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Any Port in a Storm :: The Beacon :: Putting Down Roots :: Growing veggies
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AuthorTopic: Growing veggies (Read 5,900 times)
bixaorellana
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #270 on Mar 26, 2012, 5:50pm »		[Quote]

Mar 26, 2012, 4:12pm, mickthecactus wrote:
Bixa, you are a veritable mine of information...
;D I believe that should read "Google is a veritable mine of information."
But hey, :-* anyway!

Mar 26, 2012, 4:27pm, mickthecactus wrote:
At Kew's seed bank they aim to keep them for hundreds of years.

They dry them out down to about 8% moisture content then store them at -20c.
Ages ago I saw a documentary on the world's seed banks. I need to find some updated info on the subject, as it's fascinating. As you say, controlled drying & temperature are the keys. I think that whole "mystery of the pyramids" thing came about because some seed found in an ancient tomb was successfully germinated.

Mar 26, 2012, 4:54pm, tod2 wrote:
Are we weird , or are we W E I R D! [image]
If so, we're weird in the most wonderful way ~~ we're gardeners!
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mickthecactus
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #271 on Mar 27, 2012, 8:24am »		[Quote]

Mar 26, 2012, 4:54pm, tod2 wrote:
I agree - the temp. is the key to keeping seeds 'ripe'. When I visited Australia about 10 years ago now, I sent home thousands of Oz seeds. So far over the years NOTHING will germinate!
You would think with similar climates seedlings would be happy here. Not a bit of it!
My absolute one desire above all others ( in the seed growing business) is to have the Kangaroo plants take off in my garden. I still have a few packets left and when I return in June, will start the process of collecting charcoal and mixing it with sand to try to encourage the wild flowers to germinate.

Why is it so essential that when we visit another country we HAVE to HAVE a plant we have lost our hearts to, just flourishing in our own gardens?? Are we weird , or are we W E I R D! :o


I grew Kangaroo Paw from seed with no problem Tod. Admittedly it's like growing grass for a year or so but I didn't find them very difficult.

I got the seed from Chiltern Seeds.
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rikita
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #272 on Apr 14, 2012, 8:39pm »		[Quote]
i bought two tomatoe plants yesterday. my first ones of this year.
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mich64
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #273 on Apr 15, 2012, 5:17pm »		[Quote]
I think I am going to give this a try this year to Rikita! Although I will have to wait a few weeks before we are able to purchase them here.

Cheers!
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rikita
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #274 on Apr 17, 2012, 8:01pm »		[Quote]
happy you are buying tomatoes too, mich! it is so much fun to grow things you can eat...

bought three more... now i have five plants of five different types...
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cheerypeabrain
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #275 on Sept 15, 2012, 7:05pm »		[Quote]
Any idea what I can do with a 7lb courgette (also known as zucchini I think?)

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some of my crops this year....

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bixaorellana
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #276 on Sept 16, 2012, 2:26am »		[Quote]
Cheery, your produce is bee-uuuu-tee-full!

I'm wondering if that zucchini maybe reverted to a parent squash, or perhaps got cross-pollinated. That coloring & its vestigial bulge make it look like a thinner version of some kind of winter squash.

What kind of green beans are those, please? They're so rich looking.
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rikita
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #277 on Sept 16, 2012, 5:26am »		[Quote]
your vegetables look nice! mine didn't turn out well this year, unfortunately...
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tod2
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #278 on Mar 25, 2013, 12:17pm »		[Quote]
I never deliberately plant pumpkin seeds. I save all my kitchen peelings and pips for the compost heap so it is impossible not to find a few 'volunteers' in my garden every year.

This pumpkin is called a "Boer pampoen" which in English is a Farmer's pumpkin. Usually you put them on a sunny roof to dry out for a few months.
This was one of the biggest I grew in my garden. It grew hanging onto the fencing between our two houses.

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bixaorellana
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #279 on Mar 25, 2013, 3:38pm »		[Quote]
What a beauty. I love seeing it hanging there in the tropical greenery. Tod, are they orange inside & similar to the Halloween pumpkins I know? What are typical ways of cooking them in your area?
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htmb
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #280 on Mar 25, 2013, 3:42pm »		[Quote]
That's so interesting looking, tod. Why do most people dry them out?
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tod2
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #281 on Mar 25, 2013, 4:45pm »		[Quote]
Yes Bixa, the typical orange flesh , and to answer htmb at the same time - the drying out process just increases the intensity of flavour. A watery pumpkin is not worth eating ....or spending time cooking it!

How I do it:

Butternut - Throw the whole thing into the oven after a good wash and roast on a middle rack for two hours. Turn oven off and leave to cool slightly for another hour.

Pumpkin: Peel and cover with butter and sugar(white) a little cinnamon, and cover in an oven proof dish for 4 hrs or more on a very low heat (120C- 130C) OR cook on stove top on a low heat.
Do not add water but watch carefully adding more butter if needed.

Squash: Scrub exterior green skin and cut into chunks. Cook similar to Pumpkin.

« Last Edit: Mar 25, 2013, 4:53pm by tod2 »Link to Post - Back to Top  IP: Logged
tod2
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #282 on Apr 12, 2013, 2:38pm »		[Quote]
At the moment the raised beds look like this in my vegetable patch.

The last of the Long Beans have been picked and plenty of too mature pods have been put aside for seed.
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This bean was picked for seed and measured 40cm
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This was my second crop - went on for 2 more before pulling them all out this week.
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The Tatsoi spinach is coming along nicely.
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A few carrots in a corner. Some Bok Choy in the background.
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The second crop of tomato plants seems to be holding out - the last lot failed miserably.
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Swiss Chard looking sturdy after being planted out 2 weeks ago.
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Lastly, the lemons are starting to turn yellow as the ripen.
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bixaorellana
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #283 on Apr 12, 2013, 3:04pm »		[Quote]
Never thanked you for the nice recipes. Guess I'll have to wait for Fall in order to try them.

What a beautiful vegetable garden! Do you get two crops a year of everything?
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casimira
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #284 on Apr 17, 2013, 11:27am »		[Quote]
I'm so envious of of your brick raised beds Tod. Someday I will have ones just like that. I have been hoarding old bricks for such a project.
In the meantime, I have some makeshift wooden slop-shod constructed ones.
They won't last, as anything wood will eventually succumb to the elements here.

My potatoes (Yukon Gold) that I stuck in (carefully mounding them for good drainage)last month are enthusiastically sprouting I am happy to report. :D
I wish I had planted more of them but, I only have a limited amount of space with direct sun and tend to get rather miserly about what I plant.
I want it all!!
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tod2
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #285 on Apr 17, 2013, 1:41pm »		[Quote]
Thanks Casi! You can see more of them and my garden here: http://wellieswheelbarrows.proboards.com....h-africa?page=1
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bixaorellana
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #286 on Apr 18, 2013, 4:20pm »		[Quote]
Wish I could get more info on this -- I just have the picture (not mine). Maybe not as romantic as a grape arbor, but a smaller version than the one shown would be a wonderful thing to have ~~
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htmb
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Re: Growing veggies
« Reply #287 on Apr 18, 2013, 7:31pm »		[Quote]
That's pretty cool, bixa.

I've grown hydroponic strawberries in styrofoam boxes that were stacked one on top of the other. The plants grew in a perlite medium and the berries cascaded over the sides.



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« Last Edit: Apr 18, 2013, 11:36pm by htmb »Link to Post - Back to Top  IP: Logged
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