Let's Hear It For JUNE in the Northern and Central Midwest Region!

June is here! Can lots of fresh vegetable be far behind?

Post your June news here. Sure, I know you will be posting in lots of different Forums on the SFG site. But keep a bit of a log going here too so that we all can refer to it as we go through June in our Region. Newcomers will love knowing the stories we all tell.

For those of us who started early in the year, with your boxes already full of Mel's Mix from last year, you are harvesting already!

For the rest of us, hopefully most of the hard work of building boxes and mixing Mel's Mix is slowing down and we can concentrate more on the next phase -- watching things grow!

I was reading my garden log from last year and, while I have been feeling way behind this spring, I realized that it was June 20 of last year when we completed building and filling our first SFG. So I guess I'm not far behind! I'm AHEAD.

Claire

P.S. If you haven't already put your location and/or zone in your avatar, it will be very helpful to everyone if you will do it now. Thank you.

Here's today's take:


First broccoli of the year (actually ever for me, never planted it in my old garden), 4th or 5th batch of lettuce and spinach and some radishes.

Aunty, !

I was reading my garden log from last year and, while I have been
feeling way behind this spring, I realized that it was June 20 of
last year when we completed building and filling our first SFG. So I
guess I'm not far behind! I'm AHEAD.

I love that !! Im doing a happy dance for you. I know what it feels like when Ive felt like I was behind and found out I was ahead !!! Its like a miracle and weight off my shoulders.

First broccoli of the year (actually ever for me, never planted it in my
old garden), 4th or 5th batch of lettuce and spinach and some radishes.

It looks so tastey !! I can imagine the flavor!!
Ha-v-v

I haven't been down to my garden since Saturday morning and boy am I missing it! I'm going after work today to check on everyone. Fortunately it rained last night, so I know (hope) they haven't died due to dehydration.

Yesterday we went to a U-Pick farm and picked our own delicious strawberries! We've planted our own, so we know what to look forward to next year. I have tons of yummy preserves in my freezer. It was so much fun - I can't wait to do raspberries next!

Celebrating June 1 with a picture of my new 4x4 just completed yesterday.

Its so pretty !! I cant get over how the "neatness" of a sfg makes me happy. The rock area behind the garden is very pretty and calming Like your red shovel too

Sunshine for your garden
Ha-v-v

Very nice! So neat and it fits just perfectly there.
Makes me want to get motivated and get my long bed made. Looks like rain, so it will have to wait.

Everyone's beds look lovely! I just love seeing everyone's gardens. Here's a few of mine. I have one net left to hang on a trellis and then I'm pretty much done. Brought out my planters today and got some flowers to put in them. Makes it more festive, especially as everything matures and fills in.

Carrie, your Painted garden ROCKS!! I just love that.

How are all of us Midwesterners doing.....did anyone in this area get bad storms yesterday?
Here in se MN we had heavy rain, but it was needed. It looked like Iowa was blanketed in rain and storms all day, tornadoes too......? Is Iowa in our zone - I'm assuming a 5?

Hope everyone escaped bad weather.

Tonya

Things looked pretty good when I got there last night. I had to pull a few more spinach plants and the lettuce is very close to being done. I have 1 tomato about which I'm a bit worried. It just doesn't look as if it's thriving. It's the Rutgers. The Roma is doing great! And so are the 2 in my kid's bed. But most exciting to me - I got to eat my first pea! Now I wish I had planted more. I will this fall! Her watermelons also seem happy. This is all so exciting!

Nancy, where was the U-pick strawberry farm that you went to? We used to go out to a place in Harrison, but they stopped doing it.

We sure did have rain on Monday! My rain gauge (gage?) said 1 1/4 inches in a very short time. We needed it and there was no damage. Not much wind. Just east of us they got 3" in 1 hour!!! My Gsons schools were closed Tuesday due to flooding.

But... my garden is happy.

Claire

Lisa - we went to Branstrator Farm in Clarksville - near Camp Kern & Morgan's Canoe. I found the guy at the Wyoming Farmer's Market a few weeks ago. His strawberries are fabulous! I put some of my preserves on a bagel today and nearly swooned! Yum!

Do you happen to remember how much you paid per pound? I just found berries n blooms, and they charge $1.75 per pound.

We had very heavy rain and wind here in West MI on Monday also. I haven't gotten my tomato supports up yet and they were about blown/washed right out of their containers! All fixed up now though and will be getting the supports up this coming weekend (I hope)

My SFG is mostly a kitchen herb garden ... from which I have already harvested chives, parsley, oregano and basil.

Besides the herbs, I have a couple of sweet peppers in the SFG bed too, plus the 3 containers of tomatoes, one pumpkin plant & two vine type cukes that I really MUST find a place for because those three are really getting out of hand in their little pots. Oh ... and the Grand-kids sprouted their own sunflower seeds so we have about 14 or so of those in the back yard, too. (Plus their flower "picking garden" in the front near the SFG box)

This is our first year at this house so we're using it to see what the previous owners had planted and where. Geez oh pizza ... you should see the Hosta and Peony plants they had! Huge and beautiful!

My favorite U-Pick strawberry place has posted that strawberries will be ready about 6/12 this year. I can hardly wait. Sure have been enjoying the fresh asparagus from the road-side stands that I frequent.

---Pam
aka Nurse Grams

I think he was also $1.75 / pound. I spent nearly $18!