June 29, 2010 Summer Vegetable Harvest Begins

Much of the summer crop is starting to ripen!  I've been looking forward to some fresh tomatoes for some time now.  Especially since I was forced to buy some really bland ones a month or two ago in the grocery store.  I'm also trying out the video capabilities with the new iPhone 4 to start uploading the occasional video update.  Early tests (of a really cool clearwing hummingbird moth) were not very HD but they were uploaded straight from the phone, so we'll see what this looks like after processing.

Tomatoes

Yellow Pears.  They are sweet!  Only a few are ripe right now, but there are a ton on the vine

Pink Brandywine.   I wasn't sure if this was fully ripe, but when I looked at the picture it also has a bit of green on the top.  I think I'll have his one with what ever dinner is tonight!

Wild Cherry.  I've been popping these for a few days now every time I walk by and see a bright red one.  Very small fruit even for a cherry tomato, but man are they good! And like the yellow Pear plant, there will be plenty more.

Giant Belgium Pink

Peppers

The other bell peppers are looking pretty decent.   A few medium size peppers per plant.  But below are the highlights for the peppers thus far.

Purple Beauty Peppers.   I have three on the vine that have turned a deep shade of purple.  I still want to give them a few more days to make sure they get as big as possible

 Sweet Italian.    There are two very nice size peppers with several more forming.  I'm looking forward to these the most!

 

Cherry Bomb. There are about two dozen peppers on this one plant.  It's a good think I only planted one hot pepper plant this year!  It always seems like they are way more bountiful than bells or other mild peppers.

The purple bean flowers alone are worth it. 

 

Purple Beans.  I was walking out in the garden not two days ago and there were no beans worth picking.  today however I harvested two large handfuls!  Some of them are almost too big to eat!

Both the Yellow Squash and the Zucchinis are producing fruit now.  We've already had to dust off the Zucchini bread recipe and had a little of both types of squash in the roasted vegetables last night with dinner.  Three of the zucchinis that i picked late last week were WAY to big to eat.  They grow so fast it's hard to keep up with them!

Cucumbers.  The Cucumbers have bounced back after the deer attack.  I pulled my first full size cucumber yesterday and like everything else there are a plenty more on the way.  I have not seen any fruit on the Crystal Apple cucumbers yet.  They have grown quite large and have many flowers ( I think there are a little ones coming soon).

June 13, 2010 After the Honeymoon

The wedding was a whirlwind of good food, good friends, and good beer in two beautiful locations followed by a relaxing few days at the beach. We couldn't have had a better time! Everything was perfect!  Now that were trying to get back to real life (and a full work week starting tomorrow) I spent some time in the garden and now getting a chance to update the blog.

One of our wedding presents was a drip irrigation system from my friend Tom.  He had it all set up, all I had to do was to unfurl the sub-main and add attach the drip line. So the Sunday after the wedding I weeded (it was much needed) and installed the irrigation system.  You can see the system in a couple of the pictures. It couldn't of come at a better time as a few days before the hose was ran over by the tractor making it a huge pain in the ass to water the garden.

Cucumber damage...

Purple and green beans damage...

While we were away the electric fence was left off. I had initially turned on Friday (6/4/10) to make sure none of the nephews zapped themselves. And then with wedding on Saturday and getting ready for the honeymoon at the beach I completly forgot about plugging it back in. Sometime in the last week a deer must have tested the fence, found it off, and then munched on every exposed leaf  hanging on the trellis.  Nothing else was touched, but all the beans and much of the cucumbers on the south side of the trellis were devastated.  I'm guessing that he only came through once because some of the plants have already started sprouting new leaves.  Needless to say, I'm going to be more vigilant about plugging in the fence for the rest of the season.

 

Peppers are looking great!  Although the peppers on the left are much smaller then the plants on the right.  The closest tomato plant near the shortest pepper is the Matt's Wild Cherry plant which has grown well outside the cage.  I'm pretty sure that it is shading out the closest pepper plants despite my best efforts to increase spacing.

Even the smaller pepper plants are already larger than the best plants from last year.  No peppers yet but all the plants have begun to flower.  Each plant has between two and three times as many flowers as last year.  It's a good sign!

 

After not being in the garden for a week I think the greatest difference that I immediately noticed were the tomatoes.  All of the plants have grown significantly and have flowers and green tomatoes. 

 

The first red tomato is on the Matt's Wild Cherry.  Even for cherry tomatoes the fruits on this plant are small, roughly the size of a nickle. I'll give this red one another day or two before I'm going to test it out.

This the big fruit on the Green Zebra plant.  You can already see the stripes forming.

I decided to pull the peas and lettuce today. The lettuce had bolted and tasted pretty bitter. We got quite a bit off of the pea plants and cooked them up for a delicious meal, but the plants have begun to yellow and remaining unpicked pods are better for seeds than for eating at this point.  The timing of the weather this year really messed up my spinach, peas, and lettuce.  That's how it goes I guess!

And finally a couple of cool pics from the garden...

Some bug posing inside a cracked scallion

One of the scallion flowers

May 28, 2010 Mo' Distractions, Mo' Problems

  I've been too busy and distracted to really focus on the garden this week, and again  haven't been posting.  This sporadic schedule will likely continue until a week or two after the wedding....

The weather since the last post has been typical late Spring weather: a few days of rain followed by consecutive warm/hot days.   I finally made it out to the garden this past weekend to weed, mow, and take stock of what's doing. So much change in such a short period of time! Take a look at the field, it has grown well beyond the point of being able to walk through it- even the deer are hard to spot these days

Yesterday we had  a really nasty thunderstorm roll through that just missed us. I get excited watching the big red cells on the radar barreling down on us only for the damn storm to blow just to the east.  It happens every time!! All round us were the lighting and heavy rains, but we only actually got about 20 minutes of mild rain.

Well I've missed quite a bit (pics from Sunday May 23rd):

The spinach bolted before I could use any of it. I harvested one plant for some sandwiches and the rest bolted in 5 days.

The peas all of a sudden are six feet tall and beginning to yield.

The beans are all well established and starting to climb the trellis.  Even the cucumbers are starting to show signs of looking healthy - I bet they're triple in size next week!

The first tomatoes are on the vine.

The squash plants tripled in size.

Peppers are looking good, but haven't grown explosively like the rest of the garden.

May 15, 2010 Overdue Update

I liked this view over the black berry bushes in full bloom!

It's been a few weeks since my last update and quite a bit has changed.  We've been busy with work, finishing arrangements for the wedding, and watching the Flyers dominate the Eastern Division!  In between I've been keeping  up with the garden but I've not been able to find the time to document it as often as I would like... so here's an update:

With the exception of this weekend there has been a number of cool days and colder nights over the last two weeks. This has been good for the leafy veggies and the peas, but the cucumbers and one of the peppers look a bit stressed.  Here's a wide shot of the spring crops. 

Here's a couple of the French Breakfast Radishes right out of the garden.  I like radishes in general, but this variety is fantastic.  There a bit more mild in bite than a traditional radish, but have great flavor, color, and texture.  I think this is going to be my go to radish in future years.  I liked them so much I planted a second row!

The peas are looking amazing! They are much bushier this year and have grown taller than last year.  I can't tell if it's the difference in seeds, or the weather has been cooler this Spring.  Either way they are all flowering and look super healthy. 

The lettuce is also benefiting from the cooler weather.  In just a week they nearly doubled in size.  I've picked a few leaves here and there to try them out and they're pretty good.  The Deer Tongue is a little bitter, but has a pleasant taste.  I think that this week I'll be able to throw all them together in a salad.  I planted a new row of each variety to ensure that they keep coming up when I need them.

Not much new with the tomatoes.  They're slowly getting bigger, but the cooler temperatures have kept them from exploding.  I finished adding the remaining stakes and placed a cage over all of the plants.  They're just waiting for the summer to show...

The peppers are about as good as the tomatoes.  They're slowly growing and are looking good enough.  The King Arthur variety have a few leaves that looked a bit stressed but all in all they're in good shape. 

The squash are looking pretty good.  The cold weather turned one leaf on each plant black. I was a bit worried at first, but they've grown several new leaves to replace dead.  Since the cold nights they've looked fantastic and are steadily growing!

Cucumbers are looking ratty.  I'm hoping they're just off to a slow start with the weather, but I'm getting a little nervous.  I seeded several of them in peat pots and transplanted them.  A few days later it got down to the mid 30's.  I covered them the first night but a few days later it got down to the upper 30's at night and I let them be.  I seeded some additional plants to replace the ones that looked real bad.  So far they've mostly sprouted but they don't look as good as last year.

From here on out it's suppose to be warm, so I'm hoping my troubles with the cold nights are behind me!

May 2, 2010 After the Market, All the Plants are In

It was a hot day for the opening of the West Chester's Grower's Market yesterday, but that didn't stop it from being BUSY.  We got there before 11am and there was still able to get everything I needed.  There were only a two stand selling vegetables seedlings, although there were two or three more selling herbs.  I got nearly everything from my go to guy.  His basil plants are what got me started gardening on my fire escape just after college.

I ended up getting 8 tomato plants, 6 peppers, a yellow squash, and a zucchini plant.  The garden plan only called for seven tomatoes but I couldn't make up my mind between the crazy varieties he had available.  After seeing them in the ground there will be no problem with adding another plant.  All of the plants are spaced out quite well and have marigolds between all the plants.  I shouldn't run into any of the crowding issues from last year. 

I do have some space behind the cucumbers that I originally intended to put one or two eggplants in.  But I might balk on that and add a couple more peppers.  The annex is so over grown, it may end up going fallow this year.  I'd like to pull it up to make room for another squash plant, but I'm not sure I'll get to that this year.


So here are the tomatoes that I purchased:

Amish Paste

"Very productive heirloom from Wisconsin that produces up to 12 oz, deep-red oxheart-shaped, meaty fruit. (Probably one of the largest paste tomatoes) Lots of sweet, tomatoey flavors from this coreless meaty fruit. A great slicing and sauce tomato."  [source]

Yellow Pear

"These organic tomato seeds produce huge, bushy plants that yield very large quantities of 1 oz., 1 1/2-inch, bright yellow, pear-shaped cherry tomatoes that will give you fruit until frost. The tomatoes of this yellow pear tomato variety are zesty sweet and delicious. A beautiful salad or snackin' tomato. If you are growing several colors of cherry tomatoes include this one. A great tomato choice for a patio or planter garden. A good producer even in cooler coastal regions." [source]

Black Krim -  (aka Black Crimson and Black Crim):

"Originally from the Isle of Krim on the Black Sea in the former Soviet Union. This rare, and outstanding tomato yields 3-4" slightly flattened dark-red (mahogany-colored) slightly maroon, beefsteak tomatoes with deep green shoulders. Green gel around seeds. Fantastic, intense, slightly salty taste (which is great for those not wanting to add salt to their tomatoes)." [source]
 

Pink Brandywine

"Plant produces good yields of 1 to 2 lb pinkish red beefsteak tomatoes. Tomatoes have rich tomato flavor and pinkish red when matture. This variety won several taste testing awards and is one of the best tasting tomatoes in the world. An Amish heirloom variety from the USA dating back to 1885." [source]

Giant Belgium Pink

"The 'Giant Belgian Pink' Heirloom Tomato Plant has huge, sweet fruits that average 1 to 2 pounds and have weighed in at almost 5 pounds! It was one of last season’s most popular heirloom varieties. Each pot contains 1 tomato plant. Giant Belgian Pink Heirloom Tomato’s dark pink fruits feature a smooth blossom end, with a low-acid, mild flavor, so sweet that they’ve been used in winemaking. It has solid meat and hefty size, excellent for sandwich slices." [source]

Cherokee Purple

"The Cherokee Purple was rediscovered by tomato grower Craig LeHoullier.  LeHoullier claimed that it was more than 100 years old, originated with the Cherokee people. The Cherokee Purple tomato has a unique dusty rose color.  The flavor of the tomato is extremely sweet with a rich smoky taste. The Cherokee Purple has a refreshing acid, is watery, thick-skinned and earthy with a lingering flavor.  The Cherokee Purple plants are very prolific making this plant a good heirloom for gardeners and farmers." [source]

Green Zebra

"Developed in 1985 by tomato breeder Tom Wagner, this is an unusual and exquisite green tomato chosen by Alice Waters for her restaurant, Chez Panisse, in Berkeley, California. The 2-inch round fruit ripens to a yellow-gold with dark-green zebra-like stripes. The flesh is lime-emerald in color that has an invigorating lemon-lime flavor. A great green tomato for brightening up salads and other tomato dishes.  Try our Green Zebra Tomato Seeds for your tomato garden and enjoy a wonderful addition of color to your salads and sauces."  [source]

Matt's Wild Cherry

"These small cherry tomatoes are packed with more taste than you can believe. 5/8- 3/4", deep red, round fruits have a tender, smooth texture, and loads of sweet, full flavor. High sugar content (11º Brix). Though the taste is superior, it doesn't yield well and the fruits are soft, so grow on a trial scale at first. Teresa Arellanos de Mena, a friend of former Univ. of Maine AG faculty members Drs. Laura Merrick and Matt Liebman, brought seeds to Maine from her family's home state of Hidalgo in Eastern Mexico. It's the region of domestication of tomatoes, and where these grow wild. Matt gave us the seeds." [source]



And the Pepper Plants:

Early Sunsation 

A great early pepper. Early Sunsation pepper produces large, smooth fruit that mature from dark green to bright golden-yellow at full maturity. Combine this with good tolerance to bacterial leaf spot and you could have the perfect golden pepper variety. The blocky shaped fruit have thick walls and a very sweet taste when left to ripen yellow. [source]

Purple Beauty

Plant produces good yields of 3" long by 3" wide sweet purple bell peppers. Peppers have thick walls and turn from green to purple when mature. Excellent for salads, stuffing, and gourmet dishes [source]
 

Sweet Italian

The Italian red peppers grow to a length of six to eight inches.  They are wonderful eaten raw in strips or in salads.  In our opinion, they are better tasting than the red bell peppers.  The red Italian pepper adds color to many cooked recipes, but we believe that cooking them is a waste of their wonderful raw flavor.  Select Italian red peppers that are firm and free of blemishes and wrinkles.

King Arthur

This hybrid produces a quality blocky shaped, 3-4 lobed sweet bell pepper that matures green to red, and has excellent yield potential. The jumbo 5 inch fruit have medium-early maturity. This dwarf variety is quite early for having such large fruit. Maturity 65-70 days from transplanting. Approximately 25 seeds/package. [source]

Red Knight

Throughout the Northeast and Midwest, growers are reporting good yields of large, thick-walled fruit on X3R Red Night. Maturing in the mid-early slot are high quality, blocky bell fruit that measure 4½ in. W x 4½ in. L. The shiny, attractive fruit ripen from a dark green to an intense red color.

 

Cherry Bomb TMV

Heirloom/Open-Pollinated. Red Cherry Bomb is an old-fashioned heirloom favorite that has a nice, 1-1/2 to 2" round shape. It is not very hot when dark green, but fiery when it fully matures to red.  It can be used fresh, dried, or pickled, but I really like to use it in salsa! This is a particularly easy-to-grow variety, and a great choice for the home gardener. 2500-5000 Scoville Units [source]