Here's another first from the garden this year, Rosa Bianca eggplants. And a sort of first, the first ever August harvest of fava beans from a volunteer plant (what the damned rats left for me). Also on the tray are Green Fingers Persian cucumbers, Piracicaba broccoli, and Pimento de Padron peppers.
Green Fingers Persian cucumber is my new favorite cucumber. It's smooth skinned when young and very tasty. These are a little larger than what you might find at the store. I first tasted Persian cucumbers from Trader Joe's and knew that I had to try growing them myself.
No seediness here, even when they get larger. Aren't they beautiful. Unfortunately, the rats have developed a liking for these and I'm afraid that I'm going to have to pull the plants out now that the vermin have figured out how to get past the defences that I put up to protect the plants. Oh well, at least I can buy my second favorite cucumber, Japanese cucumbers, at the farmer's market.
I am so PO'd about the rats. I cried this weekend as I pulled out all my strawberry plants. They had to go, I wasn't getting any berries, I kept seeing all the berries disappear, even the green ones. It is time to stop feeding the rats. It doesn't seem to matter how many rats I trap (50 in 3 weeks!), they keep coming. I have to stop attracting them with easy food. The strawberry plants are in the compost, the cucumber plants will follow as soon as I can screw up the fortitude to yank out those lovely healthy productive plants. I told my husband that when the seed for his bird feeders runs out that the feeders have to go (the A No.1 spot for catching rats). Crap, it's depressing. I can't bear to think about them discovering my ripening tomatoes...
Ah well. I have so many other things to be thankful for. Gotta keep this in perspective. I surely won't starve because of the marauding vermin. Thanks for letting me vent my frustrations here.
Here's the harvests for the past week:
Piracicaba broccoli - 9.6 oz.
Capers - 1.3 oz.
Green Fingers Persian cucumbers - 2 lb., 11.3 oz. (everything large enough to harvest)
Tasty Green Japanese cucumbers - 1 lb., 7.9 oz. (ditto above)
Rosa Bianca eggplant - 1 lb., 13 oz.
Fava beans - 7.6 oz.
Pimento de Padron peppers - 5.9 oz.
Katja tomato - 6.8 oz.
Zucchini - 1 lb., 14.3 oz. (the rats haven't developed a taste for these yet)
Zucchini blossoms - 4.2 oz.
The total harvests for the week were - 9 lb., 11.9 oz.
The total harvests for the year have been - 266 lb.
Harvest Monday is hosted by Daphne on her blog Daphne's Dandelions, head on over there to see what other garden bloggers have been harvesting lately.
I've been trying to find persian cucumber seeds for a while now. They are a wonderful variety. I love that you really don't need to peel them. May I ask where you found the seeds?
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the first ripe tomato. Gosh, I am so sorry about the rats :(
ReplyDeleteShellas, the cucumber seeds are available at Renee's Garden www.reneesgarden.com. They really are yummy and tender skinned. I just looked at the description and see that they are self pollinating - perhaps I can totally enclose my cucumber tower and keep the plants after all...
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Allison - thanks!
That's one big tomato..hope your saving seeds from it :o)
ReplyDeleteYour tomato is BEAUTIFUL! (STAY AWAY FROM THE PLANT RATS!!!)
ReplyDeleteGingerbreadshouse7 - no seed saving yet, I've still go lots of seeds left in the packet!
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Barbie, thank you. (Do you hear her you danged vermin, stay away, grrrr...)
Rats about the rats. But your first tomato sure looks tasty!
ReplyDeleteOh gosh, sorry to hear about the pests. 50 in three weeks is crazy. Maybe once you remove the easy food sources they will move on to greener pastures.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe how bad your rat problem as been this summer! Sorry to hear that the strawberries and cukes have to go =( Congrats on the beautiful tomato!
ReplyDeleteHello Katja, that's a beauty!
ReplyDeleteColorful harvest, I love Persian Green Finger cucumber, I've been growing them for a while except this year, the seedlings were fried while I was away.
That tomato is gorgeous! Not only first but prettiest too.
ReplyDeleteI would be totally frustrated with the rat situation too but you are doing the right things (especially removing the bird feeder) and your ability to keep perspective is truly admirable. Chin up and keep those tomatoes in a fortress! :D
Wow! Some pests can be more than we can handle sometimes. I would cry too. Glad you can cover the cucumbers! You did get a very pretty harvest this week.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful cucumbers! I wonder if I can get something similar to grow.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment on my blog :)
Best
Anette
I am so sorry about the rat damage :( that really sucks.
ReplyDeleteThe Rosa Bianca eggplants look really interesting. I haven't seen that variety before. i hope they have a good taste to them!
I love those Persian cukes too. And I'm so sorry to hear about the rats. I wonder why they are so bad this year. Last year you had them, but they weren't nearly as bad.
ReplyDeleteSo sad that you're having to pull up good plants because of the rats. The eggplants look pretty - and they're tasty, I'm sure, and your tomato looks beautiful. Soon there'll be many more, I hope!
ReplyDeleteI'll have to try that Persian cucumber. Renee's is a good source for tasty varieties. Too bad about the rat explosion. I will try and not complain about our deer too much, since they seem to be easier to deter.
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness, I thought having ground hogs or woodchucks as some people call them was bad...rats are another story. Sorry for your garden problems. For some reason I thought your area would have tomatoes before Maine. Congratulations on that first tomato.
ReplyDeleteI've put out live traps for my rats..That and the jack russels have kept them at bay.. I catch them, take them out into a big field with the dogs, (my silly sense of fairness) and turn them loose.. They don't get far, and it teaches the dogs to track and catch them.. No rats anymore in my garden!!
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