Monday, April 12, 2010

Harvest Monday - 12 April 2010

I need a drum roll or confetti coming down from the ceiling. This week I harvested the first of my overwintered spinach. Finally I can join in with the harvests. So here it is, 3.7oz of greenness. Can I get an Ooo?

Ooo!

Can I get an Ah?

Ah!

OK so it is just a little bit of spinach. Some of you won't even show your harvests every week because it is just the same old same old lettuce. But this is only my second picking of the year (the first was kale in February). It has been over a month with nothing fresh from the garden, so I'm celebrating. It is also the first time I've ever tried overwintering spinach. The leaves aren't quite a perfect as the spring spinach will be, but not bad.

And there is breaking news from the pantry. The last jar of pickles has been opened. I won't get anymore until the peas get harvested and I pickle some of them. It is going to be a long pickle free couple of months. Maybe I should try to make this jar last a while. It is hard though. I ate three of the pickles yesterday. Usually a jar won't last the week.

So now for the tally. I have a whopping $1.83 on the plus side and $188.68 on the minus side so far. That minus side will get huge this year as I build my new vegetable garden and since I'm switching gardens I might not have as much of a harvest. Time will tell.

If you would like to join me in showing off your harvests join me and put your name and link into Mr. Linky below.

33 comments:

  1. Ooo! Ah! Spinach looks great!

    I still have some pickels and some tomato sauce. But all of this will be gone in a few weeks.

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  2. Any harvest is a good one, in my book. Opening the last jar of anything preserved is such a sad moment, but you'll have more in just a short time.

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  3. Lovely spinach (ooohh... aaaahhhh!)!

    I realized the other day that I have not been taking pictures of my harvests lately. Probably because it is just colanders full of greens and an occassional handful of asparagus. I really need to get back into at least occassionally capturing an image of the harvest.

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  4. You get Oohs and Aahs from me! What happens to all you planted stuff when you move?

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  5. I think the spinach leaves look great - overwintered or not. It's surely worthy of many oohs and ahhs!

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  6. You can definitely have an Ooooh!!I've picked very little lately, except things going to seed (cabbages, sprouts, swede, turnip, but hopefully will be getting some proper harvests soon.

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  7. Ooo~~Ooooo~~~Oooooooo~~~~~~~~
    Ah~~Aaahhhhh~~~~~~~~~~Aaaaaaahhhhhh

    Lovely spinach, a harvest is a harvest, overwintered spinach is precious and lovely. You'll have to show us how to pickle peas as I've never done it before.

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  8. YUM! Somehow the spinach is oh so delicious knowing it survived the winter.... Yours is beautiful! What variety did you plant?
    Ali

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  9. Can you hear the oohs and ahhs coming your way from Texas? The spinach looks delish! This is my first year gardening in a long time and I'm enjoying your blog very much. :-)

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  10. This will be my first time joining in on the Harvest Mondays. I'm so excited!

    Your spinach looks delish!

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  11. Definitey Oohs and Ahhs! Your spinach looks wonderful! I'm starting to wonder about mine, it has done next to nothing! Enjoy a lovely salad!

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  12. Oohs and Aahs from me too!

    Overwintered spinach may not as perfect looking, but it must be more nutritious than spring spinach. Those plants have been photosynthesizing for a lot longer, getting thicker and greener and full of "phytoggodness" for your salad.

    Congrats!!

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  13. I'll give you an Ooooooh, and I'll give you an Aaaaaaah, and I'll give you an Mmmmmmmmm, and I'll give you a standing ovation! I still only have chives. Too bad I had to pull my winter spinach to make room for onions.

    I do, however, still have enough canned tomato products, pickles, relishes and jams to feed an army.

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  14. Definite ooohs and aaahs from me. It's been a long winter without fresh greens.

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  15. I'm amazed what grows under the snow! Your spinach is just beautiful!

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  16. I think your spinach looks gorgeous too, Daphne! I just had eggplant rollatini with spinach on Friday and can't help but picture your gorgeous greens in a future tollatini or lasagna! Or maybe in palaak paneer with sides of curry, dal and rice. Yummmm... You definitely get oohs and ahhs from me!!!

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  17. Daphne, beautiful harvest!!! I decided not to pick ours a week or so ago and when we went to pick, it was gone... eaten down to the ground! Thankfully our lettuce and mesclun was okay and were able to have enough for 2 dinners.

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  18. What a fantastic idea! I'm currently tracking our harvest in our sidebar, though I'm admittedly not breaking it down by type of produce, but I do at home on an excel spreadsheet, which isn't nearly as sexy. LOL

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  19. OOOOOOoooo!

    AAAAaaaaahhh!

    Kudos to you! Your spinach looks wonderful! Nothing beats it - straight from the garden!

    Mine overwintered and I've enjoyed several harvests now. Sadly, I had to pull up one of the spinach beds to make room for new crops, but the other bed is doing great still!

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  20. Great spinach! I made my first harvest since winter also today.

    Looking forward to a great growing season. I'm excited to see what you'll do with your new space.

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  21. Well with the wait I'm sure! All of you guys overwintering your spinach has made me want to try too! The last pickle jar? No! Well, the season is well and truly on its way now.

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  22. I needed to pick more spinach today, seems time has been lacking lately! Yours look great! What are your favorite ways of using spinach?

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  23. That sure is some pretty spinach!

    Tell me, do you work you costs (in the cost versus harvest thing) on everything you spend in the season?

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  24. vrtlarica, I have tons of sauce left I think. I'll have to get on using it. I would love to get it used up before we move, but it doesn't look good for that.

    EG, it is sad. I will miss my pickles so much. Store bought just isn't the same.

    kitsapFG, yes get some photos up of your harvests. You have such wonderful ones. You are always a bit ahead of me so I like to see what is coming :>

    Karen, well it depends upon when the house sells. I hope it sells soon, but if it doesn't until later in the year it will be more like a community garden as I have to travel to it (which will be hard since I'm getting rid of my car). I'm sure I'll get to harvest most of the lettuce and Asian greens. I'll probably get at least some peas. But I'll just keep planting up this garden as the season progresses. I'll probably buy tomato and pepper starts for it so I can put my home grown ones that I might save seed from in the new garden.

    villager, thanks

    Jan, it is always sad when a cabbage goes to see (well unless you are collecting them)

    mac, I'm sure I'll have a post on it. I'm sure I've had one in the past too, but I tend to repeat certain things from year to year.

    henbogle, this was melody. The spring spinach is space.

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  25. Congrats Daphne! It looks nicely green and succulent. I had to chuck mine because it was looking a bit old in the tooth.

    I'm sure this is just the beginning of a bountiful year.

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  26. mom2dx, yes I think I can hear you all the way from here :> thanks

    Hannah, thanks and happy to have you join

    Megan, I hope yours gets to it soon.

    Angela, I wonder which one is really more nutritious. Now you have me wondering. Either way I'm eating it.

    Granny, wow an Mmmmmm too. lol I have to pick some chives. I keep forgetting about them. Shame on me.

    GrafixMuse, it has. Next year I need plastic tunnels. The new house will have more even beds so I'll have to build tunnels into the design.

    A Kitchen Garden in Kihei Maui, thanks

    our friend Ben, oh now I'm drooling. Yum. Though I haven't a clue as to what a palaak paneer is. I love shahi paneer. My son and I go out to the local Indian restaurant and get that and garlic naan. Yum. The rest of the family hates Indian food :<

    Di, Oh no. I hate when my harvest disappears. I've been so lucky recently. About four years ago though there was a groundhog that liked to eat all my beans and occasionally other things.

    Rachel, I do mine on a spreadsheet too. It works wonders. I could never keep track without it. I think then I'd just add weights and leave it at that.

    Joseph, I just interplanted my broccoli into the spinach. I hope it works.

    Stefaneener, thanks

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  27. Emily, I'm hoping to have the first post about the new garden up this week.

    Ottawa gardener, It is really easy. I did throw a row cover over it but I didn't use hoops. I'm wondering if it even needs a row cover or not. I might try it out both ways come next winter.

    Dan, my favorite way is to steam or boil it, squeeze all the water out and put red wine vinegar on top. Sometimes I use balsamic. I put it in soups and things too, but I really like it plain best. It was my favorite vegetable as a kid, but only with vinegar.

    The Idiot Gardener, yes I do. Then I know how much it costs or saves me each year. This year it is going to cost a fortune since I'm buying a new house at the end of April. The house isn't landscaped at all and we will have to do everything, even bring in the top soil.

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  28. Thomas I can only hope. I'm going to have to get up that new garden quickly though.

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  29. I'll have to try the vinegar. So far I have just put it in pasta dishes, I need to branch out.

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  30. Congrats on your Spinach harvesting. They look so fresh and tasty.

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  31. Your spinach is BEAUTIFUL, far nicer than the tiny leaves in my garden. BTW, palaak paneer is spinach with cheese cubes, cooked Indian style. Saag paneer is any mixed greens with cheese cubes. I made it once with my own homemade farmer's cheese--delicious.

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  32. Belated oohs and aahs for your beautiful spinach harvest! I just got back from a really great trip to Yosemite so I don't have a harvest post for this week. Next Monday, I'll be back . . .

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