Monday Garden Update - What to do with Blue Potatoes?
I thought I'd start this update with some family fun. GreenEyes got in the garden this week to help me pick some green beans.
It was a scary proposition and he did step on a few plants but he did a good job as helper. Of course, he loves dirt so we had to bath him twice when the water became so dirty and there was a nice ring around the tub to scrub down afterward.
My potatoes (fingerlings and adirondack blue) do not appear to be doing well at all. They have almost completely died back in the last two weeks. I don't know if this is because of the hard rain we got a while back that caused some instability and erosion or what. These were once very full plants.
Some of the soil has eroded away so much that I can actually see a blue potato. Will these potatoes keep? Should I dig what I can out or leave 'em? I'm not sure what to do. For now, I filled dirt on top of the exposed potato but the plants are on death's door.
I'm having a similar issue with our shallots. Where I planted one shallot, I now have 5 or 6 but the soil has eroded a bit around it. They look full size to me and the plants around them have started to die back.
On a positive note, we have our first pepper. This is a New Mexican Big Jim. I'm hoping I can make some green chili chicken enchiladas with them.
The eggplants are flowering! Mind you, I thought these were going to die and do nothing a while back so this is a delightful development.
We also have some acorn squash! Yum! We ate our first winter squash (the delicata variety, the acorn is not ready) Sunday night. They were surprisingly good. I thought they would lack flavor being so early but they were great.
Our pumpkin plant is recovering nicely from my ruthless attack upon it a few weeks ago.
Well, I suppose that's about all for this week's Monday Garden Update. Be sure to check out Feet Off the Table's Monday Garden Club for more garden fun around the blogosphere!
pic removed
It was a scary proposition and he did step on a few plants but he did a good job as helper. Of course, he loves dirt so we had to bath him twice when the water became so dirty and there was a nice ring around the tub to scrub down afterward.
pic removed
Some of the soil has eroded away so much that I can actually see a blue potato. Will these potatoes keep? Should I dig what I can out or leave 'em? I'm not sure what to do. For now, I filled dirt on top of the exposed potato but the plants are on death's door.
I'm having a similar issue with our shallots. Where I planted one shallot, I now have 5 or 6 but the soil has eroded a bit around it. They look full size to me and the plants around them have started to die back.
On a positive note, we have our first pepper. This is a New Mexican Big Jim. I'm hoping I can make some green chili chicken enchiladas with them.
The eggplants are flowering! Mind you, I thought these were going to die and do nothing a while back so this is a delightful development.
We also have some acorn squash! Yum! We ate our first winter squash (the delicata variety, the acorn is not ready) Sunday night. They were surprisingly good. I thought they would lack flavor being so early but they were great.
Our pumpkin plant is recovering nicely from my ruthless attack upon it a few weeks ago.
Well, I suppose that's about all for this week's Monday Garden Update. Be sure to check out Feet Off the Table's Monday Garden Club for more garden fun around the blogosphere!
Labels: monday garden club
posted by Out in Them Sticks at
June 20, 2010
3 Comments:
What a beautiful little one you have! Dirt and all! I'm stunned at the growth in your garden. My onions did the same thing your shallots did. Maybe I'm growing shallots! lol. The little garden marker is definitely onions. (yeah, we'll see, lol)
I LOVE the link you sent on the funky eye thing for birds. And they are cheaply priced! I'm afraid it would scare the crap out of my big baby dog. Our neighbors had a WOODEN pink pig last year and he almost went into cardiac arrest. But maybe!
Wow - Mr. Green Eyes does love dirt! :) I am no help with your potatoes or shallots, sorry.
The groundhog ate most of the leaves off our bean plants - there are a few beans still growing but I'm not sure if I'm going to rip them out and plant something new. Silly question - but I'm new at green beans....are they supposed to be fuzzy? Our bush beans are - the texture is throwing me off.
While my kids don't get THAT dirty anymore, the still get dirty enough (especially their feet) in the summer to need a shower every day.
I don't grow potatoes (tried it once but we don't eat many potatoes so I don't anymore) but I have heard that the plants die off normally before they are ready to harvest. Too I have also heard that you should keep covering them with dirt if the potatoes become exposed to sunlight and never eat green potatoes because they contain something or other that's no good for you. So maybe they are just doing their thing. Perhaps a google search would give you some more info...
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