2015-2016 Winter Indoor (Tomatoes, etc.) Garden

[applestar]

It's spring now... Or so they say. We have snow in the forecast for this week, though no accumulation, and low in the mid-to-upper 20's °F, and my plants will be staying indoors for another month or more.

Right now, the four orchids are simultaneously in bloom, though peak has passed for some of them.

Unlike the other three, the one on the bottom-left is in an upstairs bedroom where, for some reason, it was the ONLY room in which stink bugs appeared all winter. The holes in the blossom are their work All of the blossoms have this.

[Mr green]

Oh my the one with a little bit of pink and bright "stains" is amazing!

[applestar]

Almost there! I'm starting to move out plants that can take a bit of cold like lemon, fuchsia, lemon verbena, stevia, jalapeño, ...etc. In another couple of weeks, we should be frost free.

In the mean time, we had another Squeaky Sighting

This was a fun one because DD was with me holding one of the kitties and she spotted Squeaky, too. Every time the cat focused, Squeaky got fidgety and moved further and further up and into cover, generally "squirreling" around avocado trunk and branch to the other side until finally hopping over to the mango. Not so much when we humans looked. Kitty sat balancing on a pot rim for a long time looking up.

[applestar]

We're so conditioned to think peppers are the finicky ones needing warmth, etc. but MATURE pepper plants have done far better in the average winter house conditions than tomatoes. Tomatoes bloom and set fruits well in late fall and then not until late winter/early spring.

For me it's a matter of timing and I guess I'm essentially growing TOMATOES in the FALL that slowly ripen for the holidays and winter consumption, then some more in spring before the summer tomatoes are ready. I think my new thinking is to grow extra early determinates for the fall/winter harvesting, and nurse along some exceptional Indeterminates for spring. (They can grow into/have the space vacated by the determinates) Looking forward to trying some of the newer larger fruited indeterminate dwarfs for that slot, and I'll be trialing some of them this summer.

[applestar]

I have sad news.

One of our kitties captured Squeaky and ... ate him/her.

[Lindsaylew82]

I have sad news.

One of our kitties captured Squeaky and ... ate him/her.

RIP sweet frog!

Hope your children didn't witness that!

[applestar]

Thanks, Lindsay.

[applestar]

Here are the overwintered eggplants. They are trying to bloom already and desperately need to be planted. One of the white comets set a small fruit that I picked and ate already.