Small garden harvest for today, but it was HOT yesterday... with a high of 102°F... Plant growth is slow in this extreme heat. I'm thankful for even this: one tomato, one serving of okra, and one cayenne pepper (which appears to have been nibbled on by a bird.)

submitted by In-the-clouds from (john1126.com)

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[–]raven9 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (5 children)

Tomato looks good. Im in the south it gets too hot for them at this time of year.

[–]In-the-clouds[S] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (4 children)

My garden is also in the south: Arkansas, USA. I agree it gets too hot for them. It's a struggle to keep them going. If I skipped one day of watering, they would be in big trouble.

[–]raven9 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (3 children)

I'm in Florida. I usually try to get them in the ground in Feb so they can produce fruit before it gets too hot. This year I am going to plant carrots and cabbages in September.

[–]In-the-clouds[S] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

Florida has different growing conditions than Arkansas... if you can plant tomatoes in February! I have never been able to plant that early. We had a snow storm in March, and now we have been stuck in a heat wave, going from extreme cold to extreme heat.

[–]raven9 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

Yes, Im in the nothern part of florida so although February planting has the risk of a late cold spell, when it freezes it is usually only overnight to I have a supply of buckets that I put over my plants to protect them. If you can get away with it, the tomato crop ripens better when the weather is below 90°.

[–]In-the-clouds[S] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

I appreciate your reply and glad to see you have a strategy for good tomato harvests.

[–][deleted] 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (3 children)

Nice pepper. How do you like to eat your okra?

[–]In-the-clouds[S] 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

Today I ate okra cooked with rice and then fried, mixed with other veg. Posted a pic of the rice mix here.

But usually I slice it and fry it in olive oil. It makes a good side item with fried eggs in the morning. Salt is a must for seasoning.

The cayenne pepper is already gone, or in the process of being assimilated into my body. I ate that pepper with the okra and rice combo. Maybe tomorrow the garden will have another ripe cayenne ready for picking. I have had only a few so far this year but there are many peppers hanging from my two cayenne pepper plants, most of them still being green. None of the jalapeños have yet turned red.

Do you eat okra?

[–][deleted] 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

Your rice and okra and pepper tomato looks amazing. I don't think I've ever had okra. "mild subtly grassy flavor" sounds nice. It looks like it is very heat tolerant. That would be perfect for me in zone 9.

[–]In-the-clouds[S] 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Funny description of the flavor. I might say it tastes like a cross between green beans and corn.

It looks like it is very heat tolerant.

You got that right, as long as they get plenty of water. And okra makes beautiful blossoms almost daily that help cheer me up when I visit the garden. Here is a picture.