Backyard Gardening...do you do it?

I haven't talked much about my garden this year, just because I was scared it would fail.  Seriously.  Last year I had squash and it was going fantastically.  I saw a lot of odd looking ladybugs, they were kind of orange. Ladybugs suppose to be good for a garden though, right?  I heard they eat aphids.  Then these happened.

 They look like cute little Minions from Despicable Me, don't that?  They are bugs sent straight from hell.  They eat through your squash plants.  They destroy them.  It was going fan-freaking-tastic....then death. Within a matter of days, the squash was gone.  RIP 2013 Squash.

So I was hesitant about the garden again this year, but I still planted.  I wanted to get that bumper crop of squash and zucchini that other people get! I wanted fresh veggies!  It is finally happening. The garden is growing.  

The devil bugs came back again.  I have been inspecting every day and picking them off and killing them.  I finally went to the nursery and got some "powder" stuff.  That didn't work.  I got sick of them and we headed to Lowe's and got some Sevin Spray .

I know,I know....poison. BUT this one it is safe for gardens and DOESN'T penetrate the plant. I wash off all my crops anyway before eating.  One quick spray/water killed the evil bugs. This says it kills on the plant and in the ground.  So far, so good.

This year I planted corn, asparagus beans, peas, squash, zucchini, peppers, and carrots. I had a few more things, but my squash over took the garden and no sun equals no plants. My zucchini never grew.  I went to the nursery and grabbed some cucumber plants and shoved them in. They MIGHT get some sun.  The squash is giant.  We are actually going to build another garden bed next year to plant all the poofy plants in.

See, giant. It is covering a good quarter of my planting area. THe bottom right is where I put the cucumber.  I am pretty sure I have some random flower growing there.  lol

So now you get to look at my random plants and ooooh and ahhhhh.  First up...corn!

I tried corn before and it failed.  The area we originally planted a garden got covered with trees.  I planted them in the actual garden this time.  It is going AWESOME.

When I told a friend I was planing asparagus beans, she reply "huh?"  Think: crazy long green beans.  I was getting REALLY bummed because nothing was happening. Just vines. Then one day, I had a gorgeous purple flower.

The flower was dead by the afternoon.  I was bummed. Then I noticed it was slowly sliding off.  Coming out of the dead flower was....A BEAN!!!! Seriously, how cool is that?

 

We did potatoes in the garden last year and they worked great, BUT it wasn't able to get very deep. I wanted lots of potatoes, so I figured I would do potatoes in a bucket. I had a bunch of green tubs that I got on super clearance at Walmart. I had Eric drill drainage holes in the bottom.  You throw some dirt in and place a potato on top.  Then throw more dirt on it.  I bought some of those "guaranteed to grow" potatoes at Lowe's.  I have found that guaranteed to grow does NOT actually guarantee growth.  I have tried strawberries twice. NOTHING.  So I figured I would give these a shot.

Nothing was happening.

Until something did.  Three of the 5 are growing!! Once they get a bit more "stalky" you add more dirt and keep repeating. This suppose to yield a BUNCH of potatoes.  You can read more about it HERE.

 I have about a million small flower pots, so I decided to grow some odd things too. I have artichokes. Once they get bigger I need to plant them in the ground.  They suppose to grow GIANT. I have 4.  I love artichokes.  I hope my neighbors do too!

 On our railing I have strawberries in pots.  I bought the "guaranteed to grow".  They didn't.  So I bought a flat from Lowe's. They are doing great! The birds are well fed! I need to buy a deterrent. Maybe a fake owl? That sounds more fun than just netting.

 In this mornings harvest I actually picked the first squash and TWO strawberries!!  Got them first ya filthy birds!

 Those are peas in the pods! Look how cute when you open them. My fingernail sliced a few. 

Last, but definitely not least....my fig tree.  It is growing so huge. It is a Chicago Hardy Fig. I probably should have kept the base trimmed a bit more then I first got it.  It has only been in the ground for a few years.

 This year is going to have a bumper crop of figs!  Normally I get a few at a time. Look how many are growing! I have to research some recipes!

 So excited to watch it grow this year!  I also have a pot of mini cucumbers. They suppose to get about an inch big and look like Barbie sized watermelons. They just started growing!

Do you plant "traditional" plants, or throw in some odd balls like I do?