North Alabama State Fair - Canning category

The canning/preserving category was impressive, as well - with every kind of entry you can think of. I was mostly intrigued by the jams, jellies, preserves, and salsa entries. I'll be entering this competition next year, for sure.

In gardening news, the large tomato vines were removed from their containers, and Jude actually helped me do it. Ha! I would pull a vine halfway out of the cages, then she would latch on with her teeth - then start pulling. Little stinker....She better not try that next year, during growing season!

The cucumber planting at the edge of the woods was cleaned up too, and only produced 3 fruit...Oh well, it was worth a try.

Onion sets are available at Lowes right now, and I planted some in the recently vacated sweet potato container. I just added about 4" of homemade compost, then planted about 12 of them. As the others become available for planting, more sets will be planted in them too.

Speaking of compost, this summer's batch was the first time that I've been able to make completely finished compost. It's the most beautiful growing medium I've ever seen. Man....now I understand the passion about it. Oh, we'll make more....lots more!

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

North Alabama State Fair, the squash category

When arriving at the fair the other day, I only had one thing on my mind - heading straight for the exhibit hall where the gardening stuff was located! And boy, am I glad I did! The squash/pumpkin category was impressive, and probably took up at least half of the entire vegetable/fruit section. Aw, man....these things were impressive, and I loved the different varieties. You can enlarge each photo by clicking on it.....

Tomorrow, ill show you some of the "preserving foods" entries, as they were a real jaw-dropper, too. Man....I gotta enter some stuff next year.

In other news, the temps for the next 3 nights will be 47, 46, and 43. I went ahead and bit the bullet, by removing every last green tomato from the plants. It was hard to do, but there's no way they would ripen after those cool nights. But, several will be used to make green tomato salsa with, and the rest will probably be fried. Oh well, at least I get a jump on the earthtainer cleanup process.

Most things will be removed this weekend, with honeydew melons, zucchini, and cucumbers being the only things remaining. Another harvest of beans is likely, so they will be left a while longer.

Slowly but surely, the garden is coming to an end. Sigh.....

Takecare, and happy gardening!

EG

Improvements

Well, after my failed attempt at making sweet pickle relish a few weeks ago, the rainy Saturday last weekend provided me the opportunity to redeem myself. Yay! Maybe Granny won't boo me this time. Heh. I still don't see how you get 8 half-pints from the recipe, though. Hmm....

However, a few sunny moments between Friday evening and late Sunday provided me some time to work on the shed, too. It's not my best work, but will have to do. The sheets of OSB are quite difficult to hold in place - then nail by yourself, especially for the roof. I strained a tricep muscle doing it, but it seems to be better now. Roof felting will be installed this week, then the pain-staking task of putting 3-tab shingles will take place. God, I hate roofing......

Photo below - I wanted to show one of the rough-ins for ventilation later, as the inside portion of the "box" will be simply cutout, then a louver installed on the outside before the siding is put up. One at each end should really help during the summer months, and can easily be blocked off during the winter.

Photo below - here's a picture of one of the louvers. It's screened, prevents rain from entering (if installed correctly), and pretty inexpensive. These will keep the shingles from getting too hot.

Other thoughts/happenings: We went to the fair on Sunday, and I took LOTS of pictures of the vegetable, fruit, and canned items entries. I'll do 2 seperate posts on it, because there's just too many photos for one. It was pretty impressive!

Also, I have just recently asked for cat litter buckets on freecycle, with intentions of doing a workshop on constructing self-watering planters next spring at the local Extension Office. Hopefully, i'll be able to get several, because I'm sure lots of people will be interested.

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

Slowly coming to an end

As the end of the 2009 garden is slowly approaching, subtle harvests remain consistent. I'm to the point that any harvest is a good one! At least 3 more weeks are available for it to produce, but anything past that is borrowed time. Some non-producing plants have already been pulled - mainly melons, pumpkins, and a few squash, but most things are still trekking right along. Below are some photos of current plant growth, which are far-removed from their glory days.

Photo below - The paste tomatoes have very lush growth at the top, but the inevitable brown trail of death is slowly making it's way upward. Several green tomatoes are present, but who knows if they will reach maturity or not? I hope so, because that will make more sauce.

Photo below - The large tomato varieties are in the same condition, but actually at a more accelerated rate. Corn will likely take their place next year, as crop rotation is something that is recommended for optimal garden success. 60 corn stalks in these four earthtainers would do fabulous, I bet....

Photo below - The cucumber planting by the woods has plenty of foliage now, but the rain has stressed the plants - as can be seen by the yellowing leaves. A couple of cucumbers have been picked from them, though. More should develop before first frost.....

Photo below - the melon/pumpkin box looks pretty naked now! All that remains is one little watermelon, and a single pumpkin (both of which are ripening on the ground). I'm sure that tomatoes would do quite well against those trellises, and i'll probably locate next year's slicing tomatoes right there. Pssst....I may even build another box underneath the trellis this winter!

Photo below - Now....the honeydew melons in the main box are still doing pretty good! With the recent abundance of rainfall, some sunshine should make this little fella grow up to be pretty big. The forecast for next week is full of sunny days. Yay!

Photo below - here's a bigger one, which was supported already with knee highs. There's 5 total on this trellis, as all of the smaller ones were removed from the vines a couple days ago.

Also, most of the newly developing tomatoes will be pulled this weekend, in hopes of helping the largest ones reach maturity. With nightly temps in the 40's/50's, they just don't want to grow. Since no more okra is needed in our family, i'll go ahead and let the pods of the burgundy variety grow large too, so that seed can be saved from them. Besides, the stinkbugs are really inflicting alot of damage on them.

The cowpeas are done, too - and that area will be cleaned up in a few weeks.

The lettuce is doing excellent in the deck rail planters, and a second harvest will come from it today. Carrots aren't doing so well, but there's still lots of time left.

Oh! I wanted to mention that i'll be sowing onion seeds in October, which will be left to overwinter in the garden. It's supposed to work, so I just have to try it!

With a forecast of 90% chance of rain today, I'll have to remain indoors (which drives me absolutely insane). It's coming a flood right now....Dangit......

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

Too much rainfall for the tomatoes

As the warm weather garden continues to produce a little, I fully understand that plants won't look as vigorous, and even fruit size is affected by the outdoor temperatures. Alone, it is enough to make a person want to rip out their plants, then start planning for next year. Add in the fact that it has rained 16 days in a row, and the aesthetic decline of the plants is accelerated even more. To say the least, the tomatoes are looking awful! But, I'm not giving up on them yet, because there's tons of green tomatoes out there. The following photos depict the current situation. Radial cracking has just begun on the fruit below, but that's the least of the problems.

Photo below - Blossom end rot has been rampant this year - especially on the paste tomatoes. This particular tomato is brandywine, though. That's even worse!

Photo below - this poor little Cherokee Purple tomato is just plain sad looking, but I just had to show it to you. Can you believe the number of cracks on it?

Here's another one, and it's a shame to have this happen. Oh well, Jude enjoys catching them!

Photo below - this leaf is located about halfway up the plant, and the condition will probably engulf the entire plant in a couple more weeks. Whether I'm ready or not, this planting is about to be over.

Photo below - even with the mass deterioration of all plants, there's still a glimmer of hope for a few more tomatoes to possibly turn out just fine. We'll just have to wait and see.

Lastly, even though the plants are approaching their last days, it was definitely a successful tomato growing cycle. With several jars of salsa in the pantry, countless tomatoes sliced for sandwiches throughout the summer, and 12 quart bags of prepped paste tomatoes in the freezer - I feel that the plants performed well. The plants will be left to wither away, as an occasional tomato that is edible might still be harvested from them. I'll most likely grow corn in these 4 earthtainers next year, which means the tomatoes will be located elsewhere. The melon/pumpkin box looks like a great possibility right now, as it would be perfect for 8 plants.

Seeds for next year have already been ordered, with some being VERY rare. It's a little early, but I don't want to miss out! Oh boy...I can't wait!

The weekend weather forecast looks very promising, as i'll definitely install OSB on the shed roof, and probably take the family to the North Alabama State Fair.

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

Sweet Potato harvest, first container

Ya know, I knew there were tubers in the containers, because they could be seen protruding from the soil. But how big/many were they? I had no earthly idea. Well, last weekend I decided to find out, by harvesting from only 1 of the 3 "earthtainer scrap pieces - turned into containers". The planters were filled with my homemade compost, which hadn't finished yet (mainly due to the pine needles within), but was the perfect growing medium for this planting. Sweet potato slips were planted the first week of June - making the planting about 104 days old as of 9/20/09. Jude gets in the video too, as you can imagine (the little stinker). For the record, the harvest total was 7 lbs., 11 oz., but that's not the most surprising part. I was shocked at what I found halfway through the container..... Enjoy!

Jude and her frisbee

During a break in the weather last weekend, I decided to utilize my tripod and remote for the camcorder, by shooting a video of me and Jude playing with her frisbee. She truly can't get enough of it, as you can see. During filming, a couple of carloads of kids drove by the house, with the first having no muffler on the car. If your speakers are turned up pretty high, you may want to turn the volume down during that part. It was loud! And, as you can guess....Jude plowed through one of my blueberry bushes again. Hehe. Oh well, I'm the one that threw in that direction....Anyway, here's me and Jude. I'm sure little Gracie will like this one. Enjoy!

Good guys, bad guys......EG's bugs

My garden has LOTS of bugs in it. Just when I thought I had encountered all possible bugs, new ones show up. Mexican bean beetles are here now, although I haven't got a photo of one yet. The camera is always in the house when it's needed....

Anyway, below are several bugs that were found over the weekend, in a sinlge stroll through the garden. Believe me...you have them too, ya just have to find them.

Here's a big, fuzzy caterpillar. From my childhood, I quickly learned to NEVER pick up a caterpillar that is fuzzy, or even spiked. Most sting the crap out of you! Believe me, it hurts.

Photo below - here's a white fringed beetle, and these things are everywhere. They are attracted to over 300 different types of plants, and the larvae overwinter in the soil. From my personal experience, they are mostly found around the peas, beans, potatoes, cucumbers, and okra.

Photo below - this little stinker was hanging out in the new cucumber section, and was quickly disposed of. Just look at it sitting in my hand...now, how could something like this be gross to pick up? No gloves necessary, contrary to what ribbit and ShawnAnn believe. Ha!

Photo below - stinkbug. These things have arrived in full force, and can be found mostly on the okra plants. On any given day, at least a dozen of them can be found. Still, no insecticides are used, as it's quite easy to just hand-pick them.

Photo below - here's some "different" eggs located underneath an okra leaf. I bet they belong to the stinkbug, because it's the only one I haven't seen when hatching.

Photo below - Remember the worms that were wreaking havoc on the tomatoes a while back? Well, now they're on the okra plants. These little devils can really eat some foliage!

Photo below - That's enough "bad" bugs....let's talk about some good ones! Here's a little assassin bug, and I must have found 4 or 5 on the watermelon vines. These things are pretty cool!

Photo below - this little bee was just hanging on to a cucumber leaf, and I thought it was strange that it wasn't visiting blooms. Who knows, maybe it partied too much. Ha!

Photo below - as the beans were being examined, I came across this beneficial insect. Mantids are something that everyone wants have in their garden, as they eat other insects. It was probably the biggest one this year!

Photo below - on the same trellis of beans, was another one! Cool....It was giving me the "eye", too! Maybe it wanted me to pick it up, too? Well...I didn't want to scare it away....

In other news, I pulled the last remaining watermelon yesterday, and the taste was so-so. However, there are still lots of cantaloupes and honeydew melons in the garden, and one should be ready in about a week. It's still raining everyday, and as of yesterday, it has rained 14 days in a row. Crap....My tomatoes are cracking again - with no end in sight.

Later this week, I have a couple of videos coming up - one with me and Jude throwing/catching the frisbee, and another showing the harvest of one of the sweet potato plantings. You'll not want to miss them! The amount of sweet potatoes in that first container was quite a surprise!

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

Muscadine Jelly

After planting the grape vines on the property 6 years ago, we finally have homemade jelly from the grapes. Man....talk about satisfaction! A total of 4 pints, and 9 half pints is an acceptable number in my book....We'll try some tomorrow, as I always let mine set for about 24 hours. Yay!

Tomato sauce is next, I guess. The canning season is almost over, but we've put up our fair share of things - definitely.

After the jelly was finished, I had a little time to work on the shed, too. The gable end on the backside is almost covered with osb, and the roof will be started sometime next week. If I can just get it in the dry reasonably quick, the insides can be worked on anytime.

Take care, and happy preserving,

EG

Um...rain, lots and lots of rain

It can stop already. My poor garden doesn't need this right now - not with only 4 weeks left until it's put to bed for the winter. I have no pictures to show, but just felt like writing a few things before going to bed.

Ginger, welcome to my blog, and thanks for following!

First of all, tomorrow will be a pretty big day - IF it doesn't rain (which I'm sure it will). This evening, I took the extracted grape juice out of the refrigerator and contemplated on how many pints of jelly will come from it, and I'm thinking on the lines of 15-20....That would be excellent! Oh...you'll see the photo, I promise. While trying to figure out how to keep the jars off of the bottom of the pressure cooker, my good friend ribbit told me how to do it on the cheap. I'll wire together several old rings, and place the grouped rings on the bottom of the canner - then place my jars on top of them. Thanks, ribbit!

All of this rain is hampering my shed construction, and I have a need to build something! I get that way....I know - weird. Speaking of building something, I have 5 projects in my mind right now, including the shed, of course. The list is as follows:


1. shed (in progress)

2. Three 4x4 hoop houses, that will be incorporated into the big garden box. They will be used for hardening off my vegetable transplants in the spring, and also as makeshift greenhouses for rooting all kinds of cuttings from perennials. They should do a good job, and I know hellbender and Dan will be very interested in the design.

3. A wheelchair ramp for my parents. Dad just had his second knee replaced, and the ramp will let him get outdoors again with the motorized scooter. He really misses playing with Jude.

4. A mechanized compost pile turning device. I'm still on the lookout for cheap materials, and may have to re-design my bin system to accomodate it. That's all I need, more building to do........

5. A homemade leaf shredder that is capable of shredding leaves in bulk. I had a really good idea come to me this evening, and need to visit my very good friend that owns his own electric motor repair business. Yeah, he'll have a good, cheap, used motor that will work. Oh....you'll like this design, I promise. hehe.

In other news, The first harvest of fall lettuce will take place this weekend. Yay! Finally....lettuce and tomatoes at the same time...I really like salads.
I pinched off half of the tiny melons today, in hopes of accelerating the growth of the remaining fruit. The abundance of rain is helping matters, but a couple applications of fertilizer will be necessary, as well. I need a good harvest to get me over the 400 lb. mark.
The physical state of the tomato plants is diminishing by the day, but they should still provide several fruit before completely finished.
The same worms that were wreaking havoc on my tomatoes a while back, are now eating entire okra leaves. Stupid caterpillars....I guess they need a little chemical intervention. I hate to do it, but the bad stuff will get used this weekend.

Lastly, I've got an idea to run by you.....If you've been to Matron's blog, you've probably seen the little gnome named Bilbo, that has been circulated throughout the world this year.....Whomever recieves him for the week, takes pictures of him in their surrounding area, and especially the garden. Well, me and Granny have done the same thing with "EG's box", but only sent it to each other. This little box has probably traveled 6-7,000 miles over the last year, and I think it's only fair to let it visit other parts of the country/world, as well. What do you think? Of course, since it's my creation - i'll need to be the facilitator of the project, and keep up with it at all times. I think it would be fun! I'll post guidelines in a few days, and we'll get it on it's merry little way!

Take care, and happy gardening

EG

The little box comes home

Last year around this time, I sent a special little box to Granny in Washington State. You might remember a post she did about it here:
http://annieskitchengarden.blogspot.com/2008/10/october-3-2008-making-friends-and.html
I really doctored the little box up, because I was going for a certain "shock factor". Heh.

Anyway, little did I know that she would take the box with her on the annual migration to Arizona for the winter, and take its picture in all kinds of places! Man...this box has traveled alot of miles over the past year! When checking the mail after we got home from our beach trip the other day, I got a pleasant surprise. The little box was finally home! Of course, it had something in it, too...A jar of Granny's homemade strawberry jam. Yum! Thank you, Granny!

Now, for some gardening related news.....The new cucumber planting is still doing nicely, but the abundance of rain is causing the leaves to yellow a bit. That's ok, in 4 more weeks, they'll be pulled out anyway. I might (notice I said might) make another batch of sweet pickle relish soon, especially since I know how to NOT make it. Once again, it's Granny to the rescue!

Photo below - here's the (3) zucchini plants that are still being kept in their reserved space by the upside-down tomato cages. The squashbugs have found them, but aren't a problem at all. EG is good at finding - then disposing of squashbugs! Production so far has only been so-so, but we really don't need any more of those, either. Although....I did see a really cool recipe for zucchini candy the other day. Hmm....

Photo below - the okra has grown really tall, and still provides daily harvests. They are REALLY putting out now, and harvests are given to friends. We just don't have room for any more. For reference, the post on the right is 6.5 feet tall. Also, the beans are still doing their thing, but the harvest is beginning to slow a bit. They are given away, as well.

Photo below - Here's the new cucumber planting in containers by the woods. As you can tell, the makeshift trellis is working great, and 1 cucumber has already been harvested from the vines. Almost daily rainfalls are making their leaves turn yellow, too. The cowpeas in the box next to them have just about played out, and i'll most likely not plant them in that location again. One really needs to plant alot of cowpeas to make it worthwhile.

Photo below - Slicing tomatoes and sweet potatoes. The tomato plants have seen better days, but still continue to produce lots of fruit. Another round of salsa might be possible, but we'll just have to wait and see. I have stopped filling the water reservoirs, and top-water only - as I intend to make fall cleanup easier. (less heavy) The sweet potatoes will be harvested in 2 weeks, and I'm very optimistic about this crop. That will be 120 days in the soil, and surely they will be as large as they're gonna get....At least 15-20 lbs. would be suh-weet! (no pun intended)

Photo below - Here's the current status of the paste tomatoes. They look pretty rough, too - but continue to produce, as well. Squirrels decided to do a little damage by eating some of the fruit, and some defense measures may be in order...we'll see. Man with shotgun vs. squirrel wins every time....Heehee

The last of the grapes were picked today, and provided between 4-5 gallons of ripe fruit. Some were taken to work for snacking on, and the guys really liked them. Tomorrow is jelly making day, and it should be fun! I'm hoping for at least 12 pints of jelly, but any number will be appreciated.

In closing, i'd like to say hi to the Anderson's, and hope you will continue to visit!

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

The melons are coming! The melons are coming!

Just when I thought it was safe to rip out the melon vines, apparently they have other plans. Gosh, they're everywhere! Maybe 20? Holy Moly.....I'm gonna let them all have a chance at maturity, and will keep the fertilizer and water poured to them over the next few weeks. With an abundance of rain from Mother Nature as of late, they should do pretty well on their own. As an added bonus, at least 5 are honeydew - which turned out to be the best tasting variety this year. My wife will appreciate that, for sure. Now, I'm guaranteed to reach 400 lbs. - maybe even more....Here's some random photos of different fruit that have set.

Photo below - My only remaining pumpkin that ended up on the ground. If you'll recall, the wind blew it out of its sling, and the entire vine fell from the trellis. There's evidence that some type of animal scratched it a bit, but thankfully no damage was done.

Photo below - Here's one of the largest honeydew melons, which has since been supported by a knee high. Gosh these things are good!

Another honeydew that will need support in a few days.

In other news, it's raining daily with no end in sight, and the garden sure does enjoy it. As I write this, it's currently 3 a.m. - and I can't sleep! I have restless leg syndrome, and only get 4-5 hours rest on a good night. However, this time is an exception - as it looks like no sleep for me at all. Crap....I'll have to call off from work, and only miss maybe 1 time a year. Stupid RLS....Oh well, Jude benefited from it, as I let her out to play for a while at 2 am. Little stinker.....Heh.


Take care, and happy gardening

EG