Fruit and vegetable gardens 2024

treefarmercharlie

🍆
Admin
I pulled all the peppers in pots and placed them around the edge of the garden. The empty pots are place-holders but I'm not planting anything in them until this heat dies down a bit. All the peppers are doing good after a rough start. I lollipopped tghem like the tomatoes.
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I have some tomatoes that just aren't suited to my environment. One of those fancy heirloom paste tomatoes. But I have more tomatoes ready to plug into empty spots.
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Ffirst for me, but one of my volunteer cherry tomatoes is a sungold. I lost the one I had to chipmunks, but it's the only yellow cherry I grew last year. trellising them like this is working like a champ.
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Hot peppers are doing best. That Thai Red above right is loaded
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Tobago seasoning pepper. Caribbean thing
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Korean green chili - like hotter, skinnier serrano.
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These Biquinlo will be red or yellow.
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I didn't take pics of the serrano or jalapeno because I keep eating those. Not eating this - not even if Joe Rogan with hair tried to pay me ;)
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I’ve seen a lot of people posting blossom rot issues on Reddit this season. From what I understand it is typically cause by the plant having issues getting calcium and big swings in the soil moisture can cause it.
 

H.A.F.

a.k.a. Rusty Nails
I’ve seen a lot of people posting blossom rot issues on Reddit this season. From what I understand it is typically cause by the plant having issues getting calcium and big swings in the soil moisture can cause it.
I have a plant on either side of it that are both paste tomatoes and both fine. This is just part of the process of finding what works in my garden.

That Raspberry Lyanna that took off still hasn't made a ripe one yet. There's maybe 40-50 tomatoes on it so far. But I need to see if it's just in a good spot in my garden or if it's a good plant or both. Next year I'll have fewer varieties, but spread them out in different spots.
 

treefarmercharlie

🍆
Admin
I have a plant on either side of it that are both paste tomatoes and both fine. This is just part of the process of finding what works in my garden.

That Raspberry Lyanna that took off still hasn't made a ripe one yet. There's maybe 40-50 tomatoes on it so far. But I need to see if it's just in a good spot in my garden or if it's a good plant or both. Next year I'll have fewer varieties, but spread them out in different spots.
They might get past it and produce good tomatoes. I had some Roma tomato plants a couple of years ago that did this early in the season and then had no issues later in the season.
 

Slowdrawl

PICK YOUR OWN
Back when I lived in an area that could grow tomatoes, I found Romas to be the most susceptible to end rot.
Heavy bone meal application during planting usually takes care of that issue!
I miss my different varieties and monster plants I used to grow.
Haven't grown a decent tomato in over 5 years.
 

H.A.F.

a.k.a. Rusty Nails
Trimmed up my tomatoes and trying to see if I can get the suckers to root to start climbing again.
I just leave one of the lower sprouts to grow out using the existing root system. at some point you can just cut away the old plant, but seal the end or leave a foot or so of extra limb to keep fusarium or something from getting into the 'new' plant.

I am finally getting rain and lower-than-oven temps so I should be seeing better germination soon. If I get a lot of rain i pull tomatoes early so they don't split. I have some tomatoes that keep making a sampling of their fruit, but nothing going wild except the Raspberry Lyanna and the Principe Borghese determinate. The Raspbnerry ones (top) ripen pink and have great flavor - so I will do more of them next year and am planting some now to get what I can out of another batch before first frost. In my area the first hard freeze isn't usually until late Oct, mid Nov, sometimes later.

Under those are (l to r) Orange Peach the PB determinate ones, an Apricot Zebra, and the volunteer sungold. One of the determinate tomatoes is ripening like a regular tomato, the huge one is looking to have a ton ripe on the same day. The mini ones are Candyland cherry I saved from 2022. I ended up with gallons of them off one plant that survived 2-3 frosts. The regular cherries are the other volunteer.
Bottom is the Sweetheart cherry. It looks to make a lot as well, and they are meaty, like mini paste tomatoes. The mini plums are Chocolate Pear, and that's all I get. The second plant got chipmunked.
Vertical box has Prarie Fire and Pink Fang and two Rosella cherry. Those and the Candyland were the late producers I got a lot of last year.
Then there's toothache plant and chamomile. I was surprised how fragrant the chamomile is. like sweet licorice. I have a gram in the little tea bag but I haven't tried it yet.
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I have one section of one rack of tomatoes that is thriving. but you can see the empty wire mesh lower right where I lost one. That's the Raspberry Lyanna up front. the determinate is behind it and you can just make out the bio-mass. to the right is the Queen of the Night slicing tomato.
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This is the bio-mass that looks to all ripen at once. I lost part of this plant to hornworm and it just kept going. There are several limbs growing from the base that I have spread out on their own strings.
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These are pretty and there's a good bit of them, but they have looked like this for weeks. They refuse to ripen LOL
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But all of the other tomatoes that are not dead or dying look like this. The base has a tomatop sample, then there was shit germ from the heat. but the tops look great so I am flling in the gaps where I lost plants.
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Fiddler's Green

Just a regular vato
I just leave one of the lower sprouts to grow out using the existing root system. at some point you can just cut away the old plant, but seal the end or leave a foot or so of extra limb to keep fusarium or something from getting into the 'new' plant.
That occurred to me while pruning but I was unsure how that would fare. Thanks for the gem on die back.

Your garden is looking good vato. This year has been an awesome learning experience. Now I just have to figure out what we really like, when to sow and what is shelf stable for a while (like this garlic I just harvested).
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H.A.F.

a.k.a. Rusty Nails
I have a feeling I'll be innundated with a lot of stuff getting ripe at the same time. The hot peppers should all start turning shortly and once most tomatoes start producing they are pretty steady. Most of those can just air dry in mesh bags if I don't want to run the dehydrator. The meatier ones take some prep and either dehydrating or freezing.

Last year I fucked myself because I got a new juicer. In hindsight it is great for stuff you are planning to use for sauce or juice but it's also too easy. Tomatoes that should have been at least frozen whole were made into different flavors of juice - which when added to chili or spaghetti sauce all taste the same.

Tomatoes like the San Marzano that are almost juiceless are best just frozen whole. When ready to use a quick dunk in hot water and the skins slip right off. That actually works well for most tomatoes if you have freezer space. I prefer it to canning actually. A lot less stressful about if you got all the steps right or not.
 

1oldfart

Insanely Active Member
I have a feeling I'll be innundated with a lot of stuff getting ripe at the same time. The hot peppers should all start turning shortly and once most tomatoes start producing they are pretty steady. Most of those can just air dry in mesh bags if I don't want to run the dehydrator. The meatier ones take some prep and either dehydrating or freezing.

Last year I fucked myself because I got a new juicer. In hindsight it is great for stuff you are planning to use for sauce or juice but it's also too easy. Tomatoes that should have been at least frozen whole were made into different flavors of juice - which when added to chili or spaghetti sauce all taste the same.

Tomatoes like the San Marzano that are almost juiceless are best just frozen whole. When ready to use a quick dunk in hot water and the skins slip right off. That actually works well for most tomatoes if you have freezer space. I prefer it to canning actually. A lot less stressful about if you got all the steps right or not.
red hot peppers everywhere three plants, cukes flat out failed,bells are about like tomatoes doing so so not bad really ,considering i took a unwanted vacation.
 

H.A.F.

a.k.a. Rusty Nails
My weather just turned the corner and I am thinking about fall planting. The tomatoes that have been hangingon the vine forever finally started turning so I snagged most of them to let the plant tops get going. The Cherries are producing regular, the Raspberry Lyanna are looking like the main producer in the slicing category, and upper right are three different Principe Borghese determinate tomatoes in different parts of the garden. The one thriving are the larger ones with no pointy tip. The Queen of the Night are the most visually impressive, but my bet is on the ugly-top mortgage lifters for taste. Martina's Roma is the only paste tomato that didn't get end rot so that makes next year easier. I have been eating most of the one-off peppers I have been snagging, those Hungarian Wax will be in lunch or dinner. the shishito are cool just for munching an the Korean Green are kimchi-spicy. Kind of a mid-level.
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Most of the plants are above my racks now and being trained and I'll be dropping plants in the empty spots where I can. Just strapping them to the clothes racks like I did the cherry tomatoes on the fence is a lot easier than stringing them through the open spaces. Moving my potted peppers into the garden has worked fine and I may try some root veggies in the new pots that are making up the retaining wall. The question is if I want to buy new potting soil or sift that much local soil.
 
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