Gardens 2021

[user 7704]

My green beans are starting to look bad. Grasshoppers I believe. I'm getting lots of seed beans though.

 

[Brianna]

My butterfly pea vine has taken over. We're dehydrating the flowers to use in sticky rice, and for that weird blue tea. I've got plenty of seed pods already. Plan to restart the vine on my fence, where it can grow as much as it wants.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Yesterday the wife was out working in the garden. She called me over to see something. On top of one of her raised beds was a pile of guts. Looked about snowshoe rabbit size. There wasn't any fur or tracks around. Most predators eat guts and all. Maybe it was an owl?

 

[GaRp58]

While picking tomatos a few days ago, the wife yelled: RAT! and pointed at a stack of firewood. I did not see anything but found a large hole that was not there before...set a rat trap and loaded it with some bacon. It has been sprung 5 times since but never with anything in it. Maybe time for a bit of diesel and a slow grill party in the hole?? Wait for it to pop up from another hole...
Pumkins, potatos and carrots are still growing. Eggplants are twice the size of softballs and the 7 ft tall sunflowers are slowly being picked clean by the birds who found out the seeds were ripe...it is fun to watch them hanging upside down and eating.
Best friend from Germay is driving the 1000 kilometers/600 mile trip and is coming today to visit for the first time, plans to stay a few days and get drunk on moonshine and homemade wine...yee-haa. Live free, Gary

 

[Dracos]

A while back we found an Owl in the chicken house. It had killed many chickens. It only ate the heads and gizzards. We caught him in a fish net and took him for a long drive. When we came back he was in the chicken house committing more murders. Took him for a very long drive. Never seen him again.

 

[Mountain trapper]

The garden is just about done. The wife has been drying and dehydrating a lot of vegetables and tomatoes. I've got a ton of hot peppers that I'm drying. We have some blackberries, raspberries and grapes that we need to pick.
Its supposed to get below freezing by Monday with possible snow. I guess thats normal for September.

 

[user 7704]

My little yellow tomatoes are still producing like crazy. The vines are up to 10 feet long.
Every time I go to pick my over abundant okra, I see a few more beans. I planted the same amount of okra as last year, but it is producing so much more than then. Even my neighbors are tired of okra.
Today I see Found enough beans for Friday steak night. I cooked them with squash and potatoes.

 

[GaRp58]

Got so many tomatos we are still giving some away. The last of the potatos are doing well, the eggplants also. Watching the pumpkins grow daily and the birds are enjoying eating the sunflower seeds direct from the plants. Gonna make a big veggie soup tomorrow from only things from the garden and then make a big pot of bean stew for the neighbors and ourselves.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Mid 30's this morning. The garden is about over. The wife dried a bunch of tomatoes and other things. I’ve been making a lot of hot pepper sauce.
Still have some apples, plums and blackberries to pick. Got a few grapes and raspberries coming on.
Later this fall I'm going to pull out all the fencing around the garden/orchard area and replace it with an 8' high fence. Also going to move the garden in with the orchard and all in steel raised beds. That way the garden gets watered when we water the fruit trees. Should save us a lot of fuel. We'll move most of the herbs and strawberries up by the house too.

 

[user 7704]

Called my 96 year old neighbor that I always give stuff to and he said he wanted morenokra. Then he asked if I have any of the delicious little yellow tomatoes. I'm getting over 20 of those daily along with a few red ones.

 

[user 7704]

Mid 30's this morning. The garden is about over. The wife dried a bunch of tomatoes and other things. I’ve been making a lot of hot pepper sauce.
Still have some apples, plums and blackberries to pick. Got a few grapes and raspberries coming on.
Later this fall I'm going to pull out all the fencing around the garden/orchard area and replace it with an 8' high fence. Also going to move the garden in with the orchard and all in steel raised beds. That way the garden gets watered when we water the fruit trees. Should save us a lot of fuel. We'll move most of the herbs and strawberries up by the house too.

I am dehydrating some tomatoes now. Add some garlic salt and my son is in heaven.

 

[Amish Heart]

I'm stick getting a bucket full of heirloom red cherry tomatoes each day, so the dehydrator is running all the time. I cut them in half. Peppers. Tons of hot peppers.
I got my stock tanks ready to seed green beans tomorrow. Also filled 10 large pots in the greenhouse to seed lettuce and spinach.

 

[user 7704]

I'm stick getting a bucket full of heirloom red cherry tomatoes each day, so the dehydrator is running all the time. I cut them in half. Peppers. Tons of hot peppers.
I got my stock tanks ready to seed green beans tomorrow. Also filled 10 large pots in the greenhouse to seed lettuce and spinach.

I squeeze out all od the juice and seeds, warm it, add salt a drink. Love hot tomatoes.

 

[user 7704]

I squeeze out all od the juice and seeds, warm it, add salt a drink. Love hot tomatoes.

I meant before dehydrating the tomatoes.

 

[GaRp58]

I'm stick getting a bucket full of heirloom red cherry tomatoes each day, so the dehydrator is running all the time.

Great idea, forgot the dehydrator I inherited from my son after he got larger one for making his beef jerky...gonna dry some tomatos in the coming days.
I could use some tips of storage and usage tho, thanks for any tips, Gary

 

[EastenerWesterner]

This year because of drought, we have been planning a revamped set of beds. The 3 4x12 raised beds were just to large for my small statured wife to deal with.
I reorganized it to 30 in deep U shaped around the fenced area. Just have to sink a couple gate posts and finish the fencing on that one side.
i expect it to be pretty good next year. The Crap dirt I have to work with is 50/50 with pony poop for a year.
I do expect putting in another drip system next year.

 

[Amish Heart]

Dried tomato storage....i put them in a gallon ziplock, them put them in a number 10 can with a lid.
You can grind it up for tomato powder. Tomato powder can be used to make tomato paste or tomato sauce, depending on how much water you add. Or you can pop pieces of dried tomato in soups or stews and they will rehydrate. Or you can eat them dried.

 

[GaRp58]

Thanx lady!

 

[Mountain trapper]

My wife dehydrated a lot of tomatoes over the last few days. We picked a 5 gal bucket of hot peppers yesterday that I'm going to cut up and dry.
The weather has turned cold so our garden is done. We pulled everything out and fed it to the cattle.

 

[Amish Heart]

We still have hot weather, so the tomatoes and peppers are still growing strong, and the marigold perimeter is still in bloom. Have seeded more green beans, beets, and carrots. Will get to the lettuce and spinach soon.

 

[Dracos]

I built the first fire as it is freezing at night. The garden is done outside the greenhouse. Still getting a few greenhouse tomatoes. Lots of canning to do. UPS driver said one of my apricot trees was scratching his truck so I cut some branches off. I'm going to see how it works for smoking. Just heard that Idaho hospitals were full of covid patients and that they were sending them to Spokane, Washington.

 

[Amish Heart]

I was just thinking we need some cooler weather. It's 90 out right now, and I know it's going to be hot having supper at my cousin's house in a few hours. No electricity there, but they do have some fans.

 

[Mountain trapper]

First frost today. Gardens done. Yesterdays high was 48 degs.

 

[user 7704]

I finally found the name of the weed that has been terrorizing me for 3 years.

"Mulberry Weed" or hairy crab weed. I've been researching and it is one invasive monster. Since I can't use herbicides, that makes it worse. It's not a once in the Spring growth either. It can reseed 3 or 4 times per season. Composting doesn't work either.

 

[user 7704]

 

[GeorgiaPeachie]

Planted some fall greens last week. Here is a container with Dwarf Kale, Siberian Kale and Swiss Chard. Grow little babies grow!

This raised bed has Arugula, Spinach (which needs reseeded, and Romaine lettuce. I have some thinning out to do!

 

[Weedygarden]

I was just thinking we need some cooler weather. It's 90 out right now, and I know it's going to be hot having supper at my cousin's house in a few hours. No electricity there, but they do have some fans.

How are those fans powered? Solar? Battery?

 

[DrHenley]

It'd be nice to have these "powered" models,

But they are probably more like this model:

 

[Amish Heart]

Powered with Miller Tech (car like) batteries. They are charged in the wash house, about four at a time. Solar panels on the wash house roof. We have the same set up at our place. Large and small stand up fans that run off of these are sold at our hardware store for the amish here. They are handy. We have a Miller Tech in our bedroom for when the power goes out, can still run husband's bi pap machine. Had to use it a few weeks ago. Beware, though, check your med equipment first before doing this because it might need something special. We had to get something for the bipap....med equipment is made to be particular, I think on purpose.

 

[GeorgiaPeachie]

Today got all my started Broccoli, Cauliflower, Collard Greens and Brussels Sprouts replanted in large pots in the Greenhouse. Cleaned up the Greenhouse and reorganized a bit. Put the warming mats down, but not plugged in. Am going to buy another mat so I have them under all the plants.

Has anyone over wintered Lemon Trees? I bought 2 in the spring. They have done well. Even got a few lemons! But I don’t know how to keep them alive during the winter. One article I read said to trim them back, put warm string lights on them, then cover with a plastic growing cover. Does anyone know if that works? I do keep the greenhouse heated a bit during the winter. I’m in zone 7, so it isn’t all that cold normally.