Beet Harvest

I wasn't exactly ready to harvest beets today, but. . .Grant went out yesterday to harvest some swiss chard for a salad for his dad's lunch. He pulled out a few huge beets before he decided he was in the wrong row. They were much bigger than I thought they were. On a whim, I went ahead and pulled the rest of them up today. I was totally disappointed in the amount of them that germinated. Maybe 10 plants. I think I will try again in August and see if I can get some more before frost. This was the first time in about 10 years that I have tried to grow beets.

Those silly little things sure generated a lot of nitrogen for my compost pile. I decided to go ahead and pickle what I had (we hate beets otherwise). So first I boiled the little guys, with about 2 inches of stem and their roots. . .why?? Because I read that somewhere, that you should leave part of the tops on and the roots intact when you boil them, that is.

Next, I peeled their skins right off and sliced them up. Threw 'em in some jars and poured a sugar and vinegar brine over the top of them and canned 'em up!

I got 4 1/2 pint jars of them. Not many, but we will love them just the same! The rest of the garden is looking good, but we are sure needing some moisture. It was 98 degrees here today and forecast says 102 for tomorrow. Wheat harvest will be right around the corner now! I'm sure that is when the rains will come. .usually works out that way! Wishing everyone else a bountiful harvest. .gardening and otherwise!