What did you do in the garden today?

[CatInTheHenHouse]

My loofahs have just now started putting out lots of female flowers. Weirdly there have been very few male flowers. I just hope a few of them get to maturity

Can loofahs be hand pollinated? Maybe give them some “help.”

Some varities of garlic need cold stratification. Next time you plant garlic in the spring try putting the cloves in the fridge for a month before you plant it. I think that's why garlic is usually planted in the fall.

I did that with this batch. Most of them rotted in place. (To be fair, it was cool and wet in the early part of the season and most of it was by the squash such that it got covered by the cloche - and by extension very little airflow.)

 

[OnlySympathy]

Do they have the heat of red cayennes?

I think that next year I'm going to have a bigger pepper garden, with a lot more varieties than the three I'm growing this year... Jalapenos, New Mexico chilis and habaneros.

The ones I’m growing are definitely on par with the red cayennes in terms of heat. the main difference other than the color is that they have a sweeter, almost fruity flavor on top of what the reds already have.

 

[OnlySympathy]

When I've grown them, I've needed 2-3 more MONTHS after the female flowers form to get loofas of any size. The only time I got a useable loofa sponge, I started the plants inside in the middle of March. I still got JUST ONE that ripened enough to be worth anything.

If the gourds get frosted or freeze, they're toast. If frost is forecast, can you cover the plants?

I've read that the young gourds can be eaten like zucchini.

In that case my dream of loofahs is probably not going to be happening. I started them back in April but I have them in a shady area which definitely set them back a lot. We don’t usually have any bad frosts or days that are under freezing for more than 8-12 hours until early to mid December so hopefully if I get some frost cover I will get something out of them

 

[Sally PB]

Loofas originated in the tropics, so they like long days of warm sunshine.

I might try them again next year. Out of 3 years, 9 plants, I got one gourd big enough to make a sponge.

Our habaneros did great this year, being started on a heated mat under grow lights in February, so maybe I can do that with loofas...?

 

[Smokerbill]

The ones I’m growing are definitely on par with the red cayennes in terms of heat. the main difference other than the color is that they have a sweeter, almost fruity flavor on top of what the reds already have.

I wonder if somewhere along the line the typical cayennes were crossed with a habanero type pepper to get the yellow color, hence the fruity flavor?

And yes, it's definitely salsa and tomato sauce making season for me, starting tomorrow. Lots of partially ripe tomatoes in the garden too.

 

[Smokerbill]

Loofas originated in the tropics, so they like long days of warm sunshine.

I might try them again next year. Out of 3 years, 9 plants, I got one gourd big enough to make a sponge.

Our habaneros did great this year, being started on a heated mat under grow lights in February, so maybe I can do that with loofas...?

@Sally PB , how big did your habanero plants get? Mine are somewhat smaller than one foot spheres, small, bushy plants. Three plants and it looks like I'll get maybe 30 peppers from them in total.

I'm going to try overwintering one or two of them. Maybe they'll do better in their second year. Mahonias stratifying? Walkers aren't sprouting yet.

 

[Sally PB]

Our habaneros are probably 18-24" tall, and spread about 12" wide. We got plenty of habaneros to make salsa, and I put probably 30 in the freezer to use over the winter. 4 plants, and hubby was pleased with their taste. They're an orange variety.

What helped this year was to start them indoors, under grow lights, and on a heat mat. They sprouted in less than a week! Before, I've started them in the green house with the other seeds about April 1. When I did that, I had about 3" tall plants to put out by the end of May. This year, they were nearly a foot tall by transplant time.

I tried to overwinter one once... nope, it died. I've read that of the pepper plants, they can be very difficult to get through a winter.

 

[jxp]

I found out today that the yellow cayennes I am growing are amazing with cheese. They also have so much more flavor than the red ones.View attachment 4220296

Interesting. Do you recall the variety or where you got the seeds?

 

[Smokerbill]

Our habaneros are probably 18-24" tall, and spread about 12" wide. We got plenty of habaneros to make salsa, and I put probably 30 in the freezer to use over the winter. 4 plants, and hubby was pleased with their taste. They're an orange variety.

What helped this year was to start them indoors, under grow lights, and on a heat mat. They sprouted in less than a week! Before, I've started them in the green house with the other seeds about April 1. When I did that, I had about 3" tall plants to put out by the end of May. This year, they were nearly a foot tall by transplant time.

I tried to overwinter one once... nope, it died. I've read that of the pepper plants, they can be very difficult to get through a winter.

I started all my peppers in January so I'd have big plants to put in the garden. Relatively short and cool growing season here in SW Washington, so I figured they'd need a good head start.

As far as overwintering goes, which I've never done, I think the information on this website can be trusted. I'll probably try it this fall.

https://peppergeek.com/overwintering-pepper-plants/

 

[OnlySympathy]

Interesting. Do you recall the variety or where you got the seeds?

They were just called yellow cayennes and I got them from burpees but I just checked on their website and don’t see them