What did you do in the garden today?

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

Good morning all. No canning today. I'll do more tomato sauce tomorrow. I may slice more peaches for the freezer later. I have one small butternut squash on the vine @Sally PB. Fingers crossed that one makes it to harvest. No beans to pick today, should have some tomorrow. I did pick one okra, 2 pounds of SM tomatoes and 5 pounds of peaches. I haven't started drying my herbs and I know I need to get on that soon. For those of you getting low on freezer space you could freeze in a good quality freezer bag and freeze it flat so it can fit into small spaces. Just a thought. DD has caught the gardening bug apparently and just signed up for a garden plot in her local community garden. It's good to hear you finally got some beneficial rain @gtaus. Apparently the Old Farmer's Almanac is predicting a cold and very snowy winter for us New Englanders. Time to get started on winter preps. At least my pellet stove is all set to go. Have a great day everyone.

 

[Sueby]

Yay, cold & snowy - my kind of winter! I've already started winter prep too - I ordered plastic for the run & am picking up straw tomorrow. Still thinking on adding a cattle panel hoop, but for the new chicks coop somehow. Going to TS tomorrow so I'll pick up a few panels & see what I can work out.

Picked more peppers, beans, sungolds & a hidden cuke.

I think we need more Penny pics!!

 

[Acre4Me]

farmers market this morning. I did not need ANYTHING fresh! I did buy 1/2 dz fresh donuts, and 20 ( yes, twenty) jars of jam/preserves from local lady who sells at the market. They are small 8 oz jars and she has a good selection of typical and unique flavors. So, by the time we are at the end of a jar, you are wanting another flavor, so it’s perfect! FWIW, I eat jam maybe 1x per month…if that, so it’s the rest of the family that eats it up!

freeze dryer: interesting to have the option to buy a home unit. I’ve been on a tour of Oregon Freeze Dry - walk in units! They had just freeze dried really large shrimp when I was on the tour-so interesting to see the freeze-dried items as look pretty much the same as the regular item.

processes 16 poblanos -roasted, skinned, chopped, vacuum sealed, now in the freezer. I got over 2C of chopped roasted peppers from the 16 peppers.

Need to process tomatoes. Need to process the large quantity of tomatillos. Need to process red peppers. Lots to do and am glad weather is pretty nice today!

 

[gtaus]

if they are over ripe, then you should be able to plant them next year, drying out is a must otherwise they'll turn moldy during the wait

OK. I've got the beans drying out inside the house. Thanks.

I just let them dry on the vine, but if I pull the vines I'll let them dry in the sunroom. They must be completely dry before you store them or they'll mold.

I'll be leaving some beans on the vine to dry out. That is what the YouTube video said to do to keep seeds for the next year. I just did not know if the overripe beans I already picked would dry out and be viable.

It's good to hear you finally got some beneficial rain @gtaus.

Yes, water is life. I am now 61 years old, and have never seen a drought like we had this summer. I don't have running water for my main garden, so those plants did not do well at all. I built some new hügelkultur raised beds for the backyard by the chicken coop and run. I was able to water those raised beds every day if needed. Almost all my harvest has come from those raised beds in the backyard this year.

 

[WthrLady]

Trimming is all done.
I dread doing the sage as the bending combined with the smell gives me a headache, but it's drizzling and cloudy and cool, so the bees weren't out yet. so ..... ya.
The alpacas are gulping down birch and willow trimmings, and DH supported the sunflowers while I cut them down so we didn't injure the tomato plants.
I also warned him about the luffa vine. I don't him if he gets grabbed he's spending life living in the garden until the frost, enjoy.

The only thing I didn't manage was the chicken garden. It is so tangled and thick and smelly that I couldn't manage the clippers. I pulled out the posts and knocked the 5 foot vines with the trimmers, but I think I'll just take the giant mower to it this week and next as the beaten vines dry out a little. OH and the marigolds I planted to sway the deer? The deer ate all the flowers off last night, about 300 flowers worth. I hope she has a belly ache.

 

[Elyrian1]

Dh said to tell ya'll that the pallet buster is an absolute win. However you've got to pay attention to the wood so you don't split the boards (I think this may be more because he's really strong and doesn't seem to know it, lol), and steel toe boots and thick work pants are a must. I would add preferably don't do it when it's over 90F out. He's drenched after busting up one pallet. He's doing that while quite literally waiting on some paint to dry.

So yeah... over 90F out. High of 95 expected according to the weather channel. I had toyed with the idea last night of getting up this morning while it was still early and cool to spread cardboard and mulch. Then Dd had a rough night. So it didn't happen. Ah well. It'll get done.

 

[chickengr]

Question: I picked some beans that are overripe. Can I just let them dry out completely and use the seeds next year for planting? I watched a YouTube video and the guy there said leave the beans on the plant and let them dry out on the plant before picking to save seeds. But I already have a bunch of beans that Dear Wife says are too ripe/dry to cook. Will those beans dry good in the house and be viable for planting next year? Thanks.

that is the way people have been planting for centuries when there were no shops.

 

[Sally PB]

I found 1 butternut squash that is about 6" long. I left that plant, but pulled the others. Maybe I'll get one squash?

I dug the potatoes that I planted from true potato seed. 4 plants, and here's the rundown:

First: 1 potato the size of a small egg, 1 the size of a pea
Second: 2 the size of even smaller eggs
Third: 3 the size of small eggs
Fourth: Nada

So I have 6 small seed potato sized potatoes. I'll save them to plant next season. Doubt I'll plant true potato seeds again, but I was curious.

I dug one hill of Kennebec that had two "volunteer" plants next to it. Wow, I got half a bucket of good sized spuds!

Here's a question about seed potatoes: Can you use potatoes that accidentally got pushed up and have turned green? I can't eat them, but can I plant them next year?

 

[Ascholten]

If the taters sprout eyes you can use them. I believe if they are not rotted, they should be good.

On the tater harvest, yah mine sucked this year too.

On the squash harvest, mine did ehh. it seems like maybe 1 in 20 flowers produces a squash and maybe 1 of 5 squashes actually survives more than a week to actually grow, but not too big it seems.

Not a good year
Aaron

 

[Acre4Me]

Last year I got 9 -yes, nine nice butternuts from ONE plant!! Even with squash bugs present. This year I planted two plants, and I got only 7 medium to small squash. The vine borer got to both plants this year, which really impacted them. Squash bugs present too, but in seemingly smaller numbers than last year.