Not a good photo, but this is my main black currant bush and its surrounding offspring. I noticed today that the runner shoots coming up around the main shrub are leafing out, whereas the original plant is not yet. Puzzling.
My 'Jaltomate Aguaymanto' plants are finally sprouting!
They are quite little for May 6th, so it's possible I seeded them too late. Hard to know when to plant these rarer type things. I made a guess and was probably wrong, but we'll see. Interestingly the red spots in the flower centres seem to parallel a little with the leaves, which are showing red markings already. Not easy to see in this light. Worst case scenario I put a plant in the greenhouse to try and rush it. (Wow, I never realized until tonight that 'centre' is not used in the US to mean middle, as its being highlighted as incorrectly spelled?)
Queen of Siam basil continues to sprout. There are weeks of difference between the plants. I'm sure they will keep sprouting until June. So odd. For seeds that were all collected the same year from the same plant it's hard to come up with a reason.
I've got mixed feelings on the good germ rates for the 'Limoncello' basil. On the one hand its great to see it, but thinning this will be a
. I'm thinking I may just break this up into chunks and plant them in pots in bunches. In the past at least I've found basil quite good at growing crowded. Not sure what else to do really. This is one of my lingering garden sins, ruthlessly overseeding.
I need to wax lyrical about this plant species. I snuck just a single seedling for a snack, and I am happily reminded how utterly fresh, lively and upbeat the flavor of this herb Quillquina is. It is really something else. It's English name is Bolivian Coriander (
Porophyllum ruderale) and people say its tastes like arugula and citrus. I feel like that is sort of true, but not exactly. Its its own flavor for sure. I can't recommend this herb enough for those who like cilantro; they are not twins by any means, but I find them in the same flavor 'family'.
I am sprouting Pepicha right now too, which is taking longer because sadly my first batch of seeds were duds and I had to reseed this week. Pepicha goes to seed way later so I think some of the seeds were not fully matured when I harvested them. Anyway, I'm excited to be growing both of them again this year. The purple dots you see on the edges of the leaf are glands that release a scent bugs detest, and when you brush up against the plants the air smells lovely.
3 days spent in the greenhouse did wonders for the tomato plants. It's unbelievable what fresh air and sunlight can do to strength the stems and bulk up the plants!
Chinese Pink celery is looking pink!!!
No plant loved time in the greenhouse more than the Schoenbrunn ground cherries. They double in size!
I have a small number of micro dwarf tomatoes this year; this one in particular has me charmed. It's called Mini Carrot Top, bred I'm sure from Silvery Fir. It is a cute little thing though. Very curious what these tomatoes will be like, Silvery Firs are usually pretty zippy.
Of all the peppers, this guy is doing the best so far. 'Peppapeach Stripey', a baccatum type. I think none of the peppers are crazy about my starter mix for some reason, but they are getting by. Fruits are olive size, a peach color with redstripes.
https://www4.solanacom.com/peppapeachstripey9bth.jpg
Exciting times!!!
