What's Growing in the Garden

[trc65]

Sorry, meant to include that in previous post.

Main supplier, Jung Seeds - WI based seed company. I also periodically buy from Johnny's Selected Seed in ME.

These aren't the only good seed sources by far, just two that have carried the varieties I want.

Most of my flower seed comes from Swallowtail Garden Seed in CA, and Summerhill seed in IL. Both of these are small independent seed suppliers who are online only, no catalogs.

 

[trc65]

Here are the tomatoes almost done.

Sometimes, especially with larger tomatoes, pieces will form a pocket of moisture with dry tissue all around it. They will eventually dry, but to speed up the process, I'll go through and slit those pieces.



This afternoon I canned the peaches that were left. The count, 15 pints of jam, 9 pints canned, one sour cream peach pie, one batch of cobbler, and several eaten fresh with juice dripping down my chin.

 

[djg]

They are alderman AKA telephone pole peas. Very old open pollinated variety, I let some ripen for next year's seed. I plant a bit over a half pound in two rows spaced about 8" apart and 50' long. Two closely spaced rows one trellis . I've grown other varieties that are probably better but I like to look at them when they go over the top of a 6' trellis

I'm planning on making changes in my garden for next year. I like your idea of double sided trellis. It would be a space saver in my garden and I could protect two rows easier. I could plant pole beans on one side and those peas you have (once I find a seller) on the other. The stupid question for you is, does the trellis get too crowded with vines making picking difficult?

 

[Wildthings]

, one sour cream peach pie,

that sounds good. please tell me more

 

[trc65]

The official name is 'Sour Cream Peach Pecan Pie'. Guess I forgot to mention it also had pecans.

Single (bottom) crust, lots of peaches with a sour cream custard, topped with brown sugar and pecan mix. Really takes it to the next level of peach pies.

Peach Pecan Pie

If you love peaches and cream, this sweet peach pecan pie features peaches in a creamy custard filling with a nutty crumble topping.

www.tasteofhome.com

Just a note or two. If your peaches are really fresh and juicy, you may want to cut down just slightly on the amount unless you have a tall pie plate. Too many peaches plus custard mix equals an unholy mess in your oven. Also a pie ring is needed as when using fresh peaches it may take a little more cooking time for everything to firm up and you don't want burnt edges.

 

[sprucegum]

I'm planning on making changes in my garden for next year. I like your idea of double sided trellis. It would be a space saver in my garden and I could protect two rows easier. I could plant pole beans on one side and those peas you have (once I find a seller) on the other. The stupid question for you is, does the trellis get too crowded with vines making picking difficult?

No, I don't have a problem with overcrowding. I use a push planter with the pea and bean plate which drops the seed aprox 1" apart and I guesstimate the row spacing at about 8". I'm not sure that peas and beans would work well as the vines tend to intermingle from one side to the other and differing maturity dates might also be an issue. My suggestion would be just to plant a short double row of each. I like to get my vines and trellis out of the garden as soon as I'm done with the harvest so that I can easily deal with the weeds that always like to grow in the narrow space between the rows. Alderman peas should be easy to find online but I find the online prices to be high, most years our local farm supply has them in bulk. Last year I got caught having to pay the online price of close to $20/ half pound, so I saved some ripe peas for seed, and I did the same this year.

 

[Nature Man]

The Sour Cream Peach Pecan Pie sounds like a slice of Heaven! Chuck

 

[djg]

....... My suggestion would be just to plant a short double row of each....

Da! Didn't think of that. Right now, my beans are on a 16' hog panel set 6' high. I'd just plant 8' double rows of each (peas/beans).

 

[Eric Rorabaugh]

that sounds good. please tell me more

I was gonna say the same thing!

 

[djg]

Well, I think I've located a source for three new additions to my garden next year. I hope these are the same varieties I've mentioned here. Never heard of the company. Any thoughts?

Shopping Cart | Reimer Seeds

Reimer Seeds offers 5,000+ non-GMO vegetable, herb, and flower seeds for home gardeners. Heirloom varieties, hot peppers, tomatoes, and more. Ships from the USA.

www.reimerseeds.com

 

[sprucegum]

Well, I think I've located a source for three new additions to my garden next year. I hope these are the same varieties I've mentioned here. Never heard of the company. Any thoughts?

Shopping Cart | Reimer Seeds

Reimer Seeds offers 5,000+ non-GMO vegetable, herb, and flower seeds for home gardeners. Heirloom varieties, hot peppers, tomatoes, and more. Ships from the USA.

www.reimerseeds.com

I see they have the telephone pole peas and the price by it pound is reasonable.

 

[trc65]

Heard of them but not bought from them. They seem to have a good selection of varieties.

The bean seed I looked at is treated seed which I want. So many seed companies have stopped selling treated seed to appear more environmentally "friendly".

 

[djg]

I see they have the telephone pole peas and the price by it pound is reasonable.

I'm only going to have one or two (rethinking layout again) 16' rows. maybe I should get 1/4 lb instead of 50 packet. Would the unused portion be viable for next year?

 

[djg]

Heard of them but not bought from them. They seem to have a good selection of varieties.

The bean seed I looked at is treated seed which I want. So many seed companies have stopped selling treated seed to appear more environmentally "friendly".

Ok, to show my ignorance again, what's treated/untreated? Were these treated seeds from this supplier? I did not see it mentioned anywhere.

 

[trc65]

Treated seed has a fungicide applied to the seed and it is usually pink. The fungicide keeps the seed from rotting while it's germinating and you'll usually get better stands. Thiram is a fungicide that has been used for years as a seed treatment. Should wear gloves when handling it. They may not have seed treatment on all seed lots, depending on source.

 

[JerseyHighlander]

What’s your recommendation on supplier for veggie seed if you don’t mind?

Aside from Johny's already mentioned, I found another, also in Maine that I'm really liking so far. Quite a selection and very reasonable pricing.

Fedco Seeds: seeds, plants and supplies. Organic, heirloom, cold-hardy and cooperative.

Discover organic, heirloom, and cold-hardy seeds and plants from Fedco Seeds. No GMOs, no nonsense—just high-quality supplies for thriving gardens. Order now!

www.fedcoseeds.com

Baker Creek is another with lots of old heirlooms and uncommon stuff. https://www.rareseeds.com/store/vegetables

And then there is Seed Savers https://www.seedsavers.org/. - Just recently got some really cool, very old varieties from them.

 

[trc65]

Just took a look at Fedco's site. They have some great offerings, particularly fruit varieties.

 

[JerseyHighlander]

Just took a look at Fedco's site. They have some great offerings, particularly fruit varieties.

Yah, once I get north and have some real land to plant on I plan on looking deeper into that section. So far they've been a good company to deal with and I know their seeds are going to be acclimated for a short season with cold winters.

 

[sprucegum]

I'm only going to have one or two (rethinking layout again) 16' rows. maybe I should get 1/4 lb instead of 50 packet. Would the unused portion be viable for next year?

I've had good luck with 2year old pea seeds. If in doubt sprout a few before planting time to check the germination. I doubt you would have many left over anyway, the way I plant it takes 20-25 seeds/ft of double row. If you do plant them remember that they do not tolerate heat well and they must be planted early. A light frost won't hurt them a bit, I plant mid April and it's not unusual to get a light frost mid May. One of the best gardeners I ever knew would prepare his row in the fall and spread his wood ashes on the row in the spring to melt the snow and warm the soil faster.

 

[JerseyHighlander]

I got something unusual from Seed Savers recently. It's an old French heirloom winter squash. We used to get a lot of winter squash and pumpkins from our CSA farm share and my wife learned to make one of my all time favorite things, my Grandmother's Pumpkin Bread, from the fresh pumpkin so now I'm trying to make sure we have a good supply for this year. So far, the squash is one of the few things the pestilence in my cursed yard haven't been able to destroy.

If nothing else I wanted it ready to plant next year but figured just maybe I have enough time left this season if I get it in the ground fast. Starting it indoors, using the soil blocks and my new grow lights, I had germination in less than 48 hours and just six days in, they are going in the ground with an impressive start.



This is just four days from putting the seed in. I found the leaf structure very cool, had to take pictures. For scale, the stems are roughly 2" apart.