Squash are blooming!

I thought I would post a few pictures of my blooming squash. Wow looks like maybe I can grow something after all.

I am praying for anyone who is in Gustav's path. Seem's that so many people who lost so much with Katrina and Rita will be losing everything that they gained back and maybe more. It is such a terrible thing.

Prune Tomatoes - wikiHow

How to Prune Tomatoes

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

When growing tomatoes, the ultimate goal is getting the maximum yield of crops, with the best flavour possible. If you're growing indeterminate or "vining" varieties (Big Boy, Beef Master, most "cherry" types, Early Girl, most heirloom varieties) pruning your plants to remove unwanted shoots and leaves can be an important part of ensuring that all the nutrients are going to the fruit.

Steps

1. Remove all suckers and leaves below the first flower cluster.[1] The aim when growing a tomato plant is to have a single stem. This should ensure that the majority of the nutrients are sent to the fruits, instead of being wasted on the unwanted growing tips.To remove a sucker, grab a growing tip by the base between the thumb and forefinger, and bend it back and forth until it snaps cleanly. This should ideally be done when the shoot is young and supple. The small wound will heal quickly. This is called "simple pruning".Alternatively, you can try "Missouri pruning" which entails pinching out just the tip of the sucker, leaving one or two leaves behind for photosynthesis and to protect developing fruit from sun scald. The drawback is that suckers will develop from the stem that you leave behind, which will require additional pruning, but this technique is better when you're dealing with large suckers--if wound becomes diseased, it will be further away from the main stem, and leaving a few inches on the sucker reduces the shock to the plant.[2]
   
2. Allow four or five fruit bearing trusses to grow from the stem, then pinch out any additional side shoots, leaving the plant's top shoot intact, known as the terminal shoot.
   
3. Remove leaves. As the plant begins to mature, the lower leaves will naturally begin to yellow and wilt. This is perfectly normal, so pull these from the plant when they appear. It will keep the plant fresh, looking good, and help ward off disease.
   
4. Top the plant. To get the best out of the last growth of the season, it is necessary to "top" the plant. About a month before the first expected frost, or when the plant hits the roof of your greenhouse, remove the plant's terminal shoot. At this point in the season, the tomatoes currently growing will have a limited time to reach maturity, so all nutrients must be directed straight to the fruit.
   

Tips

• Determinate or "bush" varieties do not need pruning (or staking, for that matter). They are bred to grow to a compact height, produce one "wave" of fruit during a two weeks period, and then die, unlike indeterminate varieties also called "vining" tomatoes which grow as tall as people and produce and grow all season long. Common determinate varieties are Rutgers, Roma, Celebrity (called a semi-determinate by some), and Marglobe. Common indeterminate varieties are Big Boy, Beef Master, most "cherry" types, Early Girl, most heirloom varieties. [3]
  

Warnings

• To avoid infecting your tomato plants, always prefer fingers over blades for removing shoots (the resulting wound can be easily infected). However, for older, tougher shoots, you may have to resort to using a blade; if so, sterilize your cutting implement thoroughly for each use.
  

• If you smoke, wash hands thoroughly with soap and water before handling tomato plants. Tobacco smokers can easily infect tomato plants with 'Mosaic Virus."

Things You Will Need

• Growing tomatoes
  
• Clean hands
  
• Sterilised cutting implement if using (hands preferred)

Tomatoes Planted

OK I finally braved the outdoor heat. I went outside and planted the tomatoes. They did not look so good. Hopefully I did not keep them too long before replanting. I also put out my new Veggie Tomato Supports on my peas, squash, and tomatoes. While outside I noticed that something is nibbling on my radishes............

Squash and radishes


peas and tomatoes

tomatoes

I also sprinkled some snake repellent around the patio and door.

Fall Tomatoes

I mail ordered my fall tomatoes from Garden Harvest Supply. Unfortunately, due to all the rain and now all the scorching heat, I have yet to plant them. I hope it is not too late.

I ordered 3 varieties : Mountain Fresh Plus, Viva Italia, and Better Boy but they substituted Big Beef for that. I also ordered Veggie Tomato Supports. It is actually not a cage but a spiral that is designed to extend to 7 ft. tall. You do not need to tie the plants, because it supports the plant without squishing, bunching or injuring either the branches or the fruit. It is made of garden-green uv protected plastic that never rusts and can be reused season after season. You do need to provide the center stakes. I need to get stakes for my peas, beans, and tomatoes.

Hurricane Gustav....here we go again!

A rapidly strengthening Hurricane Gustav could become the first major hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico since Hurricane Wilma in 2005!

Keep up with Breaking Weather News.

According to Expert Senior Meteorologist John Kocet, "The longer Gustav stays over the warm water in the Caribbean, the stronger it gets and the greater the chance that it will become a Category 3 hurricane by Saturday."

"If Gustav is able to thread the needle, passing through the Yucatan Channel into the Gulf of Mexico, it could intensify to Category 4 or 5 strength over the warm water in the Gulf."

"The storm will weaken if it moves close to Cuba, but it will strengthen if it tracks farther south across the Caribbean."

SNAKE!!!!!!!!!!!!

My husband spotted this snake on a bush just outside our back door.
Luckily it was only a Texas Rat Snake. These are not poisonous.



...

And just where do I find a Farmers Market?

In my last post I mentioned shopping at local farmers markets, but not everyone knows where to find them. I found a great place Local Harvest where you can search by zip code. They also have a nice mail order catalog of things you might not find locally.

If you end up with a successful harvest of your own you can always set up your own stand at the market............

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SLOW FOOD MOVEMENT

Have you heard of the Slow Food Movement? The Slow Movement first started when a protest against the opening of a McDonald's restaurant in Piazza di Spagna, Rome sparked the creation of the Slow Food organization. The Slow Food Movement opposes fast food and encourages the enjoyment of regional produce, traditional foods, which are often grown organically and to enjoy these foods in the company of others.

Slow Food organizations promote local artisans, local farmers, and local flavors through regional events such as Taste Workshops, wine tastings, and farmers' markets.

Involve the family in your gardening and harvesting of vegetables. If your garden is not yet producing or you would like more produce, take the family out to a farmer's market to buy some fresh local ingredients. Gather in the kitchen and let everyone have a hand in cooking up a fresh delicious meal that you can share around the family table. Maybe this can be a new family tradition.

Visit Slow Food International for more information or to join in.

Visit Slow Food USA for chapters in your area.

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Sow the seeds and hope they grow

I finally planted in my second Earthbox. I planted sugar peas and snow peas. Looks like I need a container for my green beans and one for my lettuce varieties. I have several empty clay pots and plastic pots I can use. "Recycle and reuse" However, they are not self watering so it will mean daily watering.

I still need to find a tomato plant or two. I will probably need to order those on the internet. I'll update you on that search soon.

Earthbox has been planted

Ok so the weather guru's were wrong...the hurricane made landfall 6 hours early and to the east of us. Basically we had about 1 1/2 days of needed rain. The past few days have been in the upper 90's with a "feels like" temperature of about 105 degrees. I pretty much stayed in until today. I ventured out and transplanted the squash and radishes into an Earthbox. I will be planting seeds into the other Earthbox soon.

Shelter The Veggies

...TROPICAL STORM EDOUARD CONTINUES TOWARD UPPER TEXAS COAST...

Looks like the storm will pass very close to the west of here. We will be on the dirty side with the wind and rain. I will need to bring the little sprouts in for a day. It's a good thing I did not plant the Eartbox containers yet. They have wheels but are still quite heavy.

I SEE SPROUTS!!

My recycled containers that I planted one week ago have started to sprout! So far my thumb looks a little greener. I still have not planted the Earthboxes. I am waiting a little longer for those.