Straw Bale Garden Update - June 2023

 

A panoramic view from the patio

Here we are on the final day of June, and I'm finally coming in with a garden update. :) To the right, you can see most of the garden, although there are five more bales to the left of the side (left) arch that continue all the way back up to the very edge of our house. The two nearest the house are loaded down with cucumber plants that are finally starting to climb on the fence behind their bales. There are also two more bales laden down with Scarlet Runner beans and random tomato plants that we ran out of places to tuck in elsewhere. The final bale has herbs and micro tomato plants. 

Pansies and Tomatoes

I also still have a tray of tomato starts that I can't bear to sell and can't find room to plant. What is a person to do? Why, buy extra dirt and fill more pots, of course! Will they need larger containers? Yes. Do I have them? No. Am I going to try to grow them in smaller containers anyway? You betcha. That is, unless I am able to find (or get creative and make) other accommodations for them. 

You can see that I have also tucked tomatoes in with my pansies. I get that this wasn't a great idea, but again, I didn't want to waste my small tomato plants. I have two of the Little Birdy series growing, that I know of. I don't believe that I had any Rosey Finch seeds left from last year. 

Galdiolus

Meanwhile, flowers are growing and blooming all over the yard. I have a ton of Cannas that are putting out their leaves in such a lovely fashion. I bought red Canna bulbs from someone in town this spring. I wanted green plants because that is the kind of Canna my dad gave to me as a gift years ago. Unfortunately, those bulbs never came back up the following year. When I bought these red Cannas, it was as close as I could get to the green. Imagine my utter delight when one set of bulbs put out green shoots! Now we refer to that as the "Papa Canna". It is a delight to find new ways to remember him out in the garden, and in the world around us. 

Okay, so let's get right down to it, shall we? I have a (hastily written) messy list of the tomatoes that are sitting out in my garden right now. I've always wanted to hit a solid 30 (or more) varieties. So far, the closest I've come is 27. Let's get this thing typed out and counted!

2023 Tomato Variety List

1. Climbing Triple Crop  

2. Pink Bumblebee

3. Sunchocula
4. Tumbling Tom
5. Sunpeach
6. Dr. Carolyn
7. Juliet
8. Spoon (I ended up with several plants, grown from seed and also purchased)
9. Banana Leg
10. Wild Boar
11. Mint Julip
12. Chocolate Pear
13. Pink Princess
14. Bumblebee Mix (so this could be sunrise, pink, or purple)
15. Yellow Bell
16. Pink Girl
17. Striped German
18. El Dorado
19. Zapotec
20. Dr. Whyche's
21. Midnight Snack
22. White Beauty
23. Mortgage Lifter Yellow
24. Tropical Sunset
25. Goliath Sunny
26. Mark Twain
27. Brandywine Yellow
28. Brandywine Suddoth
29. Brandywine Black
30. Brandywine Pink
31. Brandywine Cherry
32. Purple Boy
33. Beefmaster
34. Queen of the Night
35. Marglobe
36. Martino's Roma
37. Chef's Choice Pink
38. Watermelon Beefsteak
39. Kellogg's Breakfast
40. Yellow Beefsteak
41. Golden Fang
42. Horizon
43. Indigo Pear Drops
44. Nebraska Wedding
45. San Marzano
46. Rio Grande
47. Stump of the World
48. Little Birdy Yellow Canary
49. Little Birdy Red Robin
50. Chocolate Pear

Oh. My. Goodness!! I have more than met my goal! I have exceeded it - by a lot! EEEEEEKKK!!! Excuse my utter joy, here. I cannot believe this! Hallelujah! I panic-bought a TON of plants this year, after mine struggled so hard to make it. Then I also panic-planted another round of seeds from plants I saved from past years. Girl, WE DID IT!! HAHAHA I couldn't be happier to know that I have not just hit thirty, but exceeded it! This is, indeed, my biggest garden year EVER!! WAHOO!!! TOMATOES, BABY!!!

Oh, my stars! I am one happy gardener! In addition to the many tomatoes, we have many other things growing. Other Veggies (etc): Jack-O-Lantern pumpkins, Yellow Crookneck squash, Delicata squash, Spaghetti Squash, maybe Black Beauty zucchini, Marketmore cucumber, Tendergreen cucumbers, Lemon cucumbers, Scarlet Runner beans, Ground Cherries, Radishes, California Wonder Bell Peppers, Fire and Ice Peppers, Lettuce (mixed), Carrots, Lavender, Hale's Best Jumbo Cantaloupe, Yellow Potatoes (but no sign of growth yet), and Lemon Mint. 

Flowers: Gray Mammoth Sunflowers, American Giant Hybrid Sunflowers, Dwarf Teddy Bear Sunflowers, Calliope, Baby's Breath, Triteleia, Roses (pink, large pink, white tea roses, red, yellow/pink tea roses), Butterfly and Bird wildflower mix, Four O'Clock, Pansies, Cannas, Lilacs (only one reblooming)

Tomato List: Seed Sewing - Straw Bale Garden 2023

 

And we're off! The 2023 garden season is officially underway. I purchased my seeds at the beginning of February but managed to neglect them until mid-March. Oops! We have started tomatoes and peppers, so far. I thought I had seeds for Fire & Ice, Ancho, and Bell peppers. It turns out that I only had Fire & Ice. It is also too early to plant sunflowers, but my little Koala wanted to see what they would do if she started them in a cup, so I gave her four American Giant Hybrid seeds. :) Otherwise, here is the list of tomato seeds that we are going to try this year:

Paste
San Marzano
Golden Fang
Banana Legs

Cherry/Pear
Little Birdy Yellow Canary
Wapsipinicon Peach
Chocolate Pear
Pink Princess Cherry
Blueberries
Black Strawberry
Bumblebee Mix (Sunrise, Pink, Purple)
Litchi
Aunt Molly's Ground Cherry

Tiny
Spoon

Slicing Tomatoes

Pork Chop OG (from the Barred Boar family)
Yellow Brandywine
Dr. Wyche's Yellow
Nebraska Wedding
Kellogg's Breakfast
Orange Accordion
Pink Brandywine
The stump of the World
Chef's Choice Pink
Hillbilly Potato Leaf (this callback to my childhood is an annual 'must' in my garden)
Striped German
Solar Flare
Watermelon Beefsteak
Climbing Triple-L-Crop

Straw Bale Garden Update - June 2022

    Straw Bale Garden (SBG) update time has *finally* arrived. I know that I've run quite behind this year. I haven't posted anything before this besides a list of seeds. Ha! That said, I have had an increasingly busy springtime. My kiddos are rapidly growing up before my eyes. With that comes balancing jobs (three out of four of us and just the one car) and more outings than ever. My Giraffe and Koala are growing faster than any plant on the property. :) Fortunately, I've gotten some really cute pictures of them through the spring, too! ;) ;) ;) 

    I have added some photos to this blog. Please know that they range from a month ago to the present. This past week has been HOT and the garden is suffering for it. 

    Most of the new plants are still seedlings we literally just planted this morning into vacancies left by other plants that did not survive. Even so, we have worked very hard and are praying to eventually have a good bounty to share. Today and tomorrow are in the eighty-degree range and then it is back to the nineties for the foreseeable future. Yikes!

    I twenty-five bales and some pots. Items marked with * are all seedlings that were set out just this morning. Growing all around the yard are: 

TOMATOES

Kellogg's Breakfast 
Purple Bumblebee  *
Sunrise Bumblebee *
Pink Bumblebee  *
Ground Cherries *
Indigo Pear *
Striped German
Large Barred Boar *
Black Strawberry *
Pink Brandywine
Yellow Brandywine 
Blueberries Tomato *
Climbing Trip-L Crop
Spoon Tomatoes *
Nebraska Wedding
Chef's Choice Pink
Garnet
Gardner's Sweetheart
Flamingo Burst
Solar Flare
Dino Eggs
Hillbilly Potato Leaf
Porkchop
Banana Legs
Stump of the World
Dr. Wyche's Yellow
Little Birdy Rosey Finch
Little Birdy Yellow Canary
Siam

We *may* have a Pink Syberian tiger out there, or another of the plants we set out but thought died. Somehow or another, the tags that were with them were blown away or carried off in the night, so there are several of what we like to call "My's Mystery" tomatoes. Once they bear fruit, I will have a better idea of just who they are. I am really hoping against hope that my Orange Accordion tomatoes will show up in there somewhere. I was quite excited to try them this year. I am almost positive that my Spoon tomatoes and my Ground Cherries aren't going to make it. I've never in my life seen such wee little/fragile tomato seedlings. It makes sense that they are tiny. Next year, I will start earlier and pamper the life into them.

VEGGIES

Marketmore Cucumber
Tendergreen Burpless Cucumber
Northeastern Pole Beans
Snap Peas
Poblano Peppers
Green Bell Peppers
California Bell Peppers
Ancho Peppers
Broccoli 
Purple Peacock Broccoli 
Celery (just a baby!)
Buttercrunch Lettuce
Arugula
Strawberry Spinach

We still have to sow carrots, radishes, turnips, and a few other things. Depending on how the weather goes, that may happen this week or not. 

HERBS

Cilantro                   
Sage

Curly Leaf Parsley                   

Italian Parsley                          

Greek Oregano

Chives

Thyme

There are some herbs that I haven't been successful with. These include Chamomile, Lemon Mint, Anise, and Summer Savory. I believe I went wrong by trying to start those in regular seed starting pods, rather than sowing them directly into dirt or a bale under some dirt.

FRUIT

Strawberries

Grapes

Tigger Melon

Yamato Cream Watermelon (these will be yellow inside!)

Crimson Sweet Watermelon

Our Hale's Best Jumbo cantaloupe have all died or been eaten. Like I said, my garden has struggled this year. Today is the third time we've gone out with a fresh batch of seedlings to plug in holes. It has been really frustrating for me, but we keep pushing on. 

FLOWERS

Black Cotton
Chinese Hibiscus
Capt Marguerite
Bolivian Begonia
Garden Petunias - in several colors
Wild Pansy - several colors
Roses - several colors
Morning Glory
Sunflower 

Note: Koala's sunflowers keep getting chopped down by the lawn guy. This may take forever to actually get one all the way up. I also have my lilacs, which are done flowering for the year, and the ever-present Honeysuckle that sneaks in randomly wherever it wishes. 

SQUASH

Waltham Butternut
Black Beauty Zucchini
"Surprise" squash whose tag we lost and I planted nearby the house *facepalm*

My squash was killed and/or died *so* fast. I had Yellow Crookneck, Butternut, Butterscotch, Spaghetti Squash, and Delicata loaded up in my arches. They simply didn't make it. I will try again, but no promises. 

My garden still *looks* rather empty, as many spaces are filled with the tiniest of seedlings. It is also visibly burned from a long week in the sun. Sarting Monday, there is no end of scorching temperatures in the extended forecast. 

I am often praying that every plant will have a good year, regardless. I hate to end on scorched garden pics, but it does bring us right up to the present, so there you have it. <3

August Straw Bale Garden Update

 

August has already arrived, and is over halfway gone! Can you believe it? As you can see from this panoramic photo, the garden keeps on growing. :)

Here is one morning's haul. :) My kiddos harvested everything here! Included are nine varieties of tomatoes. Those are Yellow Pear, Little Rosey Finch, Red Cherry, Roma, Rio Grande, Wapsipinicon Peach, Pineapple Heirloom, Hillbilly Potato Leaf, and Pink Brandywine. We also have some very small Spaghetti Squash (pictured), Green Bell Peppers, and cucumbers. We have more on the vine, of course, but only two were ready to be harvested this morning.

Our personal favorite tomatoes are the Pink Brandywine. Not only are they absolutely delicious, but they are also massive! These big boys have been on the menu daily here in our home. We have made more BLT sandwiches than you can probably count! This tomato has a rich flavor, is in no way bland, but also isn't terribly acidic. Each slab (lol) of tomato lays like steak, covering the entire slice of bread. Yum! In short, it is the *perfect* sandwich tomato!

Our arches did experience die-off after vine borer moths had their way with our squash and zucchini. There are new vines planted, which are still small yet. To my delight, we still had enough Butternut Squash, cucumbers, and canteloupe still growing that - while visibly thinned out - the arches do not look entirely decimated. :) Even better, they are still laden with goodies!

The littles and I did something new this year. We decided to make support nets for our hanging fruits and vegetables! 

YouTube and Google both brought up options, of course. One can make slings out of old hosiery. (Honestly, do people still wear those things?) That isn't an option for me. For one, ew. Also, I wouldn't even know where to buy them now. 

There is also the option of using old tee shirts cut into strips. Meh. Neither choice seemed inspired. I wanted something made of cotton yarn. I looked for a crochet pattern with no luck. So, we came up with our own! Our garden is now supported by many colorful yarn slings!

Our watermelons had a bit of a flop. First, Shell was adjusting our full-sized melon and accidentally knocked it off of the vine. While light pink, it was in no way ripe. Then, our only other melon stopped growing. While tiny, it had all of the markers of being ripe. It made for a refreshing addition to lunch one afternoon. We currently have one tiny melon growing, and two new vines sprouting. We may see a ripe full-sized melon yet!

I mentioned last month that we would be seeding the second set of squashes and other goodies. We did! Here is a zucchini finally growing vine borer-free! Perhaps next year, I should simply wait until the end of July to sew any of these at all?

We also sewed the next batch of radishes, beets, cabbages, carrots, and additional spaghetti squash. These are in varying stages of sprouting right now. To be honest, I had forgotten about the cabbage. We were delighted when two little heads popped up! :) 

The green peppers continue to put out batch after batch. Unfortunately, bugs are getting to quite a few of them, keeping them small and ugly. No matter - we gather what we can. 

I am sure that I am leaving something out. The raspberry bush is still too young to produce. Strawberries grow well enough but are all stolen by rabbits. My Purple Dragon Carrots have still tucked away under the dirt - no visible shoulders yet. Canning tomatoes are ripening, but are being eaten too fast to can. (ha!)

The potatoes sit quietly in their pot, minding their own business. I do not expect the plant to die for a while, yet. They occasionally get flooded by a good rain.

My's lettuce is finally coming up, now that the intense heat has backed off a bit. I look forward to fresh salads full of home-grown-from-seed goodies!

Our herbs also continue to grow well. Shell asked me why I grow them if I don't use them. I do *intend* to learn how to use them. Does that count? ;) We have enjoyed a lot of fresh food this year, both raw and cooked into dishes like BLT sandwiches, vegetable pizza, roasts and soups, in pasta, etc.

Also, the parsley is there to entice swallowtail butterflies. :) We haven't seen a single one so far. This is the first year that has ever happened. Still, I cling to hope. Swallowtails are my very favorite! The bees came back. Perhaps the butterflies will, as well. Next year, I need to add more flowers to the yard.

I think that about wraps up this update. I have loads of pictures to share, but I think these will do for now. We go out almost every morning, first thing. We bring out our chairs and sit there, relishing in the fresh air. The chirping of birds and buzzing of bees fills the soul.

Some mornings, we just rest. Other times, I can be out there for around three and a half hours pruning. I like to harvest, but so do the kids. I tend to let them have that pleasure. You are only young once, and I know the intense satisfaction of gleaning from plants you've sewn and tended. I am thrilled for them to have that experience! I even chuckle to myself when they are in the tomatoes fighting over who gets to pluck which one. haha

Before long, autumn will be in the air. We are already starting to witness leaves dancing down to the ground on the breezes. For now, my garden has shed its first life and is sprouting the second round of infant vegetables and fruits. There is a certain contentment in staying so nearly literally grounded. I find immense peace here with my little family. God is good.

"So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase." 1 Cor 3:7

"He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end." Ecc 3:11

Early July Straw Bale Garden Update

Good Morning! :)

Today is Independence Day here in the US, but this post is not about that. It is another garden update! *wide grin* I know, I know... I have become very one-note, haven't I? So what! There are growing goodies to share! Let's get to it!

SBG July 2, 2018

Here is a somewhat panoramic view of our garden at the beginning of this week. :) You can see that the garden has taken over the bales and framework, to the point where you almost can't even see the cattle panel. Yay! *This* stage of gardening is what I live for! If you look in the corner of the bales at the right of the frame (immediately behind my watering cans), you will see that a volunteer wild sunflower plant has sprung up! 

Side note... I call any plants that were not planted by any of us 'volunteer'. This sunflower was the one seed that escaped intact from the copious amounts of seed mix we put in the yard for the local wildlife this winter. It happened to grow in the absolute perfect location, so much so that it looks intentional! haha Next year, I *will* grow some on purpose! I have mysteriously gone from hating sunflowers to absolute mirth when I see them! :D :D Photo credit to my Booh Bear for every picture you see in here. She has become quite adept at taking them!

As you can see, things are growing quite well in the garden. We have too many kinds of tomatoes to keep mentioning over and over. Plus, in this stage of growing, they are all green and hard to tell apart. However, this is a picture of our Sunrise Bumblebee tomatoes. You can clearly see that they'll be striped. <3 

What follows are other pictures of tomatoes that I won't be describing in detail. ;) Like this one!

And these happy little growers right here. :) I love that you can see the a cucumber flower kissing a tomato in the left of the photo!

There are also these...

And these...

Aaaaand these.
You get the idea! ;)

We also have spaghetti squash growing very well, like these. In fact, you can sometimes spot more spaghetti squash in the pictures of other veggies we've taken and shared. 
There is also a squash growing that my Booh Bear keeps swearing up and down is a spaghetti squash. The thing is, it has stripes on it. I have an inkling that it is something else entirely. I have not checked it out in person, but I hope to soon. It doesn't make sense to me that absolutely all of our squash look alike but that one. I am hoping that it is a watermelon, actually.

I have a picture of it sitting by other plants, but I want to get close and solve that mystery before I post about it any further. :)

This is a butternut squash. I have grown these in honor of my beloved dad, God rest his soul. They will not go to waste. My mom (Granna, in these blogs) loves them every bit as much as my dad did. My plants did not thrive last year, yielding only one (much-appreciated but tiny) little squash. It sits on a shelf with pictures of my dad. <3 <3 <3  

There are also zucchini coming on very well. My mom and Booh Bear have already been enjoying them consistently. <3 I may not like this vegetable personally, but I will attempt to grow absolutely anything I can get my hands on! :) We are also going to begin carting some over to the neighbors, per usual. 

After last year's struggle, I happily  report that we are again keeping ourselves in cucumbers. Yay! This is one of my favorite veggies to eat fresh from the garden, though you will rarely catch me buying them from the store. Little Giraffe really loves them, as well. We've had some pest issues, but I am about to try a neem oil/dish soap/water mix. Finger's crossed!

We have very few pumpkin plants this year. I think only two, maybe? They seem to be doing alright. The garden is so big that it is somewhat painful to dig around the rough vines. I am not sure how many pumpkins we have, but there will for sure be at least one! lol

The broccoli are finally starting to develop wee heads. They, the spinach, the watermelon, and the cabbage are all kind of being buried under the massive squash and zucchini plants. That said, I've not had squash actually kill any plants at any point in the past. I just have to get some gloves on and go digging when the temperature finally drops to a tolerable level.

This is the last picture I have right now. My pepper plants are a mix of "Aaawww, maaaannnn!" and "Meh". I know... not great. The plants I started from seedlings are only a few inches tall. They are beautiful but too small to do anything this year. The plants I bought from the farmer's market (one is pictured) are growing orange peppers. The plants are growing in funky shapes and the peppers are small, but they are at least there! :) I find it so odd how I can have great success with a plant seasons in a row, only to have a random bad season. 

So, there you have it. The garden continues to grow. We haven't seen any cantaloupe on those vines yet, but everything else seems to be off and running. Most of it is doing very well. Only a couple of things are not. I neglected my potatoes on accident for a very hot week. Now I am fighting to save the plants. Yikes! Live and learn!

I hope that everyone is having a happy and healthy summer. School will begin before you know it. We are probably going to be starting the new grades ourselves here in another week and a half. In the meantime, Hubs, Granna, Booh Bear, Little Giraffe and I all bid you a Happy Independence Day! 

Quick Edit:
The mystery plant is a second pumpkin! It is very light in color for some reason. We have also found wee little watermelons and cantaloupes! Yaay! <3

<3 Remember to tend those spiritual gardens! <3

Hallelujah, She's Planted!!

Has this been a year, or has this been a year? For one, we are nearly in June. Crazy! Five months never went by so quickly! For another, taking on the task of prepping for and filling twenty-two bales of straw was almost daunting! It would have been, had I not been so stinking excited! haha I sincerely intended to plant a mere 14 bales this year, down from last year's 18. Some of those bales were wasted last year, as seeds didn't take. (It was hard for me to stay motivated so close to my dad's death.) It is purely repetition for me say at this point that we ended up with *so* many seedlings that we simply *had* to have the additional eight bales! lol Suffice it to say that this mama loooooves getting straw bales!

This morning we were out in the garden around six thirty (almost on the dot). Giraffe helped out with three bales worth of plants. I tried not to ask for too much help, since it was so early. Koala was a willing worker... almost too willing. That is how it is when they are tiny though, isn't it? haha She wanted to put plants into bales for me, so I had to pull out straw and then very carefully tip the plant out of the plastic cup into her hand. It is a beautiful thing to teach the little ones how to garden! <3 <3 <3 

Above is the somewhat skewed panoramic picture of the yard/garden. Excuse the pool. ;) One does not get through a summer without a pool of some sort, am I right? Call it spring if you want. The temps in the 90's say otherwise! You can see the lettuce camped out to the left of it. haha They are coming along nicely. 

Here is a picture of our pot of potatoes. This is our second attempt. It seems to be successful so far! These are mostly russet, if I remember correctly. We also threw in a red potato I couldn't bear to trash. Truth be told, I don't even know if it is advisable to mix potatoes. It probably isn't! I suppose you can call this an experimental year for us, potato-wise. ;)

Our beets are still tiny, but I have to mention them. They are my absolute favorite seedling at the moment! Why? I am glad you asked! haha These little babies germinate out of their seed looking like wee little flamingos! haha They are tiny, stringy, and a very bright shade of pink! Pictured is one of five little fellas that has leaves. The rest are all naked and hiding in the dirt where I placed them. I'm in love!

These are some of the plants I put in this morning. There were still cabbages, cantaloupe, cucumbers, tomatoes (plenty!), peppers, beets, carrots, parsley, and more squash. :) Let me tell you, we worked fast and hard pulling out straw to make holes, plopping plants into them, and filling them with dirt. When we began it was already 69/70 degrees out and almost 80 degrees when we came back in.

Here are some of my lovely peppers. I initially planned on having two varieties, but thanks to a wonderful weekend trip to the farmer's market I have four! Mine were not growing quickly enough. I now have Big Bertha and Emerald for my greens, Sweet California Wonder (red, yellow, green) and Orange Bell for my colors.

I don't know if you can tell or not, but Koala placed all of our 'fancy' Dollar Tree lawn ornaments into the fronts of the bales this morning. There are now random butterflies, frogs, and birds at odd intervals beautifying our space. It is quite lovely in person, regardless of how how it looks in the pictures. :)

You can probably see one better in this picture of my too-tiny green pepper plants. :) How cute is that little frog? He really adds something to the garden. :) Anyway, I don't suppose I should continue adding pictures. I just wanted to share how sincerely delighted I am in having finished planting my garden for the year! 

To that end, here is a(nother) list of everything that made it into our backyard. I have updated it to reflect the new plants we've added. All told, we planted twenty-two different kinds of tomatoes. Can I say just how *eager* I am to see them thrive and produce fruit!?!?

VEGETABLES

Zucchini 

Romaine Lettuce (green)
Romaine Lettuce (red)

Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce
New Zealand Spinach

Red Acre Cabbage

California Sweet Wonder Pepper (multi-colored bell peppers)

Emerald Green Bell Pepper
Big Bertha (a 7" huge green pepper)
Orange Bell Pepper

Spaghetti Squash

Butternut Squash

Bush Beans

Muncher Cucumber
Tendergreen Cucumber
Waltham Broccoli

Radishes

Detroit Dark Red Beets

Scarlet Nantes Carrots
Danvers Half Long Carrots
Russet Potatoes
Red Potatoes

FRUITS

Hale's Best Jumbo Cantaloupe

Congo Watermelon

Strawberries

FLOWERS

Morning Glories
Lilacs
Red Roses
White Roses

TOMATOES

Sunrise Bumblebee (a red/yellow striped cherry tomato of moderate size)

Sun Sugar (best guess... small yellow/orange cherry)

Small Yellow Pear
Orange plum 

Honey Delight Hybrid (large 2" light yellow globes)

Chocolate Cherry (an acidic cherry almost brown with green)

Red Cherry 

Brandywine Cherry (same flavor, smaller tomato)

Unknown Small Red Paste (best guess... shaped like small jalapeno peppers)

Gold Nugget (best guess... small, orange cherry)

Plumito (Best guess... dark red, shaped like bell pepper)

Black Cherry

Blue Beauty 

Hillbilly Potato Leaf (large red/yellow fruit)

Beefsteak 

Brandywine (pinkish fruit the size of a slice of bread... my favorite flavor)

Big Rainbow (another large red/yellow fruit)

Steakhouse (the largest tomato ever bred... fruit up to 3lbs! We shall see!)

Abe Lincoln (a regular red heirloom)

Yellow Mortgage Lifter 

Serendipity (another yellow/red mix)

Black Early 

Plan Nine from Outer Space (a yellow/red)

So far, we have harvested bush beans, radishes, and lettuce. The rest is still growing. Also, you can add peas to the list of things I still want to plant as soon as I find an available spot for them to grow! haha I am also eyeballing a bunch of dry beans from my collection, and wondering if they would bother to germinate. haha I cannot help it! I have gardening deep in my blood! <3 <3 <3 I look forward to sharing pictures of produce as the year continues to progress. 

Live happily, everyone. We only get one go at this! :) <3 :)