Garden update

Another pest has invaded my garden. The thing is, I'm sure they were there before the slugs started taking over (I've gotten them down to a low roar now, fortunately). This time it's cabbage maggots. They burrow into the roots and work their way up, eventually killing the plant. We noticed one day that one of our cabbage plants was wilted to the ground. Soon after, two more plants (pictured left). There's no hope for them once they're infested. If I would have done my research before planting a garden, I would have known to protect the plants as
seedlings/transplants. Hindsight is 20/20! So I can only hope that the rest of the remaining cabbages will survive unharmed.

On a more positive note, we have been enjoying freshly picked lettuce and kale. It's been awesome to walk out the front door and be able to pick the base for our salads, or a leaf or two at a time for sandwiches. Oh! And my cilantro (started from seed, go me!) is doing beautifully. It's still too young for picking, but it is growing new shoots all the time. I need to start some more to keep the succession going. I failed miserably at cilantro last year, even though I got a decent transplant.


On to a recipe for your enjoyment. This goes out to all the kale and garlic lovers! I've shared this recipe before using spinach, but the kale really changes the tastes.

Garlicky Kale
1 bunch kale (about 6 or so large leaves if handpicking from garden), chopped
toasted or raw sesame seeds
toasted sesame oil
Bragg's liquid aminos, Nama Shoyu or soy sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup water

Directions:
In a wok, boil 1/2 cup, add the kale and immediately remove it from wok once it's at it brightest color (this takes a minute, literally, just keep turning it to get all leaves in the water). Let drain and cool in colander, then squeeze out excess water . In a medium-sized bowl, add sesame seeds, garlic, even amounts soy sauce and sesame oil (you'll have to play with the exact amounts to get a taste you like). Once you've made the marinade to your taste, add the kale and mix so it's lightly coated with the marinade. It's good to eat right away or let sit overnight!
WARNING: this WILL give you gnarly garlic breath that is lethal enough to wipe out close friends or family. Eat at your own risk!

Mission: search and destroy

Well, I recently figured out (thanks to The Organic Gardener's Handbook of Natural Pest and Disease Control) it's the slugs that are causing the holes in my beautiful kale, cabbage and lettuce leaves. So disheartening to see such gorgeous greens being destructed by these tiny, slimy beings. Unfortunately, something has to be done. My 6 year old and I searched the garden high and low for these--hate to say it--pests. We collected about 30-40 in a matter of minutes. We tossed them to the opposite side of the driveway for now (I say this because I'm sure we'll being seeing some of those same slugs again). The Handbook said to use beer in the garden, so my hubby got us three shot glasses half full of beer, which I put in the garden, flush with the soil. About an hour after doing that, we went back out and checked progress. Sure enough, there were 6 slugs by one shot glass (Special Forces shot glasses, to be exact--take that, slugs!). One had fallen in and obviously had drowned. The other 5 were debating their fates. I hate to admit I gave them all a push. I don't like killing living things, but these guys are destroying my (for once) successful little garden. I also researched some more on natural solutions to slug control and found that orange slices act like beer, drawing the slugs to them so that the gardener can dispose of them. So I lined the perimeter of the garden with orange slices. Sure enough, almost immediately more slugs started appearing, either heading toward or were on the orange slices. My daughter insisted that I give the slugs to her and not drown them in the beer. So I did, and she would run them to the opposite side of the yard. Bless her heart; she is so kind!
I need a solution! How can I get rid of these boogers without harming them? But for now I don't have much of a choice... my garden is important! The nutrition for and health of my little family is more important than these slugs, but I would like to find a better solution; a happy middle, if there is such a thing. In the morning, we'll go check things out again. At least there will be a reduction in the amount of destruction to my veggies for now.

Other methods I've read about are copper flashings or coils, crushed egg shells, wood ash and diatomaceous earth, all of which I have read of both successful and unsuccessful stories.


This weekend is the Mother Earth News Fair in Puyallup. It's so close to me and I'm really hoping to go. I could learn so much from the workshops and demonstrations. I'm sure the wise, experienced gardeners gathered there this weekend could give me some tips and tricks, plus it would just be fun to go and I'm sure worth the $15-20 ticket cost.

So what are your tips for keeping organic garden destroyers at bay? Preferably tips that don't involve chemicals.