Thursday, August 30, 2012

Cactus Fruit Agave Ale and Mixed Veggies

We're bottling our very experimental brew this evening.  The stuff floating on top is the cubed cactus fruit.  It was bright pinkish red when it first went in, then the beer turned red, then it turned black, and now it's a medium brown.  I've read mixed reviews of prickly pear beers so it will be a surprise tonight when we sneak a taste.  It will carbonate in the bottles and be ready for drinking in a couple weeks.

I removed one of the kale plants this morning to free up some space in the plot.  I also pulled and thinned the carrots and moved a hot pepper into a sunnier spot.  Between the fig tree behind my plot and the massive sunflowers in my plot, I'm battling shade and trying to maximize my season.  Two of the three cherry tomato plants are next on the list to go.  They haven't been super productive and I'm trying to make room for late season crops.  The broccoli plants are finally bulking up and turning purple (they are Purple Sprouting Broccoli, after all) so they could use more room.  I might have to say goodbye to one of the sunflower trees. 

This morning I sowed beet, lettuce, and bean seeds to see if I can get some in before winter.  Last year we had an extended mild fall.  If we get the same thing this year, I should be able to get a few salads out of the planting.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Slow Harvest


Onions, kale, tomatoes, beans, cherry bomb, and a carrot. I pulled out the beets today and composted them. I also moved several huge marigolds to a public bed to free up some room. If the sunflowers weren't in their glory right now they'd be removed too but the bees seem to love them. And they add color and a little verticality to the plot. I'm slowly taming the jungle.