ex gardens

I hope you enjoyed reading the first part of my annual garden review, and I’m back again today with the second part. Let’s start with tomatoes, which are a favorite crop here and with many other gardeners too. The weather seemed to be favorable for them here in 2024, despite the dry conditions for much of the summer. Too much rain as they ripen can lead to rotting of the fruit, and that wasn’t much of a problem for us here. I harvested just under 100 pounds of them total this year, which is plenty for our needs. I planted less of them than last year, when I got 186 pounds and they kept me busy with processing. As always, I trialed several new varieties, and my wife and I enjoyed several tastings with the new ones compared to our favorites. Benevento tomatoes Harvest Moon, Hot Streak, Strawberry Fields and Marmalade Skies were four tomato varieties I trialed this year. I compared Hot Streak to longtime favorite Benevento and new favorite Purple Zebra. My wife and I both agreed Hot S...

Once again it’s time for my annual review of what did well in the garden this year, and what didn’t. I’ll start with a recap on the weather, since those conditions certainly have a big influence on home and community gardens everywhere including here at Happy Acres. According to my records, in 2023 we got 46 inches of rain, which is about normal for our area. In 2024 so far we have had 46 inches, which again is about normal for us. We had a wet spring, and spotty rain throughout the summer and fall months. Looking at the month-by-month totals helps understand the garden performance more than looking at the overall total, and is one reason I keep records of precipitation. I have been a volunteer weather observer for the  CocoRaHS organization for over 10 years now, and share my data with that organization as well as use it myself. 2024 rainfall late June harvest As usual, the garden this year gave somewhat mixed results, with some crops doing quite well and others not so wel...