2021 Garden Thread

[begreen]

Wish I could send you cucumbers and zucchini. They are coming out of our ears right now. Tomato harvesting is also starying to gain steam. We will be making sauce this week and I harvested 4 pints of sungolds and sweet million cherry tomatoes tonight.

 

[DuaeGuttae]

Wish I could send you cucumbers and zucchini. They are coming out of our ears right now. Tomato harvesting is also starying to gain steam. We will be making sauce this week and I harvested 4 pints of sungolds and sweet million cherry tomatoes tonight.

Thanks, Begreen. I was surprised to find two nice slicers on my dying vines this morning. We pulled up only one dead one on Saturday and left the others, but I wasn’t really expecting to harvest anything from them. I guess those cucumbers had been hiding under what leaves were still green. There were also three picklers, and the vines are actually putting on new growth. I do have a couple of seedlings now as well as a couple zucchini seedlings. I just need to be faithful about not letting them get too dried out in the afternoon heat while they’re still so young.

This summer I decided to try my hand at growing tomatillos. I had had two tomatillo plants I had set out in large pots. I had started both from seed indoors, but one was growing much better than the other. Yesterday I found the smaller one completely denuded of leaves. I had seen some evidence of damage before, but this was a bit of shock. I put a couple more seeds in the pot tonight, but I think that my bigger tomatillo is getting ready to flower and won’t be able to set fruit without a second plant to pollinate it. I planted a couple of extra seeds in a third pot so that maybe I’ll have two mature at the same time.

 

[clancey]

Why my tomato plant is sooooo large it is taking up the whole side of the fence--lol I must have about 30 or 40 tomato's on it but they are not that big and no color except green.. I managed to get one to eat after I left it on window to get more red and it was good but not that good--kind of different texture or something so I am waiting to see what these do on the plant. Maybe I should try to fry them or something like green fried tomato's...working on it...clancey

 

[begreen]

Did up a batch of bread and butter pickles yesterday. They are much more work than kosher style dill pickles which we have done 2 batches now. I made the rounds and gave some bags of cukes and zukes to the neighbors. My wife is saying fewer cucumbers next year!
I jarred up the sauerkraut. It came out great! The new crock allowed me to do a large batch of about 15 lbs. of homegrown cabbage.

Fall planting continues. I have fall beets, spinach, broccoli, carrots, and cabbage in the ground now.

 

[clancey]

You people are really experts with this gardening stuff and I applaud you--just a wonderful talent to have...Pretty gardens too--good for you all...But I bet my one tomato plant up against one of yours will get more tomato's---a bet in the offering and the winner gets a tomato..Your gardens just sound wonderful and the food just terrific...and they are beautiful as well... Of course I will count the tomatoe"s lol lol

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Started harvesting peaches today. They've started to fall off the tree and the birds are starting to nibble. It's time. We'll be processing for a while.

 

[begreen]

Started harvesting peaches today. They've started to fall off the tree and the birds are starting to nibble. It's time. We'll be processing for a while.

What do you do with a boatload of peaches like that?

 

[begreen]

First tomato harvest besides the daily picking of cherry tomatoes. It looks like the next harvest will be twice this size. we'll be making sauce for the next few weeks now along with canning up dilly beans, making blueberry jam, peach pies, and pickling more cukes.

 

[clancey]

That's a lot of beautiful tomato's you have --what kind are they?. I am still waiting for mine to get a little red...clancey

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I brought up 2 large bags to the lake to try to give them away. I wasn't planning to go up, but I needed to get things set if that hurricane hits. I filled 2 small frigerators in the basement. We'll start processing them today now that I've gone over the house gutters and such so we take the rain as well as possible.

 

[begreen]

I brought up 2 large bags to the lake to try to give them away. I wasn't planning to go up, but I needed to get things set if that hurricane hits. I filled 2 small frigerators in the basement. We'll start processing them today now that I've gone over the house gutters and such so we take the rain as well as possible.

Hope it weakens a lot before you get the rain and winds. Looks like it is expected to turn to the northeast somewhere east of Pittsfield.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Only 1 band passed so far and that wasn't too bad. I hope it stays that way.

 

[clancey]

Look what I got--wow...There is about 50 or 60 more baby ones on the plant as well...Took some pictures for you all..My very first plant and now I do not have to buy tomatoes at the store...clancey



The picture attach file is working different so here is the second picture on this posting that I could not figure out how to post on the other one..These things take time for us not so good at computers...lol Here is the plant picture.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Congratulations! The best wins are the ones that feed you!

 

[clancey]

This bunch tasted so good that I am now working on a green house,,,lol kidding thanks,,clancey .

 

[DuaeGuttae]

@EatenByLimestone, those peaches look wonderful! Do you ever make jelly from the peelings and pits?

@begreen, what a beautiful harvest of tomatoes! I bet your sauce will be great.

@clancey, I’m so proud of you. Thanks for posting a picture. Seeing that you’ve been successful just made my day.

Over the weekend, when I was watering the garden, I noticed that one of my varieties of sweet potatoes was pushing its way up through the mulch. Consulting my garden journal this morning, I saw that we’ve just hit the days to maturity, so I decided to dig in a couple of spots to see what size we were getting. My nine year old helped me, and here’s what we found.



The three small ones came from a crowded corner, and there is some majoring nibbling going on. I think we’ll end up harvesting sooner rather than later because of that. The large ones ranges from 1 and 1/2 to 2 pounds, so I was pretty pleased. My laundry room is hot and humid these days, so it will be a great spot to cure these.

My other variety just had smaller tubers, so we’ll wait a while on harvesting them. Hopefully the underground munchers won’t be too industrious.



The measurements on the pastry mat are centimeters in most places, by the way, not inches.

 

[begreen]

That's a lot of beautiful tomato's you have --what kind are they?. I am still waiting for mine to get a little red...clancey

Early Girl in the front, Celebrity in the middle, Caurulina and Pomidoro Squisito in the rear.

 

[clancey]

DG--sure hope those underground munchers are too hungry--what are they? begreen--your front tomato's are my favorite--the larger ones and do these tomatoes taste real different from each other.. How many (ball park) do you think a tomato plant gives you with tomato's anyway--my bush might win the world record if all grows okay--lol EBL- I love peach trees and I wish that I had one especially with all those peaches you have--so wonderful..You know our western slope is well known for fruit and stuff but I do not know about trees. Next year if I am still here maybe I will plant a peach tree or something...good for you and enjoy your wonderful peaches..clancey

 

[begreen]

In past taste testings, our favorites have been Early Girl and Blue Beech (a paste tomato). Celebrity was not included because we hadn't grown it for years. We have not grown the Caurulina and Pomidoro Squisito before and the Blue Beech are just ripening up now. We'll probably do this year's taste testing in a week or two when we have ripe specimens of each variety.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

We'll de pit and freeze a lot of the peaches to use over the winter and into next year. The wife likes making peach cobbler, but jellies isn't a bad idea. I could cook down a lot of them in that!

 

[clancey]

Yea you could make peach jalapeno jelly and do not know if that is a actual jelly but at the moment it sure sounds good to me..lol..I would eat it with scrabbled eggs..lol..I am hungry...clancey

 

[DuaeGuttae]

We'll de pit and freeze a lot of the peaches to use over the winter and into next year. The wife likes making peach cobbler, but jellies isn't a bad idea. I could cook down a lot of them in that!

I use the flesh of the peaches for preserves, but I use the peels and pits for jelly. My peaches are clingstone ( the few I’ve ever saved from squirrels and freezes), so I do end up with a lot of flesh on them. I don’t use pectin but add lemon juice. Occasionally I’ve had problems with getting a good set, but then I just call it peach syrup for pancakes.

Save the Scraps: Peach Peel Jelly - Reformation Acres

Frugal Peach Peel Jelly has a light, sweet peach flavor and is a great way to economize the peach harvest.

www.reformationacres.com

 

[begreen]

The Hale's Best cantaloupes are getting big. The largest is about 6" across now. We have about 7 growing from one sprawling, happy plant.

 

[clancey]

My tomato plant is really putting out tomato's now and today I got my 22nd one and gave away a lot of these and the branches have lots on them --greenish now---and what am I to do? Can I can them or something and do not want to waste them but they are sure good...Can I freeze them? Maybe I will look this up on the net--but plant doing real well and thanks everyone for your help because I never thought I could grow anything and keep it alive too..Right now I have a plastic container and a flower pot keeping these heavy leaves off the ground don't want any bugs to hurt it...worry wort here lol lol---when I get time I will take a picture but oh too many tomato's but the neighbors like them..lol clancey

 

[kborndale]

My tomato plant is really putting out tomato's now and today I got my 22nd one and gave away a lot of these and the branches have lots on them --greenish now---and what am I to do? Can I can them or something and do not want to waste them but they are sure good...Can I freeze them? Maybe I will look this up on the net--but plant doing real well and thanks everyone for your help because I never thought I could grow anything and keep it alive too..Right now I have a plastic container and a flower pot keeping these heavy leaves off the ground don't want any bugs to hurt it...worry wort here lol lol---when I get time I will take a picture but oh too many tomato's but the neighbors like them..lol clancey

Make tomato sauce