Posted by Steve Peek on October 19, 2010, 6:36 pm
We've had frost here in the southern Appalachians for the last few nights.
The summer garden is gone, the okra, peppers, eggplant, and tomatoes look so
sad. The sweet potatoes looked scorched over a week ago. This summers crop
was one of my best ever. 23 sweet potato plants survived and produced just
over 3 bushels, the largest being 7 pounds 1 ounce. Squash, tomatoes,
peppers were bountiful. Green beans and edamame were only fair. Weeds were
especially abundant due to the 2 truckloads of horse manure I think. The
fall garden is now in its' glory. The Florida broadleaf mustard is just
amazing, the leaves on some are 2 feet long and over a foot wide. The stems
are as big as my thumb and still tender. The turnips are the size of tennis
balls and very sweet. Carrots, collards and spinach will soon be ready. I
was gifted about 25 pounds of chestnuts, my hives gave me about 40 pounds of
honey. My fledgling blueberry enterprise produced almost 30 gallons. The
cider making crew will be here on Saturday. Life is good!
Sorry, don't mean to brag, I'm just feeling good about my endeavors this
year.
I hope your year was at least as good as mine,
Steve
Posted by David Hare-Scott on October 19, 2010, 8:39 pm
Steve Peek wrote:
> We've had frost here in the southern Appalachians for the last few
> nights. The summer garden is gone, the okra, peppers, eggplant, and
> tomatoes look so sad. The sweet potatoes looked scorched over a week
> ago. This summers crop was one of my best ever. 23 sweet potato
> plants survived and produced just over 3 bushels, the largest being 7
> pounds 1 ounce. Squash, tomatoes, peppers were bountiful. Green beans
> and edamame were only fair. Weeds were especially abundant due to the
> 2 truckloads of horse manure I think. The fall garden is now in its'
> glory. The Florida broadleaf mustard is just amazing, the leaves on
> some are 2 feet long and over a foot wide. The stems are as big as my
> thumb and still tender. The turnips are the size of tennis balls and
> very sweet. Carrots, collards and spinach will soon be ready. I was
> gifted about 25 pounds of chestnuts, my hives gave me about 40 pounds
> of honey. My fledgling blueberry enterprise produced almost 30
> gallons. The cider making crew will be here on Saturday. Life is
> good!
> Sorry, don't mean to brag, I'm just feeling good about my endeavors
> this year.
Seems fair to me.
> I hope your year was at least as good as mine,
> Steve
Yes but with seasons reversed, I am pulling the last cabbages etc to make
room to plant tomato seedlings.
David
Posted by Derald on October 19, 2010, 10:46 pm
>Yes but with seasons reversed, I am pulling the last cabbages etc to make
>room to plant tomato seedlings.
And my first winter cabbages are just emerging, the turnips and
mustard greens and "English" peas are a few inches tall. Overnight
lows in high 40s to mid-50s (7-12?) portend the end to the tomatoes,
cukes, basil to be replaced by more peas! Bulbing onions and garlic go
in this month, too. Root knot so debilitated this year's eggplants
(aubergine) and bell peppers that I uprooted them early this year.
Definitely gonna try some of those cannibalistic nematodes!
I'm in west-central Florida, USA. Although we're having a taste
of autumn, plenty of hot weather remains in store.
OT Aside: Did you settle on a "most droolworthy" melon for this
season?
--
Derald
Posted by Steve Peek on October 19, 2010, 10:36 pm
>>Yes but with seasons reversed, I am pulling the last cabbages etc to make
>>room to plant tomato seedlings.
> And my first winter cabbages are just emerging, the turnips and
> mustard greens and "English" peas are a few inches tall. Overnight
> lows in high 40s to mid-50s (7-12?) portend the end to the tomatoes,
> cukes, basil to be replaced by more peas! Bulbing onions and garlic go
> in this month, too. Root knot so debilitated this year's eggplants
> (aubergine) and bell peppers that I uprooted them early this year.
> Definitely gonna try some of those cannibalistic nematodes!
> I'm in west-central Florida, USA. Although we're having a taste
> of autumn, plenty of hot weather remains in store.
> OT Aside: Did you settle on a "most droolworthy" melon for this
> season?
> --
> Derald
I can't grow melons in my present location. I have cucumber beetles by the
millions and all the disease they carry. Years ago Yellow Doll watermelon
and Ambrosia cantaloupe were favorites.
Posted by Derald on October 20, 2010, 6:51 am
>I can't grow melons in my present location. I have cucumber beetles by the
>millions and all the disease they carry.
Same here. Insect damage is significant to squashes, pumpkins and
melons. Best defense, at least in my climate, is to get them in as
early as possible. Have little tiny things that tunnel into and down
the length of stems and little tiny things that hatch in and tunnel
out of the pepos.
--
Derald
FL USDA zone 9a
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> nights. The summer garden is gone, the okra, peppers, eggplant, and
> tomatoes look so sad. The sweet potatoes looked scorched over a week
> ago. This summers crop was one of my best ever. 23 sweet potato
> plants survived and produced just over 3 bushels, the largest being 7
> pounds 1 ounce. Squash, tomatoes, peppers were bountiful. Green beans
> and edamame were only fair. Weeds were especially abundant due to the
> 2 truckloads of horse manure I think. The fall garden is now in its'
> glory. The Florida broadleaf mustard is just amazing, the leaves on
> some are 2 feet long and over a foot wide. The stems are as big as my
> thumb and still tender. The turnips are the size of tennis balls and
> very sweet. Carrots, collards and spinach will soon be ready. I was
> gifted about 25 pounds of chestnuts, my hives gave me about 40 pounds
> of honey. My fledgling blueberry enterprise produced almost 30
> gallons. The cider making crew will be here on Saturday. Life is
> good!
> Sorry, don't mean to brag, I'm just feeling good about my endeavors
> this year.