Wow Geoff! Nice job! I'm sure you are going to have a bountiful harvest. I haven't tried book choy just yet, but it's on my list. Next year, I'm going to try my luck with okra - I understand it thrives in the AZ heat. Funny thing, tho, I've tried twice with peppers (sweet and hot varieties) and they never really flourish. I'm thinking maybe peppers should be considered a perennial here? Any advise on peppers for me?

Newyorkrita said:

Another stunner of a veggie garden. It all looks marvelous!

GinaY86441 said:Wow Geoff! Nice job! I'm sure you are going to have a bountiful harvest. I haven't tried book choy just yet, but it's on my list. Next year, I'm going to try my luck with okra - I understand it thrives in the AZ heat. Funny thing, tho, I've tried twice with peppers (sweet and hot varieties) and they never really flourish. I'm thinking maybe peppers should be considered a perennial here? Any advise on peppers for me?

Bok choy is really good. It will bolt in the heat so I am thinking it should be planted when you grow your peas.

Everyone has such lovely dedicated veggie gardens. My veggie beds (well mostly my tomato beds) are all over the place! Wherever there was room to fit in a gardenbed in a sunny location.

@GinaY86441 - I didn't have much luck with peppers for the first few years, but kept trying different ones until I found some that worked well for me (there are so many to choose from if you grow from seed)

I grow Sahuaro peppers which are an Anaheim type - really prolific and great for stuffing. Seranos - I like hot peppers, but not the killer hot ones, these are perfect for me. and Big Red - which are the only bell pepper types that have actually made large red sweet bell peppers for me.

I know peppers like hot weather so I would think you should be able to grow them well.

I tried growing broccoli for the first 4 years of veg gardening and never got a head larger than 4" - now I grow bok choy instead. this year it is very successful, last year it bolted early, so not so much.

I am really impressed that your garden looks so good in AZ! Thats got to be a tough place to raise vegetables.

@mandolls, thank you for the encouragement. And yes, those were the types I would like to grow: Anaheim, Serrano, jalapeño, pasillo, etc... All those great chili peppers. I even tried tomatillo last summer and they grew big and bushy, but the paper husks were empty. Pollination issue? But, yes, I'll try some other varieties! Chances are I'll find some transplants while in town tomorrow, but future seed sprouting would be excellent!

I had my first successful "grow from seed indoors" this past winter with my eggplants and artichokes. I used a heating pad underneath and it actually worked and they didn't damp off like all the previous attempts, so that was a confidence boost! I'm telling you, Geof, I've found a deep respect for peeps who can grow from seed, cross pollinate, and all those other miracles that come with a master gardener's knowledge and know-how!

Thanks, again, Mandolls.... I'll give it another try, after all, the heat is only here once per year!

Beautiful garden, Gina. I'm impressed by how much you've harvested.

I ended up having to put row cover over my Earthbox that had my bok choy and lettuce. Something kept nibbling at it (probably chipmunks). The critters are voracious this year.... the rabbits especially. I have lost so many plants and shrubs to those darned creatures it's not even funny (even if they are cute LOL)

@moms2goldens,

Thank you, Linda! LOL, yes, we have certainly harvested more than I ever expected, but as a new gardener, I really didn't know what to expect! That day of harvesting peas and carrots was a bear of a day!! No kidding, it was a full 11-hour day from harvest to freezer! Never, again! Next time, I'll break it into more manageable time segments. We had no idea what we were actually tackling. I spent 5 consecutive hours just shucking peas and I'm not exaggerating. It was down right brutal!

We have free range cattle here, so without a general fence, the cows can literally walk up and wipe out any vegetation. The jack rabbits and cottontails are thick and brazen... They have destroyed most everything with a fence around it and even somehow jumped into my goji Berry last week and almost took it out. I have a few green leaves on it, but it might be touch and go as it is its first year. Needless to say, it now has a wire top on it. Our only saving grace on the garden beds is the chicken wire fencing - which is at least 3 feet from the ground - maybe 4 as it sits on top of the actual raised beds.

I'm real sorry to hear about your critter invasion... They can totally frustrate me, too!!

Here's our first squash harvest last week plus some photo memories of that fateful kitchen day!!

Happy official first day of summer, everyone! I always feel like I'm a couple of steps behind... oh, maybe that's because our temps are still barely hitting 70F ? Ah well, it is what it is, I'm afraid! I do finally pretty much have everything planted, and because pretty much everything was started either in the house under lights or in packs in the GH, once the plants were put out the garden kind of seemed to spring to immediate life! (I planted zucchini yesterday that already had a baby fruit on it...) It seems that wherever we garden there are problems -- too cold, too much heat, too dry, too wet, too many critters, not enough bees, and on and on.

Gina, every year is a learning experience, no matter how long we've been at it! Your garden area looks great; I wish I could offer some advice about growing your peppers, because they are one of my favorite crops, but our growing conditions are so different that I really don't know what to tell you. My best guess would be that they might need more water; most plants seem to be able to survive even a lot of heat, as long as they have enough water.

Chelle, I was wondering where our hummingbirds have gone -- they must be at your house!

So far the only thing I am harvesting is asparagus (not quite sick of eating it yet, but getting close), and humongous "green onions' from onion sets that I planted late last summer -- they look more like leeks!

One thing for sure -- I'm running low on salsa, so I hope I have a good tomato harvest this year!!

OMG Gina, I'm absolutely drooling!

I attempted water-bath canning for the first time last year. It was a long, hot experience, but so worth it at the end! We are still enjoying canned tomatoes, salsa, and bruschetta mix as we are waiting for our new tomato crop.

Well Gina, it looks like you have jumped right in there and have been having a lot of success, especially having to contend with that kind of heat. Every year will be different as the weather varies and pests change. Looks like you have a really nice set up going there. Just to let you know, there is a seed swap, Piggy Seed Swap, on Cubits, a sister site of ATP. If you're interested in checking it out, here's the link. It's a lot of fun. It's a good way to try your hand at seed starting too.

http://cubits.org/ellasgarden/...

We finally got some rain! Only a short shower at my house but it rained three times yesterday at the farm and once today! Really helps with the weeding chores. I got the squash and peanuts weeded and then finished the sweet potatoes. Tomorrow I will weed a row of strawberries and a row of comfrey then mulch everything well.

David started mowing the grass in the aisles today but since it rained he couldn't finish, so hopefully tomorrow. He took down the fencing for the pea row in preparation for tilling it. He also picked some cucumbers and I picked a few tomatoes. The big slicers look like they're starting to turn so we should have some for market this week. In the meantime, we are eating them to try them out. BLTs for lunch again with our first Black Krim. It was huge but it had cracked. It was delicious though. Now I remember why I didn't grow them again. I hate the cracking. I cannot sell them cracked.

Matt finished digging up the garlic and David cut off the roots and spread them out for drying. They had been left out in the garden overnight and did get a raining but at least it washed off all the mud! They're under the deck now.

I am considering planting some popcorn this week. We haven't grown it for a few years and I still have time. Just a small patch.

Sandy, they're probably still fueling up for the journey north to your place.
Tonight I tried to get a shot of as many as I could, but they move in and out so fast! There are seven showing here (the dark shadow behind the feeder is another one) and outside of the frame, five on the the pea fence right next to it, and several more flying about...and this, their favorite feeder, is all but empty...again!



Has anyone tried growing long beans in containers? I have some going that way, too, but I'm betting they'll fuss about the space issue...either that, or I'll never be able to supply water fast enough.

Today I replanted parts of my garden where old seeds had failed to germinate, possibly or more likely probably aided by my failure to keep the seedbeds moist at all times. This time I mulched all the newly planted areas with a thin covering of straw after watering them well. A thunder storm was moving closer while I was mulching. and I thought about watering again to settle the mulch. My back was aching and the storm was getting pretty close, so I chose the house and my ice cream fix instead. This storm went right over us instead of around us as they usually do, and we got enough rain to make the ground look wet and to settle that straw mulch. I took a much needed nap! The sound of rain on the metal roof was wonderful music.

Gina, I really like your set up. You're doing a lot of things right. Damping off can be controlled by watering and spraying young plants with chamomile tea. Yes, really! One tea bag per quart of water. I start watering the little pots in the greenhouse as soon as I see the baby plants coming up.

Just fabulous garden pictures everyone. We are growing the little yellow summer squash for the first time, an I am wondering what to do with them besides stir fry.

Karen, saute` them in a little olive oil with onions, garlic, tomatoes, and mushrooms. Season with salt, pepper and italian herbs. Serve it in a bowl (it's juicy) or over rice.

That sounds really delicious, Mary.

Chelle, cute pics of the little hummers.

Karen, I like to saute` them in olive oil with onion and fresh garlic, then sprinkle them with dill weed, and squeeze a bit of lemon juice on them. At times I'll sprinkle some Tony Chachere's Creole seasoning on them in place of the dill weed. I usually mix a few zukes in there too. You're making me wish mine were producing already.

I hope no one somehow jumps to your post without reading the previous ones, Tom... sure sounds like you're still talking about the "cute little hummers" there

Weedwhacker said:I hope no one somehow jumps to your post without reading the previous ones, Tom... sure sounds like you're still talking about the "cute little hummers" there

No no!!!

I like mine deep fried on a stick