Back from Vacation
We are back from vacation & visiting family.
My dad says visiting family isn’t a vacation.
I learned a few things:
When packing in 113F heat index to travel to 110F heat index always pack jeans & jackets. There is a reason Eskimos do not wear flip flops.
Liquid muscles is a new term (for me) that well describes young relatives and their habits.
I have no sympathy for those who cannot live on their husband’s salary of $30 per hour - and the man works 7 days a week!
We have marched clean out of the ballpark.
When feeling fat or frumpy go to Walmart and feel good all over again.
It’s good to be home.
Bean notes
Before I forget, yesterday I planted one dble row of assorted beans. These are the varieties in the order they were planted:
- Dragon Tongue: heirloom, Burpee Signature Series, yellow pods streaked with purple, kids like them raw.
- Sequoia Purple Bush Bean: Burpee Signature Series, (packed for 2008)
- Cherokee Wax Bean: Burpee Seeds, (packaged for 2008)
- Sonoran Gold Bush Tepary Bean: Seeds of Change, traditional heirloom, organic seeds, 30% protein, drought resistant. *note* have a very nice resealable seed package so that seeds are good for at least two years
- Taylor Dwarf Horticultural Bean: from feed store, looks kind of like a lentil.
- Speckled Beans: from feed store, looks like large lima beans painted with maroon splotches
Yes one double row but remember that row is 75 feet long. A dbl row means there is 150 feet of row in almost the same space.
Now lets hope everything grows well.
Playing in the creek
One benefit of having Grits & Davo living far from civilization is the abundance of good, clean, accessible creeks. Saturday we made the trek north with a plan to help change the brake pads on their car and then to play in the creek. The brake pads were the wrong ones but the creek was absolutely perfect.
Davo, Grits, Little Missey & Grandbaby look for cool rocks - to a baby all rocks are cool.
Ready for splash down.
Catching minnows - or trying
Rock climbing creekside
The end of the day.
Garden Pictures for Hermit
Hermit asked for garden pictures a short while back. Now that the camera cord has been rescued from the children’s book tote I’m glad to oblige.
Green beans with the flowers as row markers instead of sticks. These are yellow Inca marigolds.
Purchased tomato plants. The Price Chopper buys from a local grower. From the tag these are Lemon Boys, low acid for the Davo who cannot eat acidic fruits.
The potato rows. Three main are plain, the odd 3/4 row is on the right, the stubby row in the upper left is the end of a tomato row. See that huge space between the last row and the one in the middle? I did not realize it was so large = wasted. Yesterday I planted about 10 squash craters & will finish the row in a week or so.
Yes these are older pictures, I’ll update soon.
Today we used our soaker hose for the first time. Also planted a row of cucumber craters: Sumter, Little Leaf (a University of Arkansas release that is a wonderful producer of pickling tomatoes), Marketmore, and one other pickler.
More planting tomorrow.
Okra notes
I chose these two varieties for several reasons. We need an okra that remains edible if not checked every single day or stays tender at larger sizes. Fewer or no spines. Heirloom. Was there a variety released by U of A (ag research college here in Arkansas) - if it was developed for Arkansas it should grow good, right? Something with a different tilt for future possible farmer’s market sale.
Note to self:
Beginning of row: Burmese - SESE - 2008 58 days. Heirloom okra from Burma sent by organic market grower Hap Heilman [now a favorite is some local restaurants]. Bears when plants are 18″ tall and continues until frost. The leaves are huge, typically 16″ across. Slightly curved, virtually spineless pods range from 9 - 12″ long. Pods mature from light green to creamy yellow green. At 10″ long they are tender, sweet, and spineless enough to be eaten raw or added to salads. Pods are less gooey than other okra, a quality that gives this variety a greater appeal.
Rest of row: Jade - SESE - 1 pkt 2008, 1 pkt 2009 (mixed up though) 55 days. Developed by the University of Arkansas and released for introduction to SESE in 1991. An early maturing, tender-podded, high-yielding compared to ‘Clemson Spineless’, ‘Jade’ has darker green pods, fewer side branches, higher average yields and better ability to mature in late plantings. Plants average 4 1/2 ft tall and the dark green pods remain tender to 6″. Recommended especially for home gardens, farmer’s markets, and late plantings.
75 feet of deep knee bends
Mudded in 75 feet of okra seeds this morning.
That’s 75 feet of deep knee bends: bend, two duck waddles sideways, stand, step, knee bend, repeat.
My legs and other muscles are not fit enough for 75 feet of deep knee bends…
or duck waddles…
But the okra is planted.
Why the rush? The best way to assure a good stand of okra is to pre-sprout the seeds. Put the seeds in a shallow container, add water to half way up the side of the seeds, and let them sprout adding more water as needed. Depending on the seeds it can take 24-48 hours or more for a sprout to appear.Okra, morning glories, moon flowers and any other hard coated seeds benefit from pre-sprouting.
I wanted a good stand of “fuzzy cucumbers” and set the seeds up in their bowls. (two types) Along come some unexpected rain. Followed the next afternoon by another shower.
The seeds sprouted beautifully. The garden was soggy - its clay soil. The sky was cloudy. The forecast was a good chance for more rain as scattered showers.
Early this morning I did a few deep knee bends and pushed seeds into the soil hurrying to finish before the rain.
Today became a beautiful sunny day.
But the “fuzzy cucumbers” are planted.
Pictures as soon as I find the camera cable.
I am so not up too that many deep knee bends…
The Garden so far
We have more of the garden planted. Between rain, waiting for clay to dry, returning, and avoiding sunburn it has been a challenge. We planted tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants. The tomatoes are heirloom, mostly. I leaned towards those that could take high heat (day and night), humidity, and could be used for storage. The peppers mostly for salsa and freezing but I may try my hand at homemade paprika, if the pepper production cooperates.
Potatoes: wrote about already 3 and 3/4 rows about 25 ft long with Kennebec, Red Pontiac, and Yukon Gold planted. They are not late for spring, instead are just a few weeks early for fall potatoes ; ) Might have seen a sprout through the soil, was in a hurry and didn’t linger to look. Listing the varieties and amounts so when we lose the gardening notebook I’ll have a record somewhere.
Tomatoes: Wrote about the plants we bought at the grocery store. (A local grower raises them for sale at a reasonable price.) They seem to have settled in well. The leaves are dark green and the stalks are looking sturdy. The every three days rain seems to suit them. Partial row of tomatoes planted with tomato seeds and topped with potting soil to avoid crusting.
Partial row varieties:
Bountiful Gardens Cherry Tomato Mixture. I was surprised - the company food color dyes the seeds so the variety is known.
Isis Candy - red marbled with gold - 2 hills
Black Plum - 2 hills
Gold Currant - 2 hills
Chadwick’s Cherry - 2 hills
Yellow Pear - 1 hill from Pinetree Seeds
Tomatoes Row 3:
- Atkinson - Baker’s Creek - 3 hills - 75 days, bred for Southern conditions, medium height, 8 oz red produces through hot, dry summers.
- Rutger’s - Free seed from Bakers? - 3 hills - determinate, 60-100 days. good for canning & fresh eating, large 8 oz, good yields & flavor with large vines.
Rest of the row are old seeds from last year so are planted with extra seeds & will move any extra seedlings as needed.
- Garden Peach - Southern Exposure Seed Exchange - 2 hills - 73 days, 2 oz fuzzy yellow tomatoes with a hint of pink blush when ripe. A good storage tomato if picked right before frost when fruits are light green. Highly split resistant. Dh’s favorite the only one he has ever asked me to plant again.
- Lollipop - SESE - 2 hills - 79 days, indeterminate. Creamy yellow with a sweet lemon like flavor. Highly productive even under continuous high temperatures, day and night. Good resistance to foliage diseases.
- Marianna’s Peace - Tomato Grower’s - 2 hills - Large potato leafed dark pink tomato that produces 1 to 2 pound pink-red beefsteak fruits. Vigorous vines and very productive. Story goes that it was smuggled out of Czechoslovakia after WWII
- Beefmaster - TG - 2 hills - I think I may have planted some as seedlings from the store. oh well. 80 days Indeterminate big and meaty.
- Big Zebra - TG - 2 hills - 85 days, Indeterminate. Is deep red and green striped outside, inside is green with pink extending up into the middle. Medium to large size.
- Black Krim - TG - 2 hills - 75 - 90 days, indeterminate. Dark brown-red tomatoes are large 10 to 12 oz. Color is darker in hot weather and seems to set well even in heat. Prone to cracking but a very heavy producer. Heirloom from the Black Sea of Russia.
- Orange Blossom - Johnny’s Selected Seeds - 2 hills - 60 days, determinate, medium size average 6-7 oz.
- Pruden’s Purple - JSS - 2 hills - early Brandywine type, large to very large fruit with many over 1 pound and resistant to cracking. Indeterminate potato leaf plants. Really a pink color.
- More yellow pear - 2 hills - this years seed
One tomato row left to plant. More Rutger’s and more old seeds to try. I planted extra is each spot & am not expecting too much but, the way things go around here, every seed will likely germinate and we will be trying to find room to replant the extras. Here’s hoping.
Next a double row of Contender Green Beans.
Last a mixted bed of eggplants and peppers.
Eggplants - Black beauty or Ichiban purchased at a local green house. We have seeds & may plant some but…8 plants may be enough.
Peppers:
- Mild jalapeno - from the local greenhouse, prolly Tam.
- Anconcagua - Pinetree Seeds - an Argentinean heirloom this very large pepper is named after a mountain in Argentina where it originated. Plants can grow close to 3 feet in height and might need support and the fruit set is very heavy. Fruit can come close to a foot in length and ripen green-orange-red. Great for fresh and any stage and for roasting.
- Aji Dulce Pepper - Southern Exposure Seed Exchange - 111 days. a Heirloom for Venezuela. “For those who like the flavor and aroma of Habanero peppers but find them too hot. Aji Dulce has the same shape, size, color and aroma of Habanero but is sweet, spicy, and delicious with only a trace of heat…an excellent choice for sauteed vegetables, rice and bean dishes, paprika or herbal vinegars…plants have good foliage cover and bear at 18″ high. Seedlings are slow growing at first but grow rapidly later in the season.”
- Carnival Mix - Burpee - sweet peppers - just wanted some color.
The rest of that bed is waiting to be planted. We will be adding zinnia seeds around the eggplants. Looks very pretty & hides the scraggliness that both plants can get.
In other news: Thomas saw three hummingbirds at our feeder - whoot!!
Way out in the Sticks
Spent yesterday moving our oldest daughter (Grits) and her family to their new home in middle Missouri. Davo called about the status us his job and was moved to another position starting day Monday (today) which gave them six days to move.
Their new home is about 100 years old. It is heated with an outdoor wood furnace or a propane furnace. It has spring water AND a working spring house. There is a barn on the back and an old chicken coop behind the barn. After mowing there will be room for a garden between the house and the barn. They can fix-up or repair anything within reason and take the cost off the rent.
Even better: the boss/ landlord raises Missouri Fox Trotters so they have beautiful pastures & hayfields to enjoy. The boss lets the employees have use of the trails and maybe horses (Davo needs to find out more) and the property with plenty of clear creeks and woods. What a wonderful place to live and raise their family. Of course it will be good to visit too.
The fellow employees that Davo met all love their jobs. Their comments - the pay raises are few and far between but we love the work.
They also win the out in the stick award. Their home is way up in the mid Missouri Ozark mountains. The closest town is at least 25 minutes away and has a population of 202. There is a cafe and a BBQ joint (the boss has a trail ride business among others), gas station and not much else. The next town is another 25 - 35 min away and has a small Dollar General and a Town & Country grocery store and perhaps a population of 500? Another 20 minutes to a town of resonable size. Half a tank of gas is empty is the new rule.
Their home wins the *In the Sticks* award.
They have either found a dream job or are the stars of their own Stephen King novel.
Clay soil garden tip
A tip for clay soil gardeners. Crusting soil - wet clay soil that dries into a brick like layer over seeds is the bane of every clay soil gardener. Here’s a tip my Dad taught that works well:
Make a trench and place the seeds into the trench. water INSIDE the trench then cover with soil - firm but only gently if at all. The seeds have the water they need to sprout & grow but the soil above them is dry enough to prevent crusting.
This works with plants too. Dig the hole, set the plant, water then cover with soil. Again it helps prevent a brick necklace on the young plants.
More Gardening
The weather forecast was for more rain. The kids and I got up early and headed to the garden hoping to get more planted before the rains began again. We didn’t do too badly. Together we planted two and a half more rows of potatoes, one and a half rows of tomato plants and a double row of green beans.
The soil has a lot of clay & we had to use a spade to dig the holes for the tomato plants. I’ve been reading Steve Solomon’s new book and decided to space the tomatoes the recommended three feet apart (these are not going to be caged). Based on the number of holes dug the garden is approximately 75 feet wide.
Potato amounts: based on the Arkansas potato planting guide we are not late for spring planting, we are right on time for fall potatoes. The recommended planting rate is 15 pounds of seed potatoes per person which would be 105 pounds for our family. We might have planted close to that amount.
Green Bean amounts: based on the Arkansas bean guide snap beans (regular green beans) sound produce 3 to 5 pounds per 10 feet of row and the per person amount is 8 pounds. If my math is correct that should mean about 20 feet of row per person. A double 75 foot row equals 150 feet or 7 people. That means we have a basic amount planted but need more since we have some real green bean lovers in the family.
Tomato Amounts: based on the Arkansas guide to tomatoes 10 feet of row should yield 15 to 45 pounds of fruit. Plan on 20-25 pounds for fresh eating and 25-40 pounds for canning or drying. I am not going to try to do the math on that one. We are planting more but are direct seeding instead of transplanting. I want to see how it works out & have the growing season to experiment.
That is about one third of the garden.
Yes I is tired.