Tuesday, October 23, 2012

How Much Does a Garden Grow: September

Goodness!  October is almost done, and I'm finally getting around to telling you how the garden did in September.

Overall, the drought really got us this year.  While the garden did better than last year, the drought was felt in the size and weight of the crops we brought in.  September's tally shows that, with a total harvest of 22.25 pounds of produce, mostly tomatoes, but also carrots, peppers, greens, and a few leeks.  Everything was small:  the tomatoes were small, the peppers were light, the leeks thus far are light.

Light, and also late.  What you see above is a late September picture of a paprika alma pepper, which is usually in full production by July or August.  This year, I finally started getting some paprika peppers to harvest in September, and they are still going in October (although I'm sure the upcoming freeze will take the plants, even with the cover I have over them).  Leeks are also late; I planted seeds in March, and I finally started to harvest some little ones in late September.

What isn't included in the tally below is the herbs.  I will do a separate accounting for herbs very soon, because they are difficult to account for in a single month.  Also, I will do a breakdown of tomato production by type; the highlight of this month was not just tomatoes every day on salads, but also the 9 pounds of green tomatoes that are ripening in the sunroom.  As I write, we are still eating red garden tomatoes almost every day.

Also a bonus was no expenditure in September, so everything harvested appears as profit.  And, as I try to remind myself, I'm highly unlikely to buy 22 pounds of produce if I have to do so at the grocery in a given month, so this all helps our overall health.

2012 Tally to Date
154.2165 lbs. total harvested
$65.75 value of harvest for September
$427.51 value of harvest for 2012
$196.65 expenditures for 2012
$230.86 profit to date
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