Sunday, May 13, 2007

Notes from the cabbage patch - or - Have I bitten off more than I can chew???

If all goes well, we should have plenty vegetables to get us thru the winter. Last week's garden work yielded the planting of the following plants (most of which I started from seed in the greenhouse): 19 cabbages, 19 cauliflower, 25 broccoli, 12 brussels sprouts, 12 zucchini, 10 cucumbers, and 4 summer squash. Add that to a 30 foot row of snow peas, 30 foot row of onions, lettuce, radishes and spinach seeds; all of which have germinated and are growing by leaps and bounds. The asparagus that I planted a month ago has finally taken hold and pushed numerous shoots through the earth to find their way toward the sun. Next year should be an excellent year for asparagus at this rate. My question is this, however: whatever was I thinking with 19 heads of cabbage. One can only eat so many stuffed cabbages. And although I love creamed coleslaw, preserving it seems to be a problem. A roadside cabbage stand may be the next project. I failed to mention that there are also at least 36 tomato plants and half as many pepper plants still in the greenhouse and in need of planting. (Oh did I also mention that there are seeds for corn, green beans, limas, peas, beets, carrots....and I can't remember but perhaps something else.....oh yes, giant pumpkins.....yet to be planted) I believe that by the end of this week every inch of our garden will be filled! I cannot wait for this harvest. Am I nuts? We'll have to find a way to preserve all of this food! Actually, I am prepared. I have my Foodsaver vacuum packer ready to go. What a great feeling it will be to have a freezer full of home grown vegetables, and a refrigerator stuffed with....CABBAGE! (Oh my goodness, I forgot.....cabbage causes flatulence (look it up)!

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