Jen Fulkerson

I can't believe how fast the roselle is growing. It looked healthy, but grew very slow. I think since we started to have cool temps at night it started to shoot up. Until a few weeks ago I really didn't think it would bloom at all. Now a couple of them are about 3 feet. That's still pretty small, but they are all going to bloom. it's pretty exciting. I'm so glad I took a chance and planted late. I really don't know if direct sow was better than transplant. The roselle I planted last year was in my native soil, planted near sunflower. It was outside the garden area, so just didn't get a lot of care. This roselle was planted in a raised bed with carrots I started in the heat of summer, so it was very carefully watched over. I did start roselle this winter for transplant, but I started them way to early. They did well, but I the temperature swings in the greenhouse were huge over 100 in the day, and 40's at night, I also didn't water as consistently as I should have. Quite honestly I don't know how anything survived.  Maybe next year I will try some of transplant, and direct sow others.

I'm ready liking the little terracotta pots. They definitely dry out faster than the other pots, but I can tell at a glance if they need water.

I have also decided an impatient seed starter. Maybe I'm to use to starting seeds in the house useing a heat mat, and grow lights. I few times in this fall outside seed starting journey I have given up on certain seeds germinating. Other seeds have come up, and I have been bottom watering. Then one day a seed pops up that I had given up on. After this happening a few times, I realize I'm to impatient, and not considering temp changes making some seeds take longer than expected. I'm so glad I have been bottom watering, otherwise I probably would have killed these slower seeds.

The straw mulch worked pretty well. It definitely last longer than the shredded cardboard mulch.
It's time (late actually) to transition from the summer veggies to the winter veggies. Because my beds are filled hugel style there's always sinking, sometimes a little, sometimes a lot. My question is should I pull the straw off, top off the beds, then put it back?  Or should I leave it where it is, top off the beds, and add new straw? If I don't remove it I will use less soil to top off. Will leaving it cause depletion of nitrogen? Can I off set that by adding organic alfalfa pellets? Is it just better to remove it?
Thanks

I have been worried about these bees. We have lots of wood structures, and don't know if I have ever noticed holes. This year I have had a lot in my garden. I thought they were bumblebees, but my daughter says they are carpenter bees. They were large all black, and I think they were fuzzy. I was stung by a bee as a child. The doctor said I was allergic. He said it's possible I would grow out of it, or it could get worse and possibly be dangerous. I have never been stung since. I'm careful, but find if I leave them alone, they don't bother me. So I haven't taken a close look.  I'm always happy to see any and all pollinators buzzing around my garden. I just hope they aren't damaging my home too.

I took a picture of my molting hen today.

When I first started growing tomatoes I did what most do and bought what was available. Once I started growing from seed I stuck to the same varieties. I just assumed I sucked at growing tomatoes. So many problems, so little fruit. Somewhere along my journey I learned not all tomato varieties do well everywhere. Well duh, of course they don't. I don't know why this never occurred to me. You would think the plants you buy from your local nursery will do well in your area, but sadly it's not always the case, matter of fact it's often not so. This small bit of knowledge was a game changer for me. I don't actually suck at growing tomatoes, I was just growing the wrong ones.
The last several years have proved this to me time and time again. I keep hearing this was a terrible year for tomatoes. No one had a good harvest...
This may not have been my best year, but I had lots of yummy tomatoes. I have been working on building amazing soil, and try to keep things watered. I didn't ignore my garden, but I wasn't really into it this year. It was more a habit, or a duty, then a joy. Sometimes it's like that. I feel this adds to the idea that the right variety for my climate is very important. We had a crummy summer, they got the bare minimum care, and still produced plenty of tomatoes.
People I know don't understand why I grow strange varieties of tomatoes. I try to share what I have learned, but most of the time I'm met with resistance. They don't want to grow a tomato they have never heard of, or starting seeds is to hard. Last year I thought this excuse was BS, but this year I totally struggled to grow from seed. Even in my worst seed starting experience tomatoes were one of the easiest, and I still managed to start enough for my garden. I also spent less than I would have buying seedlings. Let's not forget my tomatoes produced. Anyway I have to accept I can only help the people who want to be helped.
I live in N California zone 9B. So far I have 5 tomatoes on my must grow list.
Cherokee purple the only tomato on my list that pretty common (I forgot sweet 100 cherry tomato, probably the most well known) and can be bought locally. It's really the only large tomato I have had any luck with. They are large, produce like crazy, and taste great. My husband doesn't like the dark inside. He said it looks like rotten meat, and won't eat it. Strangely this year they were more red, and didn't have as much dark color, so that made him happy. For an abundance of tomatoes this is on the list.
Mountain magic This tomato is quite small. Larger than a cherry, but a lot smaller than a store bought tomato. The vine grows huge like a cherry, and produces in abundance. Everyone loves the flavor, and it cooks and eats great.
Blush Tight this is a smallish oblong shaped tomato that is yellow with reddish pink stripes. everyone loves the flavor of this tomato. If I remember correctly it was the first to produce and ripen. It's not a small vine, but not nearly as large as the others. It's given us an abundance of tomatoes.
Opalka this is a past tomato, that my husband enjoys eating, which is unusual I understand. It's normally a super producer, thought wasn't the best this year. Since it's been a great tomato the last 2 years, I will plant it again next year.
Sweet 100 I always plant one cherry tomato. They seem tougher and more vigorous than other tomatoes. Dependable, good, and productive.
The only new tomato I tried this year that I will try next year is heat master. It produced ok, was a small tomato, and had a good flavor. This wasn't a super start, but it was a strange summer, I wasn't very attentive, and maybe it wasn't in the best location. I still have seeds, so I will give it another shot.
I have a few that are starting to produce very well now, they really kicked into gear when we had some cooler weather. This tells me they probably aren't the tomatoes for me.
I would like to save seeds from my favorites, and give them a try. I always mean to, but rarely manage to actually do it. Maybe this is the year.  I think I couple of them are hybrids, and they are grown relatively close together, so who knows what I will get. It would be fun to see what happens.
If you grow a tomato that does very well in a hot dry climate, I would love to hear about it.  Or if you want to share your recommendations for different climate, I'm sure it would be helpful to other.
Thanks happy gardening.

I like your post. It can be quite alarming if you don't know what is happening. One of my hens looks so pathetic, from a distance she kind of looks like she is molding. It doesn't help that all but 5 of my of my chickens are less than a year old, so they are all shiney and beautiful.
I feed my girls a little higher protein feed in the gravity feeder(18%), because I know it's not there only food source. They get fermented grains once a day, which includes black oil sunflower seeds and other grains I change up depending on the season, and I think it's the nature of chickens to have variety in their diet.  They get lots of garden extras, and mealworm smacks. When I have a  hen that's molting, I give them mealworms a little more regular, not  every day, to much protein is also a bad thing. I will also throw out black oil sunflower seeds. They are a good source of protein, and are supposed to be good for there feathers.
Even though the hen looks like a hot mess, at least in my experience, they tend to go about there business pretty much the same as always. Eventually the sad hen looks beautiful once more.

The door is absolutely the best improvement I have done. It's so nice not to have to dig out all the wood chips and soil every night so I can close the door. It's so easy to open and close the door. It also makes me happy to hear the bottom of the door rub against the bottom wood, I know it's somewhat sealed, to keep the critters out. Why oh why did I wait so long?

The chickens are using the new nesting boxes. The eggs are nice and clean. The best part is I'm not the only one gathering eggs now. Before no one else wanted to go into the coop, and gather dirty eggs.
Every now and then I get a pecked egg. At this time it's not enough of a problem to try to fix. The Barn cat gets all eggs I don't want, so it doesn't go to waist, and he loves it.
Once in a while I still have a couple of hens who get stubborn and lay on the ground, but not on a regular basis. This happens with all of the nesting boxes now and then.

Judith I have noticed the same thing you are talking about. The majority of the seeds I get are red. The black ones are few and far between. I like variety, but honestly don't care what color they are.
The sad truth is I'm not really a bean fan. I grow them because my family enjoys them, they produce like crazy, even when covered with aphids they just keep producing. I do love the look of them.
Years ago I saw the cattle panel trellis and I had to have one, ended up doing 2. I have never been sorry. Peas, beans, squash, melon, Malabar spinach, you name it, it works and looks amazing.

Even as small as these plants are I think I'm going to get some blooms. I'm honestly surprised. I'm sure it won't be a lot, but I'll be happy with whatever I get.