Front-yard veggie garden — a short introduction to this piece.
Front-yard veggie garden: Quick Notes
Hi GPODers!
Barbara Owen in Wellesley, Massachusetts, has shared her flowers with the blog multiple times (check out some of those submissions here: Beginning of Spring in Massachusetts, Barbara’s Massachusetts Garden Through the Seasons, Surprises and Lessons from Barbara’s Garden and Color Themes in Barbara’s Garden), but today she is switching it up to answer my call for gorgeous kitchen gardens! While her ornamental beds are always exciting, she is showcasing another side of growing that we haven’t seen from her yet—and it should be no surprise that her veggie selections are just as enticing as all of her other beds.
A while ago you requested photos from those of us who include food in our gardens. I’ve submitted photos of my flower gardens before. This time, here are a few from the vegetable garden. I’ve had a vegetable garden since we moved here in 1968. It’s been in this location, the front yard next to the sidewalk, for 23 years.
‘Detroit Dark Red’ beet is an heirloom crop that remains one of the most popular varieties to grow for its tender flesh and sweet taste. Their vibrant greens also make them an ornamental addition to a vegetable garden.
A beautiful relative to the bright red beet above, chard comes in a variety of colors, but a brilliant green is just as enticing.
These ‘Early Girl’ tomatoes are still green but will ripen before most other tomatoes in the garden. This extra-large variety is great for stacking on a sandwich or simply slicing up on a plate.
Of course, there is much more to be admired in a kitchen garden then just the fruit. The flowers that precede your crop can be just as exciting and don’t get nearly enough attention for their understated beauty. This is one of Barbara’s small but mighty cucumber blossoms.
Cucumber tendrils always have a mind of their own, twisting and curling around whatever is nearby and creating wonderful swirls and spirals in the process.
Another big bloom that holds the potential of a delicious crop to follow: This one is a much larger yellow zucchini squash blossom, with another squash starting to mature alongside it.
Fall is here, and that means squash season! ‘Waltham’ butternut squash is one of the most well-liked winter squashes. It’s easy to see why—that bright orange flesh is delicious in a wide variety of recipes.
That is one hardy harvest! Lots of butternut and white acorn squashes along with one huge cucumber.
Of course, Barbara had to treat us to one fantastic flower. A couple of bumblebees are also here to enjoy this lovely bright red dahlia.
Thank you so much for sharing your incredible vegetable garden with us, Barbara! It’s clear that your green thumb extends far beyond the flowers that flourish in your garden.
Ornamental landscapes are the most frequently featured gardens on Garden Photo of the Day, but I want to remind everyone that all kinds of plants are welcome on the blog. From raised beds full of veggies to collections of exotic indoor plants and everything in between, we would love the opportunity to feature the plants that you love. Follow the directions below to submit photos via email, or send me a DM on Instagram: @agirlherdogandtheroad.
We want to see YOUR garden!
Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!
To submit, send 5–10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.
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