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Welcome to our
Organic Terra Preta
Vegetable Garden Photo Page. For more information on the Amazonian
Dark Earth, or Terra Preta Nova soil, click on the Terra Preta button at left. Please note, in this garden, we apply homemade compost as a mulch
with very modest amounts of Organic Bone meal and a pinch of
Organic Blood Meal. I have chosen those two in order to more
closely approximate the hunt middens of the Amazonians, into which
the detritus of the hunt was allowed to compost before it was
applied to the soil.
Scroll down to view the changing garden through the seasons.
We garden year round, and harvest year round. We
rotate crops every year generally allowing a three year interval
before replanting in the same bed. We grow what we like to
eat, and what we have found grows well in our area. |
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Above, The experiment began with the first
Terra Preta or Amazonian Dark Earth Bed, and the first Terra Preta crop of Onions, beets,
carrots, and
Japanese mustard, April 2008 |
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Above, Lavender in full bloom June 2011
photo DML |
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Above, Our
Georgia Jet Sweet potato bed. We used our own Sweet
potatoes from the previous year to generate the slips for
this year. Our harvest, seen below, exceeded
expectations. Also, having lived in Hawaii for many
years, we know that the tender green tips and young leaves
are edible. We harvest the tips and sauté in hot
olive oil with a dash of soy sauce added, or use them in
stir fries and saimin, etc. They grow in the
mid-summer heat that kills spinach and kales. Photo
DML 08/11/11 |
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| Above,
Our Georgia Jet Sweet potato harvest. The dark Terra
Preta soil was so loose we dug these out with our bare
hands. For size comparison, see photo below. Photo
10/03/11 HEL |
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| Above,
our Terra Preta grown Georgia Jet Sweet potato harvest up
close and personal. These potatoes have a dark orange
flesh and are loaded with vitamins and beta carotene.
I have already set aside the Sweet potatoes that will
provide next years slips. Photo
10/03/11 HEL |
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Above, a
sampling of the
Organic Terra Preta garden vegetable harvest on July 11,2011. We see
here 9 pounds of Tomatoes, 9 pounds of Bell peppers, 4 pounds
of Eggplant and 5+ pounds of Trombetta Zucchini. The
foot long ruler gives a size reference. Despite a lack
of regular rain, the garden is thriving with irrigation
every third day. This marks the fourth year of our
Terra Preta experiment. We remain convinced of the
incredible fertility and vitality of this Terra Preta Nova
soil. In fact it appears the soil improves with age
and with the compost additions. photo DML |
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Above, the Terra Preta garden Tomato bed July
2011. The garlic, planted around the border, was
harvested in May, scroll further down for garlic photos. Now
the tomatoes are reaching high. There is a close up of the
tomatoes in photo below. |
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Above, Terra Preta soil Bush Beans with
the Trombetta Zucchini behind. photo DML |
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Above, the Terra Preta grown Trombetta
Zucchini with a blossom. These seeds come from Italy and are
available through the Gourmet Seed Company. They are prolific and
taste delicious! photo DML July 11, 2011 |
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Above, a close up shot of the Terra
Preta soil Red Bell peppers. You can just see the ripening bell
at the bottom center. photo DML July 11, 2011 |
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Above, a shot of the Terra Preta
grown Yellow Bells, the second of the three varieties of Bell Pepper we
grow. photo DML July 11, 2011 |
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Above, a close up shot of the Terra
Preta garden Big Bertha bell peppers, the third variety we grow,
These ripen to a gorgeous red and are delicious! photo DML
July 11, 2011 |
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Above, the Terra Preta Organic garlic
crop, planted in October. It was planted around the border
and now surrounds the three tomato plants and their
supports. The garlic, is now ready for harvest, and removing
them won't disturb the growing tomatoes in the least.
May 10, 2011. photo DML |
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Above, a few of the Organic Terra Preta
garlic with a foot long ruler for comparison. photo
DML 05/10/11 |
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Above, the
Terra Preta garlic rests in the late afternoon shade.
It has now been bundled and hung to cure for several weeks,
the air is aromatic with its pungent fragrance. photo
DML 05/10/11 |
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Above, Sweet Lettuces, planted from
seed in November, in the 2010-2011 Terra Preta Winter Garden. We garden year round
and eat from the garden every day. Click on the photo above,
or the link below, to reach our Winter Garden page to see
what we grow, even in very cold winters like this one. Then come
back here to scroll down for past summers and winters. photo
DML 03/09/11 |
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Terra Preta Winter Garden
2010-2011***, click here for the Winter Garden Page |
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The Terra Preta Garden Summer of
2010 scroll down |
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The Queen in
profile, Heirloom African Queen tomato ripens on the
vine. Is it the first grown in Terra Preta soil?
Perhaps. For history and more information on this
extraordinary plant scroll down. Photo
DML 06/29/2010 |
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The African Queen
Tomato poses with Big Bertha Red Bell and California Golden
Wonder, Black Beauty Eggplants and various herbs. The
African Queen weighed 1 pound, 12 ounces and measured 5.5
inches at her broad shoulders. She will fulfill her
ultimate destiny tonight, as we taste the first fruit!
photo 07/03/10 DML |
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Above,
Portrait of a Queen, The African Queen to be precise,
an heirloom tomato whose seeds I obtained by joining
the Seed Savers Exchange. Inspired by Amy Goldman's book, The
Heirloom Tomato, I was determined to try this variety. So....
African Queen meets Terra Preta. The portrait,
above, shows
the first fruit is measuring close to 6 inches across. Below,
two more African Queens waxing large...The plants are
very healthy, and are very special to me, having grown these from
rare seed. We have had very little rain this
year, and
for tomatoes that is a good thing. They are Less likely
to develop those maladies that wet leaves are
prone to. Photo DML June 24, 2010 |
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Above, a portion of our 20010 Terra Preta
Tomato Harvest: African Queen Tomato poses with the Big Beef, Cherry and mid
range fruits. Photo DML 07/06/10 |
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third year of Terra Preta, foreground Basil and Onion
bed. Behind we see the Bell Peppers, (4 varieties,
including Big Bertha, Purple Beauty and Golden Wonder), and Black
Beauty Eggplants, and of course, the Honey Bees! Photo
DML June 24, 2010 |
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Here we
have Sweetpotatoes, flanked by Trombetta
zuchinneta, and tomatoes. Photo DML
Sept. 2, 2010 |
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Above, the
harvest of our Terra Preta Sweet potatoes begins. It
was like digging for buried treasure, good fun!
We grew our own starts of Georgia Jet from the previous
years harvest. Photo DML
Sept. 16, 2010 |
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Above, the
cured and graded harvest of our Terra Preta Sweet potatoes.
A 4 x 10 foot area of Terra Preta bed yielded 60 pounds of
Georgia Jet potatoes, red skinned, bright orange flesh,
sweet, moist and delicious. As mentioned, we grew our
own slips from last years harvest, and plan to do the same
next year. For size, notice the foot long ruler is the
upper left hand basket. Photo DML
Sept. 30, 2010 |
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Above, a closer look at the Terra Preta
Trombetta vine, with the Tomato trellis behind it. To give
an idea of size, this vine is growing over a 10 foot extension
ladder, which you can glimpse the top of.
Photo DML Sept. 2, 2010 |
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Above, a Terra Preta
Trombetta squash with flower and a small baby emerging on the
emerging on the left. This is just a youngster, see mature fruit in the
next photo below. Photo DML Sept. 11, 2010 |
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Above, posing with late season tomatoes
and big Bertha Bell Peppers, a Terra Preta
Trombetta squash at maturity. This squash weighed 4 pounds 4
ounces, and is nearly two feet long (see ruler at right). These squash are delicious, grilled or sauteed in
olive oil. This particular squash will last for many
meals. The seeds came from Italy through Gourmet Seed
International. Photo DML Sept. 18, 2010 |
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Above, on
Halloween day, the Terra Preta Big Bertha bell peppers live
up to their name. They have been incredibly prolific all
summer and if you look closely I am pointing to a pepper
turning red, on my right nearly a foot overhead! These
are huge peppers and very sweet. We eat them at peak
ripeness and have cut and frozen an enormous quantity for
use till next summer. Photo
HEL October 31, 2010 |
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Below, 2009 Terra Preta Garden, or,
Year 2 ATP (After Terra Preta) |
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Above, Three Celebrity tomato plants above at
eight weeks from transplanting starts. They are six feet and
climbing. At the front of the bed, a Black Krim heirloom
planted from seed has taken over where the Sugar Snap Peas held sway.
Germination in the Terra Preta soil is notable for its'
speed. Many plants are up within three days of
planting. June 10, 2009 photo HEL |
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First fruit of the Celebrity weighs in
at 10 ounces, see quarter on skewer (at right) for size
comparison, June 17, 2009 photo HEL |
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The Bell Pepper
(see fruits below) and Eggplant bed, eight
weeks after planting starts, Our Terra Preta project is now in its
second summer. June 14, 2009 photo
DML |
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Terra Preta Bell Peppers, July 14,
2009 photo HEL
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The first fruits of the summer 09
Terra Preta harvest, Garlic, Japanese Eggplant and tomatoes and Basil. These
first tomatoes weigh in from 9.8 - 12.4 ounces. June 18 2009
photo DML |
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Organic
Terra Preta garden harvest July 5,2009 showing just a portion of the tomatoes
harvested that day, with four pounds of eggplant,
destined for Eggplant Parmigiano, later that same day. photo
DML |
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| Above, Organic
Terra Preta garden sweet potatoes, two varieties, Centennial
and Georgia Jet, midsummer 2009. Beyond, the catnip is in
bloom as well as parsley on the left.
photo DML |
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Harvesting Dwarf Grey
Sugar Snap Peas, now at 7feet tall, and growing! The seed
packet states plants grow 3 feet tall, staking not required....is
it the Terra Preta soil? These plants produced prolific amounts of sweet edible
pod peas. We are glad we did not plant giant peas! . May
7, 2009 photo HEL |
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| Tita and I examine
the 'dwarf' Edible Pod Peas blossoming. April 25,
2009. We
can just see a glimpse of The Celebrity tomatoes, behind the
peas (far left of photo) at four weeks...see photos above
for the growth they achieved in the next four weeks from
planting. photo HEL |
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Below, 2008 Terra
Preta Garden, or, Year 1 ATP (After Terra Preta) |
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Acorn Squash, with
close up below showing tiny squashling, the bees love the blossoms
October 11, 2008 photo HEL |
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Terra Preta Bell
Peppers, some plants are as tall as I am. The pepper in my
left hand came from a low branch. the pepper in my right is still
on the bush finishing ripening. They are thick walled and very
sweet! Not bad for mid November!
Photo HEL 11/11/08 |
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Aerial view
of Terra Preta
Garden (clockwise from bottom) herb bed, Bed of Kale infants and
onions, Acorn squash bed, Trombetta Zucchini Trellis, Bed ofBell
Peppers, Eggplant, Bed of Bush Beans October 2, 2008 photo
HEL |
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Another shot
of the Garden showing the bed of Baby Kale and onions, Bed of Acorn
Squash and Basil, and at the back, the bed of Sweet Potatoes. Note
on the right, Italian Trombetta Squash hanging, the fruits of
these zucchini reach more than two feet long. October 2.2008
photo HEL |
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