Slug-a-licious

Never mind the poor summer weather we're having these days. Slugs and snails have me down more than our grey skies.

I had wonderful looking marigolds at the end of spring. They were healthy, robust and oh so cute with their orange and red flowers--the Bonanza Bee. I plunked in a boarder all along the beds in my backyard.

Then slowly but surely, all of them were devoured and turned into little sticks of nothing. I didn't even get a chance to photograph the plants when they looked good. In a matter of a couple of weeks, I didn't have a single marigold to speak of!

Here are a couple of beauties.


















Lovely.

I don't know why marigolds are a favorite with slugs. I even had this discussion with my mom. She confesses bringing out the slug bait only when she was planting marigolds. I thought the pungent smell of their foliage and flowers would deter them. I guess not!

The other plants the slugs are after are my Charentais melon. Why they don't touch the Hannah's Choice muskmelon baffles me. Luckily I started a bunch so I've been replacing them as they get munched.


I just used the last of my stockpile of starts. I'm hoping a third planting is a charm. Fingers crossed!

On a happier note, my sunchokes broke dormancy and have been growing strong for about a month now. Woohoo!

Swiss Chard 'Bright Lights'

Adding a crop of Swiss Chard 'Bright Lights' makes a dramatic statement in a veggie garden of any size. Stalks of vibrant reds, yellows, and oranges are neon exclamation points amongst peppers and tomatoes. Mine are growing next to my 'Falstaff' purple Brussels sprouts (stay tuned for their harvest). The chard can also be planted in between perennials for color that will remain through the summer.

These do well with a deep watering every other week. If they are neglected a little and start to wilt, watering will spring them back to life. My soil isn't extremely rich as I haven't composted in 2 years but it is light. The only issue is slugs. They don't completely decimate the plants, but they do make unsightly holes and trails in the leaves. I just remove the chewed up areas and use the petioles (stalks) for cooking. The petioles stand up to sautéing and have more flavor than the leaves.

My usual recipe for 'Bright Lights' Swiss Chard calls for 1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 cloves (or more!) of minced garlic, Kosher salt, chili flakes, and 5 stems of chard roughly cut. Heat up the skillet on high and add oil once it's hot, coating the pan. Reduce heat to medium and sauté the garlic until it just starts to brown. Add the chard, a couple pinches of salt, and a splash of water. Sauté until the chard is semi-tender or the leaves start to wilt. Remove from heat and serve. Other additions to this dish maybe a small squeeze of lemon juice or a reduction of balsamic vinegar with toasted almond pieces and goat cheese.

First Season's Veggie

Underneath the greens and half burried in the soil, something round and red caught my eye. The first radish of the season! Picturing its perfect shape, I snapped off the tip as I quickly pulled it out. No big deal...how does it taste? Hot and peppery with bright magenta red skin over white flesh.

Tasting the first radish of the season pales in comparison to your first tomato or nectarine. Still, it is satisfying to scratch the soil, scatter the seeds and watch them sprout. Even more so when you've beaten the slugs (my method is to hope they'll just go away!) and can enjoy your harvest.