I took a lot of stuff out of the garden over the past several weeks as the heat and humidity took their toll. All that's now left are about 40 okra plants, several Ichiban eggplants and 6 hot pepper plants with 5 being Habanero and one Ghost Pepper plant.
The ground finally dried out enough from some heavy rains we had over a 2 week period and it was time to break out the tiller to get things ready for my fall garden planting in a couple weeks. All went pretty smooth except where the okra is planted. That area holds water more than any part of my garden and having to walk in that area daily to keep up with the okra when inundated did nothing but compact the ground around the plants and between the rows.
My tiller and I got a workout and it didn't help that the heat index was well over 100 degrees and currently sitting at 115 about 1 hour after I finished the work.
I'm wanting to get some cucumber and pole bean seeds direct sown for a fall crop, but may have to wait a couple more weeks to give the seedlings a better chance to survive. I do have a couple volunteer cucumber plants near my compost pile that are growing well, but they are not in the direct sunlight like my trellises are situated.
At least the ground is now prepped and ready for rows to be pulled.
I am with you on the effects of heat on my plants and my body. It has been brutal. I make a ton of Cherokee Purple tomatoes this year but the vines succumbed to the elements. Crazy thing though.....my neighbor at the old farm land wanted to grow some tomatoes this year. He had some big pots that livestock mineral came in. So I took his seven pots, filled them with the same rich soil that I use in my garden pots, placed the pots at the end of his porch, planted same Cherokee Purple tomatoes that I have in my garden, etc. His seven plants are still going strong and as pretty as can be. Only thing we can figure is perhaps they are getting some shade from the hottest time of the sun. Showed picture of his tomatoes to my wife and she asks "Do you think you could get him to teach you how to grow tomatoes?"
As for OKRA, I am always amazed at how those plants say "Bring on the heat and we will be at our best"!
As for OKRA, I am always amazed at how those plants say "Bring on the heat and we will be at our best"!
lakngulf wrote: As for OKRA, I am always amazed at how those plants say "Bring on the heat and we will be at our best"!
I'm now seeing the effects of all the rain we got and how it collected in the area where I have my okra. The plants look to be fading and probably due to getting too much water and water standing between the rows for a week or more. Likely are suffering from root rot or something similar. I've noticed the foliage is slowly falling off the stalks and what has not fallen yet is yellowing.
Now I know to not plant my okra in that area of my garden again. I'm still picking between 35-40 pods a day, but notice little flowering for the past couple days. But that's ok as I've got at least 20 quarts cooked down in freezer bags and several quarts already pickled besides all that I've eaten fried, grilled and steamed. Plus I've probably given away 40 or more pounds to people this summer.
I usually pull them by mid September anyway so I can get that area of the garden ready for fall/winter planting.
lakngulf wrote:Tell me about your okra freezing process. I cook some down with tomato each year and freeze, but have not dealt with okra alone. And I have tons to deal with now
All I do is slice it across the pods like for frying and place it in gallon freezer bags then squeeze as much air out as I can before sealing the bags. It has kept for several months like that, but all I use it for after that is for making stewed okra with diced tomatoes, onions, garlic and a few other seasonings like salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce.
I recently got a Food Saver Vacuum sealing system and will put some up like that and it should last even longer once all the air is removed.
I also put some up in different brines, some with habanero peppers for a bit of zing and some with just a salt/vinegar brine. I love frying some but my Dr. frowns on that idea. I grill a lot more of it since everybody in my family loves it fixed that way. Then there's whole pods simply steamed and drizzled with olive oil, lemon juice and seasoned with salt and pepper.