Food Forest Update (July) - Garden Journal Showcasing Photos from My Food Forest

This is an update on our food forest for July, 2018. We finally received several inches of rain. The rains came fast and heavy, which means all that water didn't absorb into the soil, but I am not complaining. We will take any amount of rain we can get. There have been so many days in a row that we had rain cells all around us. We even got excited a few times because the rain was so close, but most of the time storm cells broke up before they reached us and re-developed again after they passed us. It's such a bummer to have rain so close. The reason being, until you have grown some food and seen what rain, and especially thunderstorm rain does to your crops, you would never believe it. When a yellow squash or cucumber can double or triple in size in less than a 24 hour period after a good thunderstorm, you know it really is something in the air. But I guess it's back to hand watering for now.

Our food forest has been producing abundantly. We have harvested all the garlic, blueberries, peaches & potatoes. They have either been processed and put in storage / freezer or in our bellies.

I will show you what's happening in the food forest currently.

Melons

The annual Summer crop I most look forward to is the variety of melons planted each year. I had some volunteers from last year that are doing really well. I have noticed over the years that volunteer melons tend to do better than the ones I actually take the time to start inside and plant in the food forest. So, each year after we are done with eating the melons, I put some harvested seeds back in the garden where I want the volunteers to show up next year then I cover the whole thing up with some leaves and more mulch. I say some nice things to the seeds for good vibes and hope for more volunteers next year. Seriously, growing melons is this easy.

Eating melon is like getting intravenous nutrient therapy. On every level, including biochemically, melon is exactly what our bodies need. Melons are essentially balls of purified water. This highly active fluid binds onto poisons of all kinds in the body, including mold, mycotoxins, viral neurotoxins, undigested protein toxins, ammonia gas, and bacterial toxins, flushing them out to allow the immune system to restore itself. Further, the fruit’s high electrolyte content helps protect the brain and the rest of the nervous system from stress-related strokes, aneurysms, and embolisms.
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Heirloom Tomatoes

We have had a great harvest of heirloom tomatoes this year. If you have read my previous garden updates, you would know for some mysterious reason, not all varieties of tomatoes will grow in my food forest. Maybe it has something to do with my soil. The new varieties I tried this year did not make it in my food forest, so I won't be growing those again. We harvested the largest Cherokee Purple tomato I have ever grown. See the photo below. I am so proud of this one, I just have to share it.

Heirloom tomatoes are rich in vitamins C, K, A, and B-complex, as well as potassium, chromium, biotin, and beta carotene. This amazing array of nutrition makes heirloom tomatoes excellent for helping to nourish the adrenal glands, reduce stress damage, build the immune system, lower blood pressure, protect against skin damage, improve cardiovascular health, and strengthen bones.
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Cucumbers

We grow a lot of cucumbers in our food forest. People who visit my garden always ask what we are going to do with all those cucumbers. Well, around here, we don't pickle, we juice. If you ever want to experience the best hair, nails and skin you can have, try juicing cucumbers. When we have abundant harvest of cucumbers, I will juice and drink five cucumbers a day. Cucumber juice is very hydrating and refreshing. The juice from my home grown cucumbers tastes like watermelon juice. No joke, it's that sweet!

Cucumbers have a fountain-of-youth effect, hydrating us at the deepest cellular level possible. Fresh cucumber juice is the best rejuvenation tonic in the world. It contains electrolyte compounds specifically geared toward nourishing and cooling down overused adrenal glands and kidneys that are struggling with their task of filtering out toxic debris and getting overheated from toxic uric acid.
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Figs

Our fig trees are loaded with fruit right now. Highly recommend putting in a couple of fig trees in your yard. They produce abundantly with very little concern for pests. Even though figs are supposed to be deer resistant, our fig trees did get nibbled on by deer before we fenced them in the food forest. Fresh figs are an amazing Summer time treat. You are missing out if you have never had fresh figs. And, due to their prehistoric looking interior, fresh figs are some of the strangest fruit I have ever eaten

Figs are one of the most alkaline fruits available and are rich in minerals such as calcium, iron, copper, potassium, selenium, and zinc. In fact, figs are one of the highest sources of readily assimilable calcium in the plant world which makes them a great choice to help prevent osteoporosis and their potassium content can help to prevent hypertension as well.
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Heirloom Peppers

Heirloom peppers usually are more flavorful than the modern type peppers. I always plant a mix of basil, marigold & calendula next to the peppers. The strong smell of these plants will deter annoying pests. They are also used as a living mulch to keep the roots of the peppers cool and moist. On top of that, they add lots of colors in the food forest and feed pollinators. Marigolds are planted to also repel the nematodes in the soil. It's claimed that growing basil next to peppers will boost their flavor. This is also true when it comes to heirloom tomatoes, so I always plant a combinations of basil, marigold & calendula next to my peppers and tomatoes.

Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potato vines have gone crazy loving the heat. They have connected with the melon vines and cut off the path in the food forest. We have to dance around the vines carefully, so we don't accidentally step on and crush them. We keep having to move the vines every couple of days. By the way, you can harvest young and tender sweet potato leaves for Summer greens. Just make sure to harvest only lightly or it will affect the growth of sweet potato tubers in the soil.

Sweet Potatoes are an incredibly nutritious food that are packed with antioxidants like beta carotene, vitamins C, E & D, and minerals such as manganese and iron. They are also high in potassium which helps to lower blood pressure by removing excess sodium and regulating fluid balance in the body. Sweet potatoes are an excellent anti-stress food and are known to help relax muscles, steady nerves, and balance cognitive function.
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Cover Crops

Garden spaces open up as I harvest crops such as garlic & potatoes and inevitably some plants die. Whenever I have open space, I plant cover crops, such as buckwheat, beans, or peas. I rely on cover crops to enrich the soil, restore fertility, add biomass, suppress weeds, and attract pollinators. Black eyed pea is an excellent cover crop to plant in areas with warm/hot Summers. I am lucky enough to live in an area where I can grow food Spring, Summer & Fall (even Winter if I provide protection). Black eyed peas make an excellent source of nitrogen when planted ahead of fall crops.

Our globalized food system is in despair. Monocropping is destroying animal and soil life on earth. Through mass factory farming, crops are continuously treated with toxic chemicals that leach into our food, water, and soil. The continuation of such practices have, and will continue to lead to our food becoming less nutritional and more detrimental to our bodies. By learning to grow, even a minimal amount of food, you will be making a difference.

My mission on Steemit is to show everyone how easy it can be to grow your own organic, nutrient dense food. By growing your own food you will be less dependent on greedy corporations and take back power from big AG. You will save money and not contribute to the problems of our food supply. You too can gain food freedom by growing your own food.

If we want change, we must do it ourselves!

All photos come from my food forest
Photo copyright: @thelaundrylady

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