Garden 2026 Wrap, Part 1

With November approaching, we just finished getting the garden ready for winter, a process that takes us several weeks. As we begin to put the shovels and rakes away for another year, it is time to reflect on how the 2026 garden performed. As usual, we had successes and failures, both of which we try to learn from. To start on a positive note, the following is a brief summary of our successes.

Strawberries: At first it seemed as though we would barely get enough strawberries for a snack, despite all the work we have put into them the past 3 years, but they ultimately delivered. We had 2-3 weeks of constant picking, usually getting a pint a day. Maggie had plenty for fresh eating, I made a strawberry shortcake every day for over a week, and then switched to smoothies. There are still some gaps in the bed, but we can fill those in the spring.

Raspberries: This is another crop we have tried to nurse along for at least 3 years and finally had it produce. The June bearing plants in combination with the wild raspberries and blackberries provided plenty of fruit for smoothies and eating. We still had a couple of gallons in the freezer by the time the fall bearing plants produced. By that point we became a little lackadaisical with picking, but still managed to pick enough to bake raspberry cheesecake crumble bars.

Flowers: Based on my poor luck in starting seeds, I thought this would be in the 'fail' column, but the plants really performed well. We had vases of fresh flowers every day of the growing season. By September, it was nice just top sit and watch the hummingbirds and butterflies enjoy the blooms.

Onions: This is the first year we started onions from seed. We also planted onion sets from the hardware store. At first, it seemed like the sets would outperform the seedlings, but the seedlings quickly caught up and gave us some of the largest onions we have grown. Fresh onion, tomato, and peppers for salsa every day for a month. We did relearn a lesson on the importance of keeping up with weeding in July.

Herbs: This is one of the few plants we have bought from the local nursery in the past, but this year we were more deliberate in growing herbs from seed. Three types of basil, two types of parsley, thyme, sage, oregano, and even rosemary. We had plenty of herbs to cook with all season.

Potatoes: This is a crop Maggie has tried for several years that has been hit or miss. This year, she went all in and we ended up with a huge crop. It was a lot of fun carefully digging into the soil with a pitchfork, and turning up perfect, large spuds.

Watermelon: This crop has been solidly in the 'fail' column for many years. The plants just take so long to get established that they get overgrown. This year, we fenced in a small, dedicated bed and tried three varieties. We were not exactly overwhelmed with watermelon, but we ended up with enough to keep us from giving up altogether on this crop.