This morning harvest of another small patch, this ones are going to be saved in the closet.

Silvia

Silvia, thank you for reminding me to check my sweets now. I probably have some too. Do you dig yours with a pitch fork? Mine came back from last years batch, guess I didn't get them all. :o)

How do you know when the sweet potatoes are ready to harvest? I didn't plant mine until late May. The foliage looks good and they seem to be growing well. And they are rooted in several places along each vine, which mean a tuber is growing there, right?

Kathy - From all the crops that we can grow in Florida, sweet potatoes rate one of the highest in my book. About 3 years ago, I planted 6 slips and since then I did not buy a sweet potato again. To harvest first I pull the vines/bush, some will be growing on top and get cut it, what I can not see I use the pitch fork gently and even then some will get broken but they are still fine and I end up using those first. I roast them in a 300 oven for about 2 hours, I use a clay dish put some olive oil, kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, cover with aluminum foil and they are the best! I give it to my dogs as a treat. Like you sometimes I forgot to harvest some pieces and had sweet potatoes even in the winter. Even Willy said today, I can't believe this are so tasty and to think that they came out of the garden. Everything in our lunch today was from the garden, he had eggplant with tomatoes and sweet potatoes with a salad and avocados. I had sweet potatoes with a dish of butterbeans with corn and tomatoes. That is another crop that is great for us and very easy to grow and delicious!

Truscifi - Depending on the variety planted, they can take anywhere from 90 days/ 120 days. I planted mine before you did and I also have early varieties. If you look at the foliage that I posted is perfectly green and growing well. Today I did some of the patch in the first picture as you can see everything is good the picture was taking yesterday. In my opinion bush varieties are better producers, the vine varieties produce a lot of vines and not too many potatoes. Let us know about when you harvest and how well you do.

Silvia

I almost got a community garden plot, but decided against it. I'm taking time off from veggie gardening, just playing with my shade plants, and relaxing. I'm hoping to be back in a place with a yard by next growing season, but I don't know. It's nice not to have to take care of a yard for once.

Silvia, Thank You for The offer, if I Could I'd Be There in a SHOT....

Dirtygardener - There are many reasons to join the community gardens, some of the ones that I heard are they want to teach their children where the food comes from, others to learn how to garden, some for fellowship with close neighbors, all the reasons are very positive and I may add most have yards where they can garden...For me gardening is very therapeutic in fact one of my neighbors in NY had a heart attack and the Dr prescribed for him a past time such as gardening. You have to do what is comfortable for you and maybe taking time off from gardening is a good idea in your case.

NC - One day you will come or maybe I will visit you.:)

Silvia

Silvia your sweet potatoes look wonderful! Mine are scraggly and not doing well. I planted them around my bananas as suggested on here but they didn't get enough sun. :(

Hi Keiki - Thank you and sorry to hear that your sweet potatoes are not doing well. Maybe is the variety? If you look at the first picture they were shaded from the banana and also the fence on the south side, they did as well as the ones in full sun. In the beginning of the season they were in all shade as the season progresses the sun hits more this spot. Maybe next summer I can send you some of mine so you can try them, the ones harvested yesterday are the amish bush porto rico, just let me know...

And today's lunch, I have to share this recipe, it is so good! and I hope a lot of you get to try. Next time that I am going to make it I will use greek yogurt for the sauce instead of sour cream.

Silvia

Here is a link that might be useful: sweet potato latkes

I have the beauregard variety. My clumps of bananas are rather large so they provide quite a bit of shade, pair that with the huge mango tree and I don't think they ever got much sun. Next year I will try a different spot and perhaps have better luck. Thank you for your generous offer, I may just take you up on that. I am still going to dig up what is there and look, when would you recommend I do that?

Keiki - I have about 6 or 7 different varieties of sweet potatoes, if you look at the third picture on the left is the Beuregard, I like it for the pretty leaves but it is not the best producer in my opinion. In your zone if you don't get frost, you might be able to grow sweet potatoes all year round and if you have big trees it is not a good idea to grow them there, I am sure you will have better luck in a different spot and when you are ready to plant them again, you can send me an email. My wish is for all of us that live in Florida and do veggie gardening to have a good crop of sweet potatoes!
About the time to dig them up is anytime after 90/120 days from when they were planted.

Silvia

Silvia
Congrats on such an enormous sweet potato..After reading your post this morning I have began to harvest my potatoes as well..
They are from the three slips that you gave me at your garden party..
Only had one potato from the first slip, it's about the size of the largest one you have in the bowl above.. Should I dig up the other two slips now or give it a few more weeks? Will they produce more and/or get bigger if they stay in the ground longer?

Hi Maxine

I starter my sweet potatoes with 6 slips, one of each variety about 3 years ago and they have multiplied as you can see. My slips were planted before the party so they had time to get some size. Since you planted them after the party, I would leave the rest in the ground, they will keep growing. I had sweet potatoes even in the winter.
Next time that we plant them, I am going make slips out of the big potato and others out of the amish bush porto rico, since you live close, I will let you know when they are ready for you to pick them up.

Silvia

Silvia,
I will go ahead and keep mine in the ground for a few more weeks.. Thanks, you are always so generous with your advice and seedlings..

Thank you Maxine and I probably have to find a big bucket to start the slips from one of the big potatoes, that one is so tasty it is worth saving for the future.

This morning pictures.

Maxine, remember the callaloo? it is growing well and collards are good too, it seems like the never ending supply.:)

Black Jungle butterbeans, another never ending supply

And the Orlando eggplant, another example

Anna, thank you very much for the beautiful new addition to my garden, it is lovely!

And the bush beans are coming up

Happy gardening to all!

Silvia

Silvia,

Your garden is looking beautiful as always. I'm happy you showed the seedlings, it lets me know when to plant things!

I know with your green thumb, your tiny begonia will be huge the next time I see it!

Anna

Silvia
glad you are enjoying the callaloo.. Your garden really does look great...

Thank you Anna and Maxine.

And it is another week and more things got done today.

Oakland community gardens are getting ready, raised beds are done and compost was delivered, next week the planting gets on its way...

Silvia

That looks great, Silvia. That compost is a feast for my eyes! Can't wait to see the progression. Thanks for showing us.

Anna

Hi Silvia,

The community gardeners will have a master gardener for advise if they need help. I sure everyone will need some of your expertise. I know we all have learned a great deal from you.

Silvia, that is a football, not a potatoe. It is football season and you are just in time. I need a couple more weeks before mine are ready.

Here is a picture of my fall gardening. I planted pole Big Mama, King of the garden and Bush Thorogreen limas. Next week I will plant pole Helda green beans/snapbeans.

I still have butter beans, cowpeas and other summer vegetables growing.

My Fall Addition

I also set out some fall/winter tomatoes.

Tomatoes of several varieties

Hope the tomatoes will hold their blossoms when they develop.

Luther

Anna - I was also impressed on how good the compost looks, rich and dark color and it is free. I told them that the sand will eat the compost in no time and they will need another truckload to replenish the beds when needed. They are all very excited to start the new project! Next week it is a real test, I hope it cools down a little bit.

Thank you Luther - Your garden looks fantastic! you are getting some big space available and a lot of things planted. It is good to know that you are still harvesting the butterbeans and other crops.

And I really hope that all goes well in the community gardens, I will try to help as much as I can. It is going to be a lot of work and coordination for them, so far everything is going so smooth and what has to get done, it does.

I showed the people that comes to the house the sweet potato and they are all surprised, I was too!lol and it is not only one, there are others. That one is the one that I got it from Echo.

Your tomatoes look good Luther, I hope they do well for you. Love your new garden beds!

Silvia

Silva,

Where did you get/buy the black bags that are on some of your posts?

Mindy

Mindy

Are you talking about the potato bags? I got them few years ago for potatoes but I use for other things too like winter and summer squash, they make them in colors now, which I think is better than black. What I like about them is that they breathe, they are easy to store, and can be used again. What I don't like is the price.-(

Silvia

Here is a link that might be useful: grow bags

Today's eggplant harvest

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Silvia

Luther, your beds look great!

Silvia, that community garden is about to find out what a goldmine they have in you! They are so lucky to have found you and you are so kind to help them. Please show us what happens next week.

Those are great looking eggplant. What did you make with them?

Anna

Thank you Anna

The eggplant harvest is really good when I harvested them yesterday Willy said "I already ate last week 10 pounds of eggplants"lol. And Cheryl was just back for 1 day from her Costa Rica vacation and today she is on business in Atlanta, that leaves only me and I have a plan today I am going to make 2 different kinds of preserve eggplant and after that they will on the fridge to eat it later. Preserved vegetables go great in salads and they are ready made when you need them.

Silvia

I have never heard of eggplant preserve. Is it like pickled? Do you have to can or can you just refrigerate? I imagine eggplant being all mushy if canned. Tell me more please.

I had a thought to pickle eggplant like Greek peppers. So far we eat all ours fresh. I don't have silvia's green thumb.

Dianne

Keiki - If you never had pickle eggplant, you are really going to like it. It takes me 5 minutes to prepare the ingredients, 10 minutes to cook and few more minutes to put it in the jar and after that I refrigerate, they can last a good amount of time because of the vinegar, but we probably eat some and give away some. I don't do hot water bath because that would change the texture, same with freezing. There is also an Italian recipe that preserve the eggplants in oil without cooking. I like the one that I made better

Dianne - Whoever is growing Orlando eggplant is guaranteed eggplants till at least the freeze, we have to get creative with the recipes.:)

2 pounds of eggplant made 3 pint jars, this afternoon I will be making more.

Silvia

You tease! Where's the recipe?

Madras Pickled Eggplant

2 lb eggplant (2 large)
3 tbsp white vinegar
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp each: ground ginger and turmeric
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tbsp each: cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds
1 1/4 cups white vinegar
1 cup granulated sugar
2-4 finely chopped and seeded small hot red chile or jalapeno peppers
1/4 cup finely chopped gingerroot
2 tbsp pickling salt

1. Cube unpeeled eggplant into bite-sized pieces and reserve.
2. Combine 3 tbsp vinegar, garlic, chili powder, ginger, and turmeric in a small bowl to form a paste and reserve.
3. Heat oil over medium heat in a large nonstick skillet. Add cumin and fenugreek seeds and saute for 1 minute. Add eggplant and saute for about 10 minutes or until eggplant is just tender. Add reserved paste and 1 1/4 cups vinegar, sugar, chile peppers, gingerroot, and salt. Stir over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until boiling.
4. Remove hot jars from canner and ladle pickles into jars to within 1/2 inch of rim. Process 15 minutes for half-pint jars and 20 minutes for pint jars.

Makes 3 pint jars or 6 half-pint jars.

I changed few things in the recipe:
Use a mix of eggplants but that weigh 2 pounds.
Just 1 clove of garlic.
Use white wine vinegar instead of plain white vinegar because I like the taste better.
Did not use fenugreek, only cumin.
Put half the chili powder because my daughter and other people will be eating and they don't like too spicy.
And did not put the jalapenos, same reason.

I really like it, you should try and after done just put it in the fridge, even Willy that is not a veggie eater said they are dynamite. It will be strong in the beginning with all the spices but after it will mellow out.
And just to let you know anytime that I make something and you want the recipe, just let me know and I will post it and that goes for everybody.

Silvia

Well, I've had a busy gardening morning (trying to take advantage of the cooling off from the rain). I repotted my squash. Put about 40 lbs of coffee grounds that I got from Starbucks on the garden. Started a few more tomatoes, squash and brocolli seeds. Planted, in the garden, some pole beans (scarlet runners, which I bought because they look so pretty in bloom). And just generally made a huge mess that I'll have to clean up this afternoon. But I'm hoping the kids allow me a little down time before going back out for the clean up! ...or maybe I should leave it, so as to encourage hubby to work on my potting shed this weekend. hee hee!

So thankful for some cooler weather to do all that!

Becca - I want you to be successful in your garden so you are going to see some comparison. Look at the first picture of the black bag, that is the winter squash, this is how it looks today, look also the dates

The other bag has the summer squash and this is how it looks today

It is better to start them where they are going to grow because they grow fast!

On the Starbucks grounds make sure you are mixing them with the soil and spreading lightly, don't OD the garden, lol

About the scarlet runners, they might be pretty but they only set pods in cooler weather, here is a picture in December 2009

{{gwi:23139}}

Silvia

I think one of the best tips I've gotten from you Silvia is the Orlando Eggplant. OMG - it is such a winner. Good tasting, healthy plant and very productive. Thanks for your recipe, that sounds very good.

We've been eating a lot of eggplant lasagna lately. We really enjoy it, and I make a big pan so we have left overs. And I love going out and getting the herbs from the garden. My surprise this summer has been thyme.

Though, I'm also very happy with how the Univ of Hawaii Basil holds up with our crazy weather.

This is what happens when you try to take a photo in the heat and humidity without your glasses on. They little bitty baby Black Jungle Butter Bean is out of focus.

I might be jinxing myself here, but I might, just might get a few Black Jungle Butter Beans. You folks have had my taste buds so jealous. I started with 10 seeds. I have 4 growing plants. Lost 2 to lubbers and 4 didn't germinate. I am beginning to suspect I don't have enough sun for them. This one, is growing in a partially buried pot, and has the most improved soil of the lot. Lots of decomposed oak stump and pine bark and worm families.

I sure wish Lake Mary would get a community garden going. I'd be all over the chance for some full sun garden plots.

We will be having a peanut party soon!

~dianne

Thank you Silvia it sounds delicious and not to difficult until I saw the word canner. So you do a water bath? I am intemidated about processing or canning or whatever you want to call it. I can grow with the best of yall but putting up has always stopped me.

I did make abot 5o tiny frozen chocolate covered bananas and some chocolate covered blueberries this morning. Heaven!

Dianne where did you find sees for that basil? I would love to be able to grow basil in the summer.

Dianne - Your thyme is looking really good! And you are probably right about the sun and the butter beans, one thing that I notice is that they are resistant to nematode attack, so when nothing will grow, they will. I gave it to my new friend from the artichokes fame and it is the only thing growing in his garden now, he took everything out to fix the soil...
And if you really want a community garden, well it is time to ask and get involved, our future is in the works, we all need to take a better approach in our food supply. It is fairly cheap and you get to be with all your neighbors in an activity that all can share, the work and eventually the rewards. Next Saturday is planting time, I am really excited for them!

Keiki - I did a lot of canning when I had a lot of fruit trees, but now I mostly do pickles or preserves for the fridge, it is easy and safer that way, don't have to worry about a health safety.
In the recipe above, after the eggplants come to boiling I put it in the canning jars, close them and let them cool. After that I store them in the fridge, the vinegar will keep them good for a long time. I usually eat them at the house and give them as gifts. I do tomato sauce and salsa like that. the sauce goes in the freezer, salsa goes in the refrigerator, same with fruit preserves or cucumber or zucchini pickles. When the hot preserve is put in the mason jars after is cooled it get an airtight seal. People that I give the jars always said that if I use the hot water bath, it is really not necessary. Fruit preserves are just so good that they go quick. I went to my dentist the other day and brought her a papaya preserve with citrus, while she was talking to me, she finished the whole jar in that minute, and telling me how good it was. lol

Silvia

Silvia,
Thank you so much for your wisdom and pictures. Yes, my squash are certainly leggy compared to yours. Maybe I'll do better with this second batch. In addition to inexperience, I just don't have a lot of options of where I can put my seedlings right now.
Ok, so I planted my beans too early is that because of the variety? Or is this too early for all pole beans? I was using the UF planting guide which said I could start them in August? I guess I'm anxious. :)

Silvia,
Thank you so much for your wisdom and pictures. Yes, my squash are certainly leggy compared to yours. Maybe I'll do better with this second batch. In addition to inexperience, I just don't have a lot of options of where I can put my seedlings right now.
Ok, so I planted my beans too early is that because of the variety? Or is this too early for all pole beans? I was using the UF planting guide which said I could start them in August? I guess I'm anxious. :)

Silvia,

Can you elaborate on how the community garden got started? I've been following this thread and see you mentioned asking and getting involved. We have three community gardens that just started this year in Lee County, but they are all very far from my area. I'm not sure if it's because we have a high rate of seasonal occupants or if there just isn't enough interest here yet, or maybe someone hasn't taken the initiative. How did this project come about and evolve?

Chrissy

Oops, sorry for the double post. I had one more question for you, Silvia. So, are you saying you grow your squash in those bags? No transplanting?

Becca - it is good to ask questions when I am not clear in something. It is time in August like you said for regular pole beans. The scarlet runners are in different category, that is why they grow so well in the cooler temperatures, like the northern parts of the country, England is good for runners.
About the squash, yes when is warm like now it is better to start them where they are growing, no transplanting. In the summer I plant them in bags unless I have a new bed started, in spring I can start them in the established raised beds because nematodes are not that active, sometimes I start them in cups if no space is available, then transplant them in the garden.

Chrissy - The community garden in my area started thanks to a very energetic man who moved things around and got things done. I am very impressed of what he has achieved and the good thing about all this heavy work, a lot of man were working for a common goal.
In my part I was asked to help and also offered a plot which I said no thank you, because I can hardly keep up with my harvest. I am not a Master gardener so I just offer my help to the best of my abilities. Since most are newbies, I took them to see my garden and what I am growing, told them a few things I consider important, show them the beds, etc. So far everything is going so smooth and well. And Saturday I will be donating tomato plants and wish them the best and a lot of harvests. From then on, I will be checking on them and be available from time to time.

Dianne - I forgot to mention that the peanuts look good! I was going to harvest the peanuts this morning also but I did more sweet potatoes instead. Willy look afraid when he asked how are the peanuts growing? I said you will see, I will give you as a snack, have you ever had boiled or fresh roasted peanuts? and he said no.:)

Silvia

Silvia,
My heirloom tomatoes are all very leggy, Is there anything I can do to make them work? I have now put them in a shady place outdoors. I had started them in the house near a window but I guess they didn't get enough sunlight.

It is time in August like you said for regular pole beans.

Might be a little early for pole beans for Zone 10 Silvia, remember that you're a little cooler overnight than they are, with the extra heat comes bugs and fungal problems....I don't start them before 9/1 and if we're getting too much rain I'll hold off until as late as 9/15.

Tom

Mindy

Any window unless has extra light will make them leggy. The way that I do is start them in a warm place, usually the laundry or the bathtub. After they germinate, they get put outside. In the beginning morning sun and afternoon shade in the porch. Then you start getting them ready to full all day sun, unless of course it rains and they go in the porch.

When you pot them up to bigger containers, plant them deep so they grow more roots, start acclimatizing them to the outdoors because that is where they eventually are going.
All my tomatoes are in their final destinations potted up. The ones in the picture are the ones that are going away, I have them in the most sun there is but being careful that they have water.

Silvia

Hi Tom

I did not see your post, and yes you are probably right on the timing. I know it is okay for my zone, I actually decided to plant some more yesterday when I cleared out a trellis. Planted the blue marbut and jeminez I think my all time favorite till I find a new one.:)
When Becca said that the UF said to plant them I thought the same thing that it might be too early.
My tomatoes are all ready to go on Saturday and I really hope they get a good harvest. Someone in the community gardens group asked me if I was a Master gardener and I said no, but I am a very experienced gardener who had garden in a lot of places and under all conditions and all I can say I get great crops no matter where I live, at least that is what my father used to say,lol.

Silvia

Silvia, you're a natural! I've said it before and I'll say it again, you're instincts are something that can't be learned in a classroom, you don't need a title, your work and results speaks for itself ;-)

Tom

Thank you Tom, you are so nice!

Went to the u-pick farm this afternoon and when I was picking persimmons, Willy was picking chestnuts till he got hit with one chestnut on the head and those things are so sharp that he started to bleed, it stop quickly because the punctures were very thin. That was funny, I told the people at the farm that he was disqualified from the the game,lol. We would never have a chestnut tree in our yard with the dogs and us, he said that sometimes they fall on him and that it hurts!
And we also found out that they got hit by lighting last week and a fire was started, luckily nobody got hurt, living on top of the hill is not so safe after all.

I picked a lot of persimmons this time

Willy picked a little over 2 pounds of chestnuts before he got hit,lol

Silvia

Silvia, the community garden folks have no idea what they will have in you, but they are about to find out! They will soon appreciate your wealth of information and kindness and count their lucky stars you were sent their way. This project is bound to be very rewarding for you, and for sure, to all those who will benefit from your expertise. Have fun with it!

Just get Willy a big hard hat and send him back! I'd never seen a persimmon tree. They sure are full of fruit.

Anna

Silvia thank you so much for taking the time to explain to me. I love saving my harvest. For some slly reason it maks me happy. I freeze fruit and veggies, dehydrate fruit, make freezer jams, frozen chocolate covered bananas and blueberries. but mostly what i do is share. It makes me smile when I give away a my biggest mango or my largest eggs from the girls I love and see the recipients smile.

I think a community garden would be fun to join just for the commeradeuty.

I have red sugar apples seeds to share. I am harvesting them daily and they do best if started soon.
Anyone have any intereste in them? the fruit is creamy and sweet, the tree is small and easy to care for.

Anna, thank you very much for all your kind words. And I try to make a little difference helping others help themselves like teaching them how to fish in this case how to grow veggies, that is the idea. When they will have a taste of homegrown produce they will be in for life, it is hard work but also very rewarding. And I also going to be learning along the way on how to produce crops with different compost materials, different levels of attention and I will for sure will be checking on them, like the police,lol. The organizer gave me the key and I will be inspecting for any possible problems.

Talking about the farm, last week I picked muscadines and pears, muscadines are in the freezer and pears in the fridge.

Here is the pear tree

A close up of the dangerous chestnuts, lol.

And I picked two different persimmons, my favorite is on the left the round shape, that one can be eaten as an apple, the other on the right has to look dead ripe before you eat otherwise it will very acid.

And I picked some peanuts this morning, I will be roasting them, my little dog was already helping himself, I will plant more broccoli for them.

Keiki - you are welcome and I am glad to hear that you like the same things that I do, when you talk to people we are more the same than we are different and at the end we all want to live the best possible quality of life and that includes good food especially if it comes from the garden.
I bought a red sugar apple about 2 years ago in Excalibur, it has not give me any fruit yet but I can not wait, I love atemoyas and have one in the ground that just came back from the dead.:)this winter was just to hard on some of the fruit trees.
And I agree with you just being in the company of other gardeners it is going to be a lot of fun! I will be reporting what happen this saturday.

Silvia