Chapter 19 - Abundant Epazote

Epazote grows really well in San Francisco, even when you don't water it and don't pick it and basically stop caring about it. The problem is that I don't really know what to do with it.



I didn't even want to plant epazote - I think Colleen and Maria made me - but I guess it's nice to have since it makes me feel like I accomplished something special. It's the tall plant that's in the picture above. It is about 2 feet tall. Maybe more. Over the past few weeks, some of the leaves have started to turn a bit darker - it looks like they are browning in the sun.

Apparently I can put epazote in stews or beans. But I can't really imagine using more than a few leaves a week, and maybe not even that. I have about 200 leaves. So if you know any good things to do with epazote, let me know. And if you want any, come get it!

Chapter 18 - Struggling Tomatoes

Do tomato plants that struggle produce sweeter tomatoes? That is yet to be seen....but I sure hope so!

The tomato plants have had an interesting summer so far - the wind seems to be really tough on them, and I can't really think of anything I can do (other than build a really tall wind barrier, or bring them inside - neither of which is really an option). However, despite the harsh conditions, they seem to be surviving.

Back in early June, the leaves started drying out and turning yellow, so I went to the garden store to ask if there was anything I could buy to help them out. The knowledgeable salesperson at the store told me that she actually didn't think so - she told me that as long as they got enough water, and as long as they flowered, then I was okay.

So hopefully things are going okay. The cherry tomato plant flowered quite a bit, and now the plant is full of small cherry tomatoes. They're still green, but there are quite a few of them - probably about 20 in all. Meanwhile, the other tomato plant (named Maria I think? It's hard to remember) only has one tomato - it had some other flowers, but none of them could make the transition to fruit. So it may only produce one small tomato in the end - but I'm hoping it's really really tasty.

Here's a picture of the tomato plants in early July - notice Cigarette (the marigold) in the corner. Cigarette is doing just fine.



The lone tomato is in the foreground, and the smaller cherry tomatoes are the plant behind it.

Chapter 17 - Kale Harvest

After my first salad, there were several other successful lettuce harvests, and then in early June, one excellent kale harvest. While I was away for the weekend in mid-May, the kale grew a ton, so by early June it was ready to eat. Many of the leaves were purple, and we harvested all of these and some of the smaller green leaves as well. Maria was there for the harvest, which of course resulted in a wonderful batch of crispy kale.

My kale was incredibly sweet - it almost tasted like red cabbage once it was cooked, since many leaves were so red. I seasoned it with salt and olive oil (and I think that's it).

It was a very happy day in the garden, and here are some pictures that document it.









I realize that this took place in early June, and now it's early July....I will do my best to catch up with this blog soon, and then keep it up to date, since there are always changes happening in the garden. Sadly, some of the changes that have happened since my kale harvest are for the worst, but I will still be documenting everything here. Have no fear though....the garden will survive!