Blah Melons

6 August, 2012 Reply
Row of delicious looking cantaloupes

I was dreaming of delicious sweet tasting melons. They smell great, but taste blah! Help!

Drat! Here I was all set for some super sweet melons and they taste totally blah. I’ve been searching the internet trying to find out what makes a blah melon (these are the small melons like cantaloupe, sharlyn, etc). However, I’ve not gotten a definitive answer.

Some people say it’s the water, too much gives a dilute flavor. If that is truly the case that is my problem, because I’ve got them planted with plants that need regular watering. However, another post says its the soil, another that you need the right fertilizer, etc.

I think the answer for me is to contact my local agricultural extension. I know I mentioned this in my first blogs, but it bears repeating regularly. Agricultural extension agents have knowledge that is perfect for your area. Asking on a forum can be tricky. The answers may come from entirely different climates or even different countries! Someone’s success can be a fluke, without any science behind it. There are all kinds of reasons why what worked for one person might not work for you. Agricultural agents work with farmers right there in your area. They know the soil, weather, and any other mitigating circumstances that could be affecting your crops.

Even though they work with large scale farms they will take the time to make sure a small home grower has the right info. At some extension agencies they have a horticultural agent that will work more with homeowner’s, but someone in the agency will certainly have the answer you need. As it stands, I may have overwatered my melons. They sure smell heavenly, and I’ll eat them even if they are bland, because I grew them, but maybe next year I’ll have to work with the nature spirits to plant them with something that doesn’t need so much water and I’ll have sweet treats.

Any ideas for me and others to consider when growing melons?

Mid-Summer Bounty

31 July, 2012 Reply
Harvest from my Garden on July 31st

After feeling very discouraged today’s harvest was way past amazing.

After last week’s disaster with my tomato plants, I was pretty discouraged with the harvest I was expecting from my garden, yet again. Seems since we’ve moved into this house I can’t do anything right to keep a garden going from spring to fall.

Today my garden decided to let me know it’s doing well and producing just fine. I walked out the door to find three melons had dropped from the vine overnight and not one critter had taken a bite out of them. I was shocked. I was going to do some work in another area, but realized I needed to harvest, yet again. There were several cucumbers, a few beans (they’ll get going again once it cools a little bit). Then I started working on the herbs. I have five kinds of basil in my garden; sweet, lemon, licorice, holy and an unknown variety; and I started harvesting each variety. The pile began to grow and grow as I went from one plant to the next. Then I realized that my sage was humongous! I harvested some of that. I cut back some of the old stems of the oregano I transplanted and there were a bunch of new shoots on the top, which I harvested. Then on to the sisho. I harvested just a few branches of that because I didn’t know if it would hold well in water. It’s doing fine.

Last, but not least I turned to my dismal looking tomato plants and found that they were so grateful to be unburied that, although they look terrible, they had plenty of goodies for me to pick.

Bounty everywhere. Here's a closer look.

Here’s a closer look at some of today’s harvest.

From feeling like I had nothing to harvest in my garden, to my kitchen overflowing with goodies. What a pick-me-up if I ever had one. For lunch today I fixed some of our tomatoes and a few of a particular kind of bean that I was doing a test on, plus some zuch (purchased), in a coconut milk/tahini sauce. As seasoning I put in some of every single herb I harvested today and it was fantastic. I topped it off with a handful of fresh yellow cherry tomatoes and it was a meal fit for a king!

From bummed to blissful in one morning’s work.

Have you ever had any surprises in your garden? Has a plant produced when you thought it wouldn’t or maybe you planted something for the first time and it was spectacular? Share your stories and your pics. I’d love to see them.

The Mad Frost Dance!

21 October, 2011 Reply

First killing frost is on its way.

Yesterday I had to do the mad frost dance. They were predicting that we might get our first frost and I hadn’t finished harvesting the basil. So, out I run, cut down the lemon basil, bring it in, pick the leaves and put them on the dehydrator sheet, and start them dehydrating. Mad dash number two is for licorice basil. Now the dehydrator is full.

Then I go out and cut down most of the sweet basil and bring it in to put in a bowl of water. Sweet basil will hold in water for several days without wilting, however lemon basil just droops as soon it’s cut.

Back outside. Executive decision time. I don’t know how well licorice basil will hold in the water. So, do I cut it and chance it wilting and being a total mess or, leave it outside and chance it being ruined by the frost. I opt for the first, as if it wilts it is still edible, just hard to harvest and put on the trays to complete the dehydration process. If it did frost it would be a black, slimy, inedible mess.

Now I have two huge bowls filled with sweet and licorice basil. I can breathe a sigh of relief. We’ll have enough basil to last us through another winter and spring, until I can start the cycle all over again.

This morning I stored the lemon basil. It was a good harvest this year. We won’t have to scrimp. I’ll be able to add lemon basil to all the sauces and dressing I want. It’s so satisfying. Having grown my own food and put a little of it away to remind me through the bleak, cold months, what next years garden is going to bring.

Oh, by the way. It didn’t frost, but it did get down to 36˙, so it’s only a matter of a few more days for us to see the first killing frost.

Focus Plant: Basil

8 July, 2011 Reply

Basil (Ocimum basilicum) is many people’s favorite herb. Almost every Italian dish we prepare has basil as the base of its herbs. Of course basil is good for many other dishes, as well.

Sweet basil is extremely easy to grow from seed, and the seeds stay viable for a long time. I found out the hard way this spring when I took a couple of old packs sprinkled them in a flat and ended up with seven flats of  basil to show for it. In some instances it will even self sow, as I have several plants to show for it this year. You can start the seeds inside in the early spring to get a head start. Just use a soilless mixture (I recommend coconut coir), put them in a bright sunny window, and keep them moist, not wet. In 7-10 days you’ll see your plants begin to emerge.

Plant basil outside after all danger of frost is past as it is not tolerant of frost even a little bit, even temperatures near freezing can do it in. Once planted basil is an easy care plant. Just water regularly and fertilize as you would any other annual. It is recommended to use organic fertilizers, since you are going to eat it. I’ve never had a pest problem with basil, and I’ve lived in several different states, and climates.

You can start to harvest basil at almost any stage, but definitely start harvesting when it gets to its sixth set of leaves. That is when it will start to flower. You want to harvest before it flowers if possible, as the taste is better. I never manage to make it all the time, but keep up with it if possible.

You will not need a lot of basil plants even 3 or 4 can provide you with all the fresh and dried basil you’ll need for the coming year. I had sixteen plants last year and have enough basil for several years!

Harvesting involves cutting the leaves and either using them fresh or preserving them for later use. Fresh cut basil should be put in a container with water and set on your counter. DO NOT put it in the refrigerator or you’ll come back to find a glass full of black slimy leaves. On the counter it can last as much as two weeks. I’ve even had it root in the glass and stay fresh even longer, but don’t count on that.

To preserve basil you can dry or freeze it. If you dry it, try to use a dehydrator with temperature control. Set the temperature at 90°F, place the leaves on the racks spread out in a single layer and allow them to dehydrate overnight. Doing it at a low temperature preserves some essential oils that are lost when dried at a high temperature. Your basil will taste just like fresh!

If you want to freeze it you will need to put it in a carrier oil to keep it from turning to slime when thawed. You can use any oil, but olive is typically used. Place basil in a food processor and chop it into fairly large pieces. Drizzle just enough oil on them while they are being chopped to coat the leaves. Put spoonfuls into ice cube trays and put in the freezer. Once frozen you can pop them out and store them in a bag. One cube will be enough to flavor a soup, salad dressing, or any main dish.

Next blog will be about the different varieties of basil that are available and how to use them.

Canning & Cold Storage

24 November, 2010

Although it is a little past time to be putting up food for the winter, I’ll finish with preserving food. Canning is probably the least desirable way to preserve your harvest. It requires a lot of special equipment and if you don’t do it right you can even get food poisoning. Nutrient-wise it usually has less nutritional value than either drying or freezing. For many this is still their preferred method.

First thing is, you have to have special jars and lids. You need to prepare the food in a certain manner and seal the jars so no air is inside to cause spoilage. For most foods I would choose one of the other two methods already discussed, but in the case of jams, jellies, syrup,  and pickles or relishes, this is the only way to go. With sugary foods you can often just seal them with wax, rather than having to do a whole hot water bath.

Last is cold storage. Most people cannot do this, because they don’t have a proper space. Some people have garages or out buildings that will maintain a safe temperature. If so, learning how to layer and store root crops and fall fruits such as apples and pears would really be worth the effort. Even green tomatoes can be held in cold storage for a long period and then brought in to ripen. The National Gardening Association has some basics about cold storage.

Freezing Your Harvest

10 November, 2010

Freezing is a good choice for preserving your harvest. It is second in preserving nutrients, to low temperature dehydrating. There are some drawbacks. First you need a freezer big enough to store your goods. Second, many foods need to be flash blanched, which destroys some of the nutrients and all of the enzymes. Also, the consistency of defrosted foods can differ substantially from the original.  Although frozen foods never go bad, after a while they get freezer burn and become less edible or tasty. The biggest factor is that electricity can be lost and you can lose your harvest with just one outage.

Some foods lose all desirability once frozen, such as lettuce. Others, such as berries, freeze very well and taste fresh when thawed, even if not as firm. Freshly thawed raspberries, over ice cream or breakfast cereal in the middle of the winter, are quite a treat.

Limit your frozen foods to those that you like after they have thawed. Also, check to make sure whether whatever you plan to freeze needs to be blanched before storing. Here’s a general site by the USDA on freezing foods. There are many other sites online that have charts and information on freezing foods.