Winter Bounty from the Summer Garden

'Bounty' is definitely the wrong word here, because it denotes 'abundance' and 'plenty.' I am thrilled, however, that the cool season crops I planted in late August yielded enough red beets for me to pickle. I canned six jars of them this week, not a bounty, but my late planting of cool-season crops, a 'first' for me, also resulted in an abundance of lettuce, radishes, and spinach. In spite of benign neglect, partly due to time away from home, and partly due to the little rabbit who removed the tops of so many vegetables in the springtime, my kitchen garden produced more than enough food for the two of us. You will find green beans, snow peas, rhubarb, and shredded zucchini (for zucchini bread) in my freezer. We ate the last cabbage with dinner last night. Plenty of onions, red and yellow, await my culinary efforts, plus those six jars of pickled beets in my canning cupboard. Our favorite root vegetable, the parsnip, grows sweeter by remaining in the ground. Surely, many of you have a bigger bounty, but I'm happy with mine.

Read all about my 2014 kitchen garden by clicking here.

Cool weather crops: beets, lettuce, spinach, and radishes

I prepared the bed for the first frost.

Fleece protected the crops until I harvested them.

Just a small tray of beets, but enough for me to can.

Only 6 jars, but better than none.

All onions are harvested now. I dig up parsnips as needed as long as the ground isn't frozen.

Last week I picked the last of the spinach for my son-in-law who loves it.

Dee at Red Dirt Ramblings, Carol of May Dreams Gardens, and Mary Ann who blogs at Gardens of the Wild, Wild West started a virtual garden club for everyone growing their own food, flowers or herbs. Click on the 'Dear Friends and Gardeners' badge in my sidebar to learn more about it. I'm joining too late for this year, but I am all ready for 2015 when I plan on writing monthly postings about my kitchen garden.

Speaking of Dee, I must tell you I received some exciting news this morning: I won a fantastic prize for participating in a cyber book party that I first learned about on Dee's blog. The party, thrown by Fran Soren at Gardening Gone Wild, celebrated the 10th Anniversary and re-release of her groundbreaking book, Digging Deep. I'm reading Fran's book right now and recommend it for all gardeners. I won Prize #1 – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds — 19 handpicked varieties of veggies and flowers- valued at over $50. PLUS, a 3-pack selection of Authentic Haven Brand Tea, a premium soil conditioner. An early Christmas present; how fantastic! I am overjoyed! When the seeds arrive, I will begin planning my 2015 garden and will post more about the competition and prize.

Now back to writing Christmas cards, wrapping gifts, and decorating the house ... busy, busy season. Have a wonderful one!

Pamela x

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