My zucchini had embryonic squash that were big enough to be worth picking:
But most will be much smaller, and possibly have spines or fuzz on them.
Posted on 07/29/2011 5:22:39 AM PDT by Red_Devil 232
Good morning gardeners. This past week here in East Central Mississippi has been great, weather wise. There have been numerous and very beneficial pop-up T-storms almost every day, which have helped keep the temperatures down and my garden watered.
I hope TS Don will give some relief to those of you in drought stricken Texas. Forecasts are for it to dissipate in about 36 to 48 hours after landfall.
If you are a gardener or you are just starting out and are in need of advice or just encouragement please feel free to join in and enjoy the friendly discussion. Our Freeper community is full of gardeners, each with varying interests and skill levels from Master Gardener to novice.
I hope all your gardens are flourishing.
From yesterday’s pictures, I’d guess that the seeds are immature.
Pick out a very good specimen plant, and hand pollinate a female flower with a male from the same plant, then cover the female flower so ‘foreign’ pollen can’t get to it.
A day or two later, when you’re certain it set, remove the bag & flower, and let it fully mature. Time it so that it will mature at the end of the season, as the plant will pretty much stop production once it “knows” that it has produced viable seed.
After you pick it, you can keep it several days to a couple of weeks or so in storage, and the seeds will further mature; then use it like a winter squash; and save, dry, and store those seeds.
This assumes it is a stable variety, and not a hybrid.
(Don’t keep it so long as to lose it to going bad...though the seeds would still be fine to use. My “squashkin” seeds —freely pollinated fruits, giving no two plants alike, but all taste good— come from ones that are kept until they get soft start to collapse in on themselves.)
Oh my. I didn’t pay attention during last year’s sex education squash thread I don’t know the difference between a female and a male blossom. LOL. I think I’ll just let nature take its course and buy a new pant next year! LOL.
ping
The male flower has a long, pollen coated male part; the female has an opening...just like males & females of the meat sort!
Break off a fresh male flower, peel off the petals, and stick the end into the female’s opening & wiggle/rotate to get the pollen into it.
Egads! That almost, without the embarrassed noises he was also making, sounds like my dad, many decades ago, explaining a few things to a young lad.
I’m currently online looking for a good pickled pepperoncini (baker creek) recipe. I’ve got about a gallon of them right now.
I’ve got 1.5 gallons of Mariachi peppers (totally tomatoes, iirc) and another gallon of biker billy jalapenos (cooks garden). And, piece de resistance, a 5 gallon bucket overflowing with okra! Not to mention the vidalia onions I found at Kroger yesterday. Those I’m going to chop up into the little cubes with my handy chopper thingie hubby got me for mothers day. Put them in ziploc sandwich bags along with some chopped jalapenos, mariachia and maybe some corno de toro peppers I’ve got and use in casseroles or on pizzas this winter. I put the sandwich baggies into a gallon freezer bag.
Busy busy I will be, shortly. Just as soon as I find that recipe.
I’ve got some red noodle beans to steam for supper, too. And about 20lbs of cucumbers to do ‘something’ with. Looking for suggestions for those. The Zucchini Fairy has been kind to my garden too. I have no idea what to do with all those!
Have you ever heard of ‘Peppadew’ peppers? I’ve heard they’re really really good. BUT, they’re like $7 for a small jar. Cheese and crackers! (they’d probably be great on those)
yes, I am in FL, Very sandy.... Of all the soils to be cursed with sandy is the best, At least it drains well! I just have to keep putting the good stuff back into it...
Once the corn is ripe you lose sugar levels the longer you leave it on the stalk... Blanch it and freeze it fast.. Do not let it sit in the icebox... Best to pick it and cook it for dinner right away... Highest sugar levels... I read somewhere that sugar levels start to drop after 2 hrs past picking...
How is your new weed eater working out? Is it ez to crank? I have an slope out by the road that is too dangerous to mow with the rider and may have to buy a gas weed eater.
It is a bit heavier than a regular gas trimmer and I need use the shoulder strap that comes with it. A new full propane canister weighs 2 lbs. and the LP gas regulator plus a cast aluminum carburetor add to the extra weight.
Oh my goodness gracious!!! I am giving you a standing ovation! That was a beautiful meal and, even though I’ve had lunch, now I’m ready to eat all over again. I’ve always sliced the ‘top’ off of my scalloped squash — just enough so that the scalloped edge is still there — and then removed the innards, but what you did worked just as well, if not better.
My tomatoes produced heavily to begin with, but then nothing. They are now loading up blossoms and little green tomatoes. If nothing else, I'll get to make some green tomato relish later in the season.
We got to 109 degrees yesterday. The official temp was 107, but it is registered 40 miles from my house. It is supposed to be hotter today. The geese are the only ones that don't seem to notice. Guess all that down that keeps them warm also insulates them from the heat.
Wish I could see your volunteers. I am glad to resisted pulling the sprouts when they came up. :)
I broke out my generator when Don formed and threatened Texas. It had sit since I bought it last Oct, but cranked on one pull, which is about all that I have left in me nowadays.
They will get planted again, as I had 3/4 of the bag of seed left.
While doing a search for LP trimmers, I ran across this item. Have you seen these?
I’ve never grown the marina de chioggia or the golden hubbard. And, we haven’t really thought about eating them young. If we have a lot of smaller ones when first frost arrives I’ll have to do that.
I plan on saving seed from the biggest compost volunteer. That vine (male and female) were the first blooms so I know it’s ‘selfed’. I’ve also got an interesting sport out of a baker creek variety. Small, about 1/2lb squashes that look like teeny pumpkins. And SWEET like you wouldn’t believe. I know they’re not ‘sweet dumplings’ or something similar because those wouldn’t survive the svb’s at my house long enough to make anything.
If geese at my peas (obligatory obama joke here or something) I’d have roast goose! I have enough trouble with Hassenpfeffers eating my pepper plants.
Wow! Thanks for that link. The 16.4oz bottles are something like 2.50(?) each at Wal-Mart and that filling adapter would be nice to have on hand - not just for the trimmer but the camp stove we have for power out emergencies. The camp stove is better to use for heating water for coffee or small meals as opposed to firing up the big grill!
AND we wern’t invited to share the recipt. It sound wonderful. You are a GOOD cook. Thank you for sharing.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.