My kohlrabi: a gardening casualty.
Well, this has been my first year with the garden. I worked hard: removing sod--that is, digging up the grass from an area that's at least 12x15 feet and then constantly weeding for the first two months. Then I just kinda stopped. I mean, I still water and weed on a weekly basis, but there's no pampering going on. After I harvested the kale and collards I planted early in the season, I started taking it a little easy. Which is good, because otherwise I'd be heartbroken right now. Some rodents (I'm not sure if the culprits are squirrels or rabbits) have found a new diner: my garden.
Every single time my kohlrabi starts looking good--all leafed out and strong, they come and eat every single leaf on the plants. Every one. Consistently. Last night was the their third run in this little game they play. Soon after I brought the kohlrabi home from the Garden Resource Program and planted them, the creatures ate all the leaves. It was sad, but I really hadn't formed any attachment to my first crop of kohlrabi so it was okay. I mean, I was looking forward to the yummy stems that taste something like broccoli, but I had no emotional investment. So when the sturdy little plants grew new leaves, it was a great surprise and like a gift I hadn't done anything to earn. A few days after I started looking forward to a fall harvest of the kohlrabi, the ravenous little monsters came back. That time, I think, they maybe left one leaf on one of the four plants. And yet hope springs eternal so when the determined little plants grew their third set of leaves, I again began dreaming of sauteing my kohlrabi. Ha! After this third strike, I refuse to believe the poor dears will be unmolested long enough grow stems large enough to bother cooking.
Sigh.
So it's really good other things are growing well enough to keep me distracted. The tomatoes are doing well--I've got roma and heirloom. This morning I had a lovely breakfast of fresh picked heirloom tomatoes sliced on olive bread from Avalon (purchased for practically nothing at the end of the Farmers Market yesterday). And the surprise of garden: my watermelon plants. I never really expected anything of them, but I planted them because I got them. I now have a watermelon vine jungle that has hidden my potato plants (hmmm...I suppose I should go dig those up this week). It's also threatening to overtake some marigolds I have planted out there.
Take a peek:
And I even have at least one fruit on the vine:
It's palm-sized and absolutely beautiful:
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