Harvest Monday May 8, 2023

It’s time once again for Harvest Monday, where we celebrate all things harvest related. The greenhouse lettuce is holding up well, and I cut several heads last week. Salad Bowl is a 1952 AAS Winner and I’ve grown it for years. Navara is a red oakleaf that’s doing quite well this year, and makes a good companion for Salad Bowl. Both appeared in salads here last week.

Salad Bowl lettuce

Navara lettuce

The Salad Bowl also made a good topping for our black bean tacos we had for dinner last night.

black bean tacos

Salanova Green Oakleaf is another one that is doing well in the greenhouse. I have it and the red version both planted.

Salanova Green Oakleaf lettuce

The first of the spring radishes are sizing up, and I pulled a couple of them to use in our salads. This is Celesta, which is an early type with mild flavor. They weren’t picture perfect but welcome additions to the menu for sure.

Celesta radishes

The asparagus harvest hasn’t slowed down yet, and the spears are still nice-sized. We’ve harvested seven pounds so far, and will likely keep cutting it for another couple of weeks as long as the size holds up. Asparagus Mimosa was on the menu again last week, which is one of my favorite lunch ideas this time of year. I like to use the biggest spears we have for this seasonal dish, and steam them in a bamboo steamer basket until just tender.

asparagus harvest

Asparagus Mimosa

And speaking of size, the overwintered collards in the greenhouse have come back with a lot of new growth. I cut almost a pound of leaves from one Yellow Cabbage plant, and cooked them up for a dinner side dish. There were leftovers to be enjoyed for another meal.

Yellow Cabbage collards

In other news, mama bluebird has hatched the second brood of six babies. They were alive and well yesterday, and gaping their mouths for food when I checked on the nest. As I began typing this paragraph, two of the speckled young bluebirds from the first brood of four flew up to the window feeder that’s visible from my computer desk. I’ll keep the feeders filled as long as I am seeing bluebirds and woodpeckers using them.

Bluebird babies

And speaking of the feeders, I saw an unfamiliar face there one day last week. A Rose-Breasted Grosbeak was visiting, the first time I can ever recall seeing this bird. Both the brightly colored male and the less colorful female were here feeding, and no doubt passing through on their migratory journey.

male Rose-Breasted Grosbeak

female Rose-Breasted Grosbeak

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 please check out what everyone is harvesting!


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4 Responses to Harvest Monday May 8, 2023

  1. Sue Garrett says:

    We don’t have much to harvest at the moment – except from the freezer.Lovely to see young birds. WE will be anxiously counting cygnets for the next few weeks.

  2. So much lettuce when others in your area have to purchase. Glad the greenhouse is still providing. A second brood of bluebirds! I so enjoy seeing the visitors to our yard but they seem to be nesting elsewhere. What an asparagus season.

  3. Lettuce still looking lovely. Do you have to pick it young because of the heat, or do you just prefer it that way Dave?

    • Dave @ HappyAcres says:

      It’s planted close together, and I cut most of it young and leave a few to get larger. We don’t need super large heads for our needs either.

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