No set 'theme' for today - busy canning! When I get caught up, we'll get back to more 'educational aspects' of gardening. :)
Posted on 09/10/2022 5:54:55 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
No set 'theme' for today - busy canning! When I get caught up, we'll get back to more 'educational aspects' of gardening. :)
Reincarnated tomatoes is a phenomenon that I thought I’d never live to see. My Sis, the “gardener sibling” of the family, had said to not give up. Looks like she’s right.
Oklahoma’s hellish summer killed just about everything for just about everyone. My in-ground tomato plants were attacked first by the heat, then by gophers, then by blister beetles. But for some reason, I never got around to pulling them up and saying “the hell with it”. Glad now that I didn’t.
A few weeks ago, when temps finally began to be reasonable, I saw some new vegetation where the dry, crunchy leaves join the main stem. Left them alone, and now I have full-sized plants with a bunch of new blossoms.
Same thing with a couple of bell pepper plants, as well as a few green bean seeds I’d stuck in the ground as an experiment. :-)
Definitely coffee time!
So yesterday was going to be ‘clean up’ the dead cuke vines & some other plants that have succumbed to our latest dry spell (after 4-5 inches of rain in a weeks and a half). It’s been a weather roller coaster. The next part of the plan was to plant some radishes & kale and do general clean-up around the fire pit - last night was cool enough for a fire. I did pick all the ripe Celebrities (still got some green ones) and for late season tomatoes, they’re beautiful - not one case of blossom end rot this season and no ‘monkey face’. I think the new way I staked the tomatoes, that gave them more room and air flow, had a lot to do with some really nice tomatoes this year.
BUT .... my plans were interrupted with a text around 9 am ... my 2nd great-nephew (he’s #4 - 2 great-nieces & 1 great-nephew already) was trying to make his appearance. That sort of took over the day ... couldn’t do a darn thing. I did ferry the folks around on some errands, dad in the am, mom in the afternoon, with my phone close at hand. Somewhere between 5 & 5:30, he arrived! He’s looking good - as my SIL said “he’s long, skinny, loud, with big feet”. Nice weight at 7 lbs 8 oz. He does have very long feet & a fantastic set of lungs! Both parents are tall, so he looks like he’s going to be “a long drink of water” as well. He’ll be going home early this evening, assuming all continues to go well - his parents are exhausted (more of that coming in the future for sure!) so hope they got some sleep last night. My nephew’s MIL is here & will be spending the next week to help out.
Temps have been in the 80’s & still some humidity - the cool, crisp Fall breezes aren’t here yet. Rain supposed to move in today, but maybe before it arrives, I can do some of the things I wanted to do yesterday.
I know this thread is non political, but with all the Democrats campaigning, I think I found a use for the rotten tomatoes!
😉
Our guavas drop before ripening. One day they are green, the next day yellow and on the ground found by the squirrels before we get up.
God know what my electrical bill is going to be this month!
We are also under strict water restriction still - but, according to my Water Department, we can still hand water.
There was much-needed rain last night, you would have thought gold coins were falling from the sky after speaking to my neighbors.
I've been in "save" mode for my garden, but I do have some nice pomegranates coming in:
This is a volunteer that came from my neighbors tree, it produces wonderful fruit.
This plumeria seems to love the heat. It's on the outside of my fence, the only one, and I worry that it will be stolen - there is a whole rash of plumeria thefts going on in my neighborhood - dug up right out of the ground!
Good Morning! :-)
I too lost quite a bit to the dry sandy soil in North Carolina.
So I’m putting together a plan to avoid this in the future.
1. Soaker hoses under mulch to stop evaporation.
2. Increasing the compost and humis in the soil to hold more moisture in our sandy soil.
3. Putting several 300 gallon containers on the hill to collect rainwater. We are on municipal water and the water and sewer combined cost is over $17 per thousand gallons. (Sewer is based upon water meter inflow)
4. Building dams and water flow routes in the garden soil to preserve rainwater runoff.
Any additional ideas are welcome.
Nice of you Diana to keep this going. I frequently read, but seldom post. Still something is happening this year. Something new to our garden.
Growth of our garden in most respects have been double the average harvest. We are now just finishing up the canning, but drying and storage continues.
So many tomatoes that the wife started drying them. They are wonderful dried and added to salads. crunchy indeed.
I can’t help but feel that all of these harvests may be very much needed sooner rather than later. Otherwise why would God grant such a thing?
I am wondering, since we definitely have more than bumper crops this year;
How others are fairing this season since harvest is nearly complete. And what locations may be nominal or failing as well. They may help us in preparing for next year.
Will be watching.
[learn how to dry potatoes and tomatoes]
DAndrew / harpolemond
LOL! Yeah, it’s hard to ‘behave’ over here these days. ;)
I am all canned out.
I like canning but have reached the point of looking at the remaining tomatoes in the garden and thinking….. UGH….. Who can I give them to?
I have canned over 30 quarts of sauce and a bunch of half pints of stewed tomatoes.
Adorable!
“How others are fairing this season since harvest is nearly complete...”
Late Breakfast Break!
I, for one, cut back a little on tomatoes (24 plants this year, vs. 36 last year) because I nearly killed myself canning last year, LOL! Last night my right arm hurt so much it woke me up. And, no wonder - days of chopping and turning the Food Mill will do that to ya. And I’m no Spring Chicken anymore!
Green Bean crop was fantastic, with more out there to pick.
Tomatoes produced well, but I did have some blight issues which effected production a little, but not enough to be worrisome. Roma-types outdid themselves compared to other varieties this season.
LOTS of salad greens and spinach in our cool, wet Spring season, so that was nice. Planting more for one more harvest, plus more in the greenhouse which will usually produce for me through November, temperatures and sunshine levels, depending. I also just planted more Sugar Ann and Sugar Magnolia peas for one more crop.
Peppers did OK. I’ve had better years, but I only use them for Salsa and V-8 juice. Shishito Peppers were a new thing for us this year. Loving them. Jalapenos did great, and I’ve made the Best. Poppers. Ever. this season.
I have two HUGE red cabbages (there’s just two of us) that I’m deciding what to do with, and Brussels Sprouts on, but they’ll be a while, yet.
Kale (Prism and Lacinato) always does well and that will last in the garden even after a freeze or two, so I harvest it as I need it out there.
Potted Herbs did great, hanging baskets did really well, especially my $40 baskets that I got for $10 each at Walmart and rejuvenated with TLC And lots of fertilizing. Late-season Zinnia are giving me nice bouquets still and my Dahlia (Walmart cheapies that I started early in the greenhouse) were really something this season!
Fruit trees were the best ever so far. Peaches, Pears, and now Apples. Had a great Grape crop, too. Those have been juiced and are awaiting canning. Apples still need a little time on the tree, though I have used some already.
And now, back to canning...after I rub some Ben Gay on my arm, LOL!
Yesterday (and some of today) was my last round. Made Bloody Mary Mix & another batch of Applesauce.
The rest of the tomatoes are going to be chopped and frozen and I’ll use them in soups and stews and chili this winter. I am sending a box with Beau to Bear Camp this Monday. The guys love that. Also some baked goods and an Apple Pie. ;)
I will have buckets and buckets of apples still to deal with, but I’m getting a little break from that as they’re not all ripe quite yet. Yay!
I am working on ways to be self-sufficient as far as food supply is concerned. This could be a piece of the puzzle - ‘easier’ than meat chickens, IMO. My niece raises meat chickens so I have a very good idea of what it takes. Butchering rabbits is a lot easier.
If raising bun-buns (I had pet rabbits as a teenager) is offensive to you, don’t click - no bad pics, but the topic might bother you.
Podcast, blog post & transcript:
Everything You Need to Know About Raising Rabbits for Meat
https://melissaknorris.com/podcast/raising-rabbits-for-meat/
The same thought has crossed my mind.
I have never seen my garden do so well, but we have had VERY consistent, warm temperatures. It maybe broke 90 once or twice, and the lows have only been below 50-55 a couple times.
It was a bit dry initially, but then we got enough rain to keep things going.
Beau would be VERY willing to do this. Rabbit and Squirrel are WAY down on my ‘meat list.’ I’d eat beans and other proteins first.
I’ve eaten Bobcat, though. Very pork-like, actually.
Buffalo, Raccoon, Alligator and Snake, too.
Beau loves nothing more than a good bowl of Turtle Soup. He’d raise Snappers if it were legal, LOL!
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