last week. I got 15 pounds on Saturday, enough to turn into sauce plus more for tabbouli salad and general eating. I got almost 7 pounds of 1999 AAS Winner Juliet, which never fails to deliver for me here in my garden. Health Kick has also done well.
Juliet tomatoes
Golden Rave, Mountain Magic and Granadero tomatoes
Health Kick tomatoes
I’m picking the pole beans every couple of days now. Robe Mountain, Musica and Rattlesnake are setting on with Bertie Best and others starting to bloom. It looks like it may be a great year for beans, and I have already been freezing the extras. Robe Mountain is a so-called “greasy” bean from the Sustainable Mountain Agriculture Center. Bertie Best Greasy bean is another one from them. They have a wonderful collection of old-time bean varieties, and I’m growing several of them this year.
Robe Mountain pole beans
The eggplants have slowed down we we are still getting a decent amount. Machiaw, Bride and Shoya Long are great when roasted or stir-fried. Sadly, you couldn’t sell these 100% organically grown eggplants in a grocery or farmer’s market. They are too “wonky” – misshapen and with blemishes on the skin. Gardeners learn pretty quickly that’s often the way fruits and veggies look, and it doesn’t affect the taste any!
eggplant
The peppers are finally starting to ripen. I picked the sweet mini bell Orange Blaze last week, along with Korean peppers Lady Choi and paprika peppers Hungarian Magyar which I dehydrated. Orange Blaze is hanging out with Seychelles pole beans in the below photo.
Orange Blaze peppers and Seychelles beans
Hungarian Magyar and Lady Choi peppers
I got two ripe Piquillos and three of the Gernika last week. Reader Jeanne sent me some seeds last year of these two Basque peppers. Gernika is usually eaten green and prepared like Padron peppers, but these got away from me and ripened. I will try them green next time. Piquillos are often slow roasted over an open fire, but we roasted ours in the oven. Neither of these peppers has any heat, and I look forward to eating more as they set on.
Piquillo and Gernika peppers
Winter squash are starting to mature now. I got several last week, including Cream of the Crop, Gill’s Golden Pippin and Baked Potatoes. These are all acorn types, and should be ready to eat right away since they aren’t long keeping squash.
Cream of the Crop and Gill’s Golden Pippin squashes
Baked Potatoes winter squash
The tromboncino vines are still producing. We’ve been sharing these since they are so prolific. It looks to be a good year for the squashes too, both the summer and winter types.
tromboncinos
Harvest Monday is a day to show off your harvests, how you are saving your harvest, or how you are using your harvest. If you have a harvest you want to share, add your name and blog link to Mr Linky below. And be sure and check out what everyone is harvesting!
Our tomatoes don’t seem to be doing very well this year – I don’t think they like the weather .
Very respectable haul of tomatoes, Dave. No way can I match it. I’ve looked into growing Mountain Magic because of its disease-resistance, but was unsure if it tasted good. What’s your feeling on that? Also, how many Juliet plants did you grow this year? Don’t say “one” because it will make me really mad.
Your tomatoes are amazing, mine this year are tiddlers that you’d think they were the cherry variety.I am admiring your aubergines more, as my one and only plant in the greenhouse dried up and died. I love the wonky shape, and yes your right we gardeners learn quickly that the way fruits and veggies look, doesn’t affect the taste at all.
It’s good to have reliable varieties of vegetables that produce year after year. Sounds like Juliet has been that for you.
Ah, Dave, your beautiful harvests always put mine to shame. But I finally did a Harvest Monday post after a too long absence.
Your garden is doing so much better than mine! I’m really relying on the perennial foods I planted this year. My beds are not doing well, although I hope to have a decent haul of tomatoes in the next couple of weeks!
It’s been our worst gardening summer, but finally we managed to get two ripe peppers! The tomatoes are better, but outside the constant wind and rain hasn’t been good to them, the tromboncinos, have fared ok though : All the best – Steve
Awesome harvests! I decided not to grow any fresh beans this year but lots of dried beans. I’m sort of missing them now…