Heriz-Smith

This is the time when there are weeks weeds everywhere: weeds in the paths, weed in the beds, weeds in the borders. Weeds everywhere. At the same time though, lots of plants look really good. The leeks look great, the potatoes are doing well, the beets look really good. The French beans are about ready for the first picking, we picked our first cherry tomatoes two days ago, and so on. A lot of lettuce has bolted, I do need to pull it all up and put it on the compost. And I need to buy some BT for the brassicas. They started out looking so good under the row covers but once they grew too big for that, the moths found them. I picked the first Kohlrabi this morning, it’s beautiful.

I hoed all the paths yesterday, and thinned the rutabagas and turnips. I thinned a few more beets too - they are actually getting small beets at the end now, pretty neat! I also removed the row cover from the brassicas - it was holding them down - I need to put it back on more loosely today or the dreaded worms will be back. Some of the kohlrabi are as big as tennis balls - I’m not sure how big they are when they’re ready.

Things aren’t looking that bad. I do need to put up trellises for the tomatoes - I think by next weekend that’ll have to be done. There’s no sign yet of potato bugs, that’s a relief.

Because I’m planting them closer (16″) than the brussels sprouts (18″) I planted yesterday, I was able to get all 18 plants of the remaining cabbages and the broccoli into the row I dug yesterday. I put in 6 each of Early Jersey Wakefield and Mammoth Red Rock cabbage, and 3 each of Arcadia and Green King broccoli.

Today I prepared the bed for the Brussels Sprouts (Groninger). I got 12 in, and then got the next bed ready for the cabbages.