ex gardens

It’s time for Harvest Monday, where gardeners from all over celebrate all things harvest related. The harvests are still looking summer-like here, and things are hanging in there despite the fact it has been about six weeks since we had any real rain here. At least it has gotten cooler, and it is more enjoyable working out in the garden. I’m getting plenty of eggplant for us to eat, and lots of hot peppers for making hot sauce. hot peppers and eggplant One morning last week I got quite a few of the Chef’s Choice Red tomatoes and a mix of hot peppers. Sweetie Pie has been giving us sweet mini-bells too, which have a great flavor. tomatoes and peppers It’s my first time growing the Arriba jalapeno hot peppers. The fruits mature from pale yellow to orange and then red. My first tasting of these had me running for something to put the fire out, so I would rate them as being a bit hotter than the other jalapenos I grow. They wound up fermenting with other peppers for a batch of mixe...

It’s time for Harvest Monday, where gardeners from all over celebrate all things harvest related. The weather has cooled off to more seasonable temperatures, but we arestill lacking any rain. It has been over a month now since we’ve had more than a few drops, and I have started irrigating the vegetable garden with soaker hoses. The harvests look about the same, except the cucumbers are done for. I got tomatoes, eggplant, and hot peppers galore though, and we are surely enjoying them. August Harvest The Honey Bee and Queen Bee tomato plants are still producing, and have done quite well for me in their first outing this year. morning harvest I’m getting a mix of hot peppers, and fermenting them to go in hot sauce. Made like this, every batch has a different flavor and heat level, but all are tasty to me. I’ve bottled up two bottles and a partial one, and plan to start another batch fermenting today. hot pepper mix fermented hot sauces It has been a good year for eggplant s...

It’s time for Harvest Monday, where gardeners from all over celebrate all things harvest related. It’s still hot and dry here, but the garden continues to keep us supplied with goodies for eating. Last week I got what will be the last of the greenhouse cucumbers. We’ve had a good run of them, but I will surely miss the ones I grow. I also got more of the Aji Colorado pepper that I dry and make into chile powder, plus some Fairy Tale and Gretel eggplants. August harvest It won’t be a good year for tomatoes however, but I did get more slicers and enough of the paste types to make another small batch of tomato sauce for the freezer. We’ve gotten 36 pounds so far this year, while we got 100 pounds last year and a whopping 185 pounds in 2023. tomato harvest Beefy Purple is a new variety of tomato I’m trialing this year. It comes from the same breeders (A.P. Whaley Seed Company and Frogsleap Farm) that bred AAS Winners like Purple Zebra, Sparky and Sunset Torch.  It and Purple Ze...

It’s time for Harvest Monday, where gardeners from all over celebrate all things harvest related. The weather has been relentlessly hot and dry here lately, and the vegetables are suffering as a result. I did manage to bring in a decent amount of tomatoes last week, though small compared to the number of plants I have set out. I also got another picking of hot peppers, and I will start a batch of hot sauce with these. I’ve only been harvesting every two or three days, and doing that early in the morning before it heats up outside. August harvest I’ve been growing the Benevento tomato for several years now, and it is a favorite for flavor even if it is sometimes a shy producer. I used it for a BLAT (bacon, lettuce, avocado and tomato) sandwich I had for lunch one day last week. Benevento tomato BLAT sandwich Other harvests last week brought in a few eggplants and cucumbers, plus more of the Queen Bee and Honey Bee tomatoes. eggplant and Bee tomatoes We had lunch one day o...

It’s time for Harvest Monday, where gardeners from all over celebrate all things harvest related. It’s hard to believe it is August already, but that’s what the calendar says. Our harvests say it is summer time though, and last week I got a nice haul of eggplant, tomatoes and enough hot peppers to start a batch of hot sauce. morning harvest The tomatoes are of mixed quality, with some bad spots on the larger ones. Damsel is usually  a good performer for me here, and I also got fruit from Pink Delicious, Purple Zebra, and Garden Treasure. The smaller ones are a mix of Cherry Bomb and Sunpeach which also do well for me. tomato harvest Damsel tomato We have been enjoying Queen Bee and Honey Bee from my trial planting. Both have been quite tasty, and I have been enjoying them sliced as a side dish. I think they will likely be back in next year’s garden based on what I’ve seen (and tasted) so far. Queen Bee(top) and Honey Bee(bottom) tomatoes Honey Bee and Queen Bee toma...