Fall Garden Update
As September ended this year, I was still able to catch a glimpse of some blooming okra flowers. Once pollinated, these flowers become long finger like vegetables that must be picked before it grows beyond 4-5 inches. As it grows larger, the okra's skin becomes tougher, so be sure to harvest them accordingly if you plan to eat them. If you accidentally leave them on for too long, do not harvest them and let them continue to grow. When they turn brown, you can save the seeds inside to plant next year.
Cherry Tomatoes
My tomato plants continue to produce flowers and tomatoes in September, but I had to be careful of the heavy rains and wind. During this time of year, I like to pick tomatoes before any major rain storms regardless if they're ripe or not. The tomatoes have the potential to crack after heavy rains because they continue to absorb the water in the soil without knowing when to stop. The reason for the different colors is because I planted a generic cherry tomato (right) and an organic chocolate cherry tomato (left) variety. Oh and if you're wondering, yes those are those recyclable cup carriers they give you at Starbucks. I saved them over the years and they work well to hold my cherry tomatoes as I harvest them in the garden. If they get too dirty, you can just recycle them or try composting them.
Eggplant
Although I had hoped to squeeze out at least one fruit from this late planted seedling, the local birds or squirrels got to it first. I think next year I might try putting some sort of netting over it. My eggplants and tomatoes are sometimes pecked at before I even get to harvest them.
Giant Sunflower
This year I attempted to grow giant sunflowers again, but this time to harvest for it's seeds. I completely lost track of harvest time and it started growing mold. Sunflower seeds are actually ready when the face of the flower is still greenish yellow. It may look like part of the flower, but the seeds underneath have already formed and you only need to wipe off that top layer of greenish yellow and hang the heads to dry the seeds. From there, you can roast them, save them for next year, or if you have animals, feed it to them as food.
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