Here are some pics from a couple of weeks ago. Hundreds of blooms and baby watermelons.


Squash have been producing well. Especially the Dixie and Straightneck.


Slicing cucumbers produced more blooms than the pickling types so far, but most have been very vigorous.

Watermelon Update

Hopi Yellow


Orangeglo


Cream of Saskatchewan


Early Moonbeam


White Wonder

Malbec said:

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Here are some pics from a couple of weeks ago. Hundreds of blooms and baby watermelons.


Squash have been producing well. Especially the Dixie and Straightneck.


Slicing cucumbers produced more blooms than the pickling types so far, but most have been very vigorous.

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Wow! You got any fried chicken and malt liquor? I can be there by noon.

Now Tommie, you know that if I had any malt liquor, my screen name wouldn't check out.

Malbec said:

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Now Tommie, you know that if I had any malt liquor, my screen name wouldn't check out.

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Funny

I only planted maters and peppers. The amount of good rain we've received makes me wish I had planted a better variety of crops.

Peppers are going wild, but I wish I had planted my tomatoes earlier. They're german greens and I worry they won't produce until much later because of the heat.

This was what I picked yesterday to make salsa for the 4th (except for the habaneros). The Fooled You jalapenos in the bottom right of the pic are proving to be much hardier than the traditional ones seen in the upper middle.

Listed clockwise starting in the top right corner: Habanero, Cayenne, Fooled You Jalepeno, Poblano, Guero, regular Jalapeno

Harvested a few melons over the last few days including a couple of 6# Hopi Yellows. The Early Moonbeams are nice, but not as sweet as usual, and you have to be very careful with them, as the rind is thin and delicate. We had one that cracked on us just setting it on the counter.

The Hill Country Okra is really starting to produce and the family loves it. They are much larger than some of the standard varieties like Clemson Spineless and Emerald, but they are surprisingly tender and delicious.

Also planted some Eagle Pass and Star of David, and both have just started to bear.

The storms really played heck with my "cornfield." I planted Buhl and Sugarbaby and after they grew to about 5-6 feet we got hit with several big storms with heavy winds and rain in succession and I had to harvest everything I could and only got about a dozen or so good, mature ears. Both were very sweet, the Sugarbaby especially. I cleared and tilled, and then went back in with peppers. Corno di Toro Giallo, Buran, Tangerine Dream and Sunbright.

Speaking of peppers, the Sweet Chocolates, Nadapenos and Orange Lunchboxes are starting to load up. Lilacs, Ozark Giants and Lemon Dreams are all strong and vigorous, but just starting to produce. They are all anywhere from about 24" to 36" now.

The tomatoes are really starting to rev up over the last couple of weeks. The early varieties like First Pick and Old Virginia are in harvest mode and continue to set fruit. Production has been good so far on cultivars like Campbell 33, Blue Cream Berries, Silvery Fir Tree and Red Sweet Pea Currant. My late start meant that although I have gotten strong and healthy plants, some of the varieties have sparsely set fruit because the nights have been so warm. Many are kicking into gear though now, like Sausage, Dad's Sunset, Kellogg's Breakfast, Garden Peach, Napa Chardonnay and Tangerine.

Campbell 33


Dad's Sunset


First Pick


Sausage

Looking good!

Just tomatoes this year. Having to fight off the mockingbirds and cardinals.

Malbec said:

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tommie said:

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Wichitabear said:

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Wow people. I am so impressed that y'all are planting. I would kill everything. Lol

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I'm with you. Malbec has skills.

If I bought dry dog food, I'd screw it up.

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Nah. I'm just the punchline of an old joke. "Maybe he's not so smart. Maybe he's just been around so long that he's seen everything." Plus, I don't mind getting my hands dirty.

Seriously though, every year in the garden there are successes and failures. Many of the things I have planted over the years have taken many tries to get right. But I say one thing, there is just no comparison between some washed-out Mexican tomato you picked up at the WalMart and a big, beautiful one that you picked from your own backyard.

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No doubt on your last sentence. When I occasionally get a fresh piece of produce, especially a tomato, the flavor is so magical compared to what is normally available in a grocery store.

HunterBear said:

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Just tomatoes this year. Having to fight off the mockingbirds and cardinals.

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That's always a problem for me. It reminds me of something from a viticulture class I took at UC-Davis. We had about an acre of Carnelian grapes that were bordered by some Valley Oaks with lots of Yellow-billed Magpies living in them. They were feasting on the grapes from the row closest to the tree line, so we netted that row and they moved to the next one. We found that after netting 6 rows, they gave up and started feeding in the other direction.

I don't have that luxury, so I either net everything, or else leave some tomatoes just for the birds and net the ones we harvest.