October 25, 2018

Good morning, pretty wild ride for a week and some. Amazing cloudy weather. I was very curious to see what veggies did not like the 31.5-degree chill down. It took a few days of warmer weather but the damage did eventually show. I think what was the biggest surprise were the veggies that it did not affect. Which was everything except okra and sweet potatoes. The two veggies that abhor cool to cold conditions. They really do not care for temps below 60 degrees. Storage of sweets below 50 degrees, quickly degrades the spuds. The older okra was already showing the signs of cooler overnight lows and was shedding leaves and the 31.5 finished the okra off. As for the sweets, since they were covered, are doing fine. It was just the portions that were not covered that got real burned. Next week is forecast to be warmer and I am hoping to finish the sweet harvest. There is about 40 feet to go. The harvest got side tracked a little bit due to the rain, which ended up being 1.41 inches total. Save for the last installment, it was all nice and slow with little runoff. But it sure did a kibosh with the sweet harvest. It is really hard to push mud.

Spot checking the fall veggies that I planted somewhat late, seem to be doing fine. I feel a little more confident that they will mature with a harvest. What with the cool rain, the soil got cooled and I am hoping that the snow peas that I did sow will do fine. Time will tell.

I am not looking forward to next rainy season what with ALL the weeds, due to my ankle down time, that have matured and dropped their seeds. This could very easily be a nightmare next year. Oh well, such is life.

I did manage to harvest most all of the tomatoes and they are ripening in a back room. I am not sure if there will be anymore eggplants but they are blooming. Also there are some chilies to harvest. This early light frost did come incredibly early, so this will affect the seasonal change of veggies. It will be interesting to see how this plays out. Always a challenge.

Follows is an updated list of what I am growing, please email as to availability and prices. Chard, kale, green onions, carrots, lettuce, tomatoes, chilies (several varieties), eggplant, butternut squash, garlic, beets, sweet potatoes, and beans.

October 18, 2018

Good morning, it was a strange day last Monday, the forecast high was supposed to be 38. And through the course of the day it would settle down to near freezing at sunset. This caused me to think with covers the garden would be fine.

I still had my eye on the thermometer.  Monday was not one of those days that I wanted to be outside, overcast, drizzle and 33 degrees at sunrise. No prob because at sunrise the temp would rise.  When it started to slowly drop, I did not know where the bottom would be.

On Sunday I had harvested the okra down to small pods and all the toms that had a blush. I did think that even though it would be cool to cold that everything else in the garden would be fine. No big deal since it would be overcast. This changed on Monday when at 9 AM the temp started to drift downward. At 32.5 I decided that the rest of the garden needed to be harvested. There were eggplants, chilies and a ton of green tomatoes. And the task was completed as the thermometer settled at 31.5 for the rest of the day and through the night. Of course, this whole time it was drizzling, overcast and a cutting north wind. All good indicators for not having a hard freeze. Having been burned with surprise deep freezes I was glad I had decided to finish the harvest.

Wednesdays are my usual greens harvest day. It was plain nasty out. I wimped out as the forecast was predicted to have improving conditions for the rest of the week. The cool damp was fine but the north breeze was cutting. So, I did decide to postpone the greens harvest until Thursday. I did look under the covers and it looked like there would be a normal harvest of chard, kale, lettuce, green onions and carrots.

The thermometer never did slip any further than the 31.5-degree mark and I was not sure what that would do to the summer veggie plants. A day of warmth and sun may cause the plants to wither. But at this time, I do not see any freeze damage. I am glad that I did harvest none the less.

Now it will be interesting as to how long until a real hard freeze. There are all kinds of blossoms out in the garden, and even though everything of size has been harvested, there is no need to rush on pulling plants, so, I think we will see how long until a freeze. There just might be more to harvest or maybe not. Time will tell.

I did get most all of my winter greens planted. There are a couple of different items that still need to be planted. What with my ankle in September I missed the sweet spot for planting. I am not sure how this will affect these plants that I like to harvest during the cooler West Texas time. We will just have to see what happens. Never a dull moment. I am ready for a change in the weather.

Follows is an updated list of what I am growing, please email as to availability and prices. Chard, kale, green onions, carrots, lettuce, okra, tomatoes, chilies (several varieties), eggplant, butternut squash, garlic, beets, sweet potatoes, and beans. Also, there is volunteer basil and dill.

October 11, 2018

Good morning, it is nice to be able to get my fall veggies planted. What with my ankle being sprained in September, I missed the September / October sweet spot but such is life. I will just have to see how they do.

On another note, I have started getting the question of what to do with all those green tomatoes. A person needs to stop watering and if the foliage is dense, it needs to be prune some to let in more light. Don’t go to heavy because the foliage will help the plans to develop sugars. Once we start getting frost threats, blankets or sheets need to be put over the plants. The idea is to keep the tomatoes on the plants as long as you can. Once you have had too much of the covering game, the tomatoes can be harvested. I then like to lay them out on newspaper on the floor in a coolish room. This way you can spy on them and collect the tomatoes that have ripened or even more important collect and remove the nasty ones. Depending on how many tomatoes you have, there could be a supply of tomatoes for 2 to 3 months. Of course, if it is your thing there is green tomato chutney or fried green tomatoes too. Any way you look at it, a person can have a bit of summer in late fall. Enjoy!!

Follows is a list of what I am growing, please email as to availability and prices. Chard, kale, green onions, carrots, lettuce, okra, tomatoes, chilies (several varieties), eggplant, butternut squash, garlic, beets, sweet potatoes, and beans. Also, there is volunteer basil and dill.

October 4, 2018

Good morning,  what a sweet success to have gotten the siding and the new windows on the house along with the hole in the deck that I so casually walked into installed and covered back up. Yes very nice.

As for the weed jungle in the garden it is a step at a time. Soon I shoulld be ready to plant the winter garden. Just a little behind schedule, but such is life.

2018 has had its challenges  and I really  am looking forward  toward next years garden. I will have to say that the nematode resistant tomatoes have been a success. I am cureous to see what their roots look like when they are pulled. It is nice to have tomatoes all season for a change. The other day I harvested about 2 pounds of spuds from a russet potato. With a sustained harvest like that I might be able to offer Irish potatoes in the future.. Time will tell. The sweet harvest continues and I should be able to finish it before the first freeze. Just a bed and a half to go.

Follows is a list of what I am growing, please email as to availability and prices. Chard, kale, green onions, carrots, lettuce, okra, tomatoes, chilies (several varieties), eggplant, butternut squash, garlic, beets, bulb onions, sweet potatoes, and beans. Also, there is volunteer basil and dill.

September 27, 2018

Good morning,yesss my ankle continues to improve. I am beginning to beat back the jungle in the garden. I don't think I have ever had the weed patch that I have acquired as I have this year. Such is life. 

Such as it is the garden is doing quite well. I have been able to start harvesting sweets again. I definitely see signs of root knot nematodes but it looks like the fungus that in years past that has given them a russet look is gone. This really did not effect the taste but it did effect the keeping qualities. What with the freeze and hail last spring my butternut harvest is but a shadow of itself. It has been one of those kinds of years.

As for pests save for cucumber beetles most pests have not been a big deal. Although I am seeing the signs of sucking insects on the tomatoes. There are the tell tale blotches on the sides of tomatoes. I suspect his is from stink bugs.  These have been most prevalent in the okra but I have also seen them in the toms too. They are slow movers or at least my fingers easily catch them. 

I just have not felt the need to spray. I have noticed a lot of beneficial insects in the garden this year This is good because I have left the covers off most beds this year to take advantage of this. And a plus the two remaining guineas have not gotten into the garden and wreaked their special kind of havoc. They are ancient as far as fowl go. Because they are so mean to the chickens they no longer are allowed in the coops, so they are out all the time. They are so mean the hoot owls seem to even leave them alone. Such as things are I am grateful to have gotten them because they took care of getting rid of a huge grasshopper problem several years back. Without them the garden would have been toast. Even though they are nasty old men, they still have a small place in my heart.

One last note I continue to be gobsmacked by the recovery of my eggplants after spraying them with fermented garlic. I mean it totally either killed the flea beetles or they went packing. I am going to see what other bugs this may work on. Garlic is an amazing plant. 

Follows is a list of what I am growing, please email as to availability and prices. Chard, kale, green onions, carrots, lettuce, okra, tomatoes, chilies (several varieties), eggplant, butternut squash, garlic, beets, bulb onions, sweet potatoes, and beans. Also, there is volunteer basil and dill.

September 20, 2018

Good morning, it is nice to be back from “vacation”. The swelling is way down and since last Wednesday I have gotten rid of the walking boot. I am now wearing a real boot. It is still stiff and painful at times, especially if I twist thing on ground obstacles. I sure find a lot of them that I did not know existed. Getting up and down is getting easier and not having to think “is this going to tweek my ankle” quite as much. My ankle seems to continue to have thoughts on what is the proper way to squat down. Time and patience.

The garden survived my absence and I have been able to harvest this week. A very nice change. Summer squash and cucumbers are finished. The beans are blooming and I hope they make a crop soon. The lettuce has not bolted. It looks like I should have tomatoes up until freezing weather. The eggplants have made a huge recovery from the flea beetles and harvests will resume shortly. The strawberries have enjoyed the moister weather and have sent out a ton of runners. I plan to transplant a bunch of these to fill out the whole bed. Maybe strawberries next year. Fall crops are about ready to be transplanted. Indoor survival has been very good. With over 300 plants there has only been a bout a dozen mortalities. Mid October is approaching and fall peas will be sown followed by onions and garlic the first of November.

Soooo all is well and it is so nice to be mobile once gain.

Follows is a list of what I am growing, please email as to availability and prices. Chard, kale, green onions, carrots, lettuce, okra, tomatoes, chilies (several varieties), eggplant, butternut squash, garlic, beets, bulb onions, sweet potatoes, and beans. Also, there is volunteer basil and dill

August 30, 2018

Good morning, the rain this year sure seems scattered and hit or miss. It sure would be nice to have a hurricane remnant to dwell over the area for a few days. There still is a chance since hurricane season goes to November. We did get a tenth of an inch yesterday and was very welcome.

This year instead of small seed beds out in the garden, I sowed the fall veggies in the house. Yesterday I started potting on the tray of seedlings. My light table will be quite full with nearly 200 plants. It will be nice to have fully stocked beds. The outdoor sowings of recent years have not done too well for a number of reasons. Probably the biggest is the harvester ants. Brassica seeds seem to be the perfect size for them to excavate and transport back to the nest. It is interesting to watch the ants after I have “chummed” the chickens, there is a lot of the chicken scratch that is the perfect size for them to carry, and you can see caravan lines of ants packing seeds heading back to their nests. Especially in the hen houses. I throw scratch in the bedding so that chickens mix up their bedding. This helps when I clean out the hen houses to make compost. I remember watching the harvester ants packing mulberry seeds from under the mulberry trees. The chickens have so willingly cleaned the seeds from the fruit. Sometimes I am dismayed with the ants that is until I see some of my resident garden hornytoads. Not seeing my bigger guys only 3 or 4 smaller ones. I like having the hornytoads so I suffer the ants and will more than likely keep sowing the seed in the house. It is amazing to see a seed tray expand from 12 inches X 18 inches up to over 16 square feet. A very nice sight.

I am going to give Brussel sprouts a go this year and with luck they will ripen during our coolest time of the year. Root crops and brassicas have their best flavor at that time. My spring planted parsnips are looking the best I have ever grown. The tops are nearly 2 feet tall. I am hoping that they do not get too huge, but they just might. I look forward to tasting them this winter.

The sweet harvest continues. The first bed is complete and 2 more to go. The next two beds should produce some larger spuds. My butternut harvest is going to be much diminished from years past due too the hail storm that pretty well destroyed the first crop. Such is agriculture. For the first time in a couple years it is beginning to look like I will have tomatoes to freezing weather and maybe beyond. Not going to count that “chicken” until it is in storage.

The blooming of the cucumbers and summer squash has nearly ceased. Not sure exactly why maybe it is due to the weird year that we have been having. It has had its challenges. I am looking towards not having to harvest every day.

So needless to say, the transition towards the next season is on the way. Hopefully it will be smooth and the harvest will continue.  

 Follows is a list of what I am growing, please email as to availability and prices. Chard, kale, green onions, carrots, lettuce, okra, tomatoes, chilies (several varieties), eggplant, butternut squash, garlic, beets, bulb onions, cucumbers, summer squash, sweet potatoes, snow peas (October?) and beans (new planting for fall, late September?). Also, there is volunteer basil and dill.