Monday, July 4, 2011

Our 4th of July Harvest Monday.


Happy Independence Day!

(Now if we could just gain our independence from the corporations that have been allowed to rule this Country...)


Eleven and a half pounds of organic snap beans were picked on Tuesday of this week. The vines are covered with blossoms, so the harvest should be great.







All snapped and ready to be canned. This is a 16 inch diameter mixing bowl, nice and full.







After sterilizing the jars, it was easier to fill a canner load's worth of jars with the beans and salt before putting all the lids on at the same time rather than to prepare them one at a time.







The eleven and a half pounds of snap beans converted into 14 quarts.








On Thursday I picked again and got six and a half pounds of snap beans. That was enough for seven quarts and I had a pint or so left over.







On Sunday I needed to pick again. This time I got an amazing 19 pounds of fresh organic snap beans!







I've been accumulating my blueberries in our freezer so I can make blueberry jam. This week alone I picked 10 ounces of organic blueberries from four small bushes in our yard.







The banana peppers were ready to be picked again. We got 27 of them that weighed a total of one and a half pounds.







The giant marconi peppers did well for us this week with a harvest of 31 peppers that weighed four pounds.








Now for some American patriotism for the 4th of July!  What could be more patriotic from the garden than Red, White and Blue organically produced seedless grapes?

The Reliance (red) grapes still need another couple of weeks to ripen.



The Himrod (white, when using your imagination..) grapes also need another week or so to sweeten up.



The Glenora (blue) grapes are almost ready. Two or three more days and they'll be ready to harvest.


This completes another Harvest Monday post for my blog. I hope it was interesting and will inspire folks to go and figure out where they can plant a few more things they can benefit from. There's always room. If not, use a container.

Thanks to all my new and returning visitors that stop by my blog to see how my garden is doing.

Have a great gardening day! Now go plant something!
Veggie PAK

14 comments:

  1. Wow! That is a very impressive bean and pepper harvest! Congrats! I love your grape. PURTY!!

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  2. This makes me sad. I picked, um, 10 sugar snap peas. That's all I got. Oh well, it was my first try. LOL

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  3. My goodness VP...you have the biggest harvests! Now you go plant something!!! Have a Happy 4th!

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  4. "Now if we could just gain our independence from the corporations that have been allowed to rule this Country..."

    Amen to that.

    What a spectacular green bean harvest you had this week! Isn't it a lovely feeling to have those jars of beautiful produce stacking up in the pantry?

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  5. I love the red, white, and blue grapes. They look so healthy and yummy. Happy Harvest!

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  6. That is an amazing pile of green beans. I am so envious of your grapes. My vines are three years old and nary a sign of producing a single grape yet.

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  7. Your grapes look delicious! Hope you enjoy them!

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  8. Wow that is a lot of beans. I couldn't imagine eating that many in a year. You must really love your green beans.

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  9. Your beans just keep coming! Soon you'll run out of places to store those jars!

    Those grapes look yummy... I am glad you are getting a decent harvest because I remember you posting about some of the vines dying off. what do you end up doing with them? Just eat them fresh?

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  10. Holly, the harvest has been very good so far. I'm hoping to pick grapes in the next few days.


    Alexis E., sugar snaps are delicious! Good job on your first try.


    Robin, Thanks! I did go plant something. I planted 3 Cherokee Purples, six okra plants and 3 jalapeno pepper plants!


    kitsapFG, it is a good feeling to have such good food stockpiled in my food storage area.


    The Sage Butterfly, Thanks! They're delicious when they are ripe.


    Lou Murray's Green World, the grapes are supposed to start really producing in their fourth year. That's what mine are in. One died from overwatering, and that's hard to take because I've been caring for it for the first three years, and now I get nothing from it.


    Annanas, I'm sure we will enjoy the grapes!


    Daphne, Yes, that is a lot of green beans, but my whole family gets to eat them, kids, in'laws and all of them. When you make something(with green beans)to take to a big family dinner, you use three or four quarts at a time, so they actually go rather fast. This year will be different as I have already pressure-canned 53 quarts of green beans!


    Prairie Cat, when I run out of space, I'll build more shelves! Only one vine is completely dead. We'll probably eat them fresh after I weigh them!

    Thanks for visiting and sharing a comment with me.

    Have a great gardening day!
    Veggie PAK

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  11. My husband was just saying the other day that he wants us to grow so many green beans that he wouldn't know what to do with all the harvest. I'll have to show him your blog, I'm afraid he may want to be adopted into your family!

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  12. thyme2garden, tell him to grow Fortex green beans. I get my seeds from Johnny's Selected Seeds in Maine. The beans are absolutely stringless! When I get to the point that I have enough snap beans to can or eat, get ready soup kitchens, here come the green beans!

    Thanks for visiting and sharing a comment with me.
    Veggie PAK
    (the nickname really fits this year, 'cause I'm sure packing the beans into the jars! I have 53 quarts so far this year.)

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  13. Late to the dance, but I just wanted to chime in with an impressed "wow!"

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  14. foodgardenkitchen, Thanks! I appreciate your encouraging comment!

    Come back soon!
    Veggie PAK

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