How is your vegetable garden coming along??

[toobfreak]

Store bought carrots always taste musty or moldy to me, even though they're not. Completely different than home grown, same with tomatoes. Nothing like them

Within hours after picking vegetables, chemical changes begin to happen. People who've never grown their own produce don't know what they are missing.

Here's a crazy idea but with merit:

1. Consider that most people living in big cities are progressive.
2. Consider that most people living in big cities do not and never have had their own garden.
3. Consider that all these people eat are store bought food, often shipped across the country if not from out of the country--- sometimes picked long before ripening so that it can finish ripening in the truck or boat and on the store shelf instead of under sunlight naturally.
4. Consider that people in big cities seldom breath clean, fresh air sucking in bus fumes, etc.

Connection? I bet there is. Fresh food and air are the keys to vitality full of active vitamins and living essence. I immediately feel better eating fresh produce and can feel it coursing through my body. I used to grow corn then eat it raw right off the stalk without even cooking it. Unbelievable! The kernels pop in your mouth with crisp sugary juice within. Pure plant energy.

Is it just a coincidence that all these sick, bitter, angry, miserable people packed like sardines in big, dirty cities all tend to be progressive with warped ideas? I wonder.

Go out on the farm and you'll meet a better class of people every time.

 

[westwall]

My peas did well but not so much on the cucumbers. Only one plant of several seeds came up, took it's own sweet time but did produce a few fruit. I had grown 'spacemaster' and thought I'd get something closer to a slicer type, but instead they were more of a pickle. I won't grow that variety again. But the last time I picked one, the whole plant came with it.


Most winter squash are great baked with butter and brown sugar, but you can also make pies and other recipes with them as well. Just think of them like sweet potatoes, that are similar texture.

With one exception, that I'm aware of, and that is the spaghetti squash. Cut them in half, scoop out the seeds & membranes and onto a cookie sheet or pan with a little water and into the oven to soften. Then after they cool a bit, scrape out the meat with a fork to get the 'spaghetti strands'. They are very mild and little to no flavor of their own, but are great to add whatever sauce or other recipes you like that call for pasta.

A great alternative for diabetic or grain or gluten allergy


IDK about other summer squash but those huge zucchini baseball bats are great for stuffing with any number of fillings and I was really disappointed when my zukes didn't do well this year. I do have some yellow straightnecks that I keep picked though as I'm not aware if they are as crazy as zucchini

Yuck!

 

[JustAnotherNut]

Yuck!

IIRC, you said the same thing about eggplant..........but that one I agree. YUCK

 

[westwall]

IIRC, you said the same thing about eggplant..........but that one I agree. YUCK

You remember correctly! My wife loves it, so she always plants some, but yucko!

 

[JustAnotherNut]

You remember correctly! My wife loves it, so she always plants some, but yucko!

but squash is good.

Don't you like pumpkin pie??

 

[westwall]

but squash is good.

Don't you like pumpkin pie??

Yeah, but that's vastly different.

 

[JustAnotherNut]

Yeah, but that's vastly different.

Not really with all things considered.......

Yes pumpkin and squash are different, but most can be prepared the same using the same seasonings and taste the same, with the same texture.........so they're the same

 

[toobfreak]

My peas did well but not so much on the cucumbers. Only one plant of several seeds came up, took it's own sweet time but did produce a few fruit.

Sounds like you were sold old seeds, maybe from the season before.

 

[Deplorable Yankee]

My garden isn't huge, but of good size about 25x60, I've worked this hard clay for the 27years we've lived here and I find that every year some things grow and produce really great, some things make a decent showing and some things just don't bother........and every year those change.

One example being winter squash that I've had trouble with for several years, but I'm a diehard and keep planting it anyway. Finally, this year has paid off. Having overplanted more seeds than I would have ever needed and nearly every dang one of them have sprouted and now taking over a good chunk of real estate out there.

Well, mostly the spaghetti and hubbard squashes. I had also planted some sweet meat and sweet dumpling, but in containers and not nearly as vigorous

Everything else out there is in the mediocre or non-existent stage......and that includes zucchini.

Anyone else having a great squash year??

 

[toobfreak]

Not really with all things considered.......

I had a buddy who was an excellent trained chef. He could make you like anything. It is all in the preparation.

I've lost count of how many things he got me to try that I liked that I never would have eaten nor liked on my own.

 

[JustAnotherNut]

Sounds like you were sold old seeds, maybe from the season before.

Possibly.......but seeds are good for a few years and germination rates are usually fairly good within like 4-5 years (75 to 90%?) then start dropping way off......but also depends on the variety.

 

[toobfreak]

Possibly.......but seeds are good for a few years and germination rates are usually fairly good within like 4-5 years (75 to 90%?) then start dropping way off......but also depends on the variety.

Not in my experience. Seeds have about 1 year shelf life. If a seed lands on the ground and has not sprouted within a year, it will probably never spout.

That is why seed packs are dated and last year's seeds are thrown out.

I've used old seeds a year old or a bit more and I find germination rates down to about 50%.

 

[JustAnotherNut]

Not in my experience. Seeds have about 1 year shelf life. If a seed lands on the ground and has not sprouted within a year, it will probably never spout.

That is why seed packs are dated and last year's seeds are thrown out.

I've used old seeds a year old or a bit more and I find germination rates down to about 50%.

The dates on the packets are when they were packaged, but have no baring on viability.........other than any guarantee of germination rates by the company. Well, not a guarantee really, but you could return your seeds for a refund if you had planted them and none came up if in that same year.......but you can't get a refund after that. Make sense???


Most of my seeds are heirloom, just for the fact that I can save my own seeds and not have to buy more every year. I don't see much different germination with 3 or 4 year old seeds. By year 5, there is still a good showing but less. But after that it does begin to fall more dramatically. And it can depend on what type of seed.

My hubs had found some seeds as a garage sale one year that were 10 years old. Cold weather stuff like cabbage, radishes, beets, etc and I just threw them out in a spot just to see what would happen. Maybe 2 pkts each so about 20-40 seeds and about 5 of each type came up


Do Seeds Expire? Here's How To Know If They're Still Good


What Do The Dates On Seed Packets Mean?
The dates on seed packets aren't an expiration date, rather, they indicate a sell-by date or a packed-by date. "For most home garden seed packets, the seeds are tested for germination before being sold for that calendar year," says Stephanie Turner, Clemson Extension Horticulture Agent and Master Gardener Coordinator for Greenwood County. And you'll find more information on your seed packet than just a date. "You should also notice a lot number, country of origin, seller address, and indication of the number or weight of seeds in the packet," she says. Seeds with high germination rates may have been collected a few years prior. According to Turner, "Even though a packet says ‘Packed for 2025,’ the seed crop may have been harvested in 2022." .......

 

[toobfreak]

Most of my seeds are heirloom, just for the fact that I can save my own seeds and not have to buy more every year.

Well, that is really the best way to go if you can do that and plan on planting the same thing next year. If you store the seeds well, it'll help keep the meat inside the seed from drying out and losing vitality. Doing that with your own harvested seeds will often give you a longer life. Store bought seeds from Gurneys or wherever, I always insist on seeds no more than a year old.

As the seed ages, it dries out inside and even if it sprouts, it won't have the same vitality and vigor as a younger seed.

If the seed is large enough, you can usually get some idea of the freshness by looking where the seed originally connected. If the little circle has a hole in the center and the center is in a depression, that usually means the meat inside has shrunk a bit from aging.

 

[Dekster]

Started pulling out the tomatoes that are done for the year to compost. Gonna totally revamp that particular garden this winter and triple the size.