Gardeners: how's it looking?

[clean]

some of my malformed corn cobs have developed "Mexican Truffles" or Corn Smut

"Huitlacoche is a Latin American delicacy that grows on corn plants. Pronounced whee-tla-KOH-cheh, it can also be found under the aliases corn truffle, corn smut and Mexican truffle"

But I have no desire to play with it, so I will just pull those plants, hopefully before they spore.

Any other Smut Growers reporting?

[Puget]

some of my malformed corn cobs have developed "Mexican Truffles" or Corn Smut

"Huitlacoche is a Latin American delicacy that grows on corn plants. Pronounced whee-tla-KOH-cheh, it can also be found under the aliases corn truffle, corn smut and Mexican truffle"

But I have no desire to play with it, so I will just pull those plants, hopefully before they spore.

Any other Smut Growers reporting?

Where's you're sense of adventure? Eat your smut!

In full summer veggie swing here. Last night had the a classic (for my family) summer meal, aka "stuff on a plate":  cucumbers and tomatoes with mayo for dip (normally don't like mayo but do for this), green beans seared very hot with garlic in sesame oil, corn on the cob (the only non-garden veggie-- that was from the CSA), with some good bread (also from the CSA) and cheese on the side. May well have the same tonight.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

We've had corn smut in the past. Boy, that sounds kind of dirty. :D I love telling students about it, they tend to look at me quizzically and probably think, 'What the hell is this person talking about?'

[Parasaurolophus]

The kale has seeded, the raspberries are out in force, the corn is getting tall, the cabbages (and cauliflower?) are huge, and the onions died. Some potatoes appear to have been edged out by new raspberry plants.

[mamselle]

In Ohio, the jingle used to be,

    Knee-high by the Fourth of July,
    Or the frost'll get it in August.

We had a backyard garden and between myself and my youngest brother, grew different varieties of corn. He kept it going for several years, and liked growing multi-colored ears (then called, "Indian corn," I'd have to look up a better name for it now) because they did well in the sometimes oppressive late-summer heat.

He also did kale, kolarabi, and tomatoes, I  think. Probably got a salad or two out of it, in any case.

M.

[clean]

As I survey my kingdom today I notice 11 okra blooms ! I will harvest some tonight!

My eggplant has flowered before, but not produced.  It is now full of blooms, but I do not seem to have any bees in my neighborhood, at least none that find my garden worthy of visiting.  Tonight, now that My Bride has told me where there are q-tips to be found, I will attempt to Be the BEE.  It may not work, but the flowers are not being (re)productive as it is! 

Plenty of cantaloupe flowers, too, but they may open and close, so I will see what I can see tonight.  I saw something on the FaceTube about male and female flowers, so I will see if I can look up their kilts/skirts and see if they are lads or lasses. 

[Thursday's_Child]

As I survey my kingdom today I notice 11 okra blooms ! I will harvest some tonight!

My eggplant has flowered before, but not produced.  It is now full of blooms, but I do not seem to have any bees in my neighborhood, at least none that find my garden worthy of visiting.  Tonight, now that My Bride has told me where there are q-tips to be found, I will attempt to Be the BEE.  It may not work, but the flowers are not being (re)productive as it is! 

Plenty of cantaloupe flowers, too, but they may open and close, so I will see what I can see tonight.  I saw something on the FaceTube about male and female flowers, so I will see if I can look up their kilts/skirts and see if they are lads or lasses.

Don't look up their skirts - look behind the flower, at the stem.  If it all looks like stem, it's a male flower.  If there's a mini-fruit between the stem and the petals, it's a female flower.

[Harlow2]

I planted the garden (a reduced version) a month late this year, so the tomatoes are green but looking good except for some yellow leaves, which always make me nervous. The lettuce has been a steady producer; I covered it with shade cloth and it has not bolted. Peppers coming along, parsley  and basil doing well. Beans just now blooming. My 16-year-old sage is, as usual, a shrub.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

A 16 year old sage plant?- That's impressive!

[Parasaurolophus]

Collecting kale seeds this morning.

[clean]

Maybe 16 feet of okra (8 feet of one variety and 8 feet of another)  is too much to plant!  I wasnt able to pick on Monday, and I picked a pot full on Tuesday.  I had just put Sunday's harvest on to cook and now I have another pot full!  At present, im the only one to eat them!  My inlaws are away, My Bride is house sitting (while she continues to test positive for Covid!)  I tried to give some away on Sunday, but no one was at the office!  (One in particular, who I think would have liked it, and is usually there every day! wasnt there, at least when I was). 

Even now, as i look out the window there are nearly 20 blooms open! 
Im glad that I like it, but as I m the one cooking it and eating it, Im not able to finish one pot before I have to cook another!  I now have 2 (maybe 3) bowls of leftover okra in the fridge which I will have to throw away (and I hate to do that!) 

Anyway, that is my success story!  I have blossoms on eggplant and cantaloupe, but no bees.  I have only seen 2 bees since April.  I will hand polinate the eggplant if I get enough blossoms open at the same time.  I missed my window to do it last week. 

[Parasaurolophus]

I collected all the kale seeds. They filled two enormous boxes.

Now the new kale I planted has a better shot at growing. The corn is huge and already silking, the cabbages are enormous. The chives are monstrous.

[mamselle]

Maybe 16 feet of okra (8 feet of one variety and 8 feet of another)  is too much to plant!  I wasnt able to pick on Monday, and I picked a pot full on Tuesday.  I had just put Sunday's harvest on to cook and now I have another pot full!  At present, im the only one to eat them!  My inlaws are away, My Bride is house sitting (while she continues to test positive for Covid!)  I tried to give some away on Sunday, but no one was at the office!  (One in particular, who I think would have liked it, and is usually there every day! wasnt there, at least when I was). 

Even now, as i look out the window there are nearly 20 blooms open! 
Im glad that I like it, but as I m the one cooking it and eating it, Im not able to finish one pot before I have to cook another!  I now have 2 (maybe 3) bowls of leftover okra in the fridge which I will have to throw away (and I hate to do that!) 

Anyway, that is my success story!  I have blossoms on eggplant and cantaloupe, but no bees.  I have only seen 2 bees since April.  I will hand polinate the eggplant if I get enough blossoms open at the same time.  I missed my window to do it last week.

Can you freeze it, either before or after cooking? If you get some small-to-medium lidded plastic tubs that are single-portion size, you might be able to enjoy it even after the season ends, and the glut wouldn't go to waste...

M.

[clean]

I will have to see if okra can be frozen

Most of what I remember seeing in the freezer section is cut and breaded waiting to be fried.  (Im not really supposed to eat it fried, as I ate too many fried foods, cakes and candy, so I used up my life quota). 

[mamselle]

You might be able to dry-roast it instead of frying, or do a very light olive oil/other veg. oil coating and then bake it.

But yeah, if pre-cooked okra can be frozen in other ways, it should be able to be frozen at some point overall.

I know the feeling of using up one's life quota of favorite foods.

I just briefly recall the taste and remember to be grateful that I was able to enjoy it for as long as I did, and/or focus on the good tastes of the things I enjoy now (some of which I wouldn't have tried if it hadn't become necessary.)

We are superfluously gifted.

M.