A Tisket, A Tasket, A Veggie basket
- GoDawgs
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A Tisket, A Tasket, A Veggie basket
More Millionaire and Chinese String eggplant! Yesterday I dug out a recipe that uses 2.5 lbs of eggplant in a casserole and made it today to go with lunch. These plants should keep on kicking them out into the fall. Just to make sure, I planted another one of each last week.
The cherry tomatoes in the basket are Gardener's Sweetheart along with a few Tangerine Dream and Marconi peppers. Outside the basket there's one small Costolluto Genovese, two Amana Orange, one small Wisconsin 55 and two Arkansas Travelers. I just can't get the tomatoes to size up this year. We've been back in the heat again, mid 90's and thankfully not 100's.
It's getting late enough in the season that I think all the goody has been gotten from the tomatoes. Every year the later in the season it gets the smaller they get. Don't get me wrong as I'm grateful for any tomatoes and we're eating enough fresh. It's just that the canning side of things is slack this year. Just 14 pints so far.
The cherry tomatoes in the basket are Gardener's Sweetheart along with a few Tangerine Dream and Marconi peppers. Outside the basket there's one small Costolluto Genovese, two Amana Orange, one small Wisconsin 55 and two Arkansas Travelers. I just can't get the tomatoes to size up this year. We've been back in the heat again, mid 90's and thankfully not 100's.
It's getting late enough in the season that I think all the goody has been gotten from the tomatoes. Every year the later in the season it gets the smaller they get. Don't get me wrong as I'm grateful for any tomatoes and we're eating enough fresh. It's just that the canning side of things is slack this year. Just 14 pints so far.
- MissS
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Re: A Tisket, A Tasket, A Veggie basket
@GoDawgs a friend of mine from long ago told me to feed my tomatoes just a pinch of Borax when the plants were starting to decline and that it would perk them up. I tried it and it does seem to work for me. It can't be too much or you will kill the plants just a very small amount and some fertilizer makes a nice rejuvenating cocktail for them.
~ Patti ~
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Re: A Tisket, A Tasket, A Veggie basket
Lovely basket despite your concern over size of tomatoes! Love Millionaire as well!
- GoDawgs
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Re: A Tisket, A Tasket, A Veggie basket
Thanks for this. I do have some borax and I have the tomatoes in 15 gallon buckets. Do you sprinkle it around your plants or dissolve it in water or liquid fertilizer? And that pinch, maybe 1/4 tsp per plant? I sure don't want to kill them but they could use a boost that fertilizer alone isn't providing.MissS wrote: ↑Wed Jul 27, 2022 10:11 pm @GoDawgs a friend of mine from long ago told me to feed my tomatoes just a pinch of Borax when the plants were starting to decline and that it would perk them up. I tried it and it does seem to work for me. It can't be too much or you will kill the plants just a very small amount and some fertilizer makes a nice rejuvenating cocktail for them.
@Gardadore , Millionaire has always been one that does right every year. A long time ago I went through a lot of eggplants before I found this one. That Chinese String is still pumping out eggplants too. It's the second year I've grown it. They are so creamy.
- brownrexx
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Re: A Tisket, A Tasket, A Veggie basket
Such beautiful colors @GoDawgs
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Re: A Tisket, A Tasket, A Veggie basket
Could you share your eggplant recipe? I have an abundance and need some ideas.GoDawgs wrote: ↑Wed Jul 27, 2022 5:41 pm More Millionaire and Chinese String eggplant! Yesterday I dug out a recipe that uses 2.5 lbs of eggplant in a casserole and made it today to go with lunch. These plants should keep on kicking them out into the fall. Just to make sure, I planted another one of each last week.
The cherry tomatoes in the basket are Gardener's Sweetheart along with a few Tangerine Dream and Marconi peppers. Outside the basket there's one small Costolluto Genovese, two Amana Orange, one small Wisconsin 55 and two Arkansas Travelers. I just can't get the tomatoes to size up this year. We've been back in the heat again, mid 90's and thankfully not 100's.
It's getting late enough in the season that I think all the goody has been gotten from the tomatoes. Every year the later in the season it gets the smaller they get. Don't get me wrong as I'm grateful for any tomatoes and we're eating enough fresh. It's just that the canning side of things is slack this year. Just 14 pints so far.
Thanks
- GoDawgs
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Re: A Tisket, A Tasket, A Veggie basket
Could you share your eggplant recipe? I have an abundance and need some ideas.
Thanks
[/quote]
Sure can. I posted it here two years ago:
post24704.html?hilit=eggplant#p24628
The recipe says to cut the eggplants "into oblong dice about 2" long". Huh? Couldn't figure that out so I cut it into 1x2" slices, each 1/4" wide. I didn't have any Romano cheese so I grated some provolone I had and topped that with grated Parmesan. You can probably use any cheese you want or have on hand.
The pre-cooked eggplant looks like a whole lot but it'll collapse after being boiled. This stuff is even good cold!
Thanks
[/quote]
Sure can. I posted it here two years ago:
post24704.html?hilit=eggplant#p24628
The recipe says to cut the eggplants "into oblong dice about 2" long". Huh? Couldn't figure that out so I cut it into 1x2" slices, each 1/4" wide. I didn't have any Romano cheese so I grated some provolone I had and topped that with grated Parmesan. You can probably use any cheese you want or have on hand.
The pre-cooked eggplant looks like a whole lot but it'll collapse after being boiled. This stuff is even good cold!
- bower
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Re: A Tisket, A Tasket, A Veggie basket
Of course I'm jealous because we can't grow eggplant here at all!
Even if the fruit are smaller do you find them tastier, GoDawgs? I always have smaller fruit in my greenhouse than we grow at my friend's farm. Always. But this year they were so small and really not getting bigger, until I heard MamaLor's advice about hot weather, to water deeply at night. I always have watered in the morning only so that struck home, in a very hot summer for us. I top dressed and watered at night and I saw a big bump in fruit size right away.
Down side is I also seemed to get BER after that, so now I am back to being more moderate with the watering.
Fruit are tasting very good (and we've been without fresh maters for awhile!) but I wondered if the night watering has made them less intense flavored that usual...
Even if the fruit are smaller do you find them tastier, GoDawgs? I always have smaller fruit in my greenhouse than we grow at my friend's farm. Always. But this year they were so small and really not getting bigger, until I heard MamaLor's advice about hot weather, to water deeply at night. I always have watered in the morning only so that struck home, in a very hot summer for us. I top dressed and watered at night and I saw a big bump in fruit size right away.
Down side is I also seemed to get BER after that, so now I am back to being more moderate with the watering.
Fruit are tasting very good (and we've been without fresh maters for awhile!) but I wondered if the night watering has made them less intense flavored that usual...
AgCan Zone 5a/USDA zone 4
temperate marine climate
yearly precip 61 inches/1550 mm
temperate marine climate
yearly precip 61 inches/1550 mm
- MissS
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Re: A Tisket, A Tasket, A Veggie basket
@GoDawgs My pinch is exactly that a pinch between my fingers. I think that 1/4 teaspoon would work fine too. You are supposed to dissolve it into a gallon of water but I would just sprinkle in around the plant and water it in very well. Since yours are in buckets I would use less than a 1/4 t. and then you can always add a little more if you feel that they need it. I just wouldn't want you to lose your plants in from overdosing them.
~ Patti ~
- GoDawgs
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Re: A Tisket, A Tasket, A Veggie basket
@Bower
I haven't noticed any difference.
All of the tomatoes are in containers and I water them in the early evening around dusk. Since they're limbed up, no water gets on any foliage. If it's been really hot they get watered again in the morning. I figure the evening watering lets them recharge from the hot day and the morning watering readies them for the day. This time of year the roots have pretty much filled the buckets leaving less room for water to be retained.Bower wrote: ↑Thu Jul 28, 2022 7:25 pmBut this year they were so small and really not getting bigger, until I heard MamaLor's advice about hot weather, to water deeply at night. I always have watered in the morning only so that struck home, in a very hot summer for us. I top dressed and watered at night and I saw a big bump in fruit size right away.