It's coming in hot and heavy here and I'm having a little trouble keeping up! I think it's more a matter of mindset than anything else. How do people who are working full time jobs and gardening too do it?
Anyway, here's what I harvested this week:
 |
| Still getting lettuce by the bushelful! |
 |
| First harvest of sugar snap peas |
 |
| Kohlrabi and mizuna |
I also harvested another basketful of shelling peas and my first harvests of swiss chard and kale but forgot to take pictures of them. It's been a good week!
I find that I froze way too much chard and snap peas last year. There are still quite a few packets left. Here's the question: do I chuck those old frozen veggies into the compost and just replace with new? I sure hate to waste, but with all the fresh vegetables coming in we won't be eating frozen until late fall and it would probably be better to have more recently frozen ones. That's the way I'm leaning. Don't tell my husband, he probably wouldn't take it well!
Hoping all you gardeners out there have a fruitful week and good weather!
If I have any frozen items in the freezer when the new harvests start coming in, I just open them up and put them on the compost pile. It's a rare day we have much left over though. Truth is they only keep well for 9 months to a year anyways and the new crop is much tastier.
ReplyDeleteYou had a very good harvest week and definitely linked up just fine for the Harvest Monday fun!
Thanks, Kitsap! It's a struggle learning this, but I am enjoying it. Thanks for visiting and for the advice about the old frozen stuff. At least composting makes me feel less guilty about getting rid of it!
DeleteWell, I guess I would rotate. I would freeze the fresh stuff and use up the older stuff. Find more things to put that chard and peas into! I really hate waste too, lol.
ReplyDeleteBecky, thanks for your comment! Blogger is doing weird things to me and posted my reply at the end of the comments! Arg!
DeleteWhat to do with old veggies is a problem I also face. I don't feel too badly opening a bag of slightly freezer burned pea pods and tossing them into the compost, but last year I bought a vacuum sealer, and those bags are expensive! Sure, I can toss the contents and wash the bag to reuse, but it seems like such a waste. I have frozen beets (we didn't like them frozen) and there is always extra zucchini (I think some from 2010!). So I'm with you...what to do, it's time to make room for the new.
ReplyDeleteGood! I think I'll go with the composting! You freeze zucchini? How does that come out? Considering I rarely get more than a few of them to grow (strange, huh?) I probably don't need to know, but hope springs eternal!
DeleteJust coarsely grate it, don't even peel it, bag it in whatever amounts your recipes call for (usually 2-3 cups) and toss it in the freezer. It's great in cakes, muffins, cookies, casseroles, bread....if you ever need a recipe to use it up, just give me a holler! I'm going to probably bake a killer Zucchini Fudge Cake today, but I'll use up my fresh picked zucchini.
DeleteWow that is a lot of lettuce! You ask about working full time and gardening? I suspect we have a few more weeds and bugs :).
ReplyDeleteI see you freeze chard. I have thought about it but wonder about the texture. What is it like when it thaws?
Hi Coral! I still have plenty of weeds in my garden! It's probably a little bigger than I should be handling, but I do tend to jump into things head first (or is it feet first?) Frozen chard has a similar texture to frozen spinach. In fact I substitute it for frozen spinach in a lot of recipes because I really don't grow spinach well. At least, not yet.
DeleteWith just two of us, that'd be a lot of using up, especially with all the fresh stuff coming in! It's practically a moral dilemma, but I think it'll be going to the compost. Thanks for your input Becky and welcome!
ReplyDeleteHi nutmeg gardener, I wonder too how people keep up and work! But then they are probably a lot younger than I am! I am finding that any produce frozen that we don't like or don't use up that my dog likes a few for a treat. Great harvest you are getting now! Nancy
ReplyDeleteHi N.G, welcome to your first Harvest Monday! lovely sugar snap peas,bet they were tasty and well enjoyed.
ReplyDeleteMizuna too, i love it lightly fried with my scrambled eggs.
I'd probably ditch the old frozen veggies into my compost or worm farm, they would love it.
Thank you Andrea! That sounds like a great way to use the Mizuna. I've only ever used it in salad. I'll have to try it with eggs next.
DeleteWe usually toss ours in the compost bin if there is any left this time of year. Or feed it to the chickens. After veggies have been sitting in the freezer for a year they are not all that good! But it is usually pretty rare to have anything left. This year all we have still in the freezer is some summer squash.
ReplyDeleteYou are right about the frozen veggies and I think they'll be gracing the compost pile very soon! Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteI would toss the old frozen veggies.... Actually my goal, especially since I live in a fairly mild climate compared to some, is to eat from the garden every day of the year and not have too much canning and freezing to do. You might be new at this, but you managed to link up just fine, which I think you have probably discovered! WOW bushels of lettuce? how I wish, especially this time of year~!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by Mary! I am learning to extend the garden way beyond what I used to, which is probably why there were so many leftover frozen patckets. Sure didn't expect to get so much lettuce, but it just took off. Thank goodness I know a lot of people who appreciate getting it (at least, they're letting me believe they do, lol!)
Delete