Heat Lovers

It is the middle of June, so the temperatures are in the 90s every day in Houston. Luckily, most of the things I have growing out there are heat lovers. I still water things more often than I thought I would before moving here but I'm used to watering so that isn't a bad thing--there isn't a drought here so I feel ok irrigating with my soakers and in the mornings.

My key lime has many tiny fruits, with the largest being about the size of a quarter (see photo #1 below). Also below: a Violet Jasper tomato on the vine, sweet potatoes, and multiple figs on one branch of my little potted fig tree. Figs do very well here: I have over a dozen on the one tree! Buchanan's Native Plants (a local nursery) has some good tips for growing figs. I picked up one of their handouts, but they also have good info here.

 

Texas Insects ID

The garden is growing up a storm in Houston, and does not seem to be worse for wear after our big flood. My pumpkin has taken over the secret garden (my walled garden area), as you can see in the photo below where the cat is disappearing beneath the leaves. I have numerous tomatoes (all green) and my fig tree has almost a dozen figs. Each is about the size of a quarter. Sweet potatoes, peppers, and most of the other plants look healthy.

I say most because some, including half of the regular potatoes, have been eaten by the snails. I find the tiny snails on the leaves, so I am pretty sure that's what did them in. I may be able to salvage some baby potatoes from the 2 plants, and I am looking into how to prevent the same damage on the two plants I have in a separate bed.

I've noticed a few moth larvae (possibly Diamondback moths) but they are easy enough to pick off and they don't return quickly. I also have the tiny orange-red insects (see photo) all over my pumpkin plant. They don't seem to do any harm (yet) but they gather on the small fruits.

I need a better book on insect identification for the Houston area. In the meantime I've been checking A&M's website on entomology.

Squash Flowers!

I'm no used to having squash flowers this early. The male flowers started a few weeks ago in mid-April, and now the female flowers are here, too. These were volunteers from the compost--I'm pretty sure they are Australian Butter Pumpkins from my mother, since those are the only mature squash seeds that ended up in my compost recently.

Winter Garden Photo Update

We are nearing the end of the "winter garden" and getting closer to the spring. I have month-old eggplant, tomato, and pepper starts growing in the kitchen and my order from Baker Heirloom Seeds arrived.

Here's an update on the plants that have been growing through the cold months:

• Admiral Peas (mainly for soup) took longer to start than the snap peas but they are flowering a lot now. They also don't grow nearly as tall as the other peas but that has not seemed to stop them from producing.
• Both of my broccoli plants have heads & I plan to eat the larger one tonight so it will produce some more.
• Garlic is doing great! Every clove came up and they look healthy. I should be able to harvest it before the summer.
• Rainbow Chard finally recovered from the fall caterpillar damage and looks healthy again, though small. I had a plastic cone over it for the past month or so to help it out.
• All of the artichokes in the front yard look GREAT!
• Cheddar Cauliflower just started on my plants--you can see the little yellowish-white nub of it on the plants.

 

 

Seed/Plant Order for the 2015 Garden

I've just put in my primary seed/plant order for my first full year in the Texas garden. I went with Baker Seeds since I love their variety and I've always had a good experience with them. I will also be supplementing with some locally-purchased plants, seeds I already have, and possibly a small order from Bountiful Gardens.

The challenge with this order was the decision to include things I will grow for the next few seasons: spring through possibly next winter. So it is a big order! See my choices below. All photos are from the Baker order site.

Elena's Rojo Amaranth
Juana's Orange Amaranth
King of the Garden Lima Bean
Romanesco Italia Broccoli
Ozark Razorback Cowpea
Purple Hull Pinkeye Cowpea
Dragon's Egg Cucumber
Muncher Cucumber
Cambodian Green Giant Eggplant
Mitoyo
Naranjilla
Attila Strawberry
Crimson Clover
Boule d'Or Melon
Emerald Gem Melon
Golden Sweet Melon
Cassabanana Melecoton
Burgundy Okra
Pink "Okra"
Mammoth Melting Sugar Snow Pea
Sugar Snap Pea
Bhut Jolokia or Ghost Pepper
Craig's Grande Jalapeno Pepper
Poblano Pepper
Quadrato D'Asti Giallo Pepper
Yellow Monster Pepper
Tomatillo Purple
Tomatillo Verde
Brandywine Tomato
True Black Brandywine Tomato
Peacock Striped Watermelon
Royal Golden Watermelon
Okinawan Purple Sweet Potato (PRE-ORDER)
Omani Pink Sweet Potato (PRE-ORDER)
Borage 1 oz 

 

 

 

What I'm Making with my Texas CSA Veggies: Kale & Beet Salad

I've been a @JBGorganic CSA member (CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture, ie. local farm membership) for five whole weeks now, and the novelty of fresh, regionally-grown, organic vegetables delivered to me weekly has not worn off. Especially since it is my first winter in the south and I love having fresh food all year round! I have a few vegetables in my own garden, but not enough variety or volume to sustain my eating habits. The CSA has been perfect.

JBG (www.jbgorganic.com) has provided a different mix of veggies each week, including: kale, lettuce, spinach, rutabagas, beets, carrots, brussels sprouts, broccoli, radishes, and more. The carrots in particular have been amazing--we taste-tested them with store carrots and the difference was significant.

My favorite recipe last week was stuffed chard leaves with a cream cheese, carrot, rice, and red lentil filling. This week I made a kale & beet salad that my mother and I have revised over time. The original recipe came from The Flying Apron Cookbook by Jennifer Katzinger and Lorene Edwards Forkner.

The original recipe calls for currants and pecans. I like those, but I almost always have slivered almonds and raisins in the house and I rarely have currants around... so I made some substitutions. I also cut down on the oil since doing so lowers the fat content without much change in taste. This is by far my favorite way to use kale raw, which isn't a common thing to do--so many people find raw kale bitter. It certainly does not taste bitter in this recipe.

 


Here's my modified recipe:

Kale and Beet Salad

3 Tbsp water

2 Tbsp real maple syrup

3 medium beets (about 1 pound) peeled halved and julienned

2 bunches kale (or chard) chopped into bite sized pieces

1/3 cup raisins

½ cup slivered almonds

Dressing

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

2 Tbsp olive oil

½ tsp lemon juice

¼ teaspoon  Dijon mustard

2 Tbsp real maple syrup

 

Bring water and maple syrup to a boil, stir for one minute, then remove from heat. Place beets in a steamer and steam until fork tender, about 10 minutes. Strain and transfer to a large bowl. Toss beets with water/maple syrup mixture. Add kale, raisins, and nuts. Combine all dressing ingredients. Whisk and pour over the beet mixture. Toss & refrigerator. This salad tastes best cold. 

Happy eating!