How's Your Vegetable Garden Doing?

All right, this is getting ridiculous. I'm used to some relatively mild weather, but usually by mid November I've broken out the long sleeves and started closing my window at night. Still a few tomatoes ripening, and I picked a pile of Basil for a couple of months' worth of pizza sauce this morning. Largely I take computer in lap to tout a new (brand new to me this year) of strawberry called "Elan". I've been engaged in an admittedly fairly desultory experiment with growing strawberries for the last few years. Of the varieties I've tried, "Albion" has been the most successful up untl now, but this one blows it out of the water. Started producing beautifully (and consistently) sweet berries right from the start, and is still at it. They're also said to be particularly high in vitamin C. I don't know about availability; I got my plants from Annie's Annuals in Richmond, CA, a wonderful source for out of the way (mostly non edible) plants that does a superb job of shipping live plants.

Of possible mild interest- still have a couple of zucchini plants going fairly well, but they haven't produced any female flowers in a week or two. This is not an uncommon reaction of sexual plants to stress ( in this case mostly shorter days and cooler nights)- in fact, dioecious plants (plants of a single sex) will sometimes go hermaphrodite under stress. No doubt this is due to the fact that (I know, EB White wouldn't like this, but what's a guy to do?) the male role in reproduction is usually considerably simpler and faster than the female.

BerryBaby, please send rain.

Hey! The last of the garden!?? It's the third week of October in Maine, but I don't give up on the garden until the first of December or a lot of snow, whichever comes first. Despite the persistent (and unusual) New England drought and despite a couple of hard frosts, we've still got lots of cold-hardy things to eat in the garden: brussels sprouts, fall cabbage, broccoli, escarole, lettuce, bok choy, fennel, leeks, kale, parsley, cilantro, dill, beets, fall carrots, Napa cabbage, chard, cauliflower. I plant a full fall garden beginning in July, and it's a really satisfying game to see how long we can hold off eating frozen, canned, or stored food. We'll dig the carrots, beets, and leeks in early November, along with the cabbage, but the rest of it will stay (and keep on growing, slowly) until it disappears in a snowbank. Keep growing, never give up!

This is the last of the garden, 'ball carrots' that are very similar in size to radishes. REAL flavorful! No need to peel them, just pop them in your mouth! I'll plant more of these next year, these were an experiment. Planted them in a planter box and they did just fine. Can't wait for next spring to start all over again! Enjoy the winter, everyone! BB

The endless summer apparently drawing to a close. I still have a few tomatoes ripening, but I've started taking out plants. Basil is still going strong- should be able to freeze another good sized batch this week. Zukes still trying, but it's getting to be hard to keep off the mildew and there aren't a lot of pollinators around. It's central pepper season here; they should keep coming for at least another month.

Currently starring- strawberries; they appreciate the (mostly) cooler weather of fall, particularly the alpines, and are developing some nice fruit now after the summer doldrums. Tea (Camellia Sinensis) is a shrub that could be grown more- starts out as a sprawly little shrub, grows eventually to a good sized plant, but can be pruned to suit (takes it a lot better than most camellias). The small, scented white flowers come in great abundance in fall. Oca (oxalis esculenta)- I've had a pot of this for four or five years- hasn't flowered yet, but grows quite enthusiastically- will this be the year I finally harvest? This is a good time to plant shrubby perennial herbs such - rosemary, time, oregano and that crowd. Mache can make a nice winter cover in moderate climates- is self sews freely and can develop a thriving community in a few years. If you're going to plant bare roots- fruit trees, berry bushes, etc. as well as artichokes and asparagus (and of course roses) it's good to get holes dug and soil prepped now. Also, if you need to special order, you'll need to do it soon. Still waiting for the saffron to emerge, but should be any day.

Yesterday I filled the hole where I harvested the potatoes with good, new soil, coffee grounds and egg shells. I will do this with the tomato plant holes, once they are done for the year. Filled 6 pots with soil and will buy spring bulbs to plant in them. I find that growing them in pots is easier and it keeps the squirrel from eating the bulbs! Then once they are blooming, dig a hole to fit the pot in the garden and place the blooming pot in the hole. I replace the pots with seasonal blooming flowers all during spring and summer. The neighbors are always in awe wondering how I grow so many different flowers! It's fun and an easy way to spruce up your garden.

well, next month will be a significant increase in water rates so i did a bunch of watering of my drought tolerant front yard and trees. even though i've tried to baby my old naval orange and watered it monthly, i think it is really on its death bed. one mature plum looks iffy, but remainder look good. found some huge healthy orb weavers, one with red back, on climbing rose. raked leaves for compost heap last week. but, i have been going to farmers markets and their gardens have kept me in the best romaine lettuce (had a foggy summer) and the dry farmed tomatoes are red all of the way through. the valencia oranges have been great and the newly harvested fujis are sweet, juicy and crispy. i'm about to put in a red clover cover crop to prevent the soil from getting even harder and more compacted. lots of bees and skippers on the harlequin marigolds (ok, i couldn't resist) which are blooming like crazy in the hottest dryest spot next to fireplace in southerly/westerly exposure. gopher still getting some drought tolerant grasses even in wire baskets. replacement plants have doubled in price in last two years so not sure i will replace. so that's my garden.

Trying to get in the Autumn frame of mind, but it looks like we're headed for triple digit temperatures again today. At least the sun's fairly low now.

OUR REPORT: Just collected most of the remaining summer harvest: green beans, Padron peppers and all the green tomatoes hanging on the stalks. This is our first year gardening and I read that if you're very patient and leave your green tomatoes in the right conditions in the house for a few weeks/months, they will eventually ripen. It worked with one that had fallen on the ground earlier in the season, so I am hopeful. Happy to report here if indeed we're eating fresh tomatoes in December or January. :)

The last vigorous growth in the basil will allow me one more pesto indulgence this week and we have some more parsley (planning to use it fresh) and thyme (will dry). The alliums and carrots are supposed to be hardy enough to continue growing through the fall, so they will get a few more weeks.

The best autumn surprise were our natural pest repellents -- bunches of marigolds and nasturtiums which we had placed strategically around the rows of veggies. Both kinds are going gangbusters! We'll let them live out their natural life and when they wilt, it'll be time to spread for the last time eggshells and coffee grounds in preparation for next spring.

Wow! First time growing potatoes 'in the ground' and did I get a bounty of beautiful purple potatoes! Can't wait to make my "Potato Cups" (see My Recipes) with them. How elegant...purple cups! I will definitely try this again next year. BTW, the basil did great with all the tips everyone shared, thank you! BB

Amazing. I've filled my pantry with quick and fermented pickles, jams, salsas, sauerkraut, and canned tomatoes. A brand new 12 cubic foot freezer is packed to the brim with blueberries, blackberries, peaches, corn, pesto, applesauce, beans (green and yellow), okra, ratatouille mix, peppers, eggplant, and more tomatoes (mostly roasted). The dehydrator has been running nonstop and my cupboards are filling up with bags of dried peppers, dried herbs, shredded and dried zucchini, and yep, more damned tomatoes. 😊 Greens were a wish this year, tomatillos too, but everything else went gangbusters.

One of the real highlights of the horticultural year (culinary division) is when the glossy green Poblano chiles change to the dusky red of Ancho chiles- to me, the finest flavor of all the peppers. These are almost always sold dried- perhaps because they don't keep well- and the dried peppers are indispensable for any number of things, but the flavor of the fresh peppers is entirely different. Piquillos are ripening at an appalling rate; they are very thick skinned and must be peeled- the curse of the farm wife; just when you least want to be spending the day in the kitchen, late summer crops requiring processing come pouring in. Alas and alack. Tomatoes still producing well; I'm having to pick them a couple of days short of their peak to keep them away from the squirrels (not a problem here most years, but they've been going after them pretty hard). Curiously, the cherry tomatoes are shutting down earlier than the large ones. Third crop Basil is a real success; I should be able to freeze enough for winter before it tries to flower; the flavor is SO much better. Second generation zukes also doing well- I like to harvest them at about 4-5 inches, and the young plants turn them out really fast.

Fall is in the air and the garden is dwindling down. Three tomato plants and potatoes that will be dug up soon. The potted basil did great! I think the variety I planted in the garden was a different variety. Next year I'll pay more attention to expected height. Here's my pot of basil with other herbs and the strange tomato plant. I transplanted into the herb pot and it started to produce more....guess the company of other plants made it happy!

After an unusually cool August, getting definitely fall-like in NorCal. The lower sun means some plants will suddenly be getting less direct sun- squashes, especially, may suddenly turn to piles of mildew. Usually not much you can do about it unless they're in pots. Tomatoes still going well, though the plants look awful. My third crop basil is coming into it's own, should be able to start freezing some in a week or so. Second generation zucchini is producing a lot of flowers, all male so far; maybe should have started it a couple of weeks earlier, but still plenty of time here. Peppers are just getting serious- I'm still surprised every year how deliberate they are. Part of that is because I et practically all of them- even varieties, such as Padron, that are traditionally picked green- to ripen fully, something commercial growers very rarely do; it just takes too long, and cuts into production considerably. They do ripen off the plant better than just about anything else, certainly better than tomatoes- especially the thicker walled varieties. The plants will tolerate a little mild frost; I often harvest into the new year. Citrus trees should be fed now- or soon- with a bloom booster type food, preferably 0-10-10. Also getting on to time to start watering you saffron-if in pots it should be replanted in rich soil fairly frequently.

for those of you who will be gardening next year, i have a surprising find. i have a friend who lives in a sweetspot microclimate for tomatoes and he so generously shares his produce every summer. he studies his seed catalogs annually and this year tried "seedless" tomatoes. he gave me some and they were brilliant red all of the way through, sweet like you want them and juicy and flavorful. i paper thin sliced them on sandwiches and you could taste them. so, for those of you who do seeds, you might want to look for them next year.

Cucumber vines have gotten so big that they are starting to tilt the bargain-variety Home Depot trellis that I trained them on - also oodles of cucumbers. Peppers are growing so rapidly I swear I can see them doing it if I look in the morning and again at night - tons of Padrón/Shishito/Italian sweet peppers...bell peppers are not as prolific but still chugging along. Eggplant doubled in size since the start of August and two huge fruit on it now, had to support with a stake.

Tomato vines are still fighting some sort of fungal spot blight that they developed back in July - a few dry weeks in August have kept it at bay but now with some rain this weekend and earlier this week it seems to be creeping back. Always pruning the wilted leaves and spraying with neem oil extract (I was using copper octanoate judiciously but apparently I've learned that's only good for preventing blight). The tomatoes seem to be coming in without soft spots, however, just a bit fewer than I would have liked. Oxhearts and Thessaloniki salad tomatoes are bursting with flavor - have yet to use my San Marzanos for a pizza yet, but will this week.

My basil is STILL kicking despite trying to mass flower multiple times. I guess I am clipping the flower buds off in time.

Boy, what I surprise I found out in the rock garden! Mother Nature (I'm guessing my little bird friends) dropped Red Currant tomato seeds and this is what I got this year...tons of Red Currant tomatoes. They did the same thing last year, but the tomatoes were not nearly as perfect as they are. I'm happy seeing as the ones I planted didn't fare so well this year.

BB, you can't keep Rosemary year round there? I bring mine in and it limps through winter but usually makes it.

Getting ready to pot up my third crop basil and second crop zucchini to their final containers- long season where I live. Never tried second crop squash before, but the youg plants grow very fast and are much more productive than older plants; I think it will work out well. I have, probaby, another 3 months growing season for them where I live.It's time to be thinking about fall already, even here. If there's soil to be prepped, the earlier the better- it takes time to really stabilize after being disturbed, particularly if material is added. Seeds for a lot of plants can be started now, or at the least shopped for. If you plan to do anything with structures, such as cold frames or greenhouses, it's good to get them ready early- fall can sneak up on you pretty fast in some places.

This is a crazy garden year! My patio pots are almost done. This is way early, they usually go until October. The in ground garden is doing better but tomatoes are very slow to turn. I way hoping for way more fruit, but it's just not going to happen this year. Here in the northwest, I've heard many people say their tomatoes aren't turning yet. I'm thinking it is because of the cooler nights.

I live in Omaha. We have tons of cucumbers so today we made 4 different recipes of refrigerator pickles and can't wait to compare them. Almost all of the recipes were from Food 52. We filled 6 half gallon jars. It was very wet here early and our basil looked terrible - chlorotic and sickly. The extension office told us to wait it out and all would be well. Did we listen? No. So we added 2 large plants to the 2 we already had. Then, it got hot like it's supposed to be here and they turned in to shrubbery. So, last night we made pesto and froze it because it starts to get woody. Tomatoes are lovely - roasting some now. Our plants are 6 feet tall. Our herb garden has flourished. We have gorgeous basil, Rosemary, lemon grass, lemon verbena, thyme, lemon thyme, & parsely. I really love the lemon thyme. It is so versatile and flavorful. When frost is near we just cut branches of our herbs and freeze them. Still have some from last year.

At least some of our tomatoes are finally starting to turn -- though still at the late "breaker" stage. The rest are green. I am getting so impatient!

But we are getting a regular supply of Padron peppers, grey zucchini and some unknown variety of cucumber, as well as fantastic basil.

After 12 years the Patio Apple tree is finally producing beautiful apples. Previously, we had very small apples, or none. This past winter I kept it fed with coffee grounds and egg shells. The only problem this year (early on) was leaf curl, but I was adamant and was able to keep one step ahead of it. Can't wait to try them, they have been very tasty in the past.

Daughter gave me this unusual tomato plants. It says it is a Patio Roma, but it is really small with curly, almost broccoli looking leaves. As you can see one tomato is ripening and others, which you can't see are green. They are the size of a nickel. I'll be curious to see how they taste. Anyone ever see these before? The plant is small and very stiff and upright.

Harvested a big handful of Sungold tomatoes yesterday. I must say, these are tastiest ones I've ever grown. The old fashioned tomato flavor I so remember from my younger days.

This has been one year of disappointing results due to the weather. Now, trees are starting to change color! Way too early, however the nights have been cool, which will cause this to happen, but still doesn't look right to have fall colors in July. Two of my tomato plants look like October instead of the peek of summer. Sure hope it doesn't snow on Halloween! LOL!

The other night I went outside and looked at my tomato plants and discovered the Godzilla of all tomato worms. Without exaggeration it was 6" long and 3/4" thick. I disposed of it quickly but the next morning I found another one on another plant. This one was only slightly smaller. Both plants came from the same source and I'm thinking the larvae were already in the soil and crawled out when mature e?nough. This time I took a picture. Do these things turn into Mothra?

We're in the midst of a drought in Maine, of all things. Lots of sun and no rain, as dry as I've seen it in many years. Only the tourists are happy.

nice size tomato plants

Here is The other side

It's a little wild . I mix plants in my pots

My Massachusetts garden is going gangbusters even though groundhogs decimated it twice tomatoes strawberries summer squash zucchini all doing great got bushels of cukes peas and greenbeans ae just showing up since the moles also loved them. Weather is weird but its great garden growing. Any one have any suggestion how to make my tomatoes grow bigger got tons but relatively small and turning.

Things are growing pretty well- NorCal has had generally pretty mild weather (with a few heat waves inland), and we have a little water. Tomatoes are coming fast and furious and peppers are just starting to produce (I let most of them ripen far more than commercial growers). The zukes (I grow Cocozelles in pots) are not happy with recent hot weather, but are still producing. I grow virtually all my veggies in pots because of gophers, which I'll never get rid of unless my neighbors do. I use a potting soil made up of homemade compost with manure, perlite, lime and bone meal added- it's working very well for the vegetables. I made one of those foolish midwinter decisions to buy a bunch of seeds from Amazon. They ended up coming from a number of different sources, some of them highly dubious (like home packaged seeds from somewhere in China). My Early Girls (I didn't THINK you could buy seeds for those) turned out to be some cherry tomatoes )pretty good), and some larger unidentified tomatoes (so so). My second crop of basik ("Large Leafed Italian Basil") has turned out to be African blue basil- a neat plant, but not what I was after- still time to start anther batch, though. Peas and spring greens are pretty well gone- to hot in the summer here for that kind of stuff.

My Seattle garden: am harvesting green beans, cucumbers, basil, lettuces, carrots, potatoes, onions, beets, kale, sugar snap peas (almost coming to the end), strawberries. Although I have peppers and tomatoes, they have not started ripening as of yet. And no zucchinis yet.

I'll have Meyer lemons from the tree I planted last year. It's pushing out fruit now. To soon to tell on pomegranate. It's budding fruit but then dropping them, probably because it's not yet mature enough. Waiting for my pimento peppers to flower.