Oregon Berry Orgy

My annual flurry of Jan making in Eugene , Oregon was satisfying, even though after all these years I still have trouble getting some jams to set up. Some of those I will redo to firm them up and some I will leave loose and use as syrup.

This year I made:
Benton Strawberry
Raspberry
Black Cherry with Honey and Mint
Sylvanberry
Loganberry (my favorite)
Blackberry
Black Cap Raspberry
Boysenberry
Marionberry
Cherry with Honey and Filberts
Blueberry and Pinot Noir
Black Currant
and, of course, Brandied Cherries

The one berry I couldn’t find and will miss was the Tayberry, which is a cross between the Loganberry and the Black Raspberry. As much as I love all berries it is the ones in the middle of the Raspberry to Blackberry lineup that really make me swoon. The Tayberry, Loganberry and Boysenberry. Each one of these berries has such a unique flavor.

I hit the big farmers market in Eugene as soon as possible after arriving and am most anxious to see if I have arrived in time for Morels. Some years I have been able to get pounds, which I make into duxelles and freeze for the winter. That would be AFTER consuming a sauté pan full of whole morels. I prefer not to let anyone know I’m doing this, but sometimes I am forced to share. This year I was only able to get the last of one vendor’s supply- half a pound at most- which I went home and devoured. I was glad to see a new mushroom vendor coming with 5 or 6 varieties each week . I think my favorite of his was the Maitake.

Here is a photo of my front porch the last day in Eugene. Berry flats on the right, berry boxes in the middle and cases of jam and syrup on the left.

My 2009 Summer Garden List

When you see the list below you will know why I have been too busy to blog. Summer is sailing into sight and the tomatoes and turkeys have started their growth spurt. Drip lines mended, 3 new auto lines added, Cactus repotted(after the shelf and all the pots fell on my arm- a very strange looking injury), flowers, herbs and veggies planted, cages installed on peppers, eggplants and tomatoes, sunflowers tied up, 2 truckloads of mulch spread, compost turned, brush ground up, 2 trees removed, 3 trees got a haircut so I could walk under them and on and on. I am creaky and sore and stiff and my soul is nourished by my hours outside. Here is my 2009 list:

Tomatoes:
Here are the ones I plant every year:
Early girl, Green Zebra, Persimmon, Sungold, Garden Peach, White Queen

Others:
Heinz, Super Fantastic, Copia, Bella Rosa, Mammoth German , Giant Belgium, Black from Tula, Black Brandywine, Golden Queen, Orange Fleshed Purple Smudge (whether it’s good or not, just writing it on my list is satisfaction enough), Victor, Momotoro, 2 unknown Cherry Tomatoes , Prudens Purple is not doing well- we’ll see

And the 6–pack from OSH:
Early Girl, Better Boy, Beefmaster, Celebrity, Cherry Red, and Roma

Hot Peppers:,
Mucho Nacho Jalapeno (come on, who named that one?), Serrano, Habanero, Kung Pao (my best drying pepper), Chile de Arbol, Cherry Big Bomb, Yellow Tabasco, Thai Hot, Hot Santa Fe Grande, Tunisian Baklouti

Peppers, less hot and sweet:,
Shishito, Mariachi, Red Knight, Ancho, Aji Dulce, Purple, Yellow, Brown, and Red Bell peppers

Eggplant:
Little Fingers, Fairy tale, Turkish Orange, Yellow Egg, Nadia

Beans:
Painted lady Runner beans, Giant Cascade, Blue Lake, Yard Long Liana, Lima, Asparagus Pea, Renee’s Purple, Yellow and Green Snap Bean Combo

Summer Squash:
Costata Romanesca, Lebanese White Bush Marrow, Ronde de Nice, Pattisons Jaune et Verte Scallop

Winter Squash and Pumpkins:
Seminole Pumpkin, Musqee de Provence Pumpkin, King of mammoth Pumpkin, Marina di Chioggia, Naguri Kabocha, Australian Butter, Zuchinno Rampicante, Butterbush, Luxury Pie Pumpkin and 1 unknown and very vigorous pumpkin that is already up to the garage roof.

Melons:
Charentais, Verona Watermelon, Golden Nugget Watermelon, Old Original(green flesh)

Corn:
Hickory King Dent, Floriani Red Flint

Cucumbers:
Armenian, Arkansas Little Leaf Pickling, Boston Pickling, Emir(Persian), Homemade Pickles

Misc.:
Rainbow Sweet Potatoes (varieties unknown), Jicama, Jerusalem Artichoke, Cardoon, Red Roselle(Jamaica)

Now, looking at the size of this list, I can only agree with my friends. I am totally insane.

The Flu had me but I'm back in the Garden

Things are moving fast out there—a beautiful late spring garden. We ate fava beans, fresh potatoes, green garlic, and broccoli for John's Birthday this weekend. Another wonderful garden meal. The tomatoes are all finally in and I will give a complete picture soon. Meanwhile I want to share these 2 great photos. The garlic harvest curing and Bruce working the orchard hives in the lovely early evening light.

I Can Eat a Tomato Soon -Part 1

Tomatoes—there’s a subject that will inspire strong feelings. How to start them, how to grow them, how to feed them, how to support them, which ones to grow, what a great tomato should taste like, what’s a good year etc. etc.

I remember one year when my neighbor and colleague Vicki told me that her favorite tomato of the year was Costeluto Genovese. The same tomato had been tart and boring in my yard. So I’ll start out right away by saying that I’m very opinionated on the subject and if you try growing tomatoes my way you will DEFINITELY find that what I say will not work for you. Well…. at least some of it.

Gardening is all about cycles. There is the weather cycle, the moon cycle, the soil micro-organism cycle, the watering cycle, the insect hatching cycles, the sun strength cycle, the when you get around to weeding/feeding/mulching cycles, the are you paying attention cycle and the did you harvest at the right time for all the other cycles cycle. If you are lucky you will plant, care and harvest with the cycles in a way that strengthens your plants and gives you a bumper crop. One good tomato year my dear friend Adela came to visit. I had a huge shopping basket that was full to the brim with tomatoes and I told her she could have some. Much to my surprise, after she left, I discovered she had taken them all. That was ok. I went back out in the garden and filled it up again. Last year was abysmal and I couldn’t have filled that basket to save my life. I didn’t do anything differently.

Recently, in one of my gardening groups, there was a heated and unfriendly discussion of whether tomatoes should be started in a sterile potting medium or in a home concoction that included organism rich compost. Jeeeeeeeeeeez When I was done following it I felt like I had just read the damn election voter pamphlet. You read it all and you still haven’t a clue what to do. Some beginners read this stuff and give up before they even start. In some ways they were better off sticking a plant in the ground that Aunt Edith gave them and following her instructions.

So—if you want to plant some tomatoes still this year— get yourself down to OSH and buy one of their great 6-packs that have 6 different tomatoes in it for $2.19 and stick them in the ground in the sun. While you’re there get a couple bags of compost and fix up your soil a little. And maybe some organic fertilizer that has very little nitrogen in it (the first of the 3 numbers is the lowest i.e. 5-10-10 or 2-6-6) As they grow tie them up to something and water them well a couple times a week- more when it gets hot.. End of story. I admit this is the short version. I’ll share the longer one soon, but there is no reason why that much information couldn’t get you some great tomatoes.

Farm Life

When I got my first batch of chicks about 5 or 6 years ago, my friend Renee said “keeping chickens is hard” Why? “because they die”. That seemed like a strong statement at the time but it’s true- birds are fragile. I lose the odd chicken. One who stayed out all night in a hidden nest and got nabbed by a raccoon. One who keeled over for no apparent reason at all. One who got “bound”- their egg laying apparatus stuck on hold. My nephew up the street has lost big numbers on more than one occasion to predators and disease. I feel that my losses have been reasonable.

Occasionally there are birds saved from doom that become like mascots- often the only ones to get real names. Sophie, the scapegoat chicken, was always getting attacked by the others. She ended up living outside the chicken yard and provided endless entertainment. For starters she was a Silver Laced Polish and made me smile by her very existence. She looked like Phyllis Diller in one of her ridiculous hats. She would follow you around on garden chores and even occasionally knock on the door. I’m not kidding. Or Peggy, who had what I guessed to be some kind of inner ear/balance problem as a young chicken. She couldn’t hold her head up straight. It always listed to the right. Sometimes her head would turn farther and farther until she just flipped over on her back. It was sad and funny at the same time. She would stay that way for awhile, sort of passed out. I had to separate her out to keep her safe and I didn’t have much hope for her. To my surprise she grew out of it and is back with the flock, but comes running happily to meet me at the gate and seems to enjoy being held.

Today I lost 2 four day old turkey poults. Mysteriously and quickly. There is a lot of guessing and trying this and that with raising birds because, just like with gardening, there is a wealth of contradictory information. Organic solutions include Dr. Christopher's Plague tonic, Rawleigh Internal Liniment, comfrey leaves, raw milk, colloidal silver, probiotics, garlic and apple cider vinegar. This is more appealing to me than veterinary Liquimyacin, Agri-cillin, or Sulfadimethoxine. But when those sweet little creatures die all of a sudden you want it all and you want it now.

Chickens, Mayday in the garden, A dying Banana's last gift