It appears that I am a lousy achocha fertilizer, a fact I suppose I can live with. We lack the native pollinators that would do the trick, and I seem to have no skills, as far as this particular plant is concerned, so I’m pulling up the achocha today, if the rain breaks.

The zucchini was mysteriously unproductive this year, too. I’m really not sure why. We’ve been harvesting pumpkins since July(!), but only one sicky zuke formed, before it dropped off altogether. At this point, there are still 4-5 pumpkins out ripening in the beds, and 4 stacked up in the kitchen, waiting for inspiration to strike.

My test of spinach plants, and plants called “spinach” is pretty well concluded, and I think I like the beetberry best of all, while the chickens favor the New Zealand spinach. So, I suppose both will be planted again. I’ve given serious thought to putting a chicken-fodder bed in next to the run, so I can free up more kitchen garden space for the rest of us.

I’m ramping up for the winter planting: the hardier kale types, more lettuces, and some other sturdy brassicas that will appreciate the milder weather ahead. Since the chickens are enjoying all the spare fresh vegetables, too, I’m going to put hoops on at least 2 of the beds, to let us harvest well into the snowy part of the year.