Monday, November 5, 2007

A November Harvest

It's November and I'm amazed by what bounty I still reap from my kitchen garden. Today I harvested the last pumpkins. They are not very big but that's okay, you can bake a decent pumpkin pie with 2 or 3 smaller pumpkins too. Before I use my pumpkins in the kitchen I like to distribute them all over my house and enjoy their beauty. Nothing says Autumn so much as pumpkins do. These 3 are now in my hallway where it's cooler and they will keep well there. In the background you see a cat ABC embroidered by me, fun isn't it? It took me about a year to finish it.
I also harvested another red cabbage today and in my Victorian greenhouse I found more things to harvest such as the very last tomatoes. For weeks I've been thinking: right that's it, those are the last tomatoes of this year but no, the next time I go looking for something to harvest I find more tomatoes. Great isn't it?
And my greenhouse had more to offer, there is still loads of basil (more pesto to make) and parsley too. The sweet black peppers are still going strong too, even though the leaves have been mostly eaten by some beastie or other. I picked one black pepper today and left the rest to grow a bit bigger.
Outside in the kitchen garden there's still more to be found like salad rocket (rucola) that I'd sown a few weeks earlier.
There was even a handful of strawberries to pick. They were not quite ripe yet so I'll put them in the conservatory to ripen further.
Last month I'd sown some radishes too and they are doing great as well. I think I'll put a cold frame over them so they get some more warmth and grow a bit quicker. I do so love to munch on organically grown radishes from my own garden, don't you?
The leeks are doing great too, I've harvested a few today and will leave the rest for next time.
My winter spinach is coming along nicely. I love to eat salads made with spinach leaves, especially this time of year where there are so very little fresh salad leaves about.
Here's the Winter Purslane (winterpostelein) that I've sown a few weeks ago and sprouting amongst it are some nasturtiums. The nasturtium leaves and flowers are great in salads too, the leaves taste a bit peppery. Waste not, want not. ;-)

Yesterday we put most of the tender plants inside the conservatory for overwintering them safely. I have a lemon, a lime, a kumquat and an orange tree. Here's a pic of the orange tree and as you can see the mini oranges are almost ready for harvest too. The thing I love about citrus fruit trees is that you can have fruits and flowers at the same time. The scent of the flowers is wonderful, that's why I always overwinter them in my conservatory. It's such a joy to enter the conservatory and be assaulted with this overwhelmingly blissful scent.
The limes are ready for picking too. Here's a big one and if you look closely you'll see a baby lime underneath it.
Another plant that was moved to the conservatory yesterday is the lemon verbena. I love this plant. I use the leaves to give my tea a lovely lemon-y flavour. Just put the tealeaves or teabag in your teapot, add a few lemon verbena leaves, pour the boiling hot water over it and let it brew for a few minutes and then pour the tea. The leaves of the lemon verbena are also great for stuffing fish with that you cook either in the oven or on the BBQ.
On Bliss a harvest would not be complete with a flower harvest of some kind. Here's what I think will be the last big bouquet from my garden. My house is now a feast for the nose as well as the eyes, as the roses are scenting the air in the living room while next door the citrus flowers are doing the same in the conservatory. Such Bliss!

copyright Y.E.W. Heuzen

As a perfume doth remain
In the folds where it hath lain,
So the thought of you, remaining
Deeply folded in my brain,
Will not leave me: all things leave me:
You remain.
Arthur Symons, 1865-1945, 'Memory'

39 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yammie, yammie...juist nu is het nog zo prettig om iets uit eigen tuin te eten..:-)
Helaas heeft de citroenverbena hier vorige winter het loodje gelegd, (had hem afgedekt in de volle grond gelaten ...was voorgaande winters goed gegaan)de gedroogde blaadjes hiervan hebben nog steeds die heerlijke geur :-)
Mooie rode kool foto.. en je katten ABC is ook prachtig!!!

Lisa at Greenbow said...

Wonderful closing of summer. I haven't the light to grow oranges or limes but I have been in places that have them. Your post brought that scent wafting back to me. A wonderful memory.

Anonymous said...

OHHHH....wat ziet dat er lekker en mooi uit allemaal . Geweldig nog zo'n rijke oogst in november , je vorige log was ook vreselijk leuk zeg met al de poezenbeesten overal , was weer genieten bij je met volle teugen hoor ;))

Tira said...

Its great how with a bit of planning and foresight you can be just like us in the tropics-enjoy a year round harvest. Oh what joy it must be to grow almost all your food! I also love, love, lemon verbena, a sweet, happy scent. In a restaurant in Geneva a couple years ago I had lemon verbena ice cream-heaven.

Connie said...

How nice to have those last few fruits and veggies to savor. What zone are you in there....have you had a frost yet?

Anonymous said...

That's amazing how much you still can harvest! Interesting with black pepper. Does it taste as good as it looks? :) The flowers in the vase also look nice. Have you really embroidered that cat ABC!? Fantastic!!

Unknown said...

This is amazing bounty, Yolanda Elizabet! Until a week or two ago, before the frosts began, there WERE still local Nova Scotian strawberries for sale at a couple of farmers markets (the everbearing or day neutral types)...but I don't know of anyone else who has strawberries now. And it's wonderful to see how many blooms you still have. After the weekend's storm, we have a few flowers hanging on, but not enough to make a bouquet, I don't think. Bloom day could be rather sparse this month...

healingmagichands said...

I have no strawberries. The box turtles ate them all. But I still have raspberries on my ever bearing raspberry plants, which really amazes me.

I have lots of lettuces, spinach, mizuna, arugula, beets and other greens in my cold frames. We are supposed to have a killing frost tonight, so the cold frames are closed up safe. No more raspberries after tonight, I guess.

Libbys Blog said...

Lots been going on here, harvests, nuts, baskets and birthdays, always a pleasure to visit.

Anonymous said...

Lucky you! Such a great harvest at this time of the year. You really have the "green thumb", as we say here! Is your greenhouse heatable for overwintering the lemon-, orangetrees and all the other delicate plants?

Anonymous said...

OT vogelhuisje met info komt op blog ;-))

Anonymous said...

Mmmm postelein, dat zou ik graag nog eens eten.
Misschien in de nieuwe tuin eens een plekje vrijhouden en zelf kweken!
Je spinazie zal ook veel beter smaken dan de diepvriestroep die ze spinazie durven te noemen.

groeten, Marian

Garden Cats + Crafts said...

Liebe Yolanda, hier ist es nun wohl endgültig vorbei mit dem goldenen Herbst. Das ist ja toll, was Du alles aus Deinem Garten erntest. Wo wächst das bloß alles bei Dir. So schönes Gemüse. Leider bin ich keine Gemüse- oder Obstgärtnerin. Ich vergesse einfach das Ernten. Darum habe ich es vor ein paar Jahren aufgegeben. Trotzdem bewundere ich es bei anderen, wie bei Dir.
Liebe Grüße, Birgit

Hannele på Hisingen said...

Very nice, strawberries too!

Brimstone said...

Je hebt heerlijke dingen geoogst maar ook nog uit staan.
Ik krijg trek van je blog, zo laat op de avond:-)

Knap stukje borduurwerk!

kate said...

It is wonderful to see all that you continue to harvest. The limes are beautiful as are the leeks. And the bouquet of flowers is gorgeous.

Your 'ABC' embroidery is stunning - much work went into it! I wish I could do embroidery like this!

kate said...

Oops ... I also meant to say that I have pictures of the fish on my blog, but I got side-tracked with those flowers!

Rusty in Miami said...

Great bounty, and so late in the season. Your garden is like the energizer bunny it keeps on going, I am jealous.

Kylee Baumle said...

You've always got something good going on there - I love it! :-)

Sorry, but I don't like radishes. I don't like many fresh veggies. Just cucumbers and spinach, mainly. I like most of my vegetables cooked, although not overcooked.

I tried a fall crop of spinach last year, but I think I started it too late because we only got one cutting from it before the weather got too cold and it just didn't grow well after that. And this year I just forgot! :-(

They said we had snow here today, but I didn't see it. That's okay. I'm sure I'll see way more than enough of it in the coming months.

I love your counted cross-stitch alphabet! I used to do that all the time. I even did a quilt for Kara when she was two years old for her "big bed." I'd kind of like to do another piece after all these years. Maybe a good winter project!

Lis vom Lindenhof said...

Ausser verschiedene Salate kann ich leider gar nichts mehr ernten, allerdings ist mein Küchengarten auch lange nicht so groß wie deiner. Ich habe aber auch nicht vor ihn zu vergrößern, da müsste ich ja einen Teil meiner Blumenbeete abgeben und das mache ich auf keinen Fall!
It's rainy.

Cindy Garber Iverson said...

So many fun things going on in your garden and conservatory, Yolanda! I love eating spinach leaves in salad too. Your post reminded me that I need to plant some in my winter garden. Also, have you ever tried lemon verbena on pan-fried chicken? It's great! And did you know that kitties LOVE lemon verbena. Mine go crazy for it! I wrote a post about last summer because it was such a fun discovery. Cindy at Rosehaven Cottage

A wildlife gardener said...

What a happy half-hour I've spent catching up on the posts I've missed in Ocotber, Yolanda Elizabet!

The embroidery is really beautiful, well worth a year's effort :)

Your veggies and salad crops are sooo scrumptious...and colourful too.

I enjoyed the story of Dolly and all the lovely pics of her and her kitty friends.

I have many baskets too, so something else we share :)

I just love your roses! I bet your garden is fragrant throughout the summer months..and your home too, for that matter :)

Robin's Nesting Place said...

How wonderful that you still have enough blooms in November for a beautiful bouquet.

Just in case all of your lemons become ripe at once, I wanted to tell you what I do with mine. I never seem to use all of the lemons I buy before they go bad, so I started squeezing the juice into ice cube trays and freezing them for my lemon water. A few fresh or frozen strawberries, a cube of lemon juice and a bit of Stevia or Splenda in a tall glass of water makes a very refreshing drink.

Mary said...

Hi there, I found you through Naturegirl. I enjoyed reading about your garden and especially your conservatory -- it sounds like a divine place to be when winter begins. Love your kitties -- so cute!
Mary

Naturegirl said...

Your garden certainly is alive with all these veggies harvested..Mine is gone to sleep however I must still plant some bulbs! I am waiting for some warmer temps as it has been low single digits all week!
Have a great week and I am happy to see that you entered my...
(((((GIVEAWAY))))) we cat lovers need the ~Old Bags~ LOL hugs aNNa

Annie in Austin said...

The combination of a gifted gardener and a temperate climate has produced quite an amazing harvest for November, Yolanda Elizabet! Those black peppers look beautiful.

We had a couple of ripe Meyer's lemons today and have lots of ways to use them, but what do you do with kumquats - preserves?

Annie at the Transplantable Rose

OldRoses said...

I commend you on completing your needlework project. I can believe that it took you a year to do. I have a similar one, but was never able to finish it. Maybe now you have inspired me to take it out again and work on it!

stadtgarten said...

I am always so impressed by your kitchen garden. There is nothing better than having your own home-grown fruit and vegetables.
I only have herbs in the garden, unfortunately I don't have enough time in summer for more. ButI am looking forward to have my own vegatables when I am retired or have another job!
Hav a nice weekend, groetjes, Monika

Poppins said...

It must be great to still be able to harvest from your garden. And your bouqet of flowers are beautiful! I also like your embroided alphabet - but what a job!

Anonymous said...

Mmmmmmmm.....ziet er lekker uit allemaal. Mooie oogst nog en die laatste bos bloemen uit je tuin ....héél mooi.
Vind je katten ABC ook heel mooi maar wat een werk, niks voor mij.
Fijn weekend.

Janice said...

What a beautiful harvest you continue to have! I love the cat stitchery! You did a beautiful job!

Andrea's Garden said...

Yolanda, you are still harvesting. That's the nice thing about a well planned kitchen garden. I remember this well from the time my grandmother was still alive and supplied the whole family. Take care! Andrea

Gardenmomma Chris said...

Isn't it wonderful to feed your family things that you have grown and you know that quality and the lack of chemicals? I love the idea, those, I've grown few veggies. I'm a flower girl..There's always next year. Have a great week! Chris

Anonymous said...

When I read this post I get greenhouse envy.

I love the color of those peppers.

Anonymous said...

YE: You are very busy! Love all those new little seedlings. They hold such promise! Kitties in the baskets are cute also!

Betty said...

Yolanda,
So many good things to eat....you are quite the producer......imagine what you could grow on several acres.....

I always enjoy visiting with you...Betty

Anita said...

Wow, what an amazing rich harvest at this time of the year, Yolanda! And what a wonderful bouquet of flowers!

I already miss my garden very much now that the summer is over. When I get home from work, it's already dark during the day...

By the way, I received the bare rooted roses that I ordered at the end of october! I can't wait to see them in bloom next year!

Have a great day and enjoy your garden!

Groetjes,
Anita

Anonymous said...

Hi Yolanda,

You've got a very nice harvest for november! And so coulorful too.
Well done. I wonder what december will bring. Thank you for sharing your harvest results.

Good luck.

Bert

bath mate said...

nice pictures

Bathmate