A few snapshots of some goodies we pulled from the garden yesterday
Finished up pulling some of the determinate tomato plants that had finished up for the season and started picking! I haven't weighed the cherry tomatoes yet, but my kids picked a hefty bowl of them. Here is a 'sauce & salsa' bin that we grabbed from the garden yesterday evening:
That was the start..
In the photo (above), we have:
Tomatoes (Brandywine, Pineapple, Marion, Box Car Willie, Money Maker, Super Sweet Cherry 100), Purple Tomatillos, Corn (Silver & Gold, Silver Queen), Peppers (Cubanelle, Anaheim Chili, Emerald Green, Cayenne, Banana).
This year we have had some tremendous storms and some that dumped inches of rainfall per hour. Heavy rain causes some of the varieties to split very easily, but we are carefully observing which varieties hold up best for this - to better prepare for next season. Funny how we (gardeners) are in the middle of the season and already thinking about the next. 😆
The large, yellow variety is the 'Pineapple' heirloom tomato and the similar large, pink colored next to them are 'Brandywine' (Pink). I add the 'pink', but it is redundant because Brandywine strain began as pink and then other colors were eventually bred from this variety.
Here's Somethin' Funky!
The only hybrid I like to grow: Super Sweet Cherry 100
First year ever growing tomatillos
The tomatillo plants attract pests like crazy! I used them almost sacrificially this year as an experiment. They do work well keeping the bugs occupied - it seems the garden pests preferred the tomatillo over the tomato plants. Have you noticed similar results with tomatillos in the garden? I am interested to know in the comments below!
The fruit has a sweet flavor to it and we are going to try them in some homemade salsa! If you have any tomatillo recipes, toss them below in the comments.
Thanks for Peekin' At My Pickins'
Those pineapple tomatoes are so pretty! And I'm with you on the Sweet 100's being a great little cherry tomato. In the spring, I cruise some of the gardening centers to see what they are selling and it's getting harder for folks to find the Sweet 100s. I see lots of Sweet Millions -- and people looking for the Sweet 100s! Enjoy your harvests! :D
Thanks @haphazard-hstead, the pineapple tomato really puts on a show! The red & yellow streaks carry all the way through, which is pretty cool!
I start everything I grow from seed 😉, so I spend my winter season sifting seed catalogs..lol
The Super Sweet Cherry 100s are getting a bit harder to find, I remember many box stores and garden places once carried them. I haven't tried the Sweet Millions yet, but if they are anything near as prolific then I bet they're good!
Next year I have quite a few heirlooms to try, my neighbor gifted me her father's seed collection who had passed away. That is probably the most indescribable feeling. I was honored to continue that legacy! I started several varieties of plants to collect fresh, viable seed and I'm currently rebuilding his collection alongside my own. One day I hope to gift a great deal of my collection to seedbanks in order to preserve them.
By then the SS Cherry 100s might qualify as heirloom 😆.
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Awesome vegetable haul! The tomatoes and peppers look to be some awesome beginnings for some spicy salsa! Thanks for sharing!
Yes, @drstevegilbert! Spicy, indeed. A little something to heat up the winter time. 🔥
this one you mean?
i love your pics
very very clear and beautifully organized
had you not posted any pic
i would think it was posted by a lass :)
Hahaha I'm glad I cleared up any confusion. I learn quickly and love a challenge. Steemit is challenging for me, so that's what drives me. I have seen some lazy content on here and I've seen some incredible content on here. I'm aiming to create the latter. I promise, it only gets better from here. I'm just getting started!
I have a vast spectrum of work experience in several fields, but an extensive background in design and just about anything aesthetic. I did custom installations in large corporate facilities that included Gibson Guitars, Under Armour, and Georgetown University in D.C.
That was before I was blessed with my first born and decided to leave a career path that I had built from scratch and soak up all the time I have, while I have it. Then my second one was born and really sealed the deal. Almost 4 years into the hardest job I have ever had, there is no sick days, and pays nothing...haha HARDEST JOB I'D NEVER QUIT.
That is quite a bit of produce after harvesting 2-4 times prior. What varieties of peppers are you growing? Looks like you have everything you need to make some great salsa.
Yes, @sufficientliving! Hot salsa coming soon 🔥 We have harvested tomatoes since early July, but the peppers took a bit longer. Pepper growing this year: purple tiger, cayenne, cubanelle, Anaheim, California wonder, emerald green, and banana. I also started a few Birdseye peppers but gave them away to friends.
We are pulling tomatoes on a daily basis, but mostly 2-3 times per week heavily (40 or more pounds) and sometimes have to pull them early due to harsh storms recently. We have pulled over a thousand pounds of food so far this season 🙏 Very thankful that nature cooperated (for the most part anyhow). We still have a few months left for the indeterminates here, so looking to feed n weed this weekend and get ready to pick again Saturday! I'd say we pick anywhere from 40-100 lbs per pull of tomatoes. Our corn is finally finished, but we did manage a freezer load! We have about 15 pounds of peppers already in the freezer and they are slowing down now. We have maybe another dozen peppers ripening, but that'll probably be the last. Temps dropping to 50s at night this week. The tomato strains I grow don't flinch at cool weather, they love it!
I just sold 58 lbs of cull tomatoes that were fine, but imperfect. The lady that bought them made over 5 gallons of tomato sauce!! I was blown away..lol something that would have otherwise been given away or thrown out - sold & sauced. Turns out the ugly tomatoes taste better 😋🍅
Wow!! A thousand pounds, thats a lot of tomatoes. We have pulled around 300- 400 lbs and that has been more than we can make salsa and pasta sauce with. A lot of our tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash we couldnt use in time we gave to a church to give away.
How do the Anaheim peppers compare in heat to a jalapeno or habanero? We grow those two varieties most years canning the jalapenos and drying most of the habaneros we dont use in salsa and making habanero powder seasoning.
Its great that you can sell the imperfect tomatoes to someone who can put them to use. It is a good thing that salsa and sauces don't care what the tomatoes look like.
The rain has been bad in my area too. Monday we got around 7 inches, this is the most rain i can remember in years inthe last month and a half we have had around 21 inches of rain. The temps here have been hitting the upper 50's at night slowing down a lot of my plants.
I'm glad to see you having such success I hope it continues.
These are the Purple Tiger peppers, @sufficientliving
Yes!! Our goal is to hit 2,000 pounds this season on 104 tomato plants. We have about 85-90 still doing their thang, so we might still get close. We haven't had rain like you, wow! I'm not positive, but I think 21" might be what we've gotten all year so far. Our battle here is wind & weight - heavier tomato varieties, beefsteaks, have gravity & wind trying to take them out..lol
The Anaheim chili is much milder than jalapeño and nowhere near habanero hot. The closest thing I have to habanero is the purple tiger and that's a small fraction of the heat of habanero. 🔥😋 hot enough for me..haha!
We sell tomatoes locally, give them to friends and family, and also donate some to local food pantries and organizations that provide meals. It's a beautifully rewarding endeavor & one I hope to help others to find equally rewarding for themselves. We all eat! Let's grow something 😉
We are getting ready to pick again tomorrow morning. Still in full bloom here 🙏
Cherry tomatoes are a daily pick - my kids love to pluck them!
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