Your 2024 Garden

[Nomadicus]

I've been out digging the last of the sweet potatoes. Everything cultivation and plant wise was done well. Still a vast difference from hill to hill. Some perfect and neighboring plants nothing or potatoes rotten in the middle. They would look like a perfect potato until I tried to move them and then they opened up to what looks like a sweet potato wet sawdust. I've never seen that before. l need to research that and see if that is another new disease to me here in the deep south. Some hills were full of fire ants and some with some funny looking bugs I've never seen before that looked like a cross between a pill bug and a roach. For the pounds I got for the labor put in it was not worth growing them. For the sake of my spine and hips I think next year Sam's Club or Walmart will most likely grow most of them. I need to make some pallet raised beds and try a couple dozen with about 6 of each kind.

 

[CatInTheHenHouse]

Heirloom (better name is OP, ie, open pollinated) varieties are important to me because I save seed.

Same. I also donate my extra seed to a local seed library, and they prefer heirloom seeds, probably for the same reason.

Making a new variety sounds really nice in theory, but in practice I don’t have the time or the space to do that.

 

[Nomadicus]

On another front the fall crop of tomato plants look like they are infected with TMV. Bell peppers too. It could be these last few weeks with temps reaching to the upper 90's and touching triple digits is the culprit. I've got a notion to go ahead and pull them all and till the ground and plant mustard, collards and turnips

 

[Nomadicus]

At least we are thankful for freezers full of corn and summer peas and have okra coming in that feeds us now until frost. I've also got some jalapenos made into Cowboy Candy for sandwiches that is a delight I'm having for the first time.

 

[Nomadicus]

From the looks of things this morning we got a real frog drowning kind of rain after we closed up coops just before dark yesterday. The ground looks to be saturated. I was going to have to water peas and okra but now they are good until the rains start mid week. Forecast is for a high percentage chance of rain for about 5 days in a row so just maybe we will get one of the first ones. Hope to plant mustard and turnips today or tomorrow. All hinges on being able to till the sandy loam soil where they go.

 

[Nomadicus]

Got the okra picked and today's haul is enough for 2 meals. I got a poor stand because of a heavy rain right after planting that washed a lot of it out. I never filled it back in or planted more. We are getting enough as it is. Not much room in the freezer these days. Each a package of peas or corn and put something else back in. The pinkeye purple hull peas are growing like they are being chased right out of the ground. Arthur that lives in our fingers isn't going to like it when they are ready to be shelled. Maybe nest season there will be a pea sheller added to our kitchen tools.

 

[fuzzi]

My gardens are finally getting rain!

 

[Sally PB]

Our several possible rainy days evaporated. Now it's going to cool down. If anything needs water, I'll water it.

 

[Sally PB]

This year's big tomato winner? Ace 55. I've saved some some seed from that one and also Italian Heirloom. I need to replenish my tomato seed stash for next year.

I'll probably order a couple more varieties to try next year.

 

[Nomadicus]

I've got some friends I'm going to ask them what they have the best luck with tomato wise. This year ours may be Hunts by the case of 24 cans at a time.