Here a Radish, There a Radish, Everywhere a Radish

We've been enjoying the radishes for a couple of days now. They started becoming a pretty decent size at around 26 days and now at 29 days are really crisp and juicy. We also started putting some of the arugula in our dinner salads. It really adds some punch to the store bought lettuce we've been eating.

Some of the arugula and the other lettuce seeds didn't sprout, so I bought some Burpee iceburg and bibb lettuce seeds from the hardware store and planted those in the bare spots in the south plot. I hope it's not too late in the season. It will be pretty hot when they mature.

The peppers and basil in the north plot were a complete bust. None of the seeds sprouted, so last week we bought some young pepper and basil plants, along with 3 types of tomatoes at the local nursery and put them in the north plot. Hope they do better than the seeds.

South Plot at 24 Days

First Radish of the Season

Radishes and Green Beans Are Up

I was amazed when the radishes sprouted after just 4 days. 3 days later the green beans came up. Now, after 10 days, we also have some peas, corn, arugula, and carrots starting to poke their way out of the ground. Nothing from the other lettuces, peppers, or basil yet. I'm very pleased with what's happened so far. We've had lots of sun the past ten days, so I'm sure that has helped. I've been watering both plots every day except for the 2 days that it rained.

South plot at 10 days

Radishes at 10 days

Green beans at 10 days

The Garden Begins

Last weekend I started my vegetable garden. This year I've planted all of my favorite vegetables, all from Burpee brand seeds bought at my local hardware store:

1. Sweet Corn (Silver Queen)
2. Green Beans (Kentucky Wonder)
3. Peas (Sugar Daddy)
4. Radishes (Cherry Belle)
5. Carrots (Danvers 126)
6. Lettuce (Green Ice, Simpson Elite, and Arugula)
7. Mild Peppers (various colors)
8. Sweet Basil

Everything was sown directly in the ground, even the peppers which were recommended on the package to start inside. I'm keeping my fingers crossed hoping everything will germinate.

Here at Oaklawn Gardens I have 2 plots; the larger South plot, which has the first 6 items from the above list, and the smaller North plot, which has the remaining 2 items. I'm hoping to add some tomatoes to the North plot as soon as Joanne and I figure out what kind we want. I mixed in plenty of last year's compost into the soil in both plots a week before planting. Here's a picture of the plots just after planting:

South Plot

North Plot