The "King" and I

After loving the wonderfully unseasonable temperatures the last two weeks it came, the cold. Whew! This morning was chilly. I pulled out the tomato and eggplant plants yesterday, and covered the peppers (which are doing really well this year!). Early in the planting season, I chose a few pepper plants to put in pots, as I had more than I could use in the garden. These plants have been in a race to see which would be the strongest and most prolific. I was forced to pick a winner yesterday, and my heirloom bell pepper, King of the North variety, was the clear winner. It has nice fruits and a few blossoms. It is my experiment pepper, I am going to baby it until next year. Peppers are native to Central and South America, so they like it warm, far warmer than Minnesota to be sure. I am going through with the experiment to see how this particular variety fares in the less than full sun and some what chilly temps that we have here, even in the house.

The fall is a great, sad time for me. I am in a rush of canning, fermenting and drying foods, trying to keep in mind all the mental notes about how the garden went and planning for next year. My first timer clients are busy with their homework as well, they are reviewing their own gardens and thinking about changes for next year. This is one great reason for a garden journal, even just a notepad to jot down a random thought, something like "The beets were very happy next to the fence this year", or "I will never again try to plant 8 pepper plants in 3 square feet of garden bed" you get the idea. The garden wrap up and planning sessions are the only lessons left for the year. The sad part is the lack of the garden and the looming cold. So, this is why I have choosen the "King" to hang around for the winter, perhaps he and the "Herbs" can arrange a gathering in the skillet.

September Heat

This morning I picked another basket of tomatoes. Despite the blight, it seems the little guys just keep coming. It's time for another batch of canning. The September heat has been helpful in the garden this fall to say the least. Peppers, corn, squash, beans, beets, lettuce and cabbages are all doing well. Cabbages, ah yes well, the ever icky cabbage worms are in force this year. Daily picking works, but they just won't quit! Yucky little squirmy things, they smell like cabbage when you squish them. There are 2 types that I have trouble with, imported cabbage worms (pictured above)and cabbage loopers (pictured below). The worms are about an inch long, and kind of fat and eat big holes in the leaves, the loopers are shorter and slimmer and eat smaller holes. They both like the bottom side of the leaves, but the worms also can be spotted on the tops. I just pick 'em off and step on them. I have a smaller than desired cabbage harvest this year, but it looks like the fall crop may hold it's own as long as I keep picking. Today I mention the cabbage interlopers because I found two of the big worms on the kitchen counter after setting the basket of tomatoes there this morning. The little guys are so prevelant in the garden that they found their way into the house, either on the basket or the fruits themselves. So, I wish you continued happiness in the garden, bug picking and all.