The spring garden is about finished. The green beans held up longer than expected, but the 95 degree temperatures are too much. They are headed to the compost pile. Tomatoes are still coming in but the quality is lower and the end is in sight.
The last of the fennel also was harvested this week. Fennel is one of my favorites. It is easy to grow and complements a number of dishes. We use it mainly with the great seafood we get from J&R on Brompton. A simple recipe from “Classic Italian Cooking” involves just lightly sauteing the chopped fennel bulb in olive oil and then braising it with a little water, wine or sambuca until tender. Evaporate all the liquid, add a little more oil and saute the fish. Stir the fennel while the fish is cooking to brown it nicely. Serve over pasta. Recipes for fennel with fish often call for orange flavoring to complement the fennel. I especially like the orange flavor with scallops.
Fennel will grow almost the whole year, but a like all of us it does not like July and August very much. I start the seed under a plant light indoors (more on that in a later post) and plant 6 or so plants at a time. It grows well fall through early summer. For some reason unknown to me some of the plants do not make bulbs. I let them go to flowers. They are pretty and are a good attractant for beneficial insects and the seed can be used as an herb. I grow Florence fennel. I believe there some other types, but I have not tried them. Would be interested if anyone else has.