Look what I picked from my garden today.

These are the very first runner beans, picked on 10th August 2012.   They are about six inches long. Eight inches is the best size for eating since if you pick them before that they get too long, they won’t be stringy.  We had such a lot of rain in the early part of the year and through the summer, that the beans are at sixes and sevens.  They are really a crop for the late summer. During the one week of really good sunshine we had, lots of flowers appeared and therefore lots of beans are coming.  We will probably have a glut fairly soon.

The Sweet Peas were slow to get going too but now they are coming daily. Such pretty flowers.

Sunday is gardening day – Rhubarb and Potatoes harvested.

With all the rain we’ve had this Spring and Summer, the rhubarb has been wonderful!  Only problem has been what to do with it all. My favourite is rhubarb crumble and I’ll be posting a recipe for that in the near future. Meanwhile, it’s going to be rhubarb and custard, a perennial favourite.

The potatoes came out of the ground on Sunday this week. These are King Edward’s. Don’t they look fine.  I had a few of them for my dinner on Sunday and they tasted delicious. I wondered if they would be a throw away crop, totally saturated with all the rain, but no, they had grown bigger than usual but they were all ok.

Also in the vegetable garden, there has been an excess of flowers on the runner beans and we have some embryo beans coming along. Look closely at the next picture and you will see what I mean.  When my grandson Dylan gets back from Sandy Bay, with his bucket and spade, he will be delighted that his beans are growing strong. I still haven’t told him about the giant at the top of the stalk!

Let’s have a close look at these gorgeous flowers. No black beetles on there yet!

Happy Gardening folks!