OUR BOUNTIFUL GARDEN - BOB'S LABOR OF LOVE

A month of ups and downs at Guantanamo

May, 2008

 

HERB'S EYE VIEW

    

Guantanamo is the name Bob gave his vegetable garden.  He was inspired to name it Cuba after reading Richard Heinberg's "Fifty Million Farmers" but that name had already been taken by Lyle for his fenced in garden down the road a bit. Because we have so many deer in our area, vegetable gardens must live behind bars and the fence Bob built of tee posts, goat wire and electric wire made our little garden look like a jail.  This line of thinking led Bob to name the vegetable garden at Camelina Guantanamo.

 

A NICE START TO THE MONTH

  

It has been a great Spring for gardening in our area as evidenced by these lush raised beds of chard, spinach and lettuce.  The root crops (carrots, beets and daikon in the deeper bed were looking equally as nice as the salad greens.

 

NEW BEDS

     

Bob spends at least an hour a day tending the garden and is always adding something.  On May 8th, he added a couple of potato beds on the left and two more raised beds for squash, beans and more herbs and greens.

 

OYSTER MUSHROOM CLINIC

   

For this project, Rob and Bob stuffed coffee hulls into burlap bags that Jason donated.  Then they inoculated them with oyster mushroom mycelium.  Rob is shown here admiring the healthy growth of the mycelium he and Bob placed between cardboard two months ago.

 

TAKING TIME TO LOOK AROUND 

   

There are always wonders to be seen in the woods behind Camelina.  Mushrooms abound as do wildflowers like these jack in the pulpits that Rob pointed out. 

 

A HAIL OF A STORM

 

While we were away, a freak hailstorm blew through our neighborhood, taking its toll on many gardens and farms.  Bob took these photos when we got back, more than a week after the storm.  The Eggplant and Tomatoes suffered the worst damage.

   

The chard, spinach and lettuce on the left suffered more damage than the root crops on the right.

And the potatoes were hardly affected at all.  No wonder the Irish loved them!

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