Just what I need: another seed company with cool new stuff to try! LOL! While I'm not sure about the nightshade, the leeks look interesting. I've been getting to know the humble onion this year, after years of thinking ill of it.

Going to plant garlic this week, both at home and at the food pantry. If winter comes late, some extra time getting established won't hurt it. If winter comes early, it has more time to establish. Win-win.

Those seeds I ordered came today!

I only harvested a few beans in my garden today, but I went back to my friend's place, where I was yesterday, when I took her my " "extra" greens, and she was showing me all those peppers they had ripening, on only one plant of each type, that I gave her in spring. Her son - the only one that really uses any of the hots - when I told him about the problems I had with the peppers, and most were gone, told me I could have all the peppers I wanted, since he already had more dried and frozen than he could use until next season. They picked them all yesterday (I was going to an appointment, otherwise I would have stayed and done it!), and I went back today, and took them a container of that creole mix I made last night, plus a pint of that yogurt, since they use more of that than I do. And she showed me where she had planted those greens yesterday, and was shocked that they had already grown in less than a day! So I might get her hooked on those, too.

Here are all those peppers they gave me, and only 3 Aji Dulce, because I reminded him that was the habanero flavor with almost no heat, which he forgot. I also gave them another very mild pepper she really likes - Big Mic - a Numex type, that she got some 8" peppers from, and barely any heat, so even she could eat them, so she wants more of those next year. All of these were just from one plant each.
Hanoi Market, from my friend's garden. 9-18 These went into a vacuum bag, and into the freezer. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Thai Vesuvius and Thai Dragon, from my friend's garden. 9-18 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

A bunch of Datil peppers, and just 3 Aji Dulce from my friend's garden. 9-18 by pepperhead212, on Flickr


Here's an eggplant, that she "lost" in all the vegetation, so it got close to 2 lbs. I told her it might be a bit seedy, but I haven't had that variety get bitter.

A large Matrosik eggplant from my friend's garden, just under 2 lbs. (my hand is not small!). Said she sort of lost it under the leaves. 9-18 by pepperhead212, on Flickr


Here's my only harvest today, because those beans get overgrown quickly.

A few more beans I harvested, after I got home today. 9-18 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Lovely! And that's funny about the eggplant. I found two monster zukes in the food pantry garden that got lost under the leaves. Normally I'd have pulled all of the summer squashes by now but it's been a strange year! I'm still seeing female flowers and fruits setting, including a few that I've hand pollinated. I don't argue with Mother Nature! Let them go until the hard freeze, along with everything else.

I got a few beans and okra today - something I do daily - but mostly tomatoes and eggplants, since it had been a few days since I harvested those. And there are still countless tomatoes of those smaller types, and a generous number of the larger types on those plants. Still one cucumber plant alive, but one I'll pull out tomorrow, after harvesting the last fruit from it. And those Ichibans are still producing more than the rest of the varieties.
19 eggplants, just over 60 oz. 9-21 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

That 4 qt bowl has over a qt of sunsugars on the bottom, and about 2 qts of the Juliets and Bronze Torch hybrids, and the Negro Azteka on top. The gold ones in the basket are all Zluta Golds, and the larger blacks are Ron's Carbon, and a few Rosellas, and mostly Negro Azteka one plant.
Tomatoes are still producing well! 9-21 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Today I pulled out the excess seedlings from all those brassicas I direct seeded less than a week ago - I was amazed at how many had sprouted! They were those Wu Choy, and Choy Sum, that are the coldest resistant varieties that I have this year, plus a few of those "stem mustards", used for the Szechwan preserved vegetable. I also started a number of radishes, and some variety of leeks, that is for spring harvest. And in the empty spaces I planted 9 kohlrabi seedlings, I started a few weeks ago, the kolibri still being the largest seedlings.

The only covered bed, mostly for the brassicas, but 3 volunteer tomatoes flowering already, and a bunch of scallions. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

I assume those beans are for cooking in the shell stage? I can't really tell from the photo if they are large enough to be used that way. I have a bunch of Mr. Tungs which are dying to be plucked NOW. I don't know what they'd taste like if I let them all go to their hard, dry stage. Anyone here ever eat Mr. Tungs as mature beans?

A couple of those beans got overgrown, and I don't really grow any of them for shell beans. If too large, I just cut them into smaller pieces, and cook them in a curry, or something where they will be well cooked, usually pressure cooked, so the beans and the pods will be totally cooked.

After all those tomatoes went to the 5 trays in the dehydrator, and today I cleaned up all the rest of the last two harvests, and they are cooking down to a paste, I harvested a bunch more today! A bunch more Sunsugars, Juliets, and Bronze Torch Hybrids almost filled a 4 qt bowl, those Negro Aztekas, and a few other cherries, filled another 4 qt bowl about halfway. And the larger tomatoes I got about 3 qts of, almost entirely the Early Blue Ribbon Hybrids this time.

Tomatoes picked on 9-26 - the old ones are all ground up and cooking down to paste. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

This isn't for canning, but for freezing. Yesterday, I cleaned up all of the tomatoes I had, and ground them up, and cooked them down slowly, in a NS wok. It was almost 192 oz (6 qts), and I had to keep about 2 qts in a bowl, until it had boiled down some. It eventually cooked down to just under 50 oz. I'll freeze it in 1 and 2 oz portions - maybe a few larger.
Just under 192 oz of ground up tomatoes, cooked down to just under 50 oz of paste, to be frozen. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Here's the gold cherries that I ground up, that lightened this a little, plus sweetened it some, along with a few other larger yellow ones, but most are red ones.
about 24 oz of Sunsugar and Zluta Golda, ready to blend - one of 8 batches being cooked down to tomato paste. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

You must eat an incredible amount of tomatoes! It sounds like your pantry is full!

Those greens are doing great, both the seedlings I planted in the pots, as well as the seedlings and direct seeds in the covered beds. And those Swiss chards aren't really winter greens, though they will last well after the frost. I have gotten good 3 harvests in the month since this photo:
Those 3 Swiss Chard plants, started when I pulled out those Green Giant tomatoes. 8-30 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Those Senposai are more for the warm weather, but they are resistant to the low 20s, in my experience. The bok choy variety I have - Koquie - is another that is bred for heat resistance, but I still planted some for the fall, as it should also produce well, before it gets too cold. The Merlot napa is somewhat cold resistant, as is lettuce, but the most resistant listed were the wu choy, which is supposed to be resistant to 14°.
Here are just 2 of the senposais, in an 18 gallon tub. 9-30 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Bok choy, in an 18 gallon tub. The vine on the right was pulled out, and replaced with a kohlrabi. 9-30 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Merlot Napa cabbage, in a 4 gallon SIP 9-30 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

An Earthbox, with 6 greens - the smaller, dark ones Wu Choy, and the larger ones Choy Sum. 9-30 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

And these lettuce plants, I only started with volunteers around that last one that finally bolted in August (later than any, so far), and I eventually pulled the plant, after most of the seed pods had dried, and that's where all those volunteers came from! I only transplanted 4 of them, but gave about a dozen of them to a friend - another thing I got her hooked on! Now she wants to know how to grow them in the winter.
Leaf lettuce, 10-1, volunteer plants from the one that lasted into August, before bolting. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Lovely! I don’t dare grow my greens outside, due to the rabbits. It’s nice to have fresh salad though, so I grow them in my hydroponic gardens. I love that Merlot lettuce too!

All those greens are in pots above ground, or that raised, covered bed, because of rabbits!

Today I sprayed the greens with some Bt, as I had seen a few cabbage butterflies, though I'm lucky I don't get too many pests in these dry seasons. I uncovered that raised bed, since there was no wind at all, and pulled out those tomatoes, as it was obvious that they were not going to produce in time, and this gave me more space to grow greens! Today, I harvested the ripening tomatoes from just 2 varieties - mostly Juliet, but a few Bronze Torch hybrids, as well. There were a lot more Sunsugars, too, but the sun was getting in that area, so I'll get them tomorrow, in the shade again!
over 3 qts of mostly Juliet tomatoes, with about 1/3 Bronze Torch hybrids . 10-2 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

QUESTION: is it just my experience, or do cherry sized tomatoes not taste good when ripened in the house? Regular toms taste just fine if I have to pluck them (when cold weather threatens) and let them turn red indoors (so long as they are not dark green all over).

@JayneR13. Maybe you could plant a trap crop for the rabbits so they would leave your more valuable greens alone? Seems to work for me - I let them eat plain lettuce to save the escarole, etc. Hope it works next year, too, God willing. I trapped 2 bunnies this year but the third refuses to go into the trap. What to do...

@BlackKrim I have no problems with ripening the cherries (or others) inside, as long as they have a blush, when picked. In late fall, when frost is eminent, and there are still a good number of green tomatoes, I pick all of them, and pickle them, or make a picalili relish with them. I've never been crazy about tomatoes that ripen completely off the vine.

@BlackKrim I've tried that and what works for you doesn't seem to work for me. Besides, space is at a premium in the urban garden so I prefer exclusion to sacrificial crops.

Like Pepperhead, I've never been nuts about the flavor of tomatoes that ripen off of the vine. However, salsa verde and pickled green tomatoes with peppers are good ways to use them! Waste not, want not.

Here are those Sunsugars I said I'd get today. There's more of the black varieties, too, but not as many ripening as quickly as sunsugars and juliets, at this time.
Here are those Sunsugars - about 2 qts of them - and only those few barely ripening. 10-3 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

BlackKrim wrote: ↑Thu Oct 03, 2024 9:24 am QUESTION: is it just my experience, or do cherry sized tomatoes not taste good when ripened in the house? Regular toms taste just fine if I have to pluck them (when cold weather threatens) and let them turn red indoors (so long as they are not dark green all over).

@JayneR13. Maybe you could plant a trap crop for the rabbits so they would leave your more valuable greens alone? Seems to work for me - I let them eat plain lettuce to save the escarole, etc. Hope it works next year, too, God willing. I trapped 2 bunnies this year but the third refuses to go into the trap. What to do...

I seem to enjoy my tomatoes when they are picked at ripeness perfection rather than picking them earlier. The problem is that the squirrels are taking a bite of them at first blush, so this year they are coming in early. Darn critters.

I left another gift out there for the squirrels.

Mine too. Squirrels and other city critters, like rats, climb trellises very well and sample every tomato they can find! It wouldn't be so bad if they'd eat just one completely but that's not what they do. So what gift did you leave them?