July is the month to pick the tender, new veggies that are flourishing in your garden. Picking vegetables when they are young and small ensures that they will be flavourful and will keep them producing more throughout the summer. Now is the time to keep your plants watered, weeded and thinned! Check your tomato plants for sucker growths that can inhibit fruit production.
You can continue to plant veggies such as carrots, beets, radishes, and lettuce this month. Salad greens can be planted every ten days or so. You can still plant cucumbers and zucchinis. Plan for your fall garden, plant cool season veggies, such as broccoli, cabbage and collards in August.
Remember to keep an eye on your compost, don’t let it dry out and give it a turn every so often to speed up the decomposition process.
Here is a delicious recipe to try – especially if you have some young zucchini ready for harvesting!
ROASTED ZUCCHINI STICKS WITH PESTO
Ingredients
- 4 medium zucchini, trimmed and cut into fingers
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons prepared pesto
- Salt to taste
- Freshly ground pepper to taste
Preparation
Place a baking sheet on the middle rack of the oven and preheat the oven to 500°F.
Toss zucchini with oil in a large bowl and spread on the preheated baking sheet in a single layer. Roast for 5 to 7 minutes, until the sticks are starting to turn brown. Turn the zucchini and continue roasting 7 to 9 minutes more. Put the zucchini back in the bowl, add the pesto, salt and pepper and toss to coat. Serve immediately. Yum!
