Edibles '11 chapter 2

Getting hit with the tomatoe hornworm. Why do I get these every year and some people get none?

Schickenlady, I think those tomatoes are green zebras. Most of my green zebras are globes, but a few come to a point like yours. If they turn yellow with green stripes, you'll know. By the way, they are delicious. (Except for the ones the deer enjoyed.)

LOL I got one that is ripening - red on the bottom 1/2 and green on the top 1/2.

That sounds like all my tomatoes....the tops are not ripening!

I have one tomato that is turning red!

Congrats!!!

picked my 1st tomato yesterday. It's small, but I've got more to come.

Congrats!! Mine are still green, but I have cukes coming out of my ears.

my cukes are small and just starting to form.

To bad we weren't closer, we could trade!

Fresh lettuce for the taco's tonight. :) (I need those matos!)

Brocc needs to be picked. I wear a size 8-1/2 shoe so that will give you an idea how big it is.

Sorry for the dirty croc, those are my gardening shoes.

Raspberries are ripening but i've only gotten a handful or two. My son Josh is faster than I am. :(

Oh, yum....glad the farm will have raspberries next year! I picked a ripe Purple Cherokee today, but have not yet eaten it!

Picked about 20 tomatos today. Jalapeno's are coming along. Salsa is in the near future. Cherry tomato's are going to be in the thousands. If I remember I will get a pic of a string of cherrys coming down and then it split into a Y. I counted 34 on that one string.

Big tomatos - wont even go there.

I'm glad you're having a great tomato year, Sherrie!

I ate my one, almost ripe tomato while I was watering. I couldn't help myself.

I've gotten a few tomatoes, but the flavor wasn't fully developed yet. The vines are loaded, it's so hard to wait...

Tons of pattypan squash. Sliced them and sautéed with onions and garlic, then a little white wine for dinner.

Finally got a decent beet harvest. I was so afraid because of the heat wave they should go straight to the compost, but my SIL pickled them and we had them for lunch. Delicious!

Tiny cukes, tiny French filet pole beans. Still some lettuce. Volunteer acorn squash almost big enough to pick...

Pam

I have a few beets, but not large enough to pick.....I love cold beet soup with cucumbers & dill!

Marilyn - that sounds so good!

Victor - how do I tell when my paw-paws are ripe?

They should begin to yellow, from green. And they get soft-ish. Still early.

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/08/01/grapes-wine-can-protect-skin-from-sun-damage-study-says/

We have a grape vine (concord with seeds) that has taken over half of the yard on the garage/driveway side. It is all over the chain link fence, goes up into the trees and is just huge. My wife has taken the grapes off in years past and made grape juice and jelly. I know we should have trimmed it earlier in the season, but this has been a very stressful year for several reasons. Maybe we should put a grape stand in front of the house when they are ripe. :)

it will smell great when they are ripe though!

i have grapes on a concord self-pollenating vine for the first time this year - looking forward to seeing how they taste!

I love a plump tomato, Really I do.

Looks kinky.

wow - my t's are not close to turning

Really? Pokey is down in the shed next to the garden.

Had enough cukes to make a 1/2 gallon of refrigerator dills....I'll can the next bunch.....

My neighbor has been supplying us with toms for about 2 wks, have had cherry and grape ones for awhile now

I have had Slicers for 2 weeks. Cherries are coming. I gotta go get Pokey.

Better knock first.

i only planted roma's and brandywine i guess they take a bit longer to ripen.

we have a bunch of cukes to cut up tonight

Celeste - how do I know when to pick the small watermelons. They are now softball sized but still dark green.

made a bunch of pesto today

Victor, here are the 3 rules I go by for ripe watermelon. ^_^

1.Look on the bottom of the melon. You will find a discolored spot where the melon was in contact with the ground while it was growing. If this spot is light green, the melon is not yet ripe. If the spot is a yellowish-white color, the melon is probably ripe.
2.You can also test for ripeness by scratching the surface of a watermelon with your fingernail. A greenish-white color beneath the outermost layer of the rind indicates a ripe watermelon.
3.You can also tell if a watermelon is ripe by thumping it, if you know what you are listening for. When you thump the side of a ripe watermelon, it will sound as if the fruit is hollow. If you hear a thud or a tone that is high in pitch, you're dealing with a fruit that isn't ripe.

How about when it starts to separate from the vine....overripe? What did you do with the pesto, Bill?

If it's comes off the vine easy and the stem is no longer green, then yeah...it's def. ripe. :)

Meant to say...WOOO HOOOO SHERRIE!!!!! Nice mato's!!!!!!!!!!!!!