A Seed Saver's Garden

[heirloomgal]

Ooops... just realized I never answered this. Sour, and sticky outside, is the norm. Tomatillos are best used fully grown, but immature (like eggplant) before the fruits ripen & the seeds harden. I haven't really experimented with tomatillos much, other than to make Salsa Verde. I haven't compared the flavor of different varieties either (there are only a hand full of varieties available). I'm looking forward to trying that one, hopefully in 2022.

My own are mostly doing well, in spite of a brief setback due to wet weather. I had to destroy one plant, which showed signs of viral infection. The rest are healthy, and trained up into a trellis; some have already reached 6' tall, and have set large numbers of fruit. I still call the long, sparsely foliated branches "runners", even though they would not climb on their own. They would sprawl across the ground like squash vines if I let them, but there are fewer problems with insects & disease if trained upward.

I'm so glad you told me about cages for them; the cages have kept the plants, and fruit, right up off the ground. Excellent tip. There is only a slight sourness to these, quite sweet flavoured somehow. Fruit description said 'almost tropical flavour'. If I cook these I think it might be more like a fruit than vegetable.

 

[heirloomgal]

Going to post my bean pics up to now just in case my traps don't work well and the look of disaster continues, this may be the last bean pictures.

Other bean wall in different garden.

'Koronis Purple'

Peas are all drying down now.

Soon!



'Lipstick Pepper'

Soybeans are just beginning of flower, that seems a wee bit late considering how cool the nights are getting. Might not make it. 😕

 

[heirloomgal]

Many tomatoes are starting to ripen now. I chose mostly classic beefsteak, because for the last couple years I focused on weirdos, oxhearts, cherries and currants.

This is one of my favourite tomatoes, 'Aunt Ruby's German Green'. Lots of cracking due to the INSANE amount of rain we're getting but taste was still really good.

Here is the 'rear end'. Can be hard to tell when ripe with the green ones, but the butt usually tells the story. It turns a creamy, slightly fleshy colour within the green pigment.

Fed this to DH and DD tonight with dinner. The expression on their faces was priceless. Everyone braces for impact with a green-when-ripe tomato. But then they float into the celestial realm.

'German Pink' . Big clunkers this year. Will be hard to sacrifice some for seed. I find the fam would rather eat an uncut tomato, than finish a previously cut one from earlier in the day. So those tomato 'leftovers' are what I've been saving seeds from. Has not been painful to save from those bits.

'Radiator Charlie's Mortgage Lifter '. Love all the ML's I've tried.

'Rebel Starfighter', an ox❤. Haven't tasted it yet, but curious to. Waited a bit long I realized when I checked plants today, rain has been so heavy, the more mature ones had a few cracks. Production was pretty outstanding for such a strangling.

'Dark Galaxy'. Is supposed to have blue pigment, but I gave it too shady a position so no blue tan. The star flecks came through though.

'Gordost Sibiri', from Russia. Very high quality beef, but rains cracked it! The flesh is still firm, so it's not too waterlogged. With all the little fruit flies just beginning I don't like to keep any with flesh wounds like this around.

'Amarillo Armadillo'. So good, colour like terra cotta. Cocktail size types are not high on my list of preferences, but this one is a forever keeper. Had given my parents one of these plants (had only 5 seeds) and they were surprised how good it was. Red is the comfort zone for lots of folks.

 

[baymule]

Those all look delicious! And so pretty too!

 

[digitS']

HeirloomGal,

If you were to bring tomatoes in at the end of your growing season, set them on your kitchen counter ..

. and leave the ones with a "blush" to ripen ..

. which would do best for you?

Steve

 

[flowerbug]

i've always liked fried green tomatoes.

 

[heirloomgal]

HeirloomGal,

If you were to bring tomatoes in at the end of your growing season, set them on your kitchen counter ..

. and leave the ones with a "blush" to ripen ..

. which would do best for you?

Steve

Do you mean a variety which ripens well indoors, as oppose to those that stay blushed green and won't crossover?

 

[heirloomgal]

i've always liked fried green tomatoes.

Have you tried green tomatoes @flowerbug? Or do you mean the red but unripe ones fried?

 

[heirloomgal]

Rain, rain, rain. Finally had a dry day today! Yay! Humidity is unreal. 😩

Tomatillos! Many cracking, but still generally usable. They hit the ground pretty fast though, and critters are nibbling at them where possible. I imagine the rains are playing their part in knocking them off the bushes. Gonna try and cook these. If anyone has a great recipe, I'm all eyes 😊

Hope is on the horizon for soybeans, I actually see pods 😄

Sesame plant. Has been given food once, after being planted in peat with a handful of scrappy dirt. Two plants in one smallish pot. Very surprised it's doing well outdoors lately, given so much moisture, and being desert loving. Flowers nearly done, then it's just a waiting game. I've never tried black sesame, curious if the taste is any different. 'Nuttier', they say.

Like these wild, self seeding flowers. They aren't invasive by any means here, but I planted them once, and have had them ever since. Tough little flower plants. I keep trying to collect seeds from these, and have never succeeded. They drop so fast when mature.

My tomato seed saving set up. I just love collecting seeds! 😃 I think I enjoy the seeds as much as the veggies! I don't miss the odour of this process though....yikes. I always cover my fermenting containers, the alternative is pretty ghastly. Tomatoes really make you work for their seeds.

Pumpkin pepper.
(But it's actually 'Orange Bell'...?)

Pepper harvest. 'Nova Sadska' really had a wonderful aroma, wow. Was a horn shape, not bell shape, as I imagined.

When these bloom in the garden, I know fall can't be far off.

This is a terrible photo, I'll post a better one when they are all dry, but I was so tickled by the colour of these peas! They go by the name 'Biskopens' and 'Swedish Red'. What a soup these will make!

'Cosmic Eclipse'. An excellent little tomato; grew it in a pot this year and production fell way, way off. This one will go in the ground from now on, only.

 

[digitS']

Do you mean a variety which ripens well indoors

Ripens and doesn't begin to quickly decay.

Our soybeans may be ready for edamame very soon.

Steve