Garden Surprises

Found lots of great things in the garden this last walkthrough. A volunteer cucumber plant, jalapeno pepper, and two roma tomatoes. Chopped up the pepper and had it in our eggs this morning. Moderately hot and yummy!

Growing Good

What weather we are having here in central Indiana. The springs are more unusual by the year. It is raining at least three times per week and the temperature fluctuates from 90s one day to high 60s the next. Most people I know are sick of the rain, and I was too until I was able to plant the garden. Now, I say bring it on!

The Cherokee Purple is out of control. In fact, I did some heavy handed pruning today. It is the only one with a tomato growing. No, the Early Girl has one, too, but it's still in its infancy. I am excited to see the Black Krim doing well. Two years ago I tried a Black Krim and something ate it down to the soil line and it never recovered. The Roma is bushy with flower buds and the Pink Brandywine has two large buds. The poor German Queen was growing sideways and when I tried to stand her up, I heard a crack in the stalk. Forunately, it had another, smaller, stem growing out of the soil so perhaps that will take off.

Cherokee Purple
Pink Brandywine
German Queen

The peppers all look great for the most part. It looks as though birds are trying to eat the leaves. There are long tear marks in some of them. There are flowers on most and a few fruits starting to grow on the green bell. The melon has several flowers, most of which appear to be male at the point. Rosemary, thyme, and parsley are holding their own. Cilantro bolted immediately and my son finished it off when he ripped it out of the soil. *sigh* Three year olds. At least he didn't pick my tomato.

Melon

Progress in the Garden

In years past, we had a tilled area for the garden(roughly 15'x15'). I made makeshift rows or planted in patches. Weeds inevitably took control of the garden and the crowded plants were a jungle. This led to a jaded temperament on my behalf and failure in the garden. This year, we changed it up. We sectioned the garden off into four quadrants and boxed them in as raised beds measuring 6'x6', leaving a 2' walkway in between. Compost will be added regularly in order to build up the soil level. Once the soil reaches the tops of the board, I envision adding another board to really make some raised beds (and save my back)! Eventually, I'll add mulch or hay to the walking paths and perhaps a little picket fence around the garden.

Everything was bought from the store this year. I had too many time constraints with the pregnancy and delivering to focus on starting them all from seed. I am finding the 6x6 to be a bit large, having a slightly difficult time maneuvering around. That is why you see big empty spaces in the middle, which I am not happy about. I did have a zucchini planted with the melon, but something ate it. I want to give the melon plenty if room, so maybe I'll save that space for planting garlic in the fall. Any suggestions are appreciated.

Below are pictures of what I have planted for this year. Like I've said before, we are focusing on a "salsa" garden. Although, the cilantro bolted the day after I planted it. I lost the ID card for the melon, but it promised a bumper crop.

C'mon Big Red!

I'm so proud I was able to accomplish everything on my list over the weekend. Well, truth be told I didn't go fishing. None of us did for fear of the brutal thunderstorms looming on the radar. The only fishing I did that night was fertilize the tomatoes with fish emulsion. As expected with Indiana weather, the rest of the night turned out to be beautiful with nary a raindrop fall.

I only transplanted six of the tomatoes: Matt's Wild Cherry, Green Doctors, Depp's Pink Firefly, Indian Stripe, Kellogg's Breakfast, and Big Beef. They survived a week's worth of hardening off, along with all six of the Odessa Market bell peppers. The problem lies with the others. Not only their leaves but the stems were damaged during hardening off. I left them outside overnight and perhaps watered too infrequently while I was away from home. One is an Indiana Red that I've been anxiously waiting to grow out and taste. Here are a few pictures of the damage.







There are a few developing suckers (one which you can see well in the last photo) that I will grow out to help it develop foliage and better roots. Maybe it's salvageable?

The tomatoes weren't the only plants affected. While the bell peppers have tolerated my negligence with grace, the hot peppers have been a bit nasty. The white habaneros dropped all but four of their leaves and the black pearl has been turning, well, almost purplish-black. They are now back under the lights following a good dose of fish emulsion. Not a one has died and all are sprouting new leaves.

Hairy Legs & Fireflies

Close-up of the Indiana Red. She's a hairy one! The others have fuzz, but not like this. Wonder if it means anything?




One tomato plant is not like the others. The Depp's Pink Firefly has a very different leaf formation. I'm guessing it's a potato-leaf variety.

1st Tomato Sprout

Kellogg's Breakfast, 4 days

Decisions submissions

It's about that time. Yup, time to order my seeds for the new year. I've been scouting, circling, pondering. How many tomatoes? Where to put the mesculn mix? Potatoes: yes or no?

I have made a few finite decisions. The layout of the garden will be in quadrants with the fence remaining on the east side of the garden. And, I will improve my seed starting setup with more shelves, better lighting, and better starting mix. That's where it ends, allowing indecision to take hold.

Tomatoes

No more than 8-10 plants. Last year I had at least 12 and it was crowded. They will be planted on the north side of the garden to prevent shading. The garden is
15'x15'. I'll plant two staggered rows. Along with the tomatoes, I'll plant the peppers, basil, and possibly carrots.

Now what varieties? I will keep my hybrid: Big Beef Beefsteak. It was prolific an decent tasting. I might go back to the Super Sweet 100s as my cherry. I grew Black Cherry last year and although they tasted really good, it wasn't a heavy producer and split a lot. I have seeds for Indian Stripe and Granny Cantrell. I think I'll buy Costoluto Genovese and Depp's Pink Firefly.

Peppers

I want to grow four sweet pepper, a few jalepeno peppers, and one or two hot peppers. I need to decide soon. Varieties include: King of the North and Odessa Market (sweet peppers). For the hot ones, probably the Black Pearl and White Habanero I tried to grow last year, plus a jalepeno variety. These should be started indoors 8-10 weeks before last frost. That means I need to be ready by February 23rd, 10 weeks before my last frost date of May 4.

Carrots

I want to use a different kind this year. Last year's Royal Chantenay were nice, but had a big inner core which tasted very earthy/woody the longer it stayed in the ground. St. Valery from Baker's Creek looks good to me.

Peas

I'm sure I'll be able to get a good spring start on the garden this year, weather always permitting. I'll try out the Lincoln Garden pea.

Greens

I really want to expand this area of the garden. I'll continue with the Rainbow Chard and Jericho Romaine. I want to add a Mesculn Mix and Spinach.


Those are the big decisions I need to make. Throw in there cukes, beans and maybe a squash plant. Add a dash of potatoes and eggplant plus a hint of herbs and I may have a complete garden.

Proof: 2009 veggies DO exist!

Yes, I realize I failed to keep this blog updated this past gardening season...I promise to be better about it this year. Sometimes a girl needs a little attitude adjustment. Pictures were being taken all the while, so there is proof I did more than plant seeds. I had a few harvests of tomatoes, lots of cucumbers and a big bunch of basil, not to mention the beautiful sunflowers all summer long. Enjoy!

Don't call it a comeback!

I've been depressed. Yesterday, I was unsure of my tomato future. Dreams of fat, juicy heirloom sliced tomatoes accompanying my BBQ burger and plans for a multitude of canning in August were vanishing. The three plants (Berkley Tie-Dye, Black Cherry, and Big Beefsteak) were having difficulty transitioning into the real world. Their growth, stunted. Their leaves, attacked by flea beetles. And if that wasn't enough, the plants I put out around Memorial Day had been murdered by the kitty cats. Eaten right down to the core, even my beloved Black Krim. I only had one and there I was, staring at a one inch stem sticking out of the ground. All but one pepper survived, but that one was being eaten by flea beetles. The basil shared the same fate.

I've even been avoiding the garden. There is an overrun of weeds growing in my tiny little aisles. Silly me for throwing the remnants of hand weeding in the aisles, thinking they would mulch down. So I went out there today, needing to hill up my blossoming potatoes, and saw the Big Beefsteak looking vibrant and bushy(er). I had to run over and check it out.

There I found not only the Beefsteak so happy, but also the Berkley. The Black Cherry has new green leaves, saying a big F-U to those stupid flea beetles. Ha! The peppers are back and so is the basil. Then, I saw the greatest thing ever. My Black Krim - ALIVE. Growing. And creating a volunteer plant???? Could a second Black Krim be emerging before my very eyes? (crossing my fingers and hoping hoping hoping!!) Tell me what you think.




Bonus picture of the Black Cherry


What a great day :)

Roughing the storm

The garden has been coming along very nicely. On Mother's Day, we (my husband, really) constructed the tomato support (cedar studs and pvc pipe) and a hog fence trellis for the cucumbers and beans. We then ran the soaker hose from the rain barrel along the beds. We were about 4' short, but short where the soil stays fairly wet and has more shade.

The Brussels sprouts and broccoli are noticeably larger. The broccoli still hasn't put on any big leaves or a bud. I'm concerned the summer heat will set in before they have a chance to produce. There are also about 15 clusters of potato leaves. I kinda-sorta half-assed hilled some soil around the stems. It's not nearly enough as I only started about 4" deep. I need to go buy soil and completely cover the plants. Hopefully this weekend.




Carrots have been springing up in their crooked little rows over the past few days. I went out there to thin them. What a job! I made it through about half a row before I gave up. There are too many. Sounds like my Saturday morning is filling up.




I had a dilemma Monday: Should I plant a few tomatoes or wait until after the days of rain headed our way. I took a chance and planted three of the tallest: Big Beef Beefsteak (hybrid), Berkley Tie-Dye (heirloom), and Black Cherry (heirloom). Today, big storms moved through the area, whipping the wind and pounding the ground with rain. I sure hope those little guys make it.

Progress

Last time I mentioned the garden I was a little disgruntled. My spirit has been lifted the past few days. The weather has been warm, although extremely windy. It's a strange combination. It's as if a storm will break out any moment, then it stops suddenly and you begin to feel the sun bear down on your skin. This nice break in weather has given me an opportunity to be out in the garden. I've removed dead leaves, I've watered, I've loosened soil, I've reseeded, and I've planted.

Out of the original 16 tomato plants I seeded, only half remain. My lack of careful watering during those crucial sunny days a week ago cost me dearly. All of the Opalka and Husky Gold tomatoes withered and died. I've reseeded roughly 10 new plants, including two new varieties: Pork Chop and Granny Cantrell. Here are pictures of some of the survivors:



All of my hot peppers bit the dust as well. I reseeded some of the Hot Pepper Mix as well as some very hot peppers from a friend of ours: Black Pear, Yellow Mushroom, and White Habanero. I don't have anymore jalepeno seeds. Hopefully I'll get some out of the Hot Pepper Mix. I couldn't differentiate between the seeds in the packet.

Out in the garden today, I stripped the plants of withered and dead leaves. Almost all of the original leaves I set the plants out with have died, mostly by breaking (we've had some pretty strong winds lately). Fortunately, almost all of them had serious new growth. Even the dill has put on it's true leaves and I've found new parsley. I dug out a 5' by 3' section of a bed to plant potatoes. I dug down as far as I could, planted the seed potatoes "chits" up, and covered with about 3" of soil. On the other side of the bed, I made roughly four 48" rows and planted carrots, loosely covering them with soil. After I cover the potatoes again, I'll most likely plant some radishes or beets in the center section of the bed. I also directly sowed lettuce in the planters.

Sweet Matina Butterhead

Jericho Romaine Lettuce

Diablo Brussels Sprouts

Red Seed Potatoes

Tomorrow my husband I put together the watering system.

Too much of a good thing

The weather was perfect yesterday and again today. High 60s, blue skies, and lots of sunshine. I set out all the seedlings yesterday to let them soak it all up and harden off a bit. When I brought them in last night, the tomatoes (which have been radiant and green) were leaning with a slight wilt to the leaves. This morning they looked good and ready for more bright sunshine. By the time I was ready to transplant them into bigger containers, they looked pathetic: leaves turning yellow, wilted and leggy. I went ahead and transplanted them all, except two Opalka seedlings. Hopefully a night in the house with some fresh soil will amend their problems. I also noticed some (for lack of a better word) fuzziness on the bottom of the peat pellets. Maybe I overwatered them, overfertilized? I've been using fish emulsion, very dilute. I've noticed the same fuzziness on the inside of the cap before. I don't really know. I hope they survive. Otherwise I'll have a very late start to the season.

I made two beds in the garden today. They are roughly three feet wide. I planted the Brussels sprouts and broccoli in one. I wanted to put the potatoes in the ground, but I ran out of energy and time.

The lettuce I planted on the side of the house is looking rough, too. I'm becoming very discouraged.

Barefoot Blogger: Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts

Today's recipe was chosen by Anne of Anne Strawberry. Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts. Seriously. How could this be bad?

Recipe can be found here.

A quick read-through of the ingredients had me cringing. I've never, ever used puff pastry. I've always wanted to, but never had the gumption to give it a try. Ina makes it look so easy. But then again, she makes everything look simple.

I assembled all my ingredients at the store yesterday. I picked up pre-shredded parmesan (I know!) and pre-crumbled goat cheese while also skipping the basil for cost savings. I thought of using sun-dried tomatoes as tomato season is still a few months away, but I went ahead and bought a grocery store-style cardboard tomato to stay true to the recipe.

The onions cooked down perfectly.

(I'm writing this while they are baking in the oven. The smell drove me to check on them - oohh my! Lovely little golden brown tarts. I can hardly stand the seven minute wait!)

The puff pastry took a little patience to work with. I attempted rolling it out to the 11" square Ina insisted on, but it was sticking and I didn't want to ruin it as it already had holes from the folds. I made the circles using a small bowl as my template. The rest of the assembly went without a hitch.



Results: YUM! The flavors are perfect. I only used one large onion and felt there were more than enough onions on each tart. The pastry was flaky and the goat cheese slightly melted into the onions. I want these flavors on an entire pizza pie! I do think substituting sun-dried tomatoes until my heirloom tomatoes are ready to be picked out of my garden would be an acceptable substitution and wouldn't affect the flavor at all, perhaps even enhance it. I found the sliced tomato to be a little too wet for the crispy pastry. Maybe I'll roast the summer tomatoes before placing them on top. Now, what to do with all that leftover puff pastry?



Final Grade: A

So many tomatoes, so little space

What is a gardener to do? I know I only have room for roughly 10-12 tomato plants. I have some seeds from last year, but I know I would like to purchase a few new varieties.

What will yield the most yet taste the best? I've heard the coveted Brandywine tomato will set only one or two fruits in a season. If I had more space, I would give up one of my precious spots. I don't see that happening this year. So what else? Celebrity? Beefsteak? What about plum tomatoes for tomato sauce?

1 cherry tomato
2-3 heirloom
3-4 main crop
3-4 plum/paste

What I have on hand:

Husky Gold
Super Sweet 100s
Sweet Cluster

What would I like to buy:

From John Scheepers

#4285 San Marzano 2 Plum Tomatoes: 80-90 days
Originating in the volcanic fields near Mount Vesuvius, this acclaimed variety comes to us from the foremost Italian seed house. Known as the best cooking tomato in the world, we can not sing its praises loudly enough. San Marsano 2 is disease-resistant and grows in bunches of five to six, large fruits on indeterminate vines, ripening to a brilliant red with lustrous green shoulders. Producing over a long period of time, the crack-resistant fruit holds well on the vine. San Marzano 2 has a wonderful, delicate taste and a solid, meaty texture and is easy to use in the kitchen. It has an elongated, plum-shape, only two, small seed pockets that are easily scooped out and an easy-to-peel skin. San Marzano 2’s high sugar content helps create its big tomato taste and rich consistency. You had better plant loads since you will want to make vats of herbed tomato sauce for coveted use throughout the year. It is the only plum tomato that great Italian chefs use in their prized recipes. It will soon be your exclusive choice too. (VF) (OP.)

From The Cook's Garden

Tomato Matina (pictured above, from Cook's Garden)
Our Best Selling Tomato
Medium size German heirloom with great flavor

Heirloom. This tried-and-true heirloom from Germany is one of the few early fruiting kinds that has the kind of flavor normally associated with beefsteak tomatoes. Huge plants, with abundant potato-leaf foliage that is resistant to diseases like Early Blight and protects the fruits from sunscald. The globular red, quarter pound fruits are borne in large clusters and free from the green shoulders often seen on others of this type, such as the Czech heirloom Stupice. Indeterminate.

I have yet to receive Johnny's seed catalog, so I'm sure my final decisions will be modified.