Admitting Defeat
This is one of only a few peppers that I have on my plants in the garden. I knew my pepper harvest would be low due to the location of the pepper plants. Then the ducks decided that pepper plants were super tasty and my hopes of harvesting even a half bushel of peppers from my garden were dashed. I have been harvesting a few green peppers and other hot peppers for the past month, but I do not have enough to make roasted red peppers for the pantry. I don’t do a lot of canning of garden produce, but I do love to have a few jars of roasted red peppers in the cupboard. They’re so much cheaper than buying them at the store, and you can customize them with white wine vinegar, homegrown garlic, and a really good olive oil. I even use the brine to make salad dressing. (“>here’s my post about making them, including the recipe)
Yesterday, I purchased a load of peppers at the Belfast Farmers Market to preserve. Next week I hope to buy more, along with some jalapeños (which I preserve in the same manner and dehydrate as well).
I also purchased a box of tomatoes since mine are taking they’re time ripening up. Roasted tomato passatta is something I don’t want my pantry to be without as well. I must admit, I’m thankful to live in an area where there are loads of farmers growing all kinds of wonderful organic produce. It comes in handy when my crop doesn’t do well.
Have you had any crops that have done less than stellar this season?
Filed under Canning, Farmer's Market, Going Local, Harvest Keepers Challenge | Comments (17)
Pretty much everything except the cucurbits. Too much rain.
to kristin @ going country's comment
My Green Zebra tomatoes were pitiful.
to Karen's comment
So far my crops are producing as expected. We are still doing lots of planting here in the tropics. I feel your pain with the pepper plants. Can you salvage one to keep in doors? Yesterday I transplanted 9 pepper plants, and is expected a full show from them.
Those beautiful peppers have me wishing i can shop at your local farmers’ market. I make pepper sauce/hot sauce every season and have sun-dried peppers a few while living in South Carolina.
to Lemongrass's comment
It’s been a bad garden year for me in general, partly due to neglect (back problems kept me from planting as much and caring for it as I usually do), and partly due to the weather. My peppers did nothing this year (not hot enough early in the summer I think) and I got late blight in my tomatoes and potatoes (still harvested potatoes though – just a much smaller crop). My brussels sprouts are not forming sprouts for some reason. My cabbage is not heading up. I don’t know what is going on! Overall, a very disappointing year.
That said though, I harvested a very nice onion crop, my carrots and parsnips are looking great, I have more squash than I’ll know what to do with… We’ll just have to change what we eat this winter. I’ll be looking for good butternut squash recipes…
to Joan's comment
That’s why it’s good to plant a variety, then at least you’ll usually get something.
to Susy's comment
We have lots of tomatoes but most are still green. The rabbits got to my eggplant for a bit but I’ve been picking 2 or 3 a day now. Maybe they had their fill? My husband planted banana peppers and they didn’t do so great.
to Lisa's comment
Susy, the tomatoes were very slow in ripening but two weeks of near 100 degrees at the end of August caused them to ripen gang buster style. I harvest a five gallon bucket full of tomatoes every couple days. I gave away as much as I could and made tomato soup from your recipe (with herbs I might add) and still they just keep coming.
I made a little mistake in the green peppers. I thought I had planted two eggplant and ten green pepper plants however as it turned out I had planted two green pepper and 10 eggplants. Eggplant is not a real good give away plant.
The sweet corn was great but I only harvested a few ears and those were not really mature yet but if I had waited the raccoon would have eaten them all. Hopefully, next year I’ll have the area raccoon tight with seven foot fences.
The cabbage did well this year but with life’s busy schedule I didn’t beat the rabbits to the harvest. Early lettuce did unusually well with radishes right up there as well.
Cucumbers, watermelon, and some squash were a bust. Melons didn’t set a single fruit. Cucumbers only a few cukes before the vines dried up. I planted several varieties of squash so some were good and others not a single squash.
It’s a mystery to me why some years a certain plant will grow great and other years not so great.
Have a great harvest day everyone.
to Nebraska Dave's comment
In my 30 some years of gardening, this was the very worst year EVER! It boggles the mind..
I figured since I was out of a job this year I would have all kinds of time to play in the garden.. well.. I couldnt even get IN my garden until July.. and thats after replanting it 2 or 3 times.. I couldnt reclaim one garden.. the other I was able to and did good if I got 1 tomato from each plant.. I definitely didnt from some. My garden was under water most of the season.. I did manage to get 10 jalapenos out of it, 2 bell peppers, and a few ill formed cucumbers. ;) Im going to look up how to make adobo sauce and try to can myself 2 little jars of chipotles in adobo. Do you by any chance have a recipe for it?
to KimH's comment
This year was the pits. Even my broccoli and patty pan squash didn’t do as well as in the past. Slicing tomatoes are very sad looking. Cucumbers have been plentiful and my corn was wonderful.
to Jennifer Fisk's comment
Wow… Strangely glad to see that we weren’t the only ones with a rough gardening year! The last few years have been terrible for okra and summer squash- the plants never really get going, and don’t fruit. Crazy for southeastern Mississippi where they’re usually foolproof! This year was bad for tomatoes and eggplant too. After a couple replanting a of peppers, we finally seem to have a good batch of them.
Here’s to Fall gardening, right? Maybe it’ll do better!
to Sam's comment
I am still battling the weeds in my community garden plot in hopes of planting a fall garden (I do have some transplants of peppers and tomatoes that I started indoors, but I don’t think I gave them enough light, so I’m not sure how well they will do). Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to get out and get the soil worked into raised beds so I can plant some summer crops, but I’m not expecting much until the fall (here in FL the fall season is supposed to be the best). I really like those produce bags, did you buy them or make them? Is that lace?
to Christine's comment
My peas were a disappointment, only enough for one meal then pffft. I’ve battled slugs and leaf-cutter ants all summer. Then cabbage butterflies. They can really wreck havoc on your garden. The slugs even ate the skin off a whole zucchini! Greedy little b….buggers.
to Marcia's comment
My grape tomatoes did very well! My carrots are starting to be ready to harvest and my strawberries just won’t stop. I had trouble with bean leaf beetles for my green beans though :-(
to Kara Spencer's comment
Well here in the Northwest, we had a banner year for gardening..it was the warmest July on record since the 50’s, so pretty much everything did well. Even the things we usually can’t grow to maturity…peppers, tomatoes, melons, etc. did good. Unfortunately, because of that fact, we did not plant enough peppers, tomatoes, etc. so like you, we only got a few peppers, which we love too! And so like you…off to the Farmer’s market! :) We love jalapeno poppers wrapped in puff pastry (just for a treat) once in awhile and I have the best recipe for them….that is, if you have a bounty of jalapeno’s! :)
to Chris's comment
The link to your roasted pepper recipe doesn’t work. :(
to Sue's comment
what is Roasted tomato passatta and how do you make it and use it?
Thanks
Rue
to Rue's comment
Oh, I didn’t leave a link, I just meant that I have a good recipe for the poppers, if you’d like it! I can e-mail it to you or leave in a reply? It’s super good!
to Chris's comment