Monsters in the garden

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

Monsters in the garden

When you get over-enthusiastic about something, strange things begin to happen!

A couple of months ago I prepared to plant out vegetables and I gave the soil a real kick along. I used every aid I could lay my hands on to make sure these vegies lacked nothing!

I thought I was planting Zucchinis’ but due to nursery mis-labelling I ended up with Squash plants....both plants looking similar!

I could not believe my eyes when the produce started to ripen, we were getting monster Squashes!

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This gives an idea of just how big these things are and each one that come along appears a bit bigger than the last.

This shot puts in in perspective, the one on the left is a regular size Squash!

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I am preparing another plot the same way I did this one, and I am going to start work on Cinderella's next coach!!   :-))

 

Cheers......Rob

 

 

11 Replies 11
Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

@Robin4  Awesome. I just had the first meals from my garden about a week ago- fresh green beans and kale. The cucumbers are Barbie-sized right now, and the tomato plants are just starting to flower. Chard and beets are doing well. Salad greens got seeded late, so still waiting on those.

I'm jealous of your squash. Every year I try to grow some, but they always get grey powdery mildew. I'm going to try to keep up with the copper spray this year to see if I can beat it. And if that doesn't work, I'll try milk- a friend had great success with a 10/1 water/milk spray.

My very favorite squash is yellow crookneck- you never see it for sale in stores, maybe it doesn't ship well. 

Have you ever grown swan gourds? They are so cool.

Eating food that you've grown yourself and that was alive and growing just 15 minutes before you eat it has to be one of my favorite things in life.

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Sarah977

The heat here is giving everything a terrible hiding. I have set up a misting system to cover most of the garden which works well when there is little or no wind but is not very effective in blowy conditions.

Here is tonights crop of Roma Tomatoes.......

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There are not many vegetables that we have to buy at this time of year, but I don't enjoy the vegies as much as I do the flowers......nobody ever looks at a tomato bush and say...."Wow, how beautiful does that look, and smell that aroma"!! Vegies are a neseccary evil when you have a garden!

 

The heat is making it hard here though Sarah! Thursdays forecast has been just revised up to 46c which is very close to the record. The all time record temperature here since records have been kept back in the 1840's is 46.3c (115.4f)  in 1937. There is every chance we may break that this coming Thursday.

Thank God I was an air conditioning contractor and we produce our own power. The meter would just about spin itself off the wall if I had to get our power off the grid!

 

Cheers......Rob

Ben551
Level 10
Wellington, New Zealand

@Robin4  Do want. Can has?  Growing vegetables is one of the simple pleasures in life.  I think it's great.  I wish I had more time to do it though... maybe when I'm retired 🙂

Andrea9
Level 10
Amsterdam, Netherlands

@Robin4 'If you build it, they will come!' 

Had to laugh - looks like you're branching out with a brand new enterprise ;D

--Squash It Big With Rob--

Reminds me of family members and relatives in the past with gardens and their end summer crops of arm- sized and seed-weaponized zucchinis that found their way into guest presents, baking recipes (a favorite the everpresent zucchini bread...), sauces and other cookery delicacies. The likes of which were amply accompanied by tomato products in similar ways.

Now that I've been living in cities for the past decades I've found myself wishing I had those kind of gardeners close to home. 

 

Enjoy the growth magic!!

 

Cheers,

Andrea

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Andrea9

You Andrea singlehandedly inspired me to get back into my mozaics. Seeing your jewelery made me realise, a skill is not to be left to waste, your work is unbelievable. When you posted those shots a couple of years ago I realised taking time out of your day to ride a bike may make you live just a bit longer, but putting your time into something creative makes you a happier more contented person. And isn't that the object of life?

You can take a big bow girl! 

 

Cheers......Rob

Andrea9
Level 10
Amsterdam, Netherlands

Yep, is is @Robin4, and I take a big bow to all you do too!

 

A

Lizzie
Former Community Manager
Former Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

These are wonderful @Robin4. Are there any vegetable shows in your area? I've always thought it would be quite fun to grow a giant pumpkin or squash or carrot...you name it! hehe

 

Are you going to make a culinary masterpiece out of your crop? 

 

(My mini-vegetable patch isn't looking great at the moment, it's a little cold). 😞


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Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Lizzie

I might try one as a matter of interest but I think it is probably going to taste a bit old and woody.

 

The frustrating thing is Lizzie, I thought I was planting Zucchini's (the plants look the same) ....that's what they were labelled as and I felt dudded when the flowers came to nothing. Mind you Zucchini's do the same thing, if you don't pick them when they are at the size you want they just keep on growing until you need a block and tackle and a wheelbarrow to move them!!

 

Lizzie, I know the colder months are not great for gardening in the UK but, during the colder months here we grow our vegies in a 2m2 plastic greenhouse and put an old Gilseal heat lamp in there for a couple of hours a day with a misting system.

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If you use it properly and not focus it directly on the plants over exposing them to UV, but just use it as a general heat source they do really well with it

Of course its no good for Pumpkins and those plants that spread out but we get Iceberg and Coz lettuces, carrots, cherry tomatoes, brocolli all through the winter, and it's great for getting our spring garden plantings going!

Ours is dismantled for summer just now but this is the model and what it looks like. They are cheap, I think they could be purchased in the UK for about 60 pounds for one this size.  

 

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If you love gardening Lizzie, it could be a winter solution for you.

 

Cheers......Rob

@Robin4 What do you mean old and woody? Those are patty pan squash- they're delicious. 

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Sarah977 My first experience with Squash, not something I have ever had a desire to cultivate and ended up with them by accident. I had never seen them this size before!

Maybe I will stop chucking them in the compost and try a couple!

Thanks for the tip!

 

Cheers.....Rob

Alexandra316
Level 10
Lincoln, Canada

@Robin4 Nice! My garden is covered by a foot of wet snow right now, and you're making me a bit jealous.