Let’s Talk Vegetables

Bean flower (pole beans Burpee 'Kentucky Wonder')

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Every year, with spring enthusiasm, I eagerly place seeds and plants in pots and in the ground. I dream of fresh green beans steaming on the dinner table; solid cucumber slices in a tangy dressing and juicy tomatoes eaten right off the plant.

With spring enthusiasm, I forget that vegetable gardening takes work and time. Not to mention battling the mosquitoes and gnats that hide under the leaves. In spring I forget how hot 93 degrees with high humidity really is. I forget that vegetables will need watering.

Every year, in July, reality sets in as I pull weeds, wash lettuce, pick cucumbers and clean beans. Years ago I had a large garden with rows of vegetables. Freezing and canning went on all summer. Now as empty nesters, we have only a few vegetables among the flowers.

I’m happy with a few vegetables every year. I wouldn’t want to be without them. The taste of my favorite varieties makes the effort worthwhile. I’m sure I’ll be overcome with spring enthusiasm next year.
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My vegetables this year:

Potted cherry tomatoes - Burpee ‘Sweet 100’.

In the window boxes on the patio - Agway parsley ‘Forest Green’ and lettuce ‘Black Seeded Simpson’. The lettuce is ready for its third cutting.

Happy cucumbers - Burpee ‘Straight Eight’ - crawl up the hydrangea and holly and over the daylilies and mums. Picking cucumbers will be quite a challenge.

Pole beans - Burpee 'Kentucky Wonder’. I’ve had the seeds since 2007 and planted a few seeds every year. This year I planted a few extra thinking they may not all be viable but it looks like they all germinated. I should have pulled a few when they came up. They are one of the best tasting beans I have ever planted.
Green tomatoes on Burpee ‘Early Pick’

Container Vegetables

This year I am trying container vegetables for the first time. I have two large pots on the deck.

I ordered cucumber Bush Champion and pole bean Kentucky Wonder from Burpee and planted the seeds on May 7. The seeds germinated by May 12. I watered frequently (sometimes in the heat, 3 times a day) and fed with an Algoflash solution, fish emulsion (1X) and compost tea (2X).

I picked the first cumbers on July 1. There are a lot of flowers and small beans on the vine. So far I'm happy with the progress. We'll see how in goes through the heat of July and August.