What are your garden plans for 2021?

[Bitser]

Did you try my suggestion in my previous post? Radishes are completely different when roasted, either in the oven or pan roasted on top of the stove.

A trick I learned from a chef is to prepare beurre noisette (brown butter) for the radishes: brush it on as they roast.

https://www.allrecipes.com/article/browning-butter/

I grow d'Avignon (R) and other large radishes for roasting.

It's also nice for roasting baby carrots, beets, parsnips, and the like.

 

[pepperhead212]

I have a bunch of lettuce that I am going to have to use up soon, due to the hot weather. Maybe one of those cooked dishes! There's only a small amount I use up in salads qnd tacos and the like.

I planted 2 more basil clones today, and put 3 more cuttings in the cloner. The one gecofure clone is almost ready - probably will be tomorrow.
Serrata basil clones, with generous roots, after they were barely visible 2 days earlier. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Serrata basil clones, planted on 6-4 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

 

[Cooking Goddess]

A trick I learned from a chef is to prepare beurre noisette (brown butter) for the radishes: brush it on as they roast...It's also nice for roasting baby carrots, beets, parsnips, and the like.

Those are beautiful radishes! The beurre noisette sounds good, but I cook my radishes a lazy way. Almost always stovetop, and stirred in the cooking butter once or twice. Besides, as they cook the butter gets a bit brown. We like them, we eat them, so it's all good. [emoji6]

 

[pepperhead212]

That Gecofure basil was definitely ready today! Probably ready yesterday, but I got busy with other things, so I left it for today. The serrata I planted down in the herb bed, since I have two on the deck already.
More basil clones ready! Serrata on L, Gecofure on R. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

First Gecofure Basil clone planted, 6-6 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

While out there today, I also "rescheduled" my timers, to water either more often, or more, or both, due to this heat, plus those tomatoes are getting much larger, so they are sucking up much more water now, from the SIPs.

 

[pepperhead212]

Those peppers I covered in the Earthboxes on 6-1 have easily doubled in size in just the 6 days since I covered them! I see some small peppers forming on the Giuzeppi, but that's all, so far. This morning I got up very early, and did a little work out front, and on the side where the peppers are, since it's in the shade then. I sprayed the okra, peppers, and flower plants with Surround, and found out that I can actually spray right through the tulle fabric, onto the plants! Eventually, when I start seeing peppers, I stop spraying with the Surround, but I figure I'll put what I can on, which helps deter some of the insects.
Giuzeppi Numex and Ancho Ranchero, 6-7 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Hanoi Market, Hong Gochu, and Superthai, 6-7 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

That 42 day variety has 5 days left! There are a number of full sized ones on the plants, but these last few days they have become covered with blossoms! You can't see the tomatoes well in this photo, as they are covered with the later growth, but this shows what I mean about all those blossoms!
42 day tomatoes, with a large amount of flowers on them, 6-7 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

I'm starting to see a good number of new tomatoes on more of the varieties, but all still cherry/grape.

 

[pepperhead212]

Here's a photo of one the 42 day tomatoes; though the largest are sort of hidden, you can see they are forming quickly - the only other variety with well formed tomatoes (though not nearly as many) are the Cherry Brownies, which are also over 2½' tall. The Kustengold is the fastest growing this year, and was my first bloomer, but the tomatoes are smaller, so far.
42 day tomatoes, 6-7 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

 

[larry_stewart]

Thats a significant amount of blossoms. Im a few weeks behind, but I also noticed the blossoms coming and some small tomatoes.

Unfortunately, my fears about one of my garlic beds were true. One bed started dying off sooner than the other. Its the same bed that had poor drainage last year, and I had to pick early and wound up with sub par garlic. I amended the soil thinking I fixed the problem ( I grew garlic in this bed for 10 years prior with no issues at all until last year. I pulled one up, then a second... only to confirm that the garlic was starting to rot. I was forced to pic this whole bed and salvage what. I could. definitely not for storing, but Ill have to do something to preserve all these garlic cloves over the next few days.

Luckily, the bed that is literally 2 feet over is looking good ( same as last year). Im not sure but ill probably amend the soil more, but plant onions there and move the second garlic bed where the onions were.

I dont mind having problems if I learn and fix them, but this is so frustrating. Garlic has always been one of my slam dunk, dont have to worry, great producing crops. No brainers.

Still got about another 50 in the second bed, but was banking on 120 +

 

[cookwewill]

Finally it started

 

[bethzaring]

Peas are just starting to flower!

 

[blissful]

Larry, what a disappointment in garlic. Bummer! I know the feeling-we lost 1/3 of our crop last year to some animal digging them out. Maybe you could add some sand to your soil mix?
Cookwewill, beautiful strawberries. We just brought in a handful yesterday.
Beth, it's that time of year! Nice.

 

[larry_stewart]

Larry, what a disappointment in garlic. Bummer! I know the feeling-we lost 1/3 of our crop last year to some animal digging them out. Maybe you could add some sand to your soil mix?
Cookwewill, beautiful strawberries. We just brought in a handful yesterday.
Beth, it's that time of year! Nice.

I added sand last year, I guess not enough. Im closely watching the adjacent bed ( which did well last year). If all goes ok, I may just shift the garlic over, still add sand to its current bed, and plant something that is less susceptible to west soil there.

Spent all morning slicing the garlic for the dehydrator . Since I picked it early, there is no good outer layers to the garlic, so I Gotta use it quick or find ways to store it. Or just eat a lot of garlic in the next week. Probably will do all 3

 

[blissful]

Larry, I usually peel it then put it in the food processor and bag and freeze it. I used to freeze it with oil. Now I just freeze it alone, since we don't use oil anymore.

 

[pepperhead212]

Great peas, beth! I gave up planting spring peas, as it gets too hot too fast here.
I wish I could grow strawberries like that, cookwewill! They become inundated with insects here, even covered (though I'm considering doing a sealed off container, like my peppers). I guess this explains why strawberries again rated #1 in the dirty dozen fruits and veggies for pesticide residues.

Larry, a fellow on a gardening forum just had a similar problem with one of his raised beds of garlic, and attributed it to "white rot". Do you know what did this to your garlic?

 

[larry_stewart]

Larry, I usually peel it then put it in the food processor and bag and freeze it. I used to freeze it with oil. Now I just freeze it alone, since we don't use oil anymore.

Thanks, Ill do that with the ones I dont dry or eat soon.

 

[larry_stewart]

Larry, a fellow on a gardening forum just had a similar problem with one of his raised beds of garlic, and attributed it to "white rot". Do you know what did this to your garlic?

The only thing I can attribute it to s too much water. Last year , I am to blame, as I figured when bulbing, they would require more watering than usual. So, I watered more frequently, not realizing there may have been a drainage issue, as I never had this problem for the past 10 years prior.

The reason im blaming the drainage , is because I have a bed literally 1 -2 feet over from this one. It is a larger raised ( Stone border) and I actually put a 10 inch wood raised bed on top of the stone raised bed ( to raise it more, and kinda have more control over the soil fertilizer per crop). So basically, the second raised bed is almost 1 1/2 feet over ground level, compared to the first one ( the one with the issue) which is about 8 - 10 inches raised. They both receive the same amount of sun, both have basically the same soil mixture ( although last year I added a significant amount of sand to the one with the problem hoping that would fix it). Both have the same garlic varieties from the same vendor planted at the same time. Watering and fertilizer are the same, along with the same mulch.

This year I watered sparingly, but last week we got like 3 inches of rain in 2 days. A few days after that is when my garlic started showing its symptoms. Increased yellowing/ browning of the lower leaves ( when compared to the adjacent bed which look healthy, and still have about a month to go).

Last year I didnt know what was going on so I waited longer, when if pulled them out, many of them were just rotten, and the stalk easily separated from the bulb. This year, having aa good idea of what was going on, I acted early to salvage what I could. Still had a slightly slimy outer layer, small cloves, small bulbs. Splitting at the bottom with a little brownish rot. When I peeled away the outer layers ( which were whitish yellow and soft compared to the usual our white and firm, the cloves looked fine, but with no outer 'paper' protective layer, I know their shelf life is extremely limited.

Im guessing its a combo of over watering ( my fault last year , mother natures this year), and poor drainage. Maybe the ground level is firm, or clay like allowing the water to sit once it drained through the first 8 inches or so. And the reason the double raised bed doesn't have the same issue, is because it has an extra 10 inches of height, so even if the water pools, its still a significant distance from the garlic roots.

Im thinking my options are:
1) Amend much deeper too avoid pooling
2) Do a double raised bed ( raised bed on top of this one), to create a distance from the pooling water
3) Just move the garlic over where there is no issue, and plant something that wont easily be affected by water pooling 8 inches below the surface

***Last year ( and this year) after I had the issue with the garlic and dug it up, I replaced it with zucchini , pole beans and cukes, which all did fine in the same location. Garlic was the only one that had an issue here. Doing the same thing this year. I already got my pole beans , cuke seeds and 8 ball zucchini started in cells (weren't supposed to Gert started for another few weeks, since I thought id be harvesting the garlic in July). And hopefully, at least these replacement crops will do as well as last year.***

This is where the Wisconsin and Country fair will go,.

And on a happier note, the little leaf which didnt look to great, seem to be kicking in with this warm humid weather.

 

[bethzaring]

Great peas, beth! I gave up planting spring peas, as it gets too hot too fast here.

I had 36*F last night I didn't have any damage done, but neighbors had tops of plants bitten.

 

[larry_stewart]

I had 36*F last night I didn't have any damage done, but neighbors had tops of plants bitten.

Glad your peas survived the almost freeze.
Shockingly. this has been an exceptional pea year for me. I have them growing in 3 different places ( among the string beans, the peanuts and in pots). All were started in cells then transplanted. I've always read that peas are cooler weather, but mine always dont kick in until it warms up a bit ( same with my carrots). That being said, they dont like the recent heat wave too much. This is the first year I had enough to pick at once the I can actually do something with ( but I prefer them fresh out of the pod, so to me they are still something to snack on while in the garden).

 

[larry_stewart]

So I ordered 2 Broccoli, 2 cabbages and 2 brussel sprouts by mail. Already picked and ate the broccoli and cabbages. Im having my suspicions about the brussel sprouts. Usually they grow relatively tall stalks. These guys haven't grown high at all ( maybe a foot) and the base looks like its starting to swell a bit. You think its kohlrabi and not brussel sprouts ? I got them as small plants and they've been in the ground since April 6th.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

It appears that I'm growing an unplanned crop of wasps on my front porch rocker. I found this when I was returning the throw to the porch after it was in the house for a couple of days. [emoji44] Thankfully, I haven't seen any unwanted guests in the house.

 

[larry_stewart]

It appears that I'm growing an unplanned crop of wasps on my front porch rocker. I found this when I was returning the throw to the porch after it was in the house for a couple of days. [emoji44] Thankfully, I haven't seen any unwanted guests in the house.
View attachment 47277

At least you didnt find out the hard way