Apples, Cucumber, and Naked Ladies

Naked Ladies -
This cardoon is on the third growing season
Not one of the bigger cardoons that I have grown but I would call it hardy
Kong Sunflower
St. Edmond's Russett
Sops of Wine
Much More Cucumber
A great little snak
The mystery plant of the week -


Although the weather person hinted that rain and scattered showers were in the area, little rain fell on the garden this week. I was at an art fair three days this week and on Friday we had good rain for over two hours at the fair. But at home, less than 15 miles away, the garden got no rain - now that's scattered.
The tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers are a daily harvest with the Much More variety making a good show of nice salad sized slicers with very tender skin. The Volcano peppers, which were a free trial seed, are really good and hot. We have had them as snacks with pretzels and Trader Joe's Chipolte Pepper Humus ( see the picture). The Kong sunflowers are blooming. I like this sunflower because after the terminal flower forms and blooms, side branches form at leaf nodes and the plant continues to bloom for a long time. The cardoon has many flowers, so I hope the seed crop will be good. Cardoons can get really big. My blog pictures is me with a single huge cardoon, and the blooming plant this year is from last years plant that wintered over. Cardoon's are classified as biennial but I can't explain this years growth and the second flowering of this plant. There is a row of 5 or 6 plants in the garden for eating in the fall after the centers are blanched. Several other peppers are near to harvest. We have had Frank's Pepper a couple of times and found it to be thin skinned and an OK pepper flavor, so it might hold up well in cooking. The apple crop is growing nicely, at last, and we have had the branch of Sops Of Wine present us with two mature apples - great flavor and wonderful aroma. The St Edmond's Russets will be the next apple to ripen and they are one of my russet types that are grafted on one tree. I picked crab apples and made apple juice for rose petal jelly that I hope to make next week.
The Naked Ladies (Lycoris squamigera) are blooming. I have several large clumps that I want to move before the new vegetable garden is made, so I have let them bloom and will try to move the complete clumps after the flowers fade. Massed together they make a great surprise show. The mystery plant this week is one I recently bought that will have to winter in the house but if I lived in Chicago I could have the plant outdoors and still get fruit - or so the name implies.
With three days at an art fair selling my lampwork beads not much was accomplished in the garden and after checking tonight the weeds are really needing attention. This next week we will deal with the onion harvest which is curing in the little house and see about planting fall leaf crops - especially celery cabbage.
Happy Gardening

The Best Veggies in Two Counties

Door County flowers


Great garlic at the Door County Fair



We have a love affair with cardoon here at BreezyAcres


The carpet will return to its original shape and be useable next season
Leaves of three, let it be....

Our mystery seed crop....

Yesterday we had our first summer rain with lightning and thunder and a nice amount of much needed rain. Maybe I will not have to water so much at work this week. The tomatoes responded to the recent rain - yes, they cracked! Oh well, they taste just as good.
Much of this week was spent judging other vegetables. I was the face-to-face Junior Fair judge in Winnebago and Door counties this week. I enjoy talking to the 4Her's about their gardens, crops, and passing along a bit of information when I can. The most telling responses were from the question I asked kids about how their "Round Up Ready" corn and soy beans got that characteristic. Even the older 16-18 year olds really did not know. In two judging seasons I have not seen anything but this genetically engineered crop, and typically, most kids have no idea how the seed their family plants gets the resistant trait for "Round Up".

The vegetables I saw were very good with some exceptional entries. One plate of 20 green beans in Oshkosh was absolutely "Perfect", and a youngster in Sturgeon Bay was very proud of his raspberries and rightly so they were very nice. I was noticeably surprised to find beautiful garlic entries in both fairs. The kids entries in Winnebago were excellent. One was called "Gregorian Crystal". I'll be looking for that one. The Door entry was in the Open Class and was a HUGE garlic that the entrant had grown for many years. The picture tells all - really a nice specimen. With work and two days of judging I did not get much done in my garden. I did get another small amount of lettuce planted and because the broccoli did not send out any real good side shoots I pulled most of those plants. I have include pictures of how the plants deal with the root maggot carpet guard that I put around the transplants. It is really amazing how the stem just pushes the carpet square aside. The nice thing is that when I take the plant out the carpet goes back to its original shape and I can use the carpet again next season. The cardoon has begun to flower and the bees are hard at work collecting pollen. I hope for a good seed crop from this years flowering. The goldfinches will know when the seed is ripe so I will have to bag the flower heads to keep the bird out of the seed. The volunteer dill in the garden is ready to harvest for seed. I like to let the dill sprout wherever it wants to as the end product is excellent for cooking and breads.

Earwigs and snails are real problems again even with the hot dry weather. The lettuce is the most damaged and the peppers are suffering from both pests. Cucumbers need some help to get started climbing the trellis and the second crop of garlic is almost ready to harvest. Onions have fallen over and look like they will need harvest and curing soon. The rain we have gotten has greened up the yard so grass will need to be cut soon but that will give me some much needed mulch.

While in Door County this weekend I spotted a common roadside and forest plant that causes grief - Poison Ivy. This time of the year the dark green leaves are starting to sport their bright red colors - a good indication to stay out of ditches and fields festooned with these red leaves. The mystery flowers at the end of the picture post are the start of the seed crop for our home made breads. I will keep adding pictures of the plant as it develops.

Happy Gardening

The Tomato Harvest Begins

A visitor to our new patio umbrella
The FIRST tomato of the season - already eaten
Lower leaves removed on the whole tomato patch
Fesita Hybrid brocolli
Volcano peppers


July 31st was the first tomato harvest for this season. Sugary was the variety that was ripe and although it was only four fruits its was a great taste of things to come. Most of the tomatoes have nice amounts of fruit set. Some of the plants have reached the top of the stings and later in August those plants will be cut back. The leaves close to the ground were removed today (picture included) for several reason. Even with a heavy straw mulch some leaf spotting will show up on some of the plants so to try to avoid it, I strip the lower leaves off the plants around this time every summer. Any yellowing leaves are always removed and any leaves with blotches or spots are also removed just as a precaution. I will also cull any fruit that has any deformity early in the growing stage so as not to waste plant energy on a fruit that will not be worth eating down the road.
So all the plants were trained up the stings again today and at least the first four to five leaves close to the ground were removed. No tomato plant parts get into the compost they are taken to the city vegetation dump.
Susan cut the grass today, first time in over a month because it has been so dry, so the clippings went to mulch the pole beans which have taken off and are climbing the pole quite nicely now. I like to mulch everything in the garden as this helps with moisture retention. The lettuce bed is producing nice romaine type lettuce and I have another seed flat started with lettuce and mustards for planting out next week. Always try to keep the greens young, tender, and fresh. Corn is available at the farmers markets. In the past I have tried to give space to a corn crop but not only is the plant demanding of my soil, but there is so much vegetation to get rid of after a harvest, that I have decided, like with other crops, to let area farmers grow some of the produce that I like and patronize the markets that have the best produce. I do the same with cabbage, pumpkins, and squash - mostly because of the space they use up in a garden. Maybe when we get the garden enlarged we will have room for some of these but I still think corn is off the list.
Zinnias are blooming and Alpine strawberry's are still to be found. Apples are sizing and later this month the St. Edmond's Russets will be one of the first harvests. One of Susan's favorites. By the way, all the grafts of this spring took. That makes for five kinds of red fleshed apples on the tree. This seasons Pink Pearls are growing nicely.
Last weeks mystery pictures was of potato fruits. Several of the plants have those fruits on them. As they are in the same family as tomatoes the fruits resemble green tomatoes. I will leave a couple to ripen and see what they look like as mature fruits. I harvested a hot pepper called Volcano and the variety is so hot that I could taste it on my hands the next morning! Great name for a hot pepper. The broccoli heads have been cut and so we are hoping for side shoots. We have had steamed onions twice this week and they are really good. Clean the onions, score the ends, microwave with a little water, olive oil, salt and pepper - nice alternative vegetable - try them.

Happy Gardening

Rain Fills the Barrels

Parsnip thinnings that benefit from the deep cones and soft soil filled in the holes
Footie apples
Garlic harvest for 2009
Mystery fruits from the Solanaceae Family
Another clue to the mystery fruits
The evil Purslane both big leaf and small leaf - check yours out


We finally got some much needed rain and the rain barrels are full again.

This week I harvested more of the beets but I am not sure that this variety is the best eating. The second cooking lacked any real flavor and had little sweetness that good beets bring. I will try the white beets as soon as they size a bit more. The Alpine strawberries continue to produce a few handfuls of plump very sweet fruits. I noticed when checking on the variety name that the supplier has another variety of white fruited berries listed - maybe for next season. The next lettuce harvest is nice but the slugs have found it too - they are really a terrible pest in my garden. I have tried everything short of slug poison to keep them in control. I won't even go into the saga of last year's slug wars on the sweet potatoes. Hundreds met death in salt water, nightly. The last thinning of the parsnips was this week and as the pictures show, the long roots are already developed so now the rest of the season the plants will increase in size till next spring's harvest. The pole beans have started to twine around the poles and I have one more location that, now we have gotten some rain, I can prepare and plant a later crop. The tomatoes need de-suckering weekly and training but there are a few that have begun to color so we are approaching the first harvest. The basil in the tomato rows seems to flourish. The cucumbers have stated to send out tendrils and with help they will begin to climb up the trellis.

Last year we grew sesame seed with some success. This years crop has been slow to get started but is finally growing and hopefully will make flowers and seed before frost. The three foot plants will be covered with white flowers and I will keep you posted with pictures as soon as I see flowers. I get my seed for this herb from Sand Hill Preservation Center Calamus, Iowa. The first of the garlic (Bavarian Purple) harvest was this week and I am very happy with the crop. The picture shows the garlic from one planting of about a four by four foot planting area. This crop was planted last year in September and harvested now so if garlic is in the plan this year you should have made your order already or make it soon. The potato plants have provided a surprise as noted. The apples have finally stopped falling, and the young fruits are beginning to size. The few fruits that I put in "footie's" are growing too, so I will be interested to see how they do. "Footie's" are the stocking that one uses to try on shoes in the store and have been used by western apple growers as an alternative to plastic bags - so we will see how they do. Backyard science is fun.

Weeding is a daily job in the garden as the Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) is a constant pest. This weed, yes I know one can eat it, has such tenacity that I dig it and do not compost the plants as the seed is tough and persistent along with being sticky and tractable any place. Observation seems to indicate two varieties - one large leaf type and one small leaf type. But no matter what the type once you have it in your garden you have it forever.

I have been told that posting comments seems to be confusing. Anyone can post a comment and have it anonymous by typing the comment, selecting a profile and then clicking "preview" and typing the code letters that appear in the box. But you do need to make the profile choice for the comment. One does not need a Gmail account to post a comment, just use the "anonymous" setting at the bottom of the select list.

The video this week is a panorama of the garden, Sorry for the speed but you can pause it if it runs too fast.

Happy Gardening,

Let's Trick the Robins

Alpine Strawberry "Yellow Wonder"
The neighbors blue Delphinium over the fence
A sleeper on a clothespin
Promise of tomatoes to come
The basil seems happy in with the tomatoes
Broccoli fresh has a wonderful taste
Pole beans ready for transplant
Planting out the pole beans
White berries fool the Robins - for now
One pull of a transplanted clump of beets

I was in another art fair so it was too late Sunday evening to post.
We had some rain this past week but not really enough to break this drought. The tomatoes really look good and we have developing fruits on them so my hope is the start of the harvest by August. I was listening to "Garden Talk" on public radio this week and yes "blossom end rot" was the topic of conversation. Keep the plants well watered and mulched and the problem should correct itself. The basil planted in the tomato rows is happy and ready, like we are, for ripe tomatoes.
This was the week that the pole beans went into the ground. I usually transplant the seedling beans because that allows me to position my poles and then transplant my beans around them. The video shows the transplant and there are five sets of four poles with three to four bean transplants at the base of each pole. Remember when using peat pots to remove the top of the pot to prevent water wicking before you transplant. Watch the video below to see that process. The last two pole sets were direct seeded to make them a later bearing planting. When the beans start to bear, they should produce for several weeks. The variety is Emerite which I have planted for many years. I select the longest pods as my seed source and the beans at the top of the poles, out of my reach, becomes the seed source.
Last year I planted white Alpine strawberry seeds to replace my red variety. Robins know what red strawberries are. I had one white fruiting plant and the birds did not recognize the berries as edible so now I have replaced all my reds with whites and have a small picking of alpine fruits often. This type of strawberry does not make runners and so is an excellent edging plant. With water, they will produce for a long time and although they do not make a huge picking just a few berries are a great treat. I find the white ones really sweet and again I get them and I don't have to share with the birds. I got the white seed from Pinetree Gardens. The seed germinates readily and the plants will bear nicely the second season.
I tried transplanting beets again this year. I choose one of my cylindrical varieties and was very happy with the results. They seem not to mind, and the harvest picture is of one transplant clump. This is just the right amount for a taste of fresh beets. I think I will try this again next season. The regular beets are not nearly as far along as these, so the transplanting this time was a success. Now lets see what will happen with the carrots that I tried the same thing with. In the past it has not worked but the transplants were really small this time so maybe that too will be successful.
Lettuce is having a tough time in the hot dry weather so as soon as the cucumbers begin to trellis the shade should help that crop. The garlic in one bed is very close to harvest. There are developing peppers, and onions abound in their rows. We had steamed broccoli with onions the other evening - nothing like the fresh from the garden taste of veggies.
Happy Gardening

More Apples Fall

The bag count is less than 400 apples by now
Cardoons are one of my favorite plants - more later
Hummingbird food
The next crop of lettuce
Little potatoes safe from the cook
Real French Tarragon - great flavor and almost ready to flavor vinegar

The apple drop continues and I am really not sure of the cause. I collected a half dozen fallen bags and cut the apples open for a seed count. If fruit is mature, three or more seeds must be developing or the fruit will be aborted. However, most of the sample checked had three if not five seeds so the mystery continues. Luckily, most of the fruit drop is on the Fireside tree and not on the other two trees but the Fireside (my favorite) will be a poor corp this fall.
We finally did get some rain but not enough to fill the rain barrels, especially when I found that the diverter into the barrels was not attached properly so I lost a fair amount of water. If we would get a nice soaking I could start with my watering jugs for the tomatoes but for now I need to water the planting in order to try to keep the moisture level high to prevent blossom end rot - the scourge of tomato growers.
The "Sugar Sprint" peas get a reprieve. I decided that I was picking them too soon so I let them fill out the pod real good and the flavor improved markedly. This variety stays short, about 24-30 inches, and is a fair producer. We have had two small pickings and the third and last made for a nice amount of fresh peas. Two row would be a good amount for next year.
Several individuals have talked to me about their "French" tarragon. It really is a shame how many of them don't have the real thing. Without exception, all the tarragon that I have tasted in other herb gardens this season is not French but Russian -a robust grower that has a horrid taste. Real "French" tarragon has a mild, soft sweet licorice flavor; very palate pleasing. But Russian has a harsh metallic taste and the metal flavor lingers. Russian tarragon is a strong grower while French needs some protection from our harsh Wisconsin winters. By the end of May, Russian will be over three feet tall and dark green while French will have lighter color leaves and will take much more time to reach that height. I have my tarragon close to the foundation of the house and it is happy and returns yearly. About now, the plant is developing flowers which will not produce seed so the only way to get good French tarragon is to get a division. Or, if you buy a plant, be absolutely sure that you are getting FRENCH and not Russian. I only wish I could have every one do a taste test and they would know immediately which they wanted in there morning scrambled eggs.
The pole beans are ready to plant out. I grow them as transplants because I set up my pole tepee's and then position my beans. I like doing this because I can better arrange my bean space in the garden after the tomatoes and cucumbers are located. Some of the beans are in peat pots and some in plastic. Fortunately they transplant well so that job will need to be done this week. I also discovered that I have three packets of carrots seed that were never planted. I will get some in the ground and see what happens. Real hot weather is not good for carrot germination but then I do not have real good success with carrot seed in general. I have some planted in six packs and will see how that goes. The beets that I planted and transplanted are doing better in the garden than the direct sown seed - so we will see with the carrots. Even though I have done this before with poor success, I want to try again.
The tomatoes take weekly twining and de-suckering but we have green tomatoes and we are closing in on the time to find the first ripe one.
Happy Gardening