Surprises in the Garden

A New Game...

What the heck is this and where did it come from???   Well I figured it out.  I bought some green leafed plants from a store in Yelm that just said, Big Squash".  As the squash grew up, hah, they weren't kidding.  This baby was as big as a pumpkin.  I googled types of squash and found this to be a Hubbard Squash.  The insides are a beautiful bright orange color, as you can see.

This is what the Hubbard Squash looks like on the outside.  And, it's vine grows like something out of Jack in the Beanstalk, huge and sprawling.  So, you need a lot of room, but it's worth it.  Very yummy.

My next surprise was another squash I've never seen in any of the grocery stores. I looked it up on google, too.  This is one of the Delicata Squash.  It's good raw,  before the dark green stripes appear and is still a bit small ( larger than a zucchini from the store, though).  As it grows and gets bigger, the green stripes become darker.

Another major surprise to me, is that most people don't know beet greens are edible and a great source of iron.  I like mine steamed with a little salt and pepper.  Just cut them from the beets to cook.  Oh, and don't forget the red stalks, that's the best part.  I only picked a couple to eat right away.  

Next week, I'll harvest the rest of the beets to take to my friend Gladys's.  She has a canning kitchen in her basement.   There, we'll make and can pickled beets from our wonderful garden.  And of course, I'll be blogging about the experience as I'm a beginner and Gladys is an expert.  A couple of friends said they would like to learn, too.  So, I'll probably take them along........But, first I must ask Gladys if it's okay.  Extra helping hands are always welcome, however.

Find a friend like Gladys to help and to teach you some of the smart ways to eat healthier, save money and stop contributing to all the trash in the dumps.