you harvest some, you lose some

We thought we were so clever when we set up the drip irrigation in the veggie patch to keep watering while we were away. When we left, there were clusters of still-green cherry tomatoes practically dripping from the vines, and the silks sprouting from the corn looked promising.

But you might guess what happened next. Either our downstairs neighbors or subletters turned the water off, so instead of coming home to a late September harvest, we came home to scorched tomato plants and corn that couldn't be paddled back to life.

It was a heartbreaker. But not all was lost. Leave it to the sturdy cold-weather carrots and potatoes to pull through.

As soon as I can face the destruction in the rest of the garden, I’m ripping up the veggie graveyard and putting in more winter faves: onion, garlic, cauliflower, parsnips.

And peas, because I’m still a hopeless gardening optimist.  
 

Comments

[KMAL]

How do you know when carrots are ready to be pulled?

[Kelly]

This was my first year growing carrots and I just winged it. I pulled some earlier in the summer to thin them out, and then I pulled another few about a month ago and they were fattening up nicely. Also, I planted a kind called St Valery that said they taste best when they turn from pale to bright orange. So when they were satisfyingly big and bright, I yanked most of them. But I still have a few in the ground to see if they get more or less tasty. I'll report back!