Just as I've done the last couple of years, I'm recapping the best and worst of my garden for the year. Inspired by all the year-end "best and worst" lists on TV, movies, music, fashion, etc., this list helps remind me what I did right and what went wrong over the year.
Best -- Basil! In the past I've always had small basil plants, some of which didn't make it through the summer. But this year I was able to grow 3 healthy bunches. I ate many tomato-basil-mozzarella salads, had plenty of basil to throw into sauces, and I even managed to pick enough to store some basil pesto cubes in the freezer. These basil plants were in a very deep container, planted along side this Mortgage Lifter tomato plant, which brings me to...
Best/Worst -- Tomatoes. I tried some new varieties this year, some of which did OK, like the ground cherries, Pink Girl hybrids and pink Brandywines...
But others like Chocolate Cherries, Mortgage Lifter, Mr. Stripey, and Ace 55 hybrid didn't do well. I documented my Mortgage Lifter troubles extensively so I won't go into that again. I was talking to a couple of friends who had tomato troubles this year. One lives in the south, but another lives here in the DC area. I'm not sure why we weren't able to get good tomato harvests. For me, I think it was a combination of the heat, which can prevent tomato plants from flowering and setting fruit, and lack of pollinators. I didn't have many flowers in my garden this year to attract pollinators. I also had issues with garden pests, like aphids, spider mites, and horn worms.
Best -- Return of the pond frog! I'm actually not sure if he/she is the same one from last year or even 3 years ago. I read that frogs are a sign of a healthy pond, so I was really happy to see this little frog in my back yard this year.
Worst -- That stupid $$%@ squirrel. It was responsible for eating the few tomatoes that did grow, blueberries, corn stalks, and for digging up many of my seeds and transplants. I love sunflowers (hence the blog title picture), but I only had one grow this year because the squirrel dug up all my transplants.(Another Worst -- no sunflowers this year). I'll have to protect them better next year. Now that the temperatures are bitterly cold, I feel sorry for the little guy (and yes, I know it's the same one. I recognize the mangy brown fur). I may or may not have felt bad enough to throw some unsalted almonds near a tree where I saw it lurking. I know he's thinking "Sucker!"
Best -- I had a pretty good onion harvest this year--just over 2 pounds, not bad for the second year growing them. We left a few in the ground to see if they grow bigger.
Worst - lots of garden fails this year. Beetles ate the potatoes, the two green bean varieties I planted in containers didn't really take off. Everyone seems to be able to grow squash and zucchini so well that they can't give it away, but squash bugs and cucumber beetles feasted on ours. The two little watermelons that we harvested were smelly and didn't taste well.
Although I had some disappointments, I have ideas for what to do better next year. I haven't begun serious garden planning yet, but I've been thinking about growing fewer tomato varieties, for example, and just sticking with a few that I've grown in the past and that did well in pots on my deck. I have to have sunflowers next year, I missed them a lot this past summer. I think my vegetables missed the pollinators they attract. I'll have to make sure to protect the seeds and transplants so they don't get yanked out before their time.
Last but not least, Best -- You! I love reading about your garden plans,and especially like seeing what gardens look like in other parts of the country or world. Thank you for visiting my blog and leaving words of encouragement, advice, or sympathy. It makes all this a lot more fun!
If you'd like to recap your own Best and Worst, please feel free to link up or leave a comment below.
Worst -- Never quite got my fall garden started. Never quite got my cold frame up.
Best -- I feel confident saying that we can grow peppers. We even grew new varieties (like cayenne and Purple Beauty) and had good results with them too!
Worst -- Some things didn't work out well. Like these carrots.
My sunflowers didn't do well this year either. Blooms weren't as prolific as last year and didn't last long. I guess weather conditions in my area were just different this year. :(
Best -- YOU--The online community! I've met so many cool gardeners from around in the world and learned more about gardening from interacting with you and reading your blogs. I also feel such a stronger connection to my food now that I grow some of my own. It makes me very excited to keep learning, keep trying new things. I thank all of you for reading and commenting and sharing your garden experiences with me too.
One More Best -- my new garden helper, Cleopatra the adorable Kitten. She is so cute! (Even though she steals cherry tomatoes and hides them throughout the house).
Reflecting back on the year, my first year of blogging about my garden...
Best - growing things we hadn't tried/had success with before, like chianti sunflowers, pink tomatoes, purple pole beans, and loofah.
The pink tomatoes grew nicely and were very juicy. I definitely want to try them again next summer. I wasn't crazy about the beans, however. They didn't have the same flavor as a regular old green bean, and sadly, they lost their purple coloring once cooked. As for the loofah, they're pretty cool but a pain in the neck to peel and de-seed. Still undecided if we'll do loofahs again, but experimenting is the whole fun of gardening, no? Worst - the extreme weather this year. We had record setting blizzards/snowfall in the winter and sizzling hot temperatures in the summer. They said the DC area set a record with over 60 days that had temperatures in excess of 90°F. It was brutal. Those temperatures made conditions ideal for certain garden pests like spider mites, and we lost a lot of plants. We also found new bugs in the garden, namely a moth that totally destroyed all our squash. That was discouraging. :(
Best - Getting to eat and cook with fresh veggies and herbs!
Life got in the way of my blog towards the end of the summer, so I lost track of exactly how much we harvested those last few weeks. Next year I want to be more organized and I want to try to calculate how much we're saving by growing our own stuff instead of buying it.
Worst - Garden pests of the non-insect variety
above: the remains of my poor strawberries after the squirrels feasted on them
I used to wonder why so many of my friends' parents and grandparents hated squirrels so much. Now that I have my own backyard and garden, I understand completely.
Best - my new garden helper
We adopted this little guy in February. Isn't he cute? Oh--and add cat grass to things I've never grown before!
Best Overall - My bouquet!
I got married this past October. This isn't really related to my backyard garden, so I thought I'd post my bouquet to make the connection. It was definitely a highlight this year. ;)
