Images are welcome and we'd love for you to show off your favorite farm or orchard.While gathering information for this article, I visitedin Dexter, KY. U-Picks are a great way to show children where their food comes from and chances are, they will be...
As you read in my Spring Shopping article earlier in the year, I've been anxiously planning visits to several iris farms for quite a while. All under the beautiful views of the Flat Iron mountains of Boulder, Colorado.If you can find an iris grower near...
William Warren Orcutt made his money in California oil and owned several pieces of ranch land. Scars remain were some of the lower branches were cut off 200 years ago. One of his ranches is now a public park called Orcutt Ranch Horticultural Center.
You can leave it another week or two if you like a very strong flavor. Do not allow vinegar to boil. Pour strained vinegar into sterile bottles, leaving ½" of headspace.This vinegar will make a beautiful and tasty gift for anyone who loves good food.For...
Sprinkle tops heavily with cinnamon sugar before baking for 20 to 25 minutes at 400°Run a knife around the edge of each muffin to release from pan.Serve immediately. I hope we'll pick blueberries together again this year!of blueberries also has a wonderful...
The stems of papaya plants grow very tall, yielding what some call "tree melons." Papayas will become large and heavy as they mature in clusters on the plants. Depending on your location and the temperatures after you plant a papaya plant, you may have...
The leaf blade, deeply divided into segments, can grow to 2 feet wide.The trees bear fleshy flowers, some male, some female, some bisexual. Irrigation is perhaps the most critical aspect of growing papayas.
The mulch must be pest-free because the movement of soilborne insects can potentially cause disturbance to the roots.Irrigate the newly transplanted papaya trees at two-day intervals during a non-rainy period.
The seeds take roughly five to 10 days to germinate. Snip the stem just above the fruit using a clean knife or scissors. If the ends are yellow, it's a sign they're overripe. It's a good idea to check the plants each day, as the cucumbers grow quickly.
Planting your Inferno pepper seeds after the threat of frost in the spring will have you picking the first ripe peppers by mid August, continuing into late September.The size of an Inferno pepper is an indication that it is ready to be picked.
Pepperoncini peppers are often picked when still a light green, especially when used for pickling or canning purposes. The more often you harvest, the more likely you will be to encourage new growth.Clean thoroughly before using or storing.
But once the flowers open and the bright pinkish-red berries appear in early to late summer, they're hard to miss.Picking wild raspberries can be a prickly undertaking if you're not prepared.
But how do you know when raspberries are ready to pick? Use a shallow container so you don't squash all the berries on the bottom with the weight of the harvest atop.Raspberries don't ripen all at once but, instead, over a couple of weeks.
Left in the ground over winter to decompose, they then release the nitrogen back into the soil for next season's crop.Daikon radishes are the most widely grown vegetable in Japan. Use a digging fork to gently lift and loosen the soil around the radishes,...
Fruits are generally ripe and ready for harvesting during late summer. If they're mature, they should come away easily. Although most apples thrive in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 through 7, some cultivars grow in USDA zones...
Radishes are also planted in mid-summer for a fall crop. If the radish is 1/2 to 1 inch across, the crop is ready to harvest.Remove the leaves with garden snips, wash the radishes and place them in plastic bags.
The seeds grow larger inside the fruit, too, and the once-tender and sweet flesh becomes waterlogged and loses much of its flavor and firm texture. If you have a bounty of young tender zucchini, freeze what you can't use within 10 days by washing the...
Fruit over the entire plant is always in different stages. Alternately, you can use a berry picker or shake the bush until the berries fall off and land on a collecting tarp, but these methods remove the bitter green berries as well as the ripe blue berries.
Cut the broccoli head stem 5 inches or more below the head, then remove the head off with a swift cut. Simply cut them off as they become ready.Now that you know how to harvest broccoli, you can cut the heads off your broccoli with confidence.
A ripe melon will also exhibit a sweet and pleasant aroma.One way to tell if a melon is over ripe is by looking at the rind, which will appear quite yellow and soft. In this case, the melon should not be pulled but carefully cut from the vine.
Papaya plants grow quickly, given the proper care and a warm climate. Identify female plants, which develop large flowers directly out of the trunk and male plants, which develop sets of small flowers growing on branched stems from the trunk.
If you cook the flowers, you can freeze them. Squash blossoms are glorious golden blooms, which are not only attractive, but also good to eat. Harvesting squash blossoms as food requires a little knowledge of the plant's reproductive biology.
Harvesting spinach by this method will often allow it to re-sprout and give you another partial harvest. Freeze the resulting product in sealed containers or bags. Bundle the stems together lightly and place them in a paper towel in a plastic bag.
As to how long it takes to harvest a watermelon, well, it's not as long as you think.First, the curly green tendrils will start to yellow and turn brown. The underside of the watermelon that was on the ground will also turn light green or yellow if it...
Baby kale leaves may be ready for harvest in as little as 25 days after planting but larger leaves will take longer. In areas with freezing winter temperatures, start kale in late summer or late winter for a cool season frost before harvesting kale.Now...
Once a month the trees need an application of minor nutrients like manganese and zinc. Papaya trees are native to Central America and Mexico but are now grown in tropical and sub-tropical climates across the globe.
The lemony flavor, along with the attractive appearance and delightful scent, makes lemon verbena a worthy addition to the herb garden. Frequent harvesting is important to maintain an attractive shape and keep growth in check.When harvesting from lemon...
