The Final Installment

 The end of the semester has finally been reached! But the feeling is bittersweet... I lose my garden! :(

This class has taught me several important things about vegetables that I will be able to use in the future. To start, I learned how to actually grow vegetables myself so I can make my own garden at home and actually have plants that thrive. I learned the process of transplanting to avoid unwanted conditions or pests. I also learned about different garden pests and how to treat the problems they may cause. I learned about the different ways to feed and water my vegetables and how to keep them healthy. I learned about how to make foods organic and the benefits that they have.

My final day in the garden I was visited by

several friends! There were ladybugs, wasps,

caterpillars, and butterflies galore!! I suppose

 they were all coming out to bid all the

gardeners farewell on the last day of class.

My lima beans were finally ready to

harvest. YAY! They were so delish that

we were eating them right on the spot!

I love my garden so much and I'm so happy I took this class! Thanks to Libby, Jian, and Matt for all the help! And as always,

HAPPY GARDENING!

Week #12

Before Thanksgiving Break, I went to my garden and harvested the variety of veggies to the right along with a head of green leaf lettuce.

 I used some lettuce, bell pepper, cucumber, and carrot to make a salad on Thanksgiving.

We used more cucumber and cilantro to make a cucumber salad later that weekend.

Last week I found a giant grub eating my squash plant! I gave him to my friend who is an entomology major. We thought that the climate of his apartment had killed the caterpillar, so he put it outside on the sidewalk. When we came back from break, we found out that he was still alive and had formed a chrysalis!

This week I finally had a sunflower that bloomed! Rather than wait for the seeds to grow, I hacked it down and took it home.

I had a deep purple carrot that started to show, but when I pulled it out, there was hardly any carrot there...

I trellised my peas this week. They 

started to invade my cilantro and beans,

 so something had to be done.

One more lovely week left in the garden! Until then!

Week #11

This week we visited our gardens outside of class, so we did not have a lecture.

In the garden, I weeded, harvested, and observed my veggies.

I have a fetus-shaped eggplant!

 My flowers were looking ravishing this week! My sunflowers to the left have now exceeded my height and my tiny little marigold bloomed!

My herbs are doing well this

week. They have finally

sprouted!

 I was very surprised to find a large squash this week with a couple small ones (left). Last week the plant was not looking so hot...

My lima beans have the pods, but I must now patiently await the formation

of the seeds (right).

 I harvested 3 cucumbers, 4 eggplants, 16 zinnias, a squash, a ladybug pepper (that was uber hot), an anaheim pepper, a scallion, and a few beans.

For dinner one night, I fried

an eggplant and ate it with

pasta and tomato sauce.

I have also used my red lettuce for salads, but it was very bitter. I plan on using my beans again for Pad Thai. I am greatly looking forward to Thanksgiving where I can share all my veggies with my family! Until week 12!

Week #10

Because of daylight saving ending, we had a shorter lecture outside so that we had more daylight in the garden. This week we discussed organic agriculture. I personally choose not to eat organically because of the high cost of the foods. If not for the cost, I would eat organically because the process is more environmentally friendly, and there are less pesticides in the foods. It would be ideal to use sustainable agriculture for this reason. The process is better for the environment through the preservation of natural resources. Hopefully, methods such as these will one day be more cost effective so that more farmers adopt these styles of agriculture.

This week in the garden we finally got to harvest our crops! I took home two heads of lettuce, several Provider and Royal Burgundy beans, and a cucumber (left). I took both type of beans and made them into Tofu Pad Thai (above)!

 I also brought home more 

zinnias this week! They are 

growing in my garden like crazy!

My ladybug peppers and my eggplants are both looking pretty close to harvesting too! I can't wait!

Until Week 11! Happy harvesting my fellow gardeners!

Week #9



This week in class we had another quiz, so there was no new lecture material. We did, however, have a scavenger hunt in our gardens. Below is a collage of all the thing I found!

 

 

Starting from the top left going right then down: an eggplant flower, a squash flower, compound leaves, bean flowers, green plant tissue, a plant that you would eat the seed, brown plant tissue, yellow plant tissue, red plant tissue, a tomato flower, a simple leaf, purple plant tissue, tendrils, a plant that you would eat the fruit, a weed flower, a plant that you would eat the leaf, a plant that you would eat the stem, a plant that you would eat the flower, a caterpillar, and a plant that you would eat the root.

 

 

 

I also had a really well-blossomed zinnia that I got to take home this week!

 

Until week 10, fellow gardeners!

 

Week #8

 Today in class, we learned about the different parts of a plant. There are two systems, the root system and the shoot system. The root system serves as the anchor for the plant and absorbs and conducts water and nutrients.

We also learned about the different parts of the plant that we eat. In my garden, there are five different plant parts that I can eat. There are the plants with fruit which include tomatoes, peppers, okra, squash, eggplant, zucchini, and cucumbers. Some are leaves like lettuce, scallions, basil and cilantro. You can eat the flowers off of the zucchini and squash. The part of carrots and radish that are edible are the roots. And seeds can be eaten for peas, beans, and sunflowers.

 

Today in the garden, I replanted marigolds, basil, and 

cilantro. I also had to remove a dying ladybug pepper (left),

 so I planted some radish seeds in its place. My kohlrabi hadn't sprouted yet either, so I planted okra seeds in those plots.

I saw fruit growing on my zucchini (left)

and my tomato plants (above).

 My zinnias were looking rather

dapper today, so I snipped them

and took them home.

 I had lots of bean this week! Unfortunately, it's not safe to consume any of our veggies until November due to the insecticide.

 Until week 9! Happy gardening!(:

Week #7

This week in class we learned more about the insects that may appear in our gardens and the damage that they can cause. Although there are some good bugs that act as predators and pollinators, many insects cause injury to plants. Some insects eat the leaves and fruit of the plants either by chewing or piercing/sucking mouth parts. There are also some bugs that can infect plants with bacteria or viruses that will destroy the entire plant. To prevent this damage, we spray BT and Neem in our gardens. BT is a digestive insecticide extracted from a bacteria that when consumed by larvae will reach the gut and become toxic. Neem is a systemic insecticide (runs through the plant) that mimics the hormones in insects so that the bugs development is interfered. This past week, Libby also sprayed AdmirePro on our plots to further protect our gardens from pests.

 Today in the garden I found some evil pests resting on my plants! The one in the picture to the left was enjoying my bean a little too much. He was nearly 10 times the size of all the other caterpillars that I have seen in the gardens before.

Below are my zucchini, eggplant, and squash that all had flowers this week.

Below are my beans that have flowered.

To the right are tiny Anaheim peppers.

 

To the left are my Zinnias starting to

bloom, and below is the one lone

Marigold sprout.

     

Until Week 8! Happy gardening!