Fresh Fruits and Vegetables - UBC day 4, 2021

Gone are the summer days of mom and dad's garden. Dad would plow the "back forty" as we always called it with his tractor. He would get on his hands and knees and deal with the weeds and begin preparing the soil for the harvest to come. 

He planted corn, squash, zucchini, green beans, beets, carrots, black-eyed peas, okra, radishes, eggplant, tomatoes, greens, lettuce, watermelons, cantaloupe, potatoes, cucumbers, peppers of sorts, and a few others. There was always an abundance of fresh vegetables from the garden that were picked, cleaned, canned, or frozen. The harvest of mom and dad's bounty lasted for months on end all the way up to the next summer. Then the process would begin again...

courtesy of Pixaby

I remember mom trying to teach me how to can, but I was a teenager then and did not care to learn. Yes, I spent my fair share of time picking, plucking, and snapping fresh vegetables. Depending on it was for the day...when the green beans were ready for picking, mom and dad would take 5-gallon buckets out to the garden with them and pick them away. 

Later in the evening, we all would sit in the living room with the news or whatever else playing, each with their own bowl and batch of beans. Snap, pop, break, separate. Each one of us...snap, pop, break and separate until we finished preparing all those beans for the next steps. Either being canned or blanched then put into gallon-sized freezer bags and frozen. 

Courtesy of Pixaby

I didn't like working out in the garden much, especially with the occasional snakes, bees, and other insects. I did however though, enjoy eating the fresh veggies year-round! How many of you have childhood memories of working in the garden, canning, or anything else pertaining to the upkeep of the garden? 

Dad planted so many vegetables, that we had different people coming to pick their fair share too. In addition to the garden out back, we also had Peach, Apricot, and Apple trees. I loved picking the apricots and washing them up and popping them into my mouth. I think we had a cherry tree too, but not 100% on that. That's been too long ago...

Mom didn't put the fruit up like she did the garden vegetables, but from time to time, she would make Peach turnovers. I especially liked the Apricot ones better. What I would give to have a fruit tree in my yard today.  We have two pecan trees, and the squirrels enjoy them year-round. We also have an Oak tree. 

I remember last year after I got out of the hospital from a 3 1/2 week stay, I told my husband we needed to have a garden. That was before COVID hit...little did I know, so many people would revert to growing a garden. I guess there was something to that statement, but we didn't follow through with it. 

I had an Herb garden last summer and I plan on having another one this year. My husband is going to make me a garden box. It will be W x 4L x 30T. It will look something like this. They sell kits like these at Lowes, Amazon, and other retail stores. 

 

A few months back when I was posting random questions and statements on my Facebook wall that I have mentioned in my three previous posts in the Ultimate Blog Challenge for Feb 2021 - I posted a statement and a question that went like this: 

"I loved eating fresh fruit and vegetables from mom and dad's garden. We had fresh veggies year-round - either canned or frozen. How many of you know how to garden? What is your favorite thing to plant? 

As with my other random statements and questions, I received a great deal of conversation engagement. It was fun reading other's comments and having dialog around memories and questions. I even learned a few things here and there. I think others did as well. 

 One of my friends said, "We just became homeowners, I can't wait to start gardening. I will definitely be planting some cucumbers, tomatoes, and peppers". At the end of their comment, I asked if they would be a regular garden or raised beds. They indicated, 'raised beds'. 

 What do you prefer? A traditional garden or raised beds? Do you know the difference? In my mind, both are hard work to maintain and one must tend to 'the garden' daily for it to be a success. 

As I thought about the conversation of a traditional garden versus a raised bed, I began researching the pros and cons. I'll start with Raised Beds. 

PROS OF RAISED BEDS 

* they are more ergonomic - I can make a raised bed where I don't have to bend over or get on my hands and knees to maintain them. That is a HUGE plus in my book, especially with my health issues. 

*better soil quality control - nutrients and organic matter will stay in the raised bed soil. 

*they are easy on the eyes - if the raised beds are built properly or from a kit and / or even concrete blocks such as cinder blocks - they look good. 

*raised beds have fewer weeds - NICE!!! I don't know about you, but I can't stand pulling weeds. 

*raised beds have better drainage - this will, however, depend on the soil you use in your raised beds.

*longer gardening periods - raised beds will heat up faster than in-ground gardens. This will allow for longer periods of gardening time. Got your seeds ready? 

 Like with the PROS - there are CONS of Raised Beds. Here are a few that I learned. 

*raised beds have a higher cost upfront to get them started. 

*need to have handyman skills to build raised beds.

*they have a limited life span which will equate to more money. 

Now that I have given you some PROS and CONS of Raised Beds, do you still want them? 

When we were discussing have a traditional garden, we quickly learned that we don't have the proper soil in our yard. It is mainly sand...

Like the Raised Beds, there are also Pros and Cons of traditional gardens. 

Some of the PROS for a traditional garden are: 

*easier to prepare - no frames needed. Just till your rows, plant your seeds, water, and wait. 

*easier to irrigate. 

*traditional gardens are cheaper to set up.

Like PROS, there are CONS of a traditional garden - 

*more weeds. Yes, how I remember pulling those weeds! I did NOT like it...yea, I used the hoe, too!!! Talk about blisters...

*pest and insect control are more likely. My mom and dad's garden had pests and other insects in it! YUCK!!! 

Now that you have seen some of the PROS and CONS of both types of gardens, which one are you going to go with? I can't wait for my husband to begin building our raised beds. 

Some of the items my friends indicated they would plant were, tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, and basil. I even had someone say, they have their raised gardens made in an 'old, galvanized water tank'. They mainly grew tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, and peppers. 

My son in law commented, "I loved my grandpa's garden. Fresh vegetables every year. I would like to grow a few things at the new house". I'm afraid though if he and my daughter tried to have a garden (which I don't see my daughter doing at all) - their dog, Kaiah - which I call Ms. Mischievous, would eat the garden up!

This is Kaiah...she is a hoot! I could see her eating the vegetables in the garden. (Laughing out loud). 

I had many friends say they know how to garden and can. I even had one friend say their dad planted the garden yearly and it was enough to feed the entire town. Now that's a HUGE garden...!! 

Whether your garden is big or small, traditional, or raised...fresh vegetables are the BEST! I'm going to leave you with this poem from "Tommy Thumb's Pretty Song Book" (1744).  

                                                 Mary, Mary, quite contrary  

How does your garden grow? 

With Silver Bells,  and Cockle Shells

and so my garden grows

Heart to Heart Soul Creations

H2hsc2020

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