N&C Midwest: August 2016; Hot Stuff!

Here we are, Midwesterners!  Beans, squash, tomatoes, eggplant, broc, cauli, ground cherries, peppers, melons, cukes etc. all coming on!  

This is what we wait for all year....now, how am I going to keep as much around for as long as possible?  



And Fall planning, yes, it is TIME!!!!!  Do not delay!

Landarch, gorgeous harvest pictures on the July thread! What type of canning do you do?  Water bath or pressure?  I am thinking about it, will not happen this year, need to have an outdoor situation due to my house and underpowered AC, especially with steam going on all day long....

But so pretty, especially in January!

I used to water bath...then we borrowed my wife's grandmother's pressure canner and I used it a couple of times before giving up.  I twice tried to pressure can pickled beets and both times over half the brine escaped from the jars.  There are so many reasons for this (I googled it) and thought it was easier to stick with the water bath, especially since I tend to use vinegar-and salt based brines for salsa, pickles, beets, etc.

 I picked up an outdoor propane burner to keep all the heat and steam out of the house during the heat of the summer...however I think I have a bad regulator...no matter how I adjust the air mixer I get a nasty yellow flame that soots my pot like crazy...need to take it back and get something different.  It also has an automatic 15 minute shut off timer...not good for canning.

We have about 12 more squares of carrots to pick to make way for fall crops...going to seed beets and carrots soon, maybe some fall beans.  Then in the community garden, I'll do some rows of veggies (beets, carrots, green cabbage, Chinese cabbage, tatsoi, bok choy, etc.) under a floating row cover...don't want to cut up my long rows of Agribon to cover my 4x4 beds...probably save those for garlic and spinach over winter.

I have helped my SIL can green beans back wayyy back....at the house that I lie in now actually!  I just work all the time, and like I said, have a brick house and it just really heats up.  Today, it was tops 93 or 94 here, AC set at 78 with 2 circulator fans running, and it was and still is 80 with the unit running full out.  Electric was a ridiculous amount this month, enough to make me do the budget program.....yuk.

I have a side burner on my grill, but it isn't really designed for anything like canning...

So, has the community garden been a good thing this year?

I

landarch wrote:I used to water bath...then we borrowed my wife's grandmother's pressure canner and I used it a couple of times before giving up.  I twice tried to pressure can pickled beets and both times over half the brine escaped from the jars.  There are so many reasons for this (I googled it) and thought it was easier to stick with the water bath, especially since I tend to use vinegar-and salt based brines for salsa, pickles, beets, etc.

 I picked up an outdoor propane burner to keep all the heat and steam out of the house during the heat of the summer...however I think I have a bad regulator...no matter how I adjust the air mixer I get a nasty yellow flame that soots my pot like crazy...need to take it back and get something different.  It also has an automatic 15 minute shut off timer...not good for canning.

We have about 12 more squares of carrots to pick to make way for fall crops...going to seed beets and carrots soon, maybe some fall beans.  Then in the community garden, I'll do some rows of veggies (beets, carrots, green cabbage, Chinese cabbage, tatsoi, bok choy, etc.) under a floating row cover...don't want to cut up my long rows of Agribon to cover my 4x4 beds...probably save those for garlic and spinach over winter.

How has the community garden worked out, Landarch?  The town where I work has one public and one on a church yard....lots of activity at the public one!  

Pulled this off while shooting bull with my neighbors!



Great White tomato!  Gorgeous, delish, and pretty early!  Triple shot!  And conversation piece count?  Lol! Bakers Seeds.

How pretty!!

Very nice tomato! I have found I have maybe three red varieties so far... but still have some plants to ripen. I have to pick them less than ripe, I have too many critters in my garden. So I picked a bunch of yellow fruits, surprised that they hadn't been nibbled on yet. They were unremarkable, I was kinda sad. But as they sat on my kitchen counter, after a few days they turned a beautiful dark orange-yellow - I guess they weren't ripe yet after all! LOL!

Thanks!  

Suzy, you can get away with a bit of an early pick, they ripen up nicely most of the time!  

I need to get out there and pick the squash and maters.  It has been soooo hot!  I think we are in for a break this weekend, maybe I can garden!

We did get a break from the heat and humidity today, still zero rain though.  Watered again, and harvested the neglected squash.....unreal.  




Squash, Sakatas Sweeet Melons in front, more squash in back, various colors and sizes of tomatoes, purple beans, and 2 Minnesota Midget muskmelons!  The one on the far right has already been eaten.  It is the star of my August avatar!

2 1/2 hours, watering, harvesting, and now 800mg of ibuprofen on board waiting for it to hit me!  LOL!

Lone green pepper with the maters..

Scorpio Rising wrote:

<<< me green with envy

CapeCoddess wrote:

Scorpio Rising wrote:

 <<< me green with envy

What are you going to do with all that squash.

Scorpio Congratulations!

yolos wrote:

CapeCoddess wrote:

Scorpio Rising wrote:

 <<< me green with envy

What are you going to do with all that squash.

Honestly, some of it looked iffy on closer inspection, so into the dump it went.  But about half of the remaining is sitting at the end of my driveway with a "Free Patty Pan Squash" sign!  Lol!  I will take it to work Monday if any is still out there!
And, in my defense, I only planted 2 plants....I had 2 very vigorous volunteers in the compost pile!  I am weed wacking them tomorrow.  
Too much squash, and I can't keep up!

Two plants!? Please please save some seeds!
CC

CapeCoddess wrote:Two plants!? Please please save some seeds!
CC

Gotcha covered babe!  Lol!  I have enough for the Eastern half section!  Lol!

How do they taste? And how do you cook them?

They taste nutty, flesh is firm, not a lot of seeds compared to zukes.  They are very toothy, I sautéed them in EVOO, garlic, and sometimes a Vidalia.  Sometimes I sprinkle with some fresh parmy.  Really yummy!  You can also make a scallop with them, when you have as many as I do, you do that and freeze them!

Hmmmmm... Sounds pretty good. Wonder if DH would like them...?

The community garden I am involved with is private...found the owner on Craigslist a few years ago.  He's retired and has been improving his soil over the last 20 years or so...and we have bee hives.  I rent a 25x25 plot for $65 a year.  Our biggest challenge is 1) water, 2) weeds.  

Water:  We have a well just for the garden...and a pump fills a series of large water storage tanks.  When the rain stops and the heat kicks in during the summer we can run really low on water.

Weeds:  Newbies show up each spring to fire up multiple tiller machines...then struggle with crabgrass, foxtail, and other weeds in the heat of July.  this is when gardening is not fun...I combine SFG with traditional methods to my community garden space (some SFG beds, planting without raised beds but in a grid instead of rows, long trellises on the north side, compost soil amendments, intense use of space to out compete weeds, etc.). The weedless component of Mels Mix is one prime advantage. 

I also use floating row covers for fall and spring season extension...much easier to do in rows than 4x4 squares.

Anyway, here are a few pics.  My Carbon tomatoes are looking beautiful and juicy...having a run of blemish free fruits lately even with the heat and off/on rains.




Now for something tasty.  My neighbor is from northern India (vegetarian culture) and we delivered him some eggplant and carrots last week from the garden.  Today he stopped by with some mouth watering Baingan Bharta  (eggplant curry), roasted carrots, toasted pita, and raita.  

Beautiful tomatoes, Landarch!
I've had Baingan Bharta in restaurants, and I can only imagine how much better the homemade kind is.

Yummo!  Ilove Indian food... Curries, cool salads, 

And your veggies are perfect.

Excellent maters Landarch!

Thanks everyone...I had already crossed eggplant off my list for next year until I tasted this dish.  Neighbor has offered a quick cooking lesson for these two dishes...can't wait.

I seeded more cukes and they have germinated...60 days put me at the end of September.

Also seeded more beets and carrots last night.

I might try a late cuke, cucumber beetles getting the best of mine.  Lettuce, spinach, and  some radishes....