Everything you need to know to grow melons, in a pot or the garden bed

Burpee "Bush Sugar Baby" watermelon

Sunday, May 25, 2025

Watermelons and cantaloupes are tropical fruits.  Watermelons likely originated in the southern African Kalahari Desert.  Watermelons were being cultivated in Egypt by 2000 BCE and wild seeds were found at an archeological site in Libya that were 5000 years old.  Egyptian depictions of melons(cantaloupes) date to 3000 years ago.  Wild melons are found in Africa, Asia, and Australia.  Watermelons came to the New World by Spanish and Portugese sailors at an early date.  They were used abundantly by Native Americans by the time colonists arrived.   

Watermelons, muskmelons and cantaloupes prefer the same growing conditions, the warmth and sun of summer.  They were a rarity in England, but grow well in the sunnier parts of Europe and flourished in the New World.

Both watermelons and cantaloupes prefer days in the 80's and 90's with lows in the 60's and 70's, full sun, a soil pH of 6-6.8, and fertile, well drained soil.  Melons are like Goldilocks, they don't like the soil too wet or too dry.  Too wet and they can rot or not be flavorful, too dry and their growth will be stunted. 

For cantaloupes, you can start seed indoors 6-8 weeks before the last frost, buy transplants or start directly in the garden.  For planting directly in the garden, plant seeds in late spring/early summer when soil temperature has reached 65 degrees F on hills, 4-5' apart.   

For watermelons, you can sow indoors 3-4 weeks before the last frost, sow seeds directly in the garden when all danger of frost has passed or buy transplants.  Watermelons like a light soil so if you have heavy clay, amend soil with organic material to loosen and make hills 4-6" high.  Harvest after first tendril nearest the fruit turns brown and the underside of the melon turns from light green to a butter yellow.  Some can tell by thumping on the melon if it is ripe.  A hollow sound means it is ready to pick and eat!  Watermelon seed is viable for 6 years.  

Melons will cross with one another so if you want to keep pure seed, either plant only one variety or separate varieties by a half mile.

I have grown compact watermelons that can even be grown in a pot!  It is called "Bush Sugar Baby".  Being a bush type, it will stay compact and not have a vine that runs long.  It gets up to 2' tall and 2-3' wide and is ready to harvest in 80 days.  Each plant bears 2, 12 pound melons.  In my garden, a fun little melon called Tigger grows very well.  

Melons love the hot weather so I wait until it is summer like before starting seed or transplanting.  Melons prefer soil temperatures of 70-95F.  If you want to sow directly in the garden, now would be a good time in our area. 

Everything you need to know to grow cucumbers, in pots or the garden bed

Cucumber vines on trellis in the August garden

Saturday, May 24, 2025

Cucumbers are a tropical plant and love heat.  They can be started indoors 4 weeks prior to the last frost (mid March in our Zone 6) and transplanted outside after all danger of frost has passed for the quickest harvest.  They can also be directly sown into the garden or a pot in the summer.  You can purchase transplants at nurseries or big box stores.  You can plant as late as July which will give you fruits from August to frost.

Cucumbers have been around for thousands of years and originate from India.  The cucumber arrived in Europe at least 2000 years ago.  The Romans loved them.  Christopher Columbus brought the cucumber with him to Haiti in the 1400‘s and seeds were likely aboard the first ships in Virginia in the 1600’s.

Cucumbers are a good source of potassium, antioxidants like beta carotene, lutein, vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin K.  It also has a diuretic properties.  Cucumbers have a sweet, refreshing taste.  They are popular in salads, smoothies, and juices.

Cucumbers should be planted in full sun with rich soil and consistent moisture.  Cucumbers can be grown in pots or in the garden bed.   You can let them run or train them to grow on a trellis.  If growing in soil, plant 4 seeds in hills 3-4‘ apart and thin to the strongest two.  I plant mine around a trellis to use the vertical space.  Unless you get a "bush" variety, the plant will outgrow its trellis; just pinch off the top when it gets to the height you want. 

In my garden, cucumbers have never been bothered with pests or disease.  They are a seemingly carefree vegetable that produces abundantly. 

If growing green varieties, harvest before the fruits turn yellow.  Early fruits have less seeds and have no bitterness.  Frequent harvesting also encourages the vine to grow more fruits.  Follow the seed packet instructions for harvesting of other colors of cucumbers.

If growing in pots, look for patio, dwarf, bush, or compact in the description.  Some small varieties include Lemon, Suyo, Salad Bush, Fanfare, Sweet Success, Bush Champion.  One vine of Salad Bush was all we needed to have enough cucumbers to make pickles for the year for my husband and for salads for me.  I also love adding cukes to my smoothies and snacking on them right off the vine.  
Grow your own smoothie and juice garden
Decorative container gardening for edibles
Make your own pickles without a store bought seasoning mix

I have started seeds indoors and outdoors.  If started outdoors, starting in May after the soil has had a chance to warm up will give quick germination and growth.  If you start too early, the seed won't sprout and will rot.  I started mine outdoors at the beginning of May and one variety is up.  The other has not sprouted yet so I may need to re-sow.  I'll give it another week.

Days to harvest after sprouting varies from 50-70 days, depending on variety, amount of sun the plant gets and how warm it is.  Typically, the smaller fruits are quicker to develop.  Cucumbers grow and produce fast in hot, humid weather.  

2 years ago, I planted my seeds directly into a garden pot in early June.  I grew one green Bush Champion in a large pot.  The one plant gave me enough to eat fresh, make pickles that my husband loves and pickle relish for me.  Last summer, I grew Bush Champion in the ground.  It was enough for my husband and I but my mom loves cucumbers so I planted an extra cucumber plant for her this year.

Fertilize regularly and keep evenly moist.  Do not let soil completely dry out.  This will result in bitter or hollow fruits.  Each plant produces both male and female flowers.  The first flowers will likely be males; they are the ones that have a long thin stalk with the flower on the end.  Don’t be surprised or worried when the first flowers fall off without fruiting.  When the female flowers appear, you will get baby fruits.

Summer garden tips

There are a wide variety of cucumbers out there from tiny to humongous, from green to white to yellow to red, from those grown to eat fresh to those that can be stored on the counter for months, from those that are smaller bush types to those whose vines can ramble over 20 feet.  Lately, I have been planting the green bush varieties as a single plant gives me all we need to eat and preserve.  I have enjoyed growing yellow and white varieties as they are more forgiving in our hot summers.  Maybe next this winter when I have more time, I'll look for a bush variety in a fun color to try next year.

Don't forget to save seeds from your best producer for next year's garden!

Seed saving-fun, easy and a cost saver

Everything you need to know to grow eggplant, in a pot or garden bed

Black Beauty eggplant in container with petunias

Friday, May 23, 2025

Eggplant is easy to grow.  It is happy in a pot or the ground.  Eggplants are tropical plants and require a long growing season to fruit.  Large eggplant varieties are stunning plants in pots with their upright habit and large leaves.  I like to pair them with petunias on the patio and deck. 

Eggplant is a staple in Greek, Italian, Middle Eastern and many Asian cuisines.  It is used as a substitute for meat in many dishes.  This fruiting vegetable originated in India and has been cultivated there for thousands of years.  It had made its way to the Mediterranean region by the Middle Ages.  

Eggplant contains fiber, antioxidants that have potential health effects against cancer, C, K, folate vitamins, and copper, iron, magnesium and potassium. 

 Ideally, eggplant should be started indoors 6-8 weeks prior to the last frost date (for Zone 7, this is end of February/first of March) to get the earliest harvest.  They are heat loving veggies that need some time to start producing fruit.  If you don't get them started early or just want the convenience, there are many varieties available at nurseries and big box stores.

Transplant outdoors after all danger of frost has passed, 18-24" apart  or in a large pot in full sun.  Fertilize when transplanting with a balanced organic/all natural fertilizer.  Fertilize again with the first flowers appear to support the growth of fruits, then monthly if planted in the garden bed.  For those planted in pots, I add solid fertilizer monthly and give a liquid fertilizer when I water every 2 weeks.  The plants like moisture so don't be stingy with water.

Eggplants, like peppers and tomatoes, are perennials.  You can bring them indoors at the end of the season and with direct sun, continue producing.  If they survive the winter, they will produce sooner and have bigger yields next summer.  I have had mixed luck overwintering mine in our unheated garage or basement with grow lights.  The only one that has done well is a white variety.

Eggplants grow well in pots.  This is my preferred way to grow eggplants.  Look for dwarfs or patio types like Casper, Listada de Gandia, White Egg or Fairytale, or plant in a larger container.  I grow the standard size plants in large containers and always pair with petunias.  Flowers attract pollinators, increasing your yields.  

If you have grown eggplant in the past and experienced a tough outer skin, slight bitterness of taste and many seeds, you need to pick the fruits sooner.  As the fruits ripen on the vine, they will get a thicker skin, more and larger seeds.   You can also look for varieties that are better adapted to hot and humid climates.  

We have found any white fruiting eggplant work great in our hot and humid summers.  They don't get bitter and their skins don't get tough.  Rosa Bianca, Rotanda Bianca, AO Daimura, and Amadeo have also stayed sweet with thin skins.  Turkish Orange is one that I have grown in the past that has a smokey flavor and smaller orange fruits. It's fun to try new varieties while keeping proven performers.

White eggplant ripening

I use Espoma vegetable fertilizer on all my vegetables, fruits and potted plants.  Before I moved, I could also get Re-Vita fertilizer which is also a good organic fertilizer.  You can make your own all natural fertilizer pretty economically.  Make your own all natural, complete fertilizer

I got started much later this year than typical because we had a long, cool spring again this year with my eggplant seedlings.  They are just now putting on their second set of leaves.  It is best to wait until they have at least two sets of leaves before transplanting.  Eggplants are heat lovers so wait until it is at least up in the 70's before transplanting outdoors.  

When fruits come on, be sure to harvest regularly.  There are 2 good reasons.  One-the more you pick, the more the plant produces.  Two-the fruits are sweeter and skins thinner on younger fruits.

The only pest I've found with eggplants are flea beetles.  They seem to just love eggplant leaves.  I tried to let the pest "come in balance" and didn't treat with anything, but afte 5 years with no slowing in sight I started using insecticidal soap and DE to knock them back last year when they were eating most of the leaves.  Plants need their leaves to produce food for the plant and its fruits!  You might also be able to use nasturtium as a decoy plant to attract the flea beetles away from the eggplants.  This has not worked for me to date.

Eggplant can be baked, steamed or grilled.  My favorites are brushing on olive oil and salt and grilling until tender, stuffing and baking, using as lasagna noodles, or slicing and topping with parmesan cheese and backing until the cheese is crisp.  I do the same with zucchini.  Keep the grill temp below 350 or substitute grape seed oil that has a higher smoke point.

I have tried blanching eggplant and freezing them.  They just don't taste the same.  Last year, I grilled them and then made them into dip called baba ghanoush.  After frozen, the dip still tasted great.  I'll do the same with any extras I have this year.  

We love both eggplant and zucchini grilled.  Here are the recipes I use for eggplant and zucchini  What to do with all that zucchini?!  

Everything you need to know to grow peppers, in a pot or garden

Peppers are for every taste and garden

Tuesday, May 13, 2025

No matter your taste buds, your style of cooking or the type of food you love, there is a pepper for you!  Besides that, peppers are pest free, come in beautiful colors, are easy to grow, and look great on the patio.

Peppers originated in South America.  Their use goes back to at least 7500 BCE and were domesticated at least 8000 years ago.  

Peppers have many great nutritional benefits.  They contain high amounts of vitamins C, A (carotene), K, potassium, manganese, B6 as well as a good source of fiber.  Its antioxidants help the body combat free radicals.  

There are hot peppers, there are sweet peppers, there are smokey peppers.  There are peppers of a multitude of colors-white, yellow, orange, red, purple, brown, black, green.  They come in all shapes from the size of a blueberry to 12”, straight, crooked, puckered.

The hotter the pepper, the more capsaicin it contains.  A tablespoon of ground chili pepper would contain between 0.8 to 480 mg of capsaicin.  In Ayurvedic medicine, capsaicin is used for digestive and circulatory health support.

Pepper’s heat is measured in Scoville heat units.  Some of the hottest peppers measured was a Trinidad Scorpion Butch T at 1,463,700 and a Naga Viper, at 1,382,118 SHU’s.  Now that is smokin’ hot!

Quick reference Scoville values:

*0 Sweet peppers like the classic bell and Italian sweet peppers.  

*100-900 Mild peppers such as pimento, banana and pepperoncini peppers

*1,000-2,500 Anaheim, Poblano, Peppadew peppers

*3,500-8,000 Jalapeño, Anaheim peppers

*10,000-23,000 Serrano, Peter peppers

*30,000-50,000 Tabasco, Cayenne peppers

*100,000-350,000 Habanero/Scotch bonnet peppers

One thing to keep in mind, peppers are natural plants and their heat can vary widely based on growing conditions and their pepper neighbor in the garden.  If you place a hot pepper and a sweet pepper next to each other, the sweet pepper can become a spicy pepper through cross pollination.

Once you get in the range of cayenne peppers, you should use gloves when handling.  Washing your hands with water after handling the pepper does not wash away the heat!  Transferring some of the pepper’s heat to the eyes can be extremely painful!  The best way to cool the heat is to use whole milk.  

The center of a pepper’s heat is in its seeds and ribs.  If you want a milder dish, clean the seeds and ribs from the pepper before using.

We typically grow our hot peppers in pots as they seem to do best in a container.  I try to grow enough peppers to last us all winter for chili, salsa, and pepper seasonings.  The hot peppers like Jalapeños and Cayenne are prolific in pots.  One plant of the hot, smaller varieties is all we need.  We have found that the smaller sweet pepper plants like banana peppers and Nikita do equally well in pots.  The large sweet peppers like California bell and Pimento seemed to do better in the garden bed.

For planting in the pots, just use a good organic potting soil purchased from our local garden center and place one plant per pot along with a petunia or nasturtium for additional color and to attract pollinators.  To help maintain moisture, I mulch around the peppers after planted in the pot and use a large catch pan under each pot.  I water them once/week in the summer.  Converting your favorite pot to a self watering container can also cut down how often watering is required.  Decorative container gardening for edibles

If you want to give your pepper plants an extra boost, they favor phosphorous (bulb food or bone meal works well), sulfur (a book of matches in the hole does the trick), calcium to prevent blossom end rot (a half dozen crushed egg shells works well), and magnesium (which is contained in epson salts, a diluted spray when the flowers appear).  Some say if the leaves pucker, this is a sign that phosphorous is needed.  Tomato fertilizer is also good for peppers as both are fruiting plants.

You should put out pepper plants after it is nice and warm.  Peppers are in the nightshade family with tomatoes and eggplant.  They should be planted outside when night time temps are above 55 and daytime temps in the 70’s consistently.  If you buy pepper plants with peppers already on them, remove them before planting so the plant can focus its energy on developing a strong root system. 

If you are going to grow your peppers from seeds, start them indoors 6-8 weeks before you will transplant outside.  You can get unusual varieties not at your local nursery in seed catalogues.  Baker Creek Heirloom Seed company has some very unique varieties from around the world.  Although the spectrum available today in stores is quite nice.  You can also order plants from most seed catalogues.

Surprisingly, peppers don’t like extremely hot weather.  They get sunburned when the temps get into the 90’s consistently.  Their sunburn looks like dark spots on the exposed fruits.  If you can, move them into the shade when temps are extreme.  They won’t croak, but they are stressed during periods of high heat.  

Almost all veggies love fertile soil and consistent watering.  Peppers are no exception.   Summer garden tips Some swear that stressing the plant will increase the heat of the pepper.  Now, a recent Guinness winner thinks the secret to getting the world’s hottest pepper was run off from a worm farm.

Peppers will get flowers on them that, if pollinated, will grow into a pepper.  If you look into the center of a flower, you can see the emerging baby pepper.

Pepper flower with baby pepper forming

Anything that produces a seed or fruit needs a visit from a friendly pollinator, like the honey bee, mason bee, bumble bee, predatory wasps, hover flies, butterflies, moths, beetles, or many other insects.  It is important to not use insecticides as they kill the pollinators along with the bad bugs or to use very sparingly and not on the flowers themselves.  I have not seen any pest issue with peppers in my garden that would need a pesticide.

I plant the peppers in a pot with nasturtium or petunias to attract the pollinators and to look good on the patio.

Pepper plant with petunias

This year I am growing several peppers:

*Purple sweet peppers, Orange Bell and Sweet Pickle for the salsa and snacking

*Chiltepin for adding to my seasoned salt

*Jigsaw pepper because it is variegated and has purple fruits.  Spicy so will use for making hot sauce.

*Ancho to dry for chili powder  

                                  Pimento at top, jalapeño on bottom      Red and green cayennes

I have been overwintering the Chiltepin and Jigsaw peppers inside for the last few years.  Peppers are a tropical perennial so can be overwintered in the garage or house to get a jump start on the next season.  Plus, if you have a pepper plant that was just outstanding the previous year, you know you will get a repeat show.

Peppers all start out green.  It is as they ripen that they turn colors.  Jalapeño will turn red if left to ripen on the vine.  The sweet peppers I am growing from seed this year will turn chocolate.  They can be eaten either when green or after they have turned.  Their flavor, and heat, will intensify as they ripen.

The trick to keeping the pepper crop going is to harvest often.  It’s like the plant knows when it has its quota of peppers.  The blossoms will fall off until more are picked.  Save the seeds from your best pepper.  Seed saving-fun, easy and a cost saver

Here are some ways to preserve your pepper harvest if you have more than you can eat  Preserving peppers

Peppers come in so many different flavors and heat intensity.  There is a pepper out there for everyone.  Combined with their carefree horticulture, they make a great plant to add to your garden this year. 

Everything you need to know to grow tomatoes

Summer tomato plant

Monday, May 12, 2025

Tomatoes are Americans favorite vegetable to grow.  There really is no comparison between a home grown tomato and a store bought tomato.  There are just a few tips to know about growing great tasting tomatoes. 

The first is knowing what type of tomato to purchase

There are two types of tomatoes-indeterminate and determinate.  Determinate grow to a set height and the fruit sets all at once.  These can be a great candidate for canning if you would like to get your tomato canning done all at once.  Indeterminate continue to grow and yield fruits (yes, the tomato is actually a fruit) until frost.  These are the best for fresh tomatoes all season long.  Determinates height typically stays below 4'; indeterminates can grow well over 8' in a season.

Choosing which tomatoes to grow

I grow only indeterminates.  For what we don’t eat, I freeze whole in quart freezer bags for chili and salsa until fall.  Come fall, I start canning the surplus.  I like growing a variety of tomatoes, with different colors, salad tomatoes, slicers, and paste tomatoes.  I like adding paste tomatoes to each freezer bag as they give a silky sauce.  And colors are just fun!  I always have red and purple tomatoes in the garden.  Three that I have every year are Chocolate Pear for salads, heirloom Italian Pear Paste for sauces, and heirloom Cherokee Purple for slicers.
The Power of Purple

This year I am trying a medium purple slicer, Ukranian Purple, that is an early fruiting variety, taking 55-68 days to produce ripe tomatoes.  I started all my tomatoes from seed a couple of months ago and planted them out a couple of weeks ago.  Fingers crossed it gives us some ripe tomatoes in June!

There are several "storage" tomato varieties available.  You can pick these at frost and they will keep for up to 4 weeks longer than typical tomatoes.  I planted A'Grappoli D'Inverno and a yellow Sicilian storage tomato. 

Right before the first frost, I pick all the tomatoes left on the vine and put in a dark place for them to ripen.  We have fresh tomatoes into December.  They are definitely not the same as summer tomatoes, but better than anything you can buy in the store!  For more tips on preserving the tomato harvest:  Preserving the tomato harvest

Tomatoes kept in pantry at Christmas

All tomatoes are chock full of antioxidants and lycopene.  They contain vitamins A, C, E, K, and B-complex as well as potassium, manganese, and copper.

Tomato supports/cages

With indeterminate tomatoes, they definitely need something to help them grow upwards (although not required, it does make harvesting much easier, takes up less garden space and protects against disease).  A very sturdy pole can be used and the plant tied onto it as it grows.  The more popular option is a “tomato cage” that the tomato grows up in to.  This is what we use.  It is important to get the cage on while the plants are small or severe damage may ensue when you try to force the gangly plant into it’s cage.  Be sure to get a strong cage for large indeterminate types of tomato plants.  I also add a stake to the really big tomatoes to give extra support.  If using smaller cages, you can just pinch off the top when the plant starts growing too large.

In my garden, even the determinate benefit from a cage to keep them upright.  Determinates just don't need to be pinched to keep from outgrowing their cage.

If you grow dwarf or patio tomatoes, they may not need any support at all.  I did end up using a stake for the dwarfs I have grown in the past as they put on large tomatoes which caused the plant to lean without support.  

Staked dwarf tomato

Tips when planting

Tomatoes are susceptible to blossom-end rot and fungal diseases.  End rot is typically caused by not having enough calcium in the soil.  Fungal diseases remain the soil.  It is important to rotate vegetable plants and not plant them in the same spot every year.  You can use organic fungicides as a preventative.  You should spray when you transplant your seedlings and continue to spray every couple of weeks.  Organic fungicides are preventative so you have to keep the fungus from growing to start with.  Keeping fungal diseases at bay will greatly increase yields in late summer.  

Another preventative of disease is to provide the right fertilizer and nutrients when planting.  In each planting hole, I add a handful of worm castings, balanced fertilizer, and dust the roots with mycorrhizal life support which contains mycorrhizal, vitamins and minerals.  This blend improves soil fertility and the plants ability to take in the nutrition it needs.  It is not all about just the big 3-nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium.  They are important but vitamins, minerals, and particularly living soil makes a huge difference in how healthy and lush the plants become.  I use fertilizer made specifically for tomatoes so that they get the calcium they need.  As your plants take up minerals, you will get these minerals when you eat your garden produce.  Every other year, I add Azomite to all my plants which contains over 70 minerals and trace elements just to make sure the plants have all the micronutrients they need.
The next step in garden production and your nutrition-soil minerals

Another option is to replant new tomato plants in late June.  These plants will be coming on strong as the early planted ones start winding down.

When you plant your tomato, make sure to plant it deeply.  I take off all the limbs except the top couple and bury the plant up to these stems.  Roots will grow from where the stems are removed.  This gives the plants a much stronger root system to support growth.

I like to plant early in the season and then again in the middle of the summer.  When the new plants come on strong, the early planted ones are slowing down.  It keeps the harvest going strong.  This year, if I add any, it will be one cherry type and one slicer as I get enough for all the sauce and frozen tomatoes I need for the year off the first 14 spring planted tomatoes.  Plus, I have enough to give away lots of sauce.

Pruning tips

Now that your plants have the right start, pruning is the next step.  To get the highest yields, some say it is important to prune your tomatoes.  You want no branches below 12” (some recommend 18”).  You also want to prune the plant to only 2 branches, the center stalk and one side stalk.  You want to keep the “suckers” cut or pinched off as well as the tomato grows.

The amount of pruning is controversial among tomato growing connoisseurs.  Some swear by pruning, others say it makes no difference.  If you live further south, keeping the greenery helps protect the fruits from sun scald.  If your plants seem to get fungal diseases, doing some pruning to open up the plant for air circulation can be beneficial.  For plants up north, increased greenery helps the plant have more energy going to its fruits.  I have tried both and for my garden, very limited pruning has worked the best.  I prune out the suckers but leave all the other stems and leaves.

Watering and fertilizing

Now, to on-going watering and fertilizing.  Many think more is better when it comes to watering and fertilizing.  Not so for tomatoes!  What you end up with are tons of greenery, mushy tomatoes, and very few of them.  Some tomato afficiados recommend a deep watering and fertilizer at planting, then again at flowering, and that is it.  I do water when there is a long dry spell.  Overwatering or erratic watering can also cause the fruits to crack and blossom end rot.  I provide the same water to my tomatoes as my other veggies, trying to make sure they are getting about 1" of rain or watering each week.  

For the tomatoes in the garden, I fertilize when planting, again when the first flowers appear, and monthly thereafter.  If growing in containers, I fertilize every other week with a liquid fertilizer when flowering.  I also add Azomite every other season to make sure the plants are getting all the trace minerals they need.  The first time I added Azomite, my plants seemed to grow and bush out within a few days.  If they respond favorably, then they really needed those nutrients.  Kelp meal also contains alot of minerals and hormones.  Kelp will stimulate your plants to grow upwards.  If your plants are staying stubby, I would apply kelp meal.

If your plant will not flower and fruit with lush green foliage, quit fertilizing and watering.  Nitrogen stimulates green growth.  If you go overboard, the plant will be focused on its greenery instead of fruiting.  A little stress should jump start it into producing flowers and fruits.

Although tomatoes love hot weather (they will not flower until night time temps get above 55), they also don’t like it too hot.  If daytime temps get above 90 and nighttime temps above 76, the plant will drop its flowers.  Not to worry, as soon as temps come back down, your plants will begin flowering again.
 Summer garden tips

Growing in containers

If you want to grow tomatoes in a container, you need to either have a really big container for full size tomatoes (5 gallon) or plant varieties that are adapted for containers. Tomatoes for containers would be labelled as dwarf, patio, container.  Some varieties that fit this bill:  BushSteak, Patio Princess, Bush Early Girl, Tumbler, Bush Big Boy, Baxter’s Bush Cherry, Lizzano, Sweetheart of the Patio, Tumbling Tom Yellow or Red, Bush Better Bush, Balcony (look for bush/patio/container types), Husky Bush.
Compact tomatoes for small spaces and pots

If you grow in containers, you will need to water weekly or maybe even more depending on the container and plant size combo used.  For more on container gardening and types to purchase for pots, Decorative container gardening for edibles

I have grown dwarfs in a larger container and have only needed to water weekly when I put a large catch pan under the pot so the plant can absorb water from the bottom.  They have grown and fruited the same as growing in the ground.  I have also grown indeterminates in extra large containers about the size of a half whisky barrel.  These plants did fine in the pot, but did not produce nearly what they do when planted in the ground.  My husband is trying the upside down 5 gallon bucket technique this year with any automatic watering system so we will see how that does.  Always fun to try something new! 

Seed saving

If you are growing open pollinated or heirloom tomatoes, you can save the seed from the best fruits and plants to grow for next season.  If you are growing hybrids, the seed will not produce a plant like the parent.  For very productive hybrids, I will save seed just to see what I get from them.

Why save seed?  Saving seed from the plants that produce the best fruits year on year will give you plants acclimated to your garden conditions and the best producers.  Save seed from plants that have the characteristics you want in future plants.  The ones with the best fruit, the largest fruit, the best tasting fruit, the earliest producer, the latest producer or the best producer.  You get to choose what you want in your future tomato plants.  Just do not save seed from any diseased plant as the disease stays in the seed.
Seed saving-fun, easy and a cost saver

Add edible flowers to your veggie garden and pots

Edible daylilies in bloom edging the vegetable garden

Saturday, May 10, 2025

If you want to add a beautiful touch and taste to a salad, dinner plate or drink, add a flower!  Many common flowers are edible.  These flowers do triple duty-adding beauty to the garden, attracting pollinators to increase harvests, and food.

All herb flowers are edible-like anise hyssop, basil, bee balm,  borage, calendula/pot marigold, chamomile, cilantro, fennel, lavender, garden chives, garlic chives, mint, mustard, onions, oregano, parsley, sage, savory,  shallot, rosemary, tarragon and thyme.  They add great color and flavor to salads and dishes.  Their flavor is  usually  a lighter version of the herb.  Let's not forget saffron; a pricey spice from the stigmas of the saffron crocus that you can grow in your own garden.  Start a kitchen herb garden!

Edible garlic chives in bloom

Vegetable flowers are edible-like broccoli, cabbage, kale, bean, pea, onion, garlic, zucchini, chicory.    Fried squash blooms are delish!  Just stuff them with a cheese mixture and fry.

Some plants we consider weeds are edible-like chickweed, dandelion, red clover, purslane, wild strawberry, wild violet and wood sorrel flowers as well as their greens.  Chickweed tastes pretty good.  Cultivated dandelions are sweeter in the cool temperatures.  When it gets warmer, harvest the young leaves and flowers for salads and the large for steamed greens.  Full of great nutrition.  Edible, nutritious "weeds"

Edible lavender flowers in bloom

Then there are the ornamentals that are edible like alliums, tuberous-rioted begonias, garden forms of Bellis perennis daisies, dahlias, daylilies, fascia, tiger lilies, erythroniums, fuchsias, gardenias, hostas, orchids, violets, houttuynia, the pinks, Salvia patens, chrysanthemums, grape hyacinth, honeysuckle, roses, dianthus, nasturtiums, passion flower, pansies, Johnny Jump Ups, scented geraniums, violas, yucca, snapdragons, tulips, zinnias and sunflowers.

A variety of tree and shrub flowers are edible: apple, crab apple, elderberry, Japanese honeysuckle, lilac, citrus blooms, plum, redbud and wild rose.  Redbud flowers are one of my favorites.  Redbud is in the pea family and their flowers are reminiscent of pea flavor.

Self sowing edible flowers:

Borage
Calendula

Chamomile

Signet dwarf Marigolds

Nasturtiums

Sunflowers

Zinnias

Plant these, allow to go to seed, and they will continue to re-establish themselves year after year.  These are referred to as "volunteers" in the garden.  You can also save their seeds and sow in the spring where you want them to grow.  They do great in garden beds and containers.  This year, I had many self sowing zinnias return in light pink, medium pink and fuchsia. 
Self sustaining gardening appealing? Try the self-seeders!

You can also make beautiful flower sugars to spoon into teas, over berries and desserts.  Or add herbal flowers to sea salt for seasoning dishes.  Using herbs, flowers and fruit for flavored sugars and salts  You can  make flavored vinegars  Make your own flavored vinegars  The flower color will tint the vinegar as well as flavor it.  After straining, add a whole flower for its beauty. You can even make candied flowers!  Or add them to homemade drinks as a garnish  Use herbs for signature desserts and grown up beverages   or main ingredient Homegrown flavored waters and sodas

Homemade herbal sugars and salts

You can quickly look on line to verify that your ornamental is indeed edible, which is always recommended just to be on the safe side.  There are many misleading names of flowers that can lead you to believe a flower is part of an edible family when it actually is not.  

Add edible beauty to your garden this season!

What's happening in the early May edible garden

Potted lettuce in May

Sunday, May 4, 2025

Everything is lush and green this time of year.  The edibles are growing quickly.   Salad fixings are in their prime with the summer edibles just getting started.  Herbs are filling out nicely.  By this time of year, we no longer need to purchase produce from the grocery store and can get fresh herbs to add to dishes that make them taste wonderful and are chock full of antioxidants.

The greens we are eating-French sorrel, spinach, dandelion greens, winter cress, arugula, chick weed, sweet clover, celery, Ruby Streaks mustard, Chinese Giant Leaf mustard, sprouting broccoli leaves, many varieties of lettuce, chard and snow peas.  Many are overwintered or volunteers from last year.  I also bought a few transplants from the store.  I like to have new lettuces coming on all the time so there is always plenty for salads.

I have lots of volunteer Blue Feather lettuce, carrots, sprouting broccoli, Red Romaine lettuce, tomatoes, celosias and Giant Leaf mustard popping up all over the garden.  

Herbs to add to dishes and salads-garlic chives, regular chives, oregano, thyme, horseradish, Egyptian walking onions, tarragon, sage, young garlic, cilantro, rosemary, parsley.  All are perennials or self-sowers so they come back year after year.

The flowers that are blooming-irises, spiderwort, roses, peonies, marigolds, Sweet William, pansies, hellebores, coreopsis and petunias.  The herbs and veggies going to seed-yellow flowers of the sprouting broccoli, mustard, chard and cress, yellow and pink dandelion flowers.  Soon, the beautiful purple flowers of sage, the white flowers of thyme, and the white garlic chive flowers will be showing off.  All veggie and herb flowers are edible.  A fun way to add flavor and beauty to salads or other dishes.

The overwintering and early spring planted lettuce and spinach is beginning to bolt so soon there will be the white, yellow and blue flowers from the different kinds of lettuce.  Several carrots are starting to bolt, too.  If not pulled, they have beautiful white flowers resembling Queen Ann's Lace, which are in the same family, that bees love.

The lilacs have already come and gone.  They and the peonies were heavy with flowers this spring.

We put in a new raised bed 4' x 8' for strawberries this spring.  There are many green strawberries on the plants and the plants have really started growing.  We are growing ever bearing strawberries so they will produce fruit into the summer months.  

In the fall, we put in a bed for raspberries and blackberries.  So far, only the wild blackberry is blooming.  We also have thornless blackberry bush that is not blooming yet and 3 thornless raspberry bushes.  The raspberries are ever bearing too.  They will bear from June to frost.

I also transplanted blueberries into pots in the fall and added 2 more this spring.  3 of the 5 plants have little blueberries on them.  I doubt we will get many berries this year, but we will get some!  The 2 I added this spring are Rabbiteye-Brightwell and Tifblue.  These varieties do well in our hot and humid climate.  I think it is just too hot for the northern varieties for them to thrive.  If your summers are hot like ours, I'd make sure the northern varieties are getting afternoon shade.  Rabbiteye and southern high bush varieties do well in full sun in our hot and humid summers. 

Last week, I planted bean (Yard Long, 1500 Year Old Cave, and Christmas Speckles), cucumber (Bush Champion and Beit Alpha), melon (Lemon Drop), squash (Butternut and Trombetta), Dragon's Tail Radish, marjoram, rosemary, Sweet Pickle pepper, Bull Nose sweet pepper, chervil, and wild basil seeds in the garden and pots.  The tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, basil, herbs and greens that I started indoors and transplanted into pots and the garden bed a couple of weeks ago are doing well.  There were a few that didn't make it that I re-seeded; many of them are up.   

My husband transplanted the tomato plants I started for him into his upside down 5 gallon bucket growing system last week and they are all doing well.  He wanted a very large tomato that we saw at a local nursery that I put into a very large pot.  It had one tomato on it and now has 5.  I did transplant a Lucid Gem tomato into the garden bed at the same time.  I've been wanting to see how they do and since I had an extra from seed, decided to go ahead and plant it.

I have around 100 creeping thyme seedlings and 100 lavender seedlings going in 6 packs on the patio.  I sowed seed in 6" coir pots and many more than I expected sprouted.  Some of the seed packets were almost 20 years old.  I'll be planting them in the new beds to deter voles and deer.  They need to get a bit bigger before I transplant them.  Maybe a couple more weeks of growing time outside will do the trick.

It is a good idea to wait 10 days after planting new plants before you give them much fertilizer.  I'll add a diluted liquid fertilizer to all that have their first set of true leaves in the next week.  I am using Neptune kelp and fish liquid fertilizer for spring feeding this year.  Kelp really stimulates growth so I use it only in the spring.  Also, when I transplant, I add char, worm castings and starting fertilizer to each planting hole for sustained nutrition.

It's okay to just be getting started in the edible garden with the summer lovers.  You can plant a summer garden into June and still have a nice harvest.

Volunteer Red Malabar spinach and Chinese Multicolor amaranth

I have been harvesting the greens by taking only the outer leaves so that the plants will continue to grow.  By harvesting, it stimulates the plant to grow even more leaves.  If you have extra greens, besides lettuce, you can blanch and freeze them.  I still have plenty left in the freezer.  Preservation garden

I am doing good right now on lettuce, but will need to start transplanting some of the volunteers coming up in the yard into pots to keep the harvest going.  If you don't have volunteers, it is a good idea to sow lettuce seeds now.  If you start seeds every 2-3 weeks, it keeps you in lettuce all the way until winter.  This time of year, start the heat tolerant varieties.   

I have also moved to using greens that stay sweet during the dog days of summer to supplement lettuce.  The greens I have found so far that are great lettuce and spinach substitutes in salads are Red Malabar spinach, New Zealand spinach, Perpetual Spinach chard, Chinese Multicolored amaranth, all colors of orach, Chinese Hilton cabbage (doubles as a great wrap, too), and sprouting broccoli.  Keep salads going all summer long. 

I overwintered New Zealand spinach in the house.  I put it outside a month ago.  It is doing well and has long tresses of leaves.  We use their leaves just like spinach in salads.  They are heat lovers with leaves that stay sweet all summer; a great spinach substitute.