I am now officially wise. I received a Garden Sages Badge this morning. Mostly I have been answering questions that have to do with veggie gardening.

And I am so pleased with myself that I also bought myself a new Hummingbird Badge.

Congratulations!


On another note...my upside down white peppers are still mostly upside down and sideways, but they're turning red! I never get red peppers! I'm so psyched!

chelle, you and Arlene have been wise before me since you both already had that badge. But I wanted it so I am very happy.

I love those peppers!

Still eating home grown cantaloupes.


While others wait on the vine to get ripe.


A nice red pepper. And pepper and beans!

Congratulations on your Garden Sage badge! I know you really wanted that one. Oh, and on the Hummingbird one too!

Today was the first day I have worked in the garden (aka grassy meadow now) for about two weeks and I really was planning on waiting one more week but when we went to Lowe's they had broccoli, caulif., brussels sprout and cabbage plants and since barely any of the ones I planted earlier survived, I bought some! When I was telling my son about the cut worms getting the first ones and how I was going to prevent it, he told me he was pretty sure it was the guineas eating them! as bad as the chickens used to be! I did see guinea dust bath indentations but I didn't realize they were eating the plants. Plus as I was planting today, two sets of małes were fighting and scrambling all through my newly planted stuff!

So, I got it all planted, watered, mulched AND covered!!!!! I finally completely finished something for a change! Oh, and put soaker hoses down.

And it was so hot and humid today. Because I wasn't planning on working in the garden I wasn't prepared and didn't bring my Camel Back or lunch. So we had to go up to Wendy's but I welcomed the AC! And since we ate late (3:30), I don't have to make any dinner!

Rita, I so would love to have a melon Peppers are pretty,

And Chelle, on your peppers!!!!!

Well, you and chelle both had the Garden Sages Badge long before I did but I did really want it.

Arlene, those darn Ginneas of your seem to be more trouble than they are worth. Destroying your plants! no way, not good. In my garden that means they would end up in the freezer.

You are lucky to find plants. Around here the nurseries do not have veggie plants in the Fall even though it is perfect for planting them.

And you got so much done! Plus Wendy's sounds good to me.

I still can't figure out what happened to all your melons. I thought you grew at least some inside in the greenhouse. But then you said the pickleworms got them. Even in the greenhouse? So sorry you don't have any to eat! They taste so good.

Peppers here were average but at least I am getting some. More than I can say for last year.

Oh, I forgot to tell you, we lost a guinea last night. Looks like he was guarding another brooding hen in the field and something got him. Ex said the hen is sitting on quite a few eggs. That means more keats that probably won't survive, like only one of the ten earlier ones survived.

Well, having hoops up with floating row cover will keep them out so it should be okay. I don't know why this batch is eating my plants, usually they just eat the bugs on the plants!

I did get a few melon but eventually the pickle worms did get to the ones in the greenhouse as well. And because of all the rain, lots of the melons just rotted or were tasteless.

We picked peppers to give the auto mechanic fixing my car (drive bełt) but they left early today because of the holiday so we never got them to him! Ugh, now I have to figure out what to do with a grocery bag full of peppers, and even more still in the garden to pick!

Oh Oh. Looks like neighbors will be getting peppers.

I think once the guineas start eating the plants they just teach all the others to go the same. Shame you have to cover to keep them out. Really sorry about your melons.

I suppose you don't have a broody hen to put the eggs under? But why you want more plant destroyers is something I don't understand. I suppose they are there to eat the bugs.

Oh, I would cover the plants anyway to keep all the leaves from being eaten by cabbage worms or whatever eats them.

Well, since the guineas are eating stuff they're not supposed to, it is possible Matt could decide to not get any more. Chances are few, if any keats will survive and I do think that is one reason they aren't trying to get the eggs under a brooding hen. Not sure there are any anyway because there's no roosters so they usually take all the eggs. I think Ex would be happy if the guineas were gone. He does like his chickens though ( his because he is the one who takes care of them).

I do have one neighbor who will take peppers and she has a lot of family in the area so maybe she will take them all!

Well, I am for the chickens. I love chickens. But I bet if it were me I would be routing for the foxes to catch the guineas.

Yes, give the neighbor all the peppers and let her take care of passing them around.

I am doing my first pictures in image sets or what they are now calling multi plant here at ATP. I did two landscapes and then started do veggie groupings. I am likeing doing the veggie groupings the best.

this is my first real year for vegies. I had three raised beds put in last year. I have beans coming out my ears, tomato plants are loaded but pretty green. So if they are just starting to turn a little orange will they ripen in the house if I pick them? Squash and zuchinni were a bust. Should have planted in the ground not in the beds. They do much better. Beds are too moist. Oh, and loads of peas and lettuce. Cauliflower and broccoli. Peppars are there but so weird shaped. Not round and plump like the pictures. Not sure if they need more or less moisture. Damien says they need more heat and I should have them in a enclosed space. So, now to plan for next year what and where to plant. And most certainly to cycle plant as the lettuce all bolted and the big stuff grew and then was all gone. I am also making space in my flower beds for vegies. I got my strawberry bed in. Pretty tiny but it is still producing whopping berries. They were crammed in pots all summer. I dug up some lilies and such to make a small bed for them. I would plant raspberries if I could keep them from invading the rest of my garden. Maybe a steel 55 gallon drum would work. lol

Isn't Anchorage the land of the midnight sun?

Not sure what you mean by in ground vs the beds. Aren't your garden bed in ground?

Anyway, you will learn what works well for you and what doesn't, just keep experimenting. I think peppers and squash are heat lovers. And there are longish shaped peppers, not all peppers are bell shape.

From your description seems your cool season crops are doing fabulously. Not surprising. You can probably grow anything in the cabbage family really well.

I would leave those tomatoes on the plant till they get more color and then bring them in. Yes, if they start to color up they will finish ripening inside once picked.

Great on the tomatoes. Even if they are not the lovely round shaped ones the taste should be good.
My beds are 18" tall and 4x8 around. I filled them to the top 10" with regular garden soil then the last 10" with vermiculite, peat and compost all mixed well. Great stuff to work in. Yes, we have the midnight sun -- if you live at Point Barrow; even somewhat if you live in Fairbanks in the interior, and somewhat less here in Anchorage. But 19-20 hours of light is still a lot. Just for a short period of time. We run 58-65 on average. This summer started lousy with rain every day and overcast; just long enough to rot many things. Then two months of bliss; clear skies, temps in 70-80"s. We have been back to the rain and drizzle for the last two weeks. No sign of let up.

I did built covering for the raised beds; like a conestoga wagon about 30" at the tip of the arch. It was a real pain as I couldn't reach the middle very well (from the long end. Have to rethink that design. Will also plant seeds directly next year for a lot of stuff.

If those beds you built don't drain that well then just dig again and mix that top ten inches of amendments in with the bottom ten of common soil. But it is a raised bed, I would think it would drain well. Squash do love heat so maybe you could warm up the soil in the spring with some black plastic? Just brainstorming here.

Your covered hoop tunnels do sound like a great idea. I know they work well for extending the growing season.

You need a greenhouse! I bet with a greenhouse you could grow any veggie. All that sunlight and 20 hour days must make plant explode with growth.

Look, look. First baby squash formed on my Safron yellow summer squash.

for your yellow squash, Rita.

Mary Stella, it sounds like you grew quite the variety. Maybe you should have done 4x4 beds so you could reach from the ends when you covered? But I really like the idea of covering them!

You can bring your tomatoes in greenish and they will ripen, it's just they are much better if they are completely vine ripened. This year we were forced to pick ours on the green side because of all the rain and pests.

We stopped at a roadside stand on the way to the peach orchard today and got some tomatoes from TN. When we got home we made BLTs. So YUMMY!!! The tomatoes were Celebrity. I have not grown them before but I think it may be a good variety to grow for market. They were on the acidic side so of course I really liked them.

Then I made a bit of progress on my home "pot ghetto." LOL! I found plants I had forgotten I had! Tomorrow a bit more and take some cuttings of my coleus.

My "old" squash plants are either gone as in pulled out because the SVB got them or just ratty looking due to the powdery mildew. I look at them each day and think I should just pull and trash all those old plants as I have a next set of nicer looking replacements. Replacements include Safron, Caserta and Green Tiger.

Arlene, at least you have yummy tomatoes to eat even if you did have to resort to buying them.

My second planting of squash has some squash bugs so I hope I will be able to harvest the baby squash that is already forming! I need to do the Murphy's Oil Soap spray!!!

Yeah, they were yummy, even if I did have to pay for them!

you gotta do what you gotta do!