kinderGARDENS Week 19 : Update from Planet Kid

Kim at the Inadvertent Farmer asked us this week what we've learned! A few things to be sure...

1. A "green roof" cannot be based in a container here. It's TOO DARN HOT! This would have worked great with a short structure where the plants could have been based in the ground, but their playset is a high structure, so we attached a container running the length of it - nope! Although there are plants that are alive and a couple of mini-pumpkins growing on it, it is far from "a green roof"!

2. Peanuts in a container - not a great idea since they need room for their "branches" to drop and root in the soil. We spaced them way too close. They look fantastic though, and are completely unbothered by insects or any disease. Very healthy plants, I just don't think we will get as many peanuts as we would have had they been in a raised bed and spaced properly.

3. Kids in the garden are awesome! They have definitely been more involved this year, and are wanting to make their own decisions about their garden space, and are learning so much by doing. Loch even yelled at me one day while I was spraying something and it got breezy "hey, cut it out, you'll kill my bees!"

As for this week, not much outside stuff going on, it has rained for the last 5 days, so we have been busy doing inside things.

Today, more Blackberry Lemonade!

Working hard for their sugar fix...

Waiting for the simple syrup to cool so we can add ice... so patiently!

Happy at last!

Froze some for another day!

Me? I am completely overwhelmed this evening. The sun is shining, but the grass is long and still wet, which means the mosquitoes are horrendous out there. The grass needs to be cut, garden needs to be ripped out, insects to deal with on the plants, fall planning to be done, the stewed tomatoes for the freezer actually need to be stewed - staring at them hasn't worked! Knitting project needs to be finished, what is it about weaving in the ends that will make me just put it aside right when I'm at the finishing stage?

Beans need to be picked, and...

the kids were assigned extra homework for music lessons... to watch The Sound of Music! The VonTrapp Family! You don't have to ask me twice... I think I will rent the movie tonight and try this whole work/chore thing again tomorrow!

As always, check out The Inadvertent Farmer to see updates from other contest participants!

It's Closing Time...

... you don't have to go home, but you CAN'T. STAY. HERE!

Round 1 Eliminations were held last night, first to leave are the cucumbers covered with bugs!

They are horribly covered in squash bugs of all life stages...

This is the first bit of space created for the fall garden... what you can't see is the hundreds of squash bugs running for the hills!

I splurged and paid $8.99 for a large bottle of Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap to make my own insecticidal soap. I had been balking at the price but you only need 2 tbsp to make a quart! The level in the bottle has barely moved after making 2 quarts! Plus this stuff can be used for all sorts of things around the home.

And it WORKS!

Stopped the squash bug in his tracks! Why did I wait soooo long to do this?

Unexpected Bonuses:

1. The peppermint smell will act as a bit of a deterrent if used in the early stages of the garden before they have established their stronghold (too late for me)!

B. If you are bored, the label on the soap bottle makes for fun reading!

Excuse the obscene abbreviation, but WTF? These are my yard-long beans! Luckily I only found one like this.

Check out the critter party aftermath on the J. Gyllenhaal!

I admit defeat at this point.

Here is today's harvest. Romas are rolling in now, but were crawling with squash bug nymphs and have BER. I've been sowing beans all through the heat of summer and basically been wasting my seeds until now. They are finally starting to come in again. Yellow Wax are looking to be winners again and new for me is Contender green bush bean which has just started to trickle in but are nice looking. I gave the Dragon's Tongue another go but sadly this variety will not be reappearing in my garden. I was hoping for a different outcome in the summer vs. spring, but they look even worse. They are colored beautifully when about an inch long, but lose their luster within a day and leaving them longer doesn't help. Not suited as well for my area I guess, although I will say the ones harvested in May were better, but not as good as the other varieties.

A few good things...

love, love, love yard-long beans! I love walking through them growing on the arch in the garden, love the blooms, love the way they taste, love the way they look in my wok, the love is rivaling my Subaru Love, and that's a good thing...

Then came school shopping for the kids...

don't take a sip of that coffee because you will probably snort it out...

HA!

While wandering around T.J. Maxx I put these on and my kids were horrified!

Finnegan: "mommy, take them off before you fall down!"

Lochlann: "you don't look like you would be a very good mom in those"...

Note in the above photo how there is about 2 inches between the top of the shoe and my knee, these would be good for gals who are like 6'2 !

OK, I don't want to offend any of you who "this is your thang"- but I will go ahead anyways - I'm a Birkenstock/Teva/Flippy-Floppy Gal, and these are utterly ridiculous! So hey, if you are in the "middle-age tween crowd" (heard that term today!) puh-leeze don't wear these, you look unstable, both mentally and physically LOL!

... but I'm thinking they might be good squash bug squishing shoes! Maybe hang them like a windchime to serve as a warning to insect evildoers?

Wait til my kids are about 14, they probably won't go anywhere with me!

Thunderstorms all day for next 2-3 days, so I think the garden will be done for by this weekend and it will be time for Round 2 Eliminations... I'm thinking it will definitely involve tomatoes.

Playing Catch-Up!

I haven't blogged since Thursday, and I am having withdrawl! Things have been swallowing me up whole lately and I have had that whole "garden is a mess this time of year" doldrums! I spent 2 days cleaning and preparing for a Harvest Swap Party I had on Saturday evening. In my head I know my house is just fine for entertaining, but my personality dictates everything must be spotless, even though no one really cares, and the place will be a mess an hour after the party starts, LOL!

I did, however, make it out to the garden Saturday afternoon to harvest jalapenos finally, in hopes of getting rid of them that evening without having to deal with them! Below is what I harvested for the swap: all peppers!

Some great food showed up for the pot-luck that evening, everyone did a great job of cooking up summer harvest dishes. I made the standard Caprese Salad & Potato Salad. These are so awesome because you can make them ahead of time and no cooking required at the party!

Caprese Salad, opted for easy chopped version that evening

Potato Salad w/ Feta, Onion & Vinegarette

Kids got some bitchin' tattoos that evening!

I ended up with some tomatoes and habaneros from the swap. I am drying these cute little tomatoes, not sure what they are but they are smaller than my thumbnail and delicious! Also drying the habaneros and will mix them with some other types of peppers to make a small jar of chile spice.

Yesterday we didn't get any real work done around here, I made a batch of tomato sauce in the crock pot and froze it, managed to get the party debris in the yard cleaned up, and avoided work in general by reading a great novel!

This morning's harvest was yet more jalapenos!

I was able to get a little motivation back today and after the harvest, made 3 jars of spicy pickles and added the few cayennes I got at the swap. These will be the last of the pickles probably since I just used up all the dill that was left in the garden. Hubby, this batch should keep until you get home so you will get a taste!

Also managed to chop and freeze bell pepper strips, blanch and freeze the yard-long beans, and get to the music shop for a violin repair! And now that I have managed to blog, I feel somewhat better.

Any of you having these late-summer doldrums? My garden is a mess, bugs and wilt and something is eating my tomatoes, and it is still to hot to enjoy any chores, and too hot to plant anything for fall... and on and on... what's the cure?!

kinderGARDENS Week 18 - We're saving seed!

We all know how poorly the green roof has done this summer, it's creeping just as slow as can be so I have had to find other projects for the kids to work on in the garden.

This week: Seed Saving!

Teaching the next generation to just say "no" to genetically engineered seed one kinder "gardener" at a time!

The storms over the past couple of weeks have shown me that the time is NOW for saving seed from the UFO tomato aka J. Gyllenhaal if we are to have future generations.

History: This seed was handed to me on the sly in a Master Gardener training class by an elderly lady who could no longer garden. She had 6 seeds left in the world, they had been saved in her family since the early 1900's and she was the last. That's a lot to live up to! Even though we have no clue (obviously from the name I have given them) what they are, they are huge heirloom, a beefsteak-meaty interior, the taste has improved steadily over the season, and is hands-down the healthiest tomato plant I have ever grown, hybrids included. These laughed in the face of wilt and extreme heat and windstorms that my other tomatoes succumbed to. Even if they didn't taste good, I kind of owe it to her to save the seed!

Enter the kids: this involves goo and mold so it is the perfect project for them!

Step 1: Select the best looking, ripest tomato of the harvest (i.e. the most Jake G. looking specimen!)

Step 2: Slice in half across the equator exposing all the seed cavities

Step 3: squeeze seeds AND pulp into jar or container, adding water really isn't necessary and can slow down the fermentation process, just make sure to get plenty of the pulp/juice in there

Here's what's left after squeezing! The kids love this step for the goo factor!

Step 4: cover and put aside, wait for mold to start growing! This is a fun step for the kids, it can take several days but in our house with the A/C struggling to keep up it only took 24 hours!

oh, the science of it all!

24-72 hrs later you should have mold growing and fermentation is underway! This natural fermentation is what removes the protective seed coat to prepare the seed for germination. Think of it this way: if left to its own devices, the tomato simply drops to the ground and turns into a rotten, slimy mess - but it's nature's way of perpetuation, that's how we get all those volunteers, another way is by animals eating the seeds and in turn their digestive systems break down the seed coat and it is then "pooped out" somewhere else where the seed will grow! Believe me, this is fun gross stuff to little boys!

Step 5: Once the mold has grown and fermentation has obviously been taking place (you'll smell it LOL), skim off the mold, add water and stir up. Look for floating seeds now and skim out, they are most likely not viable. Strain the rest out, rinse well, and leave to dry on a paper towel for 1-4 weeks, you want them to be fully dry before storing.

The kids can't quite figure out why mom put a picture on the paper towel, but I'm sure you can guess! Maybe for those that want to try these next year, I can send you a homemade J. Gyllenhaal artsy seed packet - sounds like a good winter project, albeit a loony one. But that's me, crazy mom!

Step 6: Store in airtight container, envelope, baggie, etc and make sure you LABEL them!

Step 7: Revel in the satisfaction of watching budding little botanists (pun intended) take a plant from SEED TO SEED!

Kids training video!

Bonus Footage...

Check out The Inadvertent Farmer and click on the kinderGARDENS button to see other participants' updates!

just walkin' around...

Just out walkin' the garden this morning... dewpoint was 79 at 8 am!

No garden work today since it is "bread day" and I am having a big Harvest Swap party Saturday I need to get ready for, just photos!

J. Gyllenhaal Heirlooms (how about that name LOL)

Cucumber Bed with Yard Long Beans on the PVC

Japanese Climbing Cucumber

Black Swallowtail

Butterfly on 'Purple Homestead' Verbena

Zinnias in the Cucumber Bed

Unsere Biergarten: Cascade Hops, baby cones the first year!

Cosmos staging attack

I only planted these once last year.... can you say INVASIVE?!

They have almost completely obscured my Colonnade apple tree!

A sticky day in pictures...

It's time! The heirlooms are finally arriving in in groups rather than being lonely and anti-social! Heirloom tomato sauce is such a luxury come winter, I was rather afraid I wouldn't have enough to sauce thanks to the bad tomato year I have been having but it looks like we'll be okay as long as the hurricanes stay away for a few more weeks.

After squeezing out the excess juice and seeds, started cooking down the yumminess. Sauteed some shallots, garlic, red wine and bell peppers with basil & oregano. (I use whatever I have on hand, so this part changes sometimes)

Added to the sauce and started cooking down. I love the crock pot for this, I am able to leave the house and it also keeps the house cooler.

Ran the stick blender through and continued to cook down. (My $6 W@lmart stick blender is probably my most valuable kitchen tool this time of year!)

This will be used for pizza sauce so I cooked it down for 8-9 hours so it is nice and thick and tangy, I was left with 5 pints ready for canning or freezing!

Ended the day on a high note: my favorite garden dinner of all - STIR FRY! I don't know why I can't seem to cook a more sensible portion than this. The single dad next door received a large plate to share with his kids, they are always in shock to not be eating hot dogs or frozen dinners I think LOL. My kids amazed me by not only trying every vegetable, but devouring most of the dinner. I kept them extra hungry today thinking I was going to have to fight the vegetable war with them tonight. I am just slap-happy over these yard long/Chinese Long beans, they really add a lot to the dish and they grew faster than any pole bean I've ever tried, and they are the prettiest things out in the garden!

Things are looking good for another batch of sauce soon...

I hope Pizza Boy/hubby is happy, I know he was probably scared seeing all my container tomatoes die, then the others in the storm... but the UFO's were my contingency plan I guess, they are the most gorgeous and healthy looking tomatoes I have ever seen, and I tell them how much I love them every time I walk by, they are pretty much my Jake Gyllenhaals of the tomato world, hmmm, I still need to name this mystery seed!

Sharing a sale!

If anyone is interested, I just received an email from one of my seed suppliers, Sustainable Seed Co. that their 50% off sale ends in 24 hours, they have a good variety in the clearance section for $1 a packet!