Pepper Update and Tomatoes

Hello again, 

What are you up to this week?

I’m sure you have a mountain of seeds in front of you, sorting and piling and trying to figure out what to sow, how much? Can I squeeze a little bit more of this or that in here or there? 

For all of the birders you have your binoculars cocked to the sky frantically trying to figure out what that blur is flying over.

The glories of Spring!!!

Our hens are laying at full capacity and busily scrounging up any bug foolish enough to cross their path. They would like more grass to be available but that will come soon enough with the warmer weather and the rain. 

This time of year can be extremely difficult for us because we get a beautiful weekend like this one that just passed and we’re ready to get into the garden and go. But the garden may not be ready for us. 

I’m sure you’ve seen all of the infographics on social media that explain that bugs are still nesting in the leaf litter and stems until it heats up a bit more. I’ve seen some empty bumblebee nests so they have broken dormancy and the honeybees are awake and out in full force but there are many more late sleepers - like our Cecropia moths in the hydrangeas - who won’t be awake until mid-May. 

The hens don’t seem to care and are scratching through mulch and leaves like the bust little dinos they are. For me, I’m distracting myself with seed starting and possibly cold frames until the garden is ready for me. 

So how are the peppers you ask?

Up, up and away. 

I see why that one lady started her Brazilian Starfish early. Even though they were started earliest of everybody, and had the benefits of the heating mats and lights like everybody else, they are quite the slow growers. For them an early start was essential. 

For some of the other pepper plants I’m sure I can start them later next year. 

Black Hungarian Peppers - black pot started February 4, red pot started February 12

The Spanish Padrons are already starting to produce flower buds. I think I’m going to top these guys and see if I can root the tops for new plants and then that way it will force them to branch out instead of bloom. 

No one else seems to be that far along yet but they may require the same treatment to slow them down until Juneish when the garden will be warm enough to plant them out. 

That, or I may plant them in large buckets and see if I can get peppers in May. Wouldn’t that be great!

I’m also going to start my Mexican Sour Gherkins soon and hopefully this year they’ll survive. Last year I thought I hardened them off, but I don’t think I did, and they withered in a day in the sun. Poor little guys! The joys of executive dysfunction and a tumultuous mind. 

Last year I started my tomatoes April 1 and was quite pleased with how they turned out in the garden but we’re considering starting some a little earlier just to see if we can push how early we get some fresh tomatoes from the garden. I won’t do too many, maybe a couple of each variety that we have planned for the Potager. So far our selection is: Chocolate Pear cherry, Indigo Rose cherry, Velvet Red cherry, Paul Robeson beefsteak and Pruden’s Purple beefsteak. I also have some Yagodka that are a very early variety that I may also plant in buckets and then replace with something else when they’re all finished mid summer. Maybe the Black Beauty Eggplant I’m going to start sometime this week or next.

Why all the cherry and not so many beefsteak?

We find cherry toms to be the most versatile. We ate them fresh, canned them as salsa and sauce and then made all sorts of fun things like jam and balsamic, caramelized onion conserve with them. They ripen quickly for immediate enjoyment and produce over a long period instead of all at once, so I have time to can them over months, not all in one week, or even one day. My body and brain just couldn’t handle that. 

In the potager plan I’ve tried to separate everybody so that there is a buffer between them and another variety. This way, with the willy nilly wild pollination I should still be able to save seeds because all of the varieties I purchased are open pollinated. 

I have seen some crocus popping out of the ground so I’m assuming that in the next week or so they will be blooming. 

This means that a whole new wave of seeds can be planted directly into the garden. 

The game is afoot my friends. 

Meet you in the garden!