What did you do in the garden today?

[notsopickychicky]

planted a few maters, some chinese cabbage and some kale. Did a little weeding and finished up my chicken run!!! The girls are loving it.

 

[WthrLady]

Very true! I want to try some San Marzanos next year for sauces. They're on my list for seeds because of the praise you give them.

I like Romas for pico de gallo and for dehydrating. They're fleshy enough to hold up to making chips and I like their flavor in the pico.

SanMarz have a great flavor and even MORE flesh!

 

[igorsMistress]

SanMarz have a great flavor and even MORE flesh!

I can't wait to give them a try!

 

[NewBoots]

Grabbed 5 more yellow squash, will go back later for green beans. I really suck at picking green beans. Half the haul is too big to eat, I guess I just don't have the attention span to find them when they're smaller. This is my first year growing them & I think I've decided it's easier to see them on a trellis instead of a tower.

My bush beans didn't make many beans but they were all weird bendy shapes and most of them were empty, and all of them were hard to find.

I made chocolate zucchini muffins yesterday. These muffins were more like cupcakes and use two small to medium zucchinis.

Saved that recipe, I bet you could even add chocolate chips to it too. mmmm

So it's not only what IS your favorite. It's what the end game is, and your location.

My favorite for taste are beef steaks but right this minute I am really happy with the Fire Crackers (determinate) I have ripening now. The bushes are small and the fruit might as well be beef steaks for slicing. Once I can't keep up with eating them all I'll start canning them. I like to have cherry tomatoes too for fresh eating, salads, and drying and my favorite is black cherry. I have 2 san marzanos in pots this year, I planted them late but I have big hopes for them.

Watering is done for the day, I'd like to get some liquid fertilizing done later too. Today is also processing day for 4 of the rabbits, I got the table and everything set up this morning so I can't put that off. I also intend to make more zuc chips and freeze some zuc soup base. I might start freezing tomatoes to build up enough for canning. The tomatoes are odd shapes, should I cut them up and remove the rough spots so I don't have to deal with that later? These are large slicing type tomatoes and the bottoms of them are kind of messy where they tried to split and healed over. I suppose I could blanch them and remove the skins too, then they'll be almost ready to can. Let me know what you guys think, this is my first time canning tomatoes or sauce so I figure I'll learn lots.

No egg song today so I think Glyness decided it's Sunday and she's taking the day off. We gave the chickens the leftover pork rib bones. Kinda unnerving, no one had better pass out in the run.

 

[WthrLady]

My bush beans didn't make many beans but they were all weird bendy shapes and most of them were empty, and all of them were hard to find.
Saved that recipe, I bet you could even add chocolate chips to it too. mmmm
My favorite for taste are beef steaks but right this minute I am really happy with the Fire Crackers (determinate) I have ripening now. The bushes are small and the fruit might as well be beef steaks for slicing. Once I can't keep up with eating them all I'll start canning them. I like to have cherry tomatoes too for fresh eating, salads, and drying and my favorite is black cherry. I have 2 san marzanos in pots this year, I planted them late but I have big hopes for them.

Watering is done for the day, I'd like to get some liquid fertilizing done later too. Today is also processing day for 4 of the rabbits, I got the table and everything set up this morning so I can't put that off. I also intend to make more zuc chips and freeze some zuc soup base. I might start freezing tomatoes to build up enough for canning. The tomatoes are odd shapes, should I cut them up and remove the rough spots so I don't have to deal with that later? These are large slicing type tomatoes and the bottoms of them are kind of messy where they tried to split and healed over. I suppose I could blanch them and remove the skins too, then they'll be almost ready to can. Let me know what you guys think, this is my first time canning tomatoes or sauce so I figure I'll learn lots.

No egg song today so I think Glyness decided it's Sunday and she's taking the day off. We gave the chickens the leftover pork rib bones. Kinda unnerving, no one had better pass out in the run.

Yup. Just remove the weird bits and go at it like normal.

 

[Sueby]

Thank you @Wee Farmer Sarah, I love the idea of chocolate & cardamom!

@NewBoots I'd cut out the weird spots before freezing, once they defrost they're so mushy you can't cut anything out. I don't chop them tho, I find it easier to hold the whole thawed tomato up by the stem, snip it off & then the skin just slides off. BUT...if you plan on running them thru a mill, which you may be doing because they aren't paste tomatoes, I see no problem chopping them up & then freezing. I just don't mill my paste tomatoes because there are hardly any seeds & the skins fall off so easily. This made me lol, 'and all of them were hard to find' - that's so how I feel. I eat a lot of green beans so I'm undecided if they're worth it because they really make you work for them! Thankfully the bugs don't care much for them. It's the only thing in the garden that doesn't get chewed on or sucked dry by some nasty little bug!

 

[Acre4Me]

Picked a watermelon today! It was the other "Moon and Stars" one. Two more on the vine, but not sure if they will have enough sun and heat to mature fully, so this might be our last one of this type!

nearly 16.5 lbs! Smaller than the first one, but ok for us. It was ripe and tasty!

Pickling cucumber sprouts. We will be pushing the edge of season here, but figured I would try to get some pickles made this year.

I'm rooting for the praying mantis. I hope they eat those #@$#! squash bugs. I mean, it is so close...just reach down and grab it!

 

[WthrLady]

feels like 105 at the moment and no wind. I spent 3 hours in the garden tying up tomatoes, NOT all at once. Talk about melty.

The squash beetles killed off every squash in the patch, so now they and the squash are gone. I'll not be planting squash there again, or cukes, as the beetles here are out of control.

It's not worth the battle.

Maybe I'll turn that area into another tomato row. LOL. I have 50 plants. What's 10 more?

 

[NewBoots]

Thanks so much @WthrLady and @Sueby, I've got a mill and grinder coming soon for the kitchenaid so I just need them to hold in the freezer till then. I think I'll just trim the ugly bits and toss them in the freezer for now. Thanks again guys.

Oh and Glyness made a liar out of me, she started singing at 3:30 pm and laid a big egg the same pretty turquoise color as the rest of them. Just about finished bagging the rabbits, the food sealer was a good purchase.

 

[WthrLady]

OOOOO what'd ya get?