Applestar's 2017 Garden

[applestar]

Another view out of that window ---

[pepperhead212]

It's a jungle!

[applestar]

Here's another Snow Leopard Melon F2 that turned out to be a winner. This one was fully ripened on the vine until I detected a delicious aroma, and pulling on it made it slip. It was allowed to ripen further on the counter until today -- it looked like a honeydew -smooth, no markings- but the flesh was a pale salmon color.



Very sweet.

DDs loved it. DH who prefers honeydew and doesn't eat cantaloupe said it tasted like honeydew until the very end when there was a hint of cantaloupe.

Saving seeds.

[applestar]

I cleaned up the Haybale Lane (HBL) -- this year's Melon patch #1 -- and sowed some fall-winter seeds. 2 kinds of turnips, kohlrabi 2 kinds of carrots, lettuce mix, root parsley, 2 kinds of onions, leeks,... etc. Planning to fashion a season extending cover later on.

[applestar]

Tomatoes are dwindling but other interesting harvest items continue to come in




I put together a special collage to keep track of which saved seedcorn came from which plant, even though I made notes on the wrapper. I'm especially excited by the Applestar Medley #sweet# x Japanese Striped Maize ear I harvested today.

[applestar]

It's really bumming me out that the question of how-to hand pollinate those Pink and Purple Mexican corn is becoming moot. I have been looking and looking, but see no sign of silks emerging, while the tassels have been maturing and dropping pollen.

HOWEVER, I did harvest some more fun corn for sorting and saving as seeds. The best part is that one of these Applestar's Medley #popcorn# and at least another one that's still green and will be harvested when ready have a small chance of having caught some of the Pink and Purple Mexican corn pollen.

[applestar]

Finally saw one with silks growing today, but look at where. I tied a raffia string at 5ft height on the stalk.



CANNOT imagine walking in a whole field of this corn. Wow!
...chuckle with me if you remember my private joke about growing tall corn.

[applestar]

Late planted large fruiting varieties of tomatoes haven been ripening. This is a first. Usually, by this time, only the cherry and maybe saladette size varieties will be left and they will keep going until frost. This year, a 2nd wave of seedlings was planted out later than usual.

I think I might have noticed this phenomenon last year, too, since I had started seeds over the course of 4 weeks or so... if it were not for the mites that decimated the later, weaker seedlings.



The most recent large fruited varieties that are in the above photos -- in no particular order are -- The Witz, Amana Orange, Sergeant Pepper's, Allons-y Dr.X, TerhuneX, Mikhalych. All from VGB and VGB.PSRB beds. Also pictured are Dwarf Chocolate Lightning and the largest fruited Tim F2 from the KGP.SIP.

[applestar]

One more Applestar's Medley #popcorn# that has been open/cross pollinated with Japanese Striped Maize and (hopefully) Pink/Purple Mexican



...I discovered a recognizable characteristic of the Japanese Striped Maize kernels so I think I will be able to tell them apart. I'll post detailed photo(s) later to show the differences in the kernels. Earlier harvested #sweet# kernels are starting to dry up and turn into recognizably shriveled and shrunken kernels which I am going to continue to assume are the sweetcorn types.

[rainbowgardener]

Amazing colors!! Not just the corn, but all those harvest pictures!

[SQWIB]

Yes awesome colors Applestar's garden say, "It's FALL!"
Looking good

[applestar]

[applestar]

I saw my saffron crocuses starting to send up flowerbuds in the Kitchen Garden yesterday. Really should have checked to see if they opened today.....

[applestar]

Pictured -

TOMATOES

• Dwarf Chocolate Lightning
• TerhuneX-1
• TerhuneX-2
• The Witz
• Tim F2

PEPPERS

• Aji Pineapple
• Fish
• Gochugaru yong Gochu
• Golden Habanero
• Maui Purple
• Sun Thai

OTHERS

• Bean pole, Borlotto
• Corn, Applestar's Medley #popcorn# xJapanese Striped Maize, xPink and Purple Mexican
• Fig, Chicago Hardy
• Saffron

[applestar]

Playing with the new phone’s camera

[rainbowgardener]

Wow! Fabulous photos!

[applestar]

thanks!

[applestar]

I FINALLY had a chance to take some photos of my garden

I guess this would be my fall garden. I’m going to put hoop over everything to hopefully keep these greens going.


Summer’s last hurrah’s including some really nice Chicago Hardy figs. It’s planted next to the SW-facing family room wall and I have the bottom part of the tree/shrub covered with an old nylon shower curtain, so I’m hoping more the green fruits it’s loaded with will have chance to ripen.



...aaaaand... I have a fat corn cob growing on the Pink and Purple Mexican ! About 10-12 feet up

[applestar]

Gusts up to 40+mph knocked over my corn — wah! They did fall over the tomato support so didn’t fall all the way down and may not have been completely broken/severed....

[applestar]

I left the corn exactly where they fell. I didn’t want to move the stalks and sever any of the remaining connected tissues. Now we have the remaining week of overnight lows in the low to mid 30’s°F, then a hard freeze — low 20’s° F — forecast for Sat. Morning.

I’m hoping the three ears on the Pink and Purple Mexican corn will have time to mature into viable seeds. I’m assuming I should harvest the ears before the hard freeze.

[applestar]

Finally, FINALLY got the chance to plant the garlic —

[applestar]

I FINALLY FINALLY got the chance to unwrap the Pink and Purple Mexican corn to see what I got —


...first one I unwrapped was a dud, 2nd one only had the one kernel that looks immature. Another one had more but probably also immature. So only one spottily but successfully pollinated and matured cob, but enough for trying to grow again.

[applestar]

These spent the winter under a tulle netting and doubled slitted 3 mil plastic, and look like this now:



...I think this means if I can come up with better designed covering system that allows opening and closing during the winter instead of frozen to the ground, I would actually be able to harvest some and enjoy them....