Seeds sprouting! New growth begins

  • The seeds I planted a few weeks ago have sprouted! I took a few pictures of the sprouts as well as my okra and a blossom. Lots of plants have a flower that forms into the vegetable but with okra, there is one beautiful yellow and purple flower and a bunch of okra pods close by. I am cutting my okra when it is short, about 3-4 inches. It is more tender when it is small. I cut a few every few days and save them in my fridge until I have enough for a meal. I will get more as my plants grow taller.

    In my flower bed the middle section of flowers have died. Before I planted I scooped out a big section of soil there to spread around to my other beds and filled with the humus. I don’t think I mixed it in well so the new humus probably wasn’t good enough to sustain them. I learned for new soil, mix well with the old.

    I have somewhat ignored my onion patch, just watering it lightly. I found several tiny new bulbs that have sprouted in my Egyptian walking onions! I was so excited to see them. I will pull out the older onions out and let these new onions take root.

    I am set to dig my sweet potatoes the first week in August and it seems that their leaves are changing. I am not sure if it’s normal so if you know, leave a comment. I have my kidney surgery scheduled for July 29th and I digging my sweet potatoes soon after will be a nice treat for me. (That will surely get me up and walking soon!) I really can’t wait to see what is growing under the soil!

    Also! I am headed out of town for a week but my daughter will water and check my garden daily so I will return in a week for an update!

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    July 14th, 2013 | 8 Comments |

8 Responses and Counting...

  • Melissa 07.14.2013

    I loved your pictures and am very excited about your sweet potatoes!

  • Melanie

    Melissa,
    Thanks for the comment! I will post pictures of sweet potatoes soon!
    Melanie

  • Pamela @ Brooklyn Farm Girl

    Everything is looking great! When the potatoes and vines start to die, then you know it’s harvest time! You can always dig to see just in case too. 🙂

  • Melanie

    Pamela,
    It’s like peeking at your presents before Christmas! I started to but saw tiny roots I just couldn’t break and impose on. I will wait. Patience – a life lesson I am trying to learn. ha!
    Melanie

  • Donna

    Your photos are always so delightful! I can only hope my next years garden will look as good as yours. Many thanks for sharing.

  • Melanie

    Donna,
    Thanks for the sweet comment about my photos. I am grateful I learned how to take pictures with the proper lighting. I am sure your garden will be just as good if not better!
    good luck! Wishing you the best,
    Melanie

  • Karen Roper

    Mel, I am thrilled to find your site and method of gardening in the air! Planning to use this method for next spring. I defy the Bermuda grass to invade these high raised beds!! And I might even be able to outsmart the fire ants too! I garden organically and will not use poison to control them so it is always a losing battle. I have attempted to garden many times in the past with various containers and raised beds but am always beaten out by the ants or weeds. I HATE TO WEED TOO!!! But as I study your website I’m not finding anything about watering. Do you hand water or use drip irrigation? I’m in East Texas and even though we *usually* get enough rain I’m concerned about these beds drying out. I’m not really eager to hand water daily either. Please reply to my email if you see this message. Thanks!

  • Melanie

    Karen,
    Hi! Happy to find another with my same aversion to weeds! The grass in my yard is so agressive, it gets into everything! I love gardening with my raised beds because it takes the worry out of weeding. I do water by hand daily. About a year ago my husband installed a watering system for me but I didn’t like it so I turned it off. He bought a low cost (about $39) timer that can be installed on a hose. He ran black tubing along the tops of my garden beds. I found that it watered unevenly and some spots were dry and some were wet. It is possible to design it to have the entire bed get water, but I missed watering by hand. My automatic system is still in place, I just put the tubes under my beds. I will pull it out soon enough. I water everyday and twice a day in the really hot dry months, unless it rains. It takes about 15 minutes max and on Saturdays I fertilize and spend a little more time checking everything. I hope that is some help to you!
    Thanks for the comment. I wish you the best!
    Melanie

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