Something Different This Season

This year I'm germinating my lettuce and cabbage seeds without soil and then transplanting the sprouts to see how well it works out. Wish me luck.

I Beat The Wabbits

This year, I managed to finally get my carrots to the harvest stage. These are nothing like the poor imitations that inhabit the produce sections of grocery stores. The aroma that emerged when they were being cut or grated in preparation for soups and carrot cake was rich and appetizing in a way I had never experienced before with this vegetable. I think I know why so many kids hate veggies. They've never had them fresh. Grow some carrots in a nice sized container(mine was 15 gallons) and let your kids taste the difference. You may make converts of them yet.

A Neat Treat Without So Much Heat

Pizza peppers resemble jalapeños but have a much less fierce bite. And they can be easily grown in containers, even those that are less than a gallon in size. So if your gardening space is restricted to a deck, balcony or small patio, this pepper is an ideal candidate to add to your container garden.

When Life Gives You Lemons....Pickle Them!

Well, you can pickle them when they're lemon cucumbers. They grow to be about the size of a baseball and at first glance they don't look as though they have much in common with their green cousins. But slice into them and take a bite. The aroma and the taste will tell you that they are indeed cukes. And need I mention that they are great when pickled?

Российская Хурма

Although tomatoes are indigenous to the Americas, thanks to Spanish explorers they have spread all over the world, even to our comrades in the former Soviet Union. These are Russian Persimmon tomatoes and they only take about 75 days to grow. They're quite tasty and really nice to look at. You know, there are thousands of tomato varieties and I hope to live long enough to grow every one of them. Ah, hope springs eternal. Well, that's all for now. до свидания Това́рищ!

太陽 Twins

Last year I waited a day too late to gather the seeds from my sunflower. The blossom fell to the ground during the night and scattered seeds everywhere. I decided to cover them up with soil and see what would develop. Only three seeds sprouted from the dozens that were deposited in the earth and all reached maturity, but something nibbled one of the blossoms off before I could photograph it. Anyway, here are the two that were left. They didn't grow as high as the single sunflower plant did last year, but both are in the seven foot range.

Mouthwatering Melons

Despite the late start, it's been a very good year for melons. I lost a few to squirrels and our resident neighborhood rabbit, but there have been more than enough left to eat and plenty to give away. You could say that this season has been melon heaven!