What I'm Planting/Harvesting 2015

Fall garden stuff harvested in 2015 can be found here: Fall Garden RoundUp

SPRING GARDEN (from Sunshine Community sale on March 7 unless otherwise noted)

Tomato - Bedouin: 75 days. Indeterminate. Heirloom. 4' tall. Deep, dark brick color, pear shaped and weigh 3-6 ounces. Meaty and rich, perfect for canning or fresh eating. Distinctive and well worth growing. Planted in Grow Box on March 14.  Flavor: 2/10 - I couldn't ever get them to get ripe enough to be good.  Total Harvest: 15

Tomato - Blue Berries: 75 days. Indeterminate. Cherry.  Open Pollinated. 6' tall (based on previous experience). Very dark purple color. At maturity they turn deep red where the fruit was shaded and almost black where it's been in full sun. Elongated clusters that look beautiful.  Planted in West Garden on March 14. Flavor: 8/10 when ripe (this year) - they're much better when left to vine ripen but I couldn't do that so I had to pick green and let them ripen on the counter which drops the flavor a little.  Total Harvest: 63 (the bugs really liked this plant this year)

Tomato - Carmelita: (aka Carmelo F1) 74 days.  Indeterminate.  Hybrid. 4' tall. If you like tomatoes, you must taste this one. With pedigree in the most flavorful French heirloom varieties, 8oz raspberry red fruits have excellent flavor and texture.  Planted in Grow Box on March 14. Flavor: 3/10 - the tomatoes are watery and very sweet - since I don't like eating raw tomatoes, it means I didn't really have a use for these.  Total Harvest:  30

Tomato - Iditarod Red: 70 days. Indeterminate. Container. 4' tall. One of the four 2012 releases by the Dwarf Tomato Project. A heavy producer of red, salad sized tomatoes.  Planted in Container on March 14. Flavor: 6/10 - Not assertive enough for me.  Total Harvest:  10

Tomato - Rutgers: 75 days. Determinate. Heirloom. 4-7' tall. Large crops of crack-free, bright red 6 to 8 oz. tomatoes with delicious old-time taste. A favorite for canning because of its abundance, juiciness and deep red color.  Planted in East garden on March 14 Flavor: 7/10 - Assertive tomato.  Good slicer. Total Harvest: 7

Tomato - Vorlon: Mid Season. Indeterminate. Open Pollinated. 5' tall. From Bulgaria. A stunning purple-black tomato with rich dark flesh. Smoky flavor.  Planted in West garden on March 14. This is the only tomato that I took a cutting of that survived to produce tomatoes in the fall.  Flavor: 8/10 - I really like this tomato - good flavor.   Total Harvest: 10

Tomato - Wessel's Purple Pride: 75 days. Indeterminate. Open Pollinated. ?? tall. Bruises easily per guy who developed it. Cross of Cherokee Purple and Green Sausage. Plants yield loads of elongated purple paste-type tomatoes with excellent taste, 8-10 oz.  Planted in West Garden on March 14.  Flavor: 8/10 - I really like this one - would be good for salsa.  Total Harvest: 16 (the bugs also really liked this tomato)

Tomato - German Johnson: (Caroline Homer - Garden Blogger Get Together on March 21) 78 days. Indeterminate. 8' tall.  Open Pollinated. A large, prolific plant originating in Virginia and North Carolina. Thought to be one of the four parent lines of "Radiator Charlie's Mortgage Lifter." Big, leafy, robust plants that produces huge, 1 lb., pink, beefsteak type tomatoes The flavor is excellent. A very popular farmers' market tomato. A wonderful sandwich tomato. Good disease resistance. Planted in East Garden on May 7. Flavor: IDK, Total Harvest:  0

Tomato - Costoluto Genovese: (East Austin Garden Fair April 10) 78 days. Indeterminate. Open Pollinated. 5' tall. Deep red, juicy tomato. Italian heirloom. Large, deeply ribbed fruit. Full Flavor.  Does well in hot weather. Great for sauces and canning.  Planted in East Garden on April 11. Flavor: IDK Total Harvest: 0

Tomato - BHN 444: (East Austin Garden Fair April 10) 75 days. Determinate. Hybrid. 5' tall. (VFFTSWV) Reliable, all-around quality and healthy yields. Resistant to Tomato Spotted Wilt. Excellent yields of bright red, globe-shaped fruits are firm with smooth exteriors and a good flavor. Planted in East Garden on April 11. Flavor: IDK Total Harvest: 0

Pepper - 7 Pot: 90-100 days. One of the hottest peppers in the world. Distinguishes itself from its fellow super-hot brethren with a distinct plumpness, visible ribs, and fruity flavor.  Planted in West garden on March 14.  Eaten by bugs by March 15.

Pepper - Datil Yellow: 100 days. Cultivated in St. Augustine, Florida. Unique in that it is extremely hot but also very sweet. Planted in East garden on March 14. Eaten by bugs by March 18.

Pepper - Thai Hot:  90 days. Extremely hot. 1 1/2 inch long peppers ripen to red.  Planted in East garden on March 14.  Eaten by bugs by March 21.

Pepper - Peach Habanero: (Red Barn March 22) 95-100 days. Beautiful peach-colored peppers borne in profusion on 18" plants. Our favorite habanero for container growing. VERY HOT. Planted in West garden 3/26. Flavor: 9/10 - it actually does taste fruity before the heat sets in.  Heat: Pretty hot when raw, but pretty mild in things like chili.  Total Harvest: 3

Pepper - Pot Douglah: (Hold over from last year) 90-100 days. A rare and amazingly hot pepper from the Caribbean, Trinidad Douglah (or 7 Pot Chocolate) is one of a group of the hottest peppers in the world. Scoville ratings have varied, but it consistently rates from 1 million to 1.5 million on the scale and the pepper is likely even hotter than the Ghost Pepper/Bhut Jolokia. Trinidad Douglah bears large pods that ripen to a dark, chocolate brown and are heavily wrinkled, characteristic of most of the super-hots. Flavor is intensely hot and unique from the red and yellow 7 Pot varieties. Planted in the East Garden on 3/26. Flavor: IDK Heat: IDK Total Harvest: 0

Pepper - Trinidad Scorpion: (Hold over from last year) 90-120 days. Outrageously hot, these peppers mature to a red color. It is a tall plant that should produce many 2-3 inch peppers. Planted in East garden 3/26 (note: this will be this plants third year...and it's never produced a pepper).  Flavor: IDK Heat: IDK Total Harvest: 0

Eggplant - Casper: 70 days. Compact plants produce ivory fruits that are three times as long as broad. Mild flesh. Planted in West garden on March 14. Eaten by bugs by March 15. Flavor: IDK Total Harvest: 0

Eggplant - Prosperosa: 73 days. Tuscan heirloom. Round, deep violet fruit. Beautiful jewel-toned purple. Very productive. Planted in West garden on March 14. Flavor: IDK Total Harvest: 0

Eggplant - Rosita: (Austin Organic Gardeners' Sale March 7) 80 days. Lovely 8”x4” neon, lavender-pink fruits have a mild, sweet, white flesh. The skin is tender, and not bitter. Produces excellent yields. This incredible heirloom was developed in Puerto Rico in the 1940’s by the Puerto Rico Agric. Expt. Sta., Rio Piedras. One of our favorites every season. Planted in East garden on March 14.  April 5 - poor plant, the snails ate around the outside of the stem so the plant flopped over - I wrapped the stem in aluminum foil - it seems to be working...  Died from it's bug wounds by April 20. Flavor: IDK Total Harvest: 0

Eggplant - Black Beauty: (Red Barn March 15) 74 days. Over 100 years old, this 1902 Burpee introduction was an immediate hit because the plants ripened perfect fruits dramatically earlier than other varieties.  Planted in the East garden on March 26. Flavor: IDK - the plant ended up being a white eggplant, not Black Beauty - it was pretty good though - skin was a little tough, too bad I don't know what type it was. Total Harvest: 5

Eggplant - Calliope: (Red Barn March 22) 64 days.  Calliope is a beautiful, oval, Asian-style eggplant. Suitable for baby (2" long by 1 1/2" diameter) or mature (3-4" long by 2 1/4-2 3/4" diameter) harvest. High yielding, even in the North. The plants and calyxes are spineless, unlike many varieties of this type. Green calyx. Planted in pot on March 26. Flavor: Pretty good, mild. Total Harvest: 9

Squash - Delicata: (Seeds from coworker Charlie from 2010) 70 days. This duo of All-America winners are the best space-saving varieties of nutty, sweet-tasting, vitamin-rich winter squash.  Compact Bush Delicata has oblong fruits with handsome striped rinds and rich golden flesh with a delicious sweet potato-like texture. Direct sown on May 25. Flavor: IDK Total Harvest: 0

Squash - Butternut: (Seeds from coworker Charlie from 2010) 80 days. This duo of All-America winners are the best space-saving varieties of nutty, sweet-tasting, vitamin-rich winter squash. The compact vines of productive Early Butternut Bush produce fruits with tan rinds that have moist, smooth, creamy-orange flesh. Direct sown on May 25. Flavor: good, but had to eat as summer squash instead of winter squash.  Total Harvest: 2

Squash - Early Summer Crookneck: (Burpee ancient seed) 45 days. the standard variety for many years, Summer Crookneck has been improved to have a smoother, less warted skin and more compact bush type plant.  This variety is very popular, easy to grow and fast maturing. Many gardeners feel that this variety is more flavorful than the straight-neck types. Delicious baked, fried, steamed, boiled or served raw. Squash freezes well. Direct sown on May 25. Flavor: IDK Total Harvest: 0

Squash - Pumpkin "Lumina": (Botanical Interests seeds from 2011) 90 days. Just the porch lights from other houses make Lumina glow! Lumina is wonderful for painting (very smooth skin), carving and baking - the flavor and texture are excellent! Pumpkins are *-10" diameter and weigh 10-12 lbs each. Very fun for kids to grow. Direct sown on May 25. Total Harvest: 0

Okra - "Hill Country Heirloom Red": (Southern Exposure Seed Exchange seeds from 2013) 64 days.  Heirloom from Texas.  Drought tolerant and exceptionally productive with picked small, perfect for pickled okra. The 3" green pods have distinctive red ribs, and the 5' green and red plants are very ornamental. Direct sown on May 25. Flavor: IDK - I only had 4 pods from it so I didn't eat any.  Total Harvest: 4

Bean - Pole "Louisiana Purple Pod Snap Bean": (Southern Exposure Seed Exchange seeds from 2013) 75 days. Southern Heirloom.  Entire plant is purple-green. Prolific, drought resistant vines produce 7" bright purple pods. Good flavor. Harvest young and stringless. Direct sown on May 25. Flavor: IDK Total Harvest: 0

Bean - Bush "Provider": (High Mowing seeds from 2010). 50 days. Standard green bean, always reliable even in poor weather. Comes through every year with early, heavy yields of attractive stringless beans. Concentrated sets. Direct sown May 25. Flavor: decent - I only ate them raw in the garden.  Total Harvest: a handful - the point of the beans was as a nitrogen fixer, not an eating crop.

Herb - True Thai Basil "Queenette": (Renee's Garden Seeds from 2008). This tropical-looking ornamental basil has dense 1/2" leaves that grow in clusters around distinctive purple stems. Imported directly from our best Thai seed producer, Queenette's exotic flavor combines aromatic mild sweet spices with clove/mint basil flavor. It is a critical ingredient in Southeast Asian dishes and marvelous in stirfries, chutneys and marinades. An eye-catching herb to interplant with flowers for "edible landscapting." Plant Queenette basil to enjoy growing and cooking iwht authentic Thai ingredients. Direct sown on May 25. Flavor: Thai basil, not sweet basil. Total Harvest: 0; but I did end up with a sweet basil plant so I harvested that and made 6 basil cubes from it.


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