The air finally cleared up a bit, though it's been really bad at night. So I've been trying to get as much done as I can. I have so many things I want to plant, and the hot-weather crops are mostly fizzling out. I only get a few pods here and there on the okra, the molokhia and the Malabar spinach are setting seeds and fruit.
Been experimenting with liquid feeding in the pots...growing in containers has its limits. The roots can only expand so far, then they run out of fresh soil to exploit and the plants start showing signs of deficiencies. I realize now that topdressing the pots is not enough, they need compost tea or something similar to keep the plants healthy.
So far the results of my experiments have gone well. So I'm excited about this new technique. Well, it's not really new to me, I did this in my former garden decades ago. But by trying liquid-feed on my seedling trays, I could really see the results quickly this time. The eggplant seedlings have really started growing despite being badly potbound. I'm anxious to get those into larger pots asap.
This morning I was feeling somewhat burned out, so I went back to sleep and didn't do much. I need an easy day now and then, I think. I did get into the South Garden to pull some weeds, cut back more pea vines, and check on things. I thought the sweet potatoes I planted had died, but they've survived and some have started growing again. I might dig some potatoes after all. And those pea vines have rooted along with them in the bed and produced more pods. That variety of pea, Ologwe, has been a true marvel. I've never had anything grow so rampantly and with such determination.
Looking at my varietal selections, I realized that many of my biggest successes have come from planting crops that originated in tropical Africa and India. So once again I saw proof that varietal selection can be critically important. Planting temperate crops in the subtropics doesn't always work well. Open-pollinated (OP) varieties we buy from US seed companies are usually grown in temperate locales; and as years pass, they adapt to local conditions. Then I try to grow them here in this broiling-hot sun and they suffer with the heat...and the alkaline, sandy soil. Most temperate farms have somewhat acidic, loamy soils or clays.
But plant an African variety like Ologwe peas...and stand back! They feel right at home here.
I've tried harvesting some of my Liberty potatoes recently. Those originated in Cuba as "boniatos", then got modified by the plant-breeding masters at Clemson University to be more resistant to plant-parasitic nematodes. They've grown well for me, and now I find that I really like the potatoes. They're cream-colored, starchy, and not really sweet. The flavor is very different from the usual sweet potato...sort of nutty as I've heard it described...very nice.
I'm sold. Those are going to be my main potato crop from now on.
I love sweet potatoes, but the high sugar content of some varieties bothers my teeth. So I parboil those and toss out the water. For the usual more colorful potato, I'm trying Hannah currently. I bought some in Whole Foods, liked them OK, and I have some nice long slips growing on my kitchen window sill right now. I'm thinking they might take the cool weather better than Liberty. I love to try new varieties...it's a big part of the fun I have with gardening. You have to enjoy an activity to be good at it, that's a fact.
I have some Chinese kale seeds on my kitchen counter right now that are eager to get into some soil. I can't actually hear them speak to me to be honest, but this is their time of year, so I'm assuming. I've never grown Chinese kale, which is similar to that Italian veggie that looks like broccoli but is actually a type of mustard. Broccoli raab, that's it...had to go look in a seed catalogue for the name. The flowers of mustard are tasty too, but extremely hot. I just nibble on a few of those in the garden when they show up.
Been mixing potting-soil like mad...got four big barrels of it and still continuing on. Get ready seeds, I have nice homes planned for you guys. The salads I've been eating with my pac choy, radish greens, and purslane have been absolutely incredible. This is perfect weather for pac choy and radish greens...cool at night and warm, not too strong sun every day.
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