July Garden Update 2020

Advertisements

July has been very busy for the garden. I harvested radishes the end of June, and July I just pulled my onions. I started the month with several tomatoes set, but before long, there was a period of no setting fruit, and they stopped growing entirely. My cucumbers however had a great start of the month. I got lots of big and beautiful, as well as gourd-like and misshapen cucumbers. I was able to can pickles, and just last week I was able to make a gallon of fridge dill pickles that last up to a year! By the end of the month, I had gotten a tomato from each plant, and had begun finding green beans. The carrots were almost ready to harvest, and the seedpods on the radishes had begun to turn red. The last thing that happened this month, was the loss of a tomato plant. I planted 2 big beef, and 3 better boy, and one of my big beef plants must have been hit with fusarium, a fungus. I treated the roots with a mixture of peroxide and water, I heard it sizzling, showing it was a fungus, but the plant got hit hard and fast, so it couldn’t recover, and I had to pull it.

My second bed also went crazy this month. It grew so fast, that I had quite the mess there. Besides that, My marigolds had begun growing, and one day, there was a big hole in the bed, and the netting had several holes. I found, several weeks later, that it was in fact a bunny who found my raised bed, and had 4 little bunnies under my marigold. We also decided at that point, we’ll splurge next year and buy chicken wire for the beds next year. better safe than sorry. Despite that, only a few onions got toppled, and nothing was eaten, just a couple frightened bunnies when I’d come for my daily cucumber haul.

July 6

July 12-13

July 17

August 1

Cucumber Sandwiches

Advertisements

I’m still drowning in cucumbers, and as a result, I figured some sandwiches with some cucumbers in Italian dressing would be a nice treat. The dressing for these sandwiches is rich and full of flavors. The thick cream cheese brings a smoothness to the dish. The dill is subtle, but so delicious with the cream cheese. The ranch dressing brings most of the flavors, with garlic and onion bringing a savory flavor to the dressing. All that complimented by the fresh and crisp cucumber. You can pick from a variety of breads, but we went with the standard white bread today. Try this at home sometime soon and you won’t regret it!

What You Will Need
  • 4 Oz Cream Cheese
  • 1 tsp Dill
  • 1 Tbsp Ranch Dressing
  • Sliced Cucumbers
  • Bread
  • Bowl & Spoon
Directions
  1. In a bowl, Stir cream cheese, dill, and ranch dressing until combined.
  2. Add dressing to bread, top with cucumbers then bread and enjoy!
Advertisements

Japanese Cucumber Salad

Advertisements

I found this recipe here.

I have been searching tirelessly for new recipes to use all the cucumbers I’ve gotten this year from the garden. Talking to other locals, I have found out everyone is having a good year for cucumbers, so naturally all ingredients to make dill pickles are sold out withing a 20 mile radius. As a result, I’m stepping out of my comfort zone and making new recipes. This recipe had lots of great comments, as you’ll see if you look at the original post. I have had to make alterations to the recipe, such as excluding sesame seeds and substituting in white wine vinegar, since I do not have rice wine vinegar. With the substitute, I had to dilute the mixture a bit. This recipe makes lots of marinade, so cut as many cucumbers as you need to serve or you think you can eat. I probably wouldn’t add more than 3, maybe 4 cups of cucumbers before doubling the marinade.

What You Will Need
  • 2 Medium Cucumbers (4 small homegrown cucumbers)
  • 1/4 cup White wine vinegar
  • 1 Tbsp Water
  • 1 Tbsp Soy sauce
  • 1 tsp Sesame oil
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Covered Mixing Bowl, Cutting board, and Knife
Instructions
  1. Peel you cucumbers, cut in half length wise, cored, then sliced into half-moons. Add to mixing bowl. Add pinch of salt and fresh pepper.
  2. Add remaining ingredients and mix together. Let sit for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Advertisements

Cucumber Salsa

Advertisements

Salsa in a great snack. It’s healthy and goes with so many different types of food. I made this salsa with what I got from the garden and a bit of lemon and spices. This salsa is refreshing and original. The cucumber flavor brings a light and fresh flavor to any dish. You can alter the amount of chili powder to suit your heat preference, the recipe below is for a very mild salsa. The mixture did very very watery, so if you’d like, you could core the cucumbers to get less juice, or you could just decant some of the liquid from the mixture before adding your spices. This went great with tacos and chips, but be creative and try this with something new!

What You Will Need
  • 3 medium cucumbers (small if store bought), diced
  • 2 small vine tomatoes, diced
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 2 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 Tbsp garlic powder
  • 2 tsp onion salt (or 1 tsp normal salt)
  • 2 Tbsp chili powder
  • Blender
  • Storage/Serving bowl
Instructions
  1. Prepare all your veggies. Add to a blender. Add lemon juice and cover.
  2. Using the dice setting, hold for 5 seconds. Scoop mixture into your bowl. Add the remaining ingredients to your taste.
  3. Chill 2-3 hours before serving for better taste, or serve right away.
Advertisements

Cucumber Lemon Ice Cubes

This is a quick way to a refreshing glass of juice in the summer. Simply blend, strain, pour, and freeze. You can also transfer them from the tray into a freezer bag to have lots prepared for your next picnic. The cucumber flavor is perfectly complimented with the lemon and sugar. The salt helps negate some sour, and that helps the cucumber flavor come out on top. It is helpful to serve this drink with a straw, since the cucumber and sugar will settle to the bottom as the frozen cubes melt. You can also omit sugar and salt if you prefer a flavored water experience instead. This is also a great opportunity to use up your extra cucumbers before they go bad!

  1. Wash 3 medium cucumbers. Slice into 1/2 inch slices.
  2. In a blender, add 2 cups of lemon juice, 10 Tbsp sugar, a pinch of salt, and a few cucumber pieces.
  3. Blend on high for 30 seconds, remove lid and add more cucumber pieces.
  4. Repeat step three until all cucumber is blended.
  5. Strain through a fine mesh strainer. Return to a cleaned blender, then pour into an ice cube tray.
  6. Carefully transfer to freezer and freeze for 8-24 hours, till solid.
  7. When serving, add 3 cubes per 16 oz of liquid.

Website Powered by WordPress.com.

Up ↑

Design a site like this with WordPress.com
Get started