Kaizen Organic Garden

Well, it's that time of the year to plant a garden. I love growing our own food and now that we have kids it's that much more important to us. We think it's vital that they know where their food comes from and they are involved in the process from seed to harvest. They have had so much fun this year. We are also strong believers in growing food in a sustainable way that is healthy for the planet and our selves. As a result, our garden is 100% Organic, all the way from the seeds, soil, and fertilizers, and pest control. No synthetic chemicals here. Yay! Anyways, we have put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears (literally) into our garden (the tears were organic by the way) and we couldn't be more pleased with the results. We have 20+ varieties of tomatoes, everything from Sun Gold, Zebra Striped, Cherry, Roma and even Purple Cherokee. The weather is just getting warm enough where they are really starting to take off. There's nothing like picking a vine-ripened tomato and eating it. They are so sweet they are almost like eating candy. We are also growing several types of lettuces. We love salad in this family so this is an essential item for us. We have Red Romaine, Arugula, Salad Bowl, Mesclun mix, Spreckels and Lolla Rossa just to name a few. We are also growing several types of carrots, radishes, cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, cucumbers, celery, and even brussels sprouts. In the 2nd row of our garden we have our 3 sisters trio which includes 6 varieties of squash (zucchini, butternut, winter squash etc), a few types of corn, and beans and peas mixed in. In the 3rd row we have melons, and pepper plants. These include; Purple Bell peppers, Orange Bell peppers, Carribean Hot pepper, Banana pepper and way too many more to list. We also have lot's of random things mixed in here and there like Kale, Chard, Artichokes, Eggplant, and even Rainbow Quinoa. As you can see we went a little crazy this year but our goal is to majorly cut our grocery bill. Next year we hope to add fruit trees and berry bushes to the mix.

I'm also determined to not waste a thing. As a result we're planning on canning our own stewed tomatoes, pasta sauce and salsas. We also learned that most plants have secondary things you can eat from them. Did you know you can eat the leaves off a Radish, Cauliflower, and Carrot plant, and that they are very healthy for you? Well you can, and we have been adding them to everything , casseroles, soups, stir fry's. It's amazing to think that there is a hunger crisis in this world but we are throwing away perfectly good food just because it's less desirable. Well, not us. We're going to use everything! Here's a peek at the Kaizen pride and joy.

I have several pots and hang-baskets or herbs. Once you cook with fresh herbs you will never go back to dried store bought ones. I have everything from basil, thyme, rosemary, oregano, dill, cilantro, garlic chives, mint, lemon balm and even curry. They're so yummy!
My first batch of seedlings Here's the future garden area. It's just a hillside covered in brush now, but we have a lot in store for this area. Some of the brush we cleared from the future garden area. Since it was a pretty steep hillside we had to terrace it. That means to build the rows, we had to physically bring in 100's of wheel barrows of rocks and dirt. Here's the start of row #1. Row 1 planter boxes built, and the start of row #2 below. Starting to plant in row 1, below row 2 is getting ready. Row 2 getting some dirt and plants put in. More stuff in row 1 sprouting Cherry Red radishes and Daikon radishes.
Time to harvest some potatoes. Our potato harvest! Cheddar Cauliflower Getting ready to help mommy Getting ready to pull out a Daikon radish. Pull harder Téa!
Yay, she did it! Next up was some Kale. Lolla Rossa and Arugula are coming in. Radish greens and Red Romaine lettuce Red Romaine lettuce and Kale Let's go see what's for dinner. My little gardener girl.

Caden pulling out a carrot Yay!
Cheddar Cauliflower and Carrots This is how I get most of my work done. Supervisor Asher making sure Mommy is doing a good job. ; ) Row 2 starting to take shape.
Look what I found mom! A Purple Kaleidoscope carrot Hmm, I thought carrots were orange. Cucumber, Peas and Corn in the back. Golden Zucchini My helpers checking out their goods. Spreckels, Lolla Rossa, Spinach, and Oak Leaf lettuce. YUMMY! Yes we grow Purple, Yellow and White Carrots in our garden. There are also Sugar Snap Peas towards the bottom of the basket. I finally put the 3rd row in. There are mounds of several melon varieties including Watermelon, Cantaloupe. In between the mounds are tons of peppers including Better Belle Pepper, Habenero's, Jalapenos etc. Free pest control. My little helper : ) Yummy Lolla Rossa Lettuce. Téa checking out the beets. A view of the 3 rows from the far end of the garden. Carrots, Chard, Kale, and a Daikon radish. My seedlings have to be protected from the predators, aka the Chicken and Dumping Gang! Carrots, Kale and Golden Zucchini. Carrots, celery, radish and a variety of lettuces.