Paula,
Yes I have and do roast and freeze peppers. I like them in chili, stews, on sandwichs and anywhere else you want to use them. I notice little change in the pepper. Roasting does take some heat away in my experience. What I've found being raised around the native Hispanics and then having been friends with and working with several in the last 25 years they are a lot like everyone else. What and how they eat depends on what part they come from and also how they were raised. To me along with decreasing the heat intensity a little roasting gives a flavor that I like. I like to mix it with other peppers to give a dish a unique taste. Roasted peppers are very popular here and at the markets along the Arkansas River in CO. A lot of them are then took home and froze. My relatives buy and freeze enough to last a year. They are basically like the canned ones you can buy and the name escapes me now. Jay

Hi Paula,
Congratulations on your peppers!
I have roasted tons of peppers over the years. I have roasted them inside and on the grill outside. After roasting I let them cool a bit then put them in a plastic bag and freeze them. The skin comes right off when you take them out to use them. I usually do this to larger peppers. Others, hot, bells, and jalapenos I just chop up and put them in bags in the freezer and dump out what I want to use later. I grow jalapenos mainly to make a jalapeno pesto we use on pasta and pizza.
Bella

I will add a little more. I roast both the larger NM chile types and jalapenos. Like I said it is preference. I was at an auction recently and a young Hispanic couple was helping wiht the concessions for a benefit. They had a coffee can full of roasted jalapenos. I was the only non Hispanic over two days who ate them I guess. And I grazed on them when I had the chance. So I roast almost any pepper. I do prefer one with a thicker flesh. And you can roast them any way you want. My Dad did it a lot in the oven when he didn't have enough for a bigger outdoor roaster. Now I use the grill a lot. Jay

Chipotle

Paula,

I think Carol hit the nail on the head with her answer...roasted jalapenos are chipotles. Peppers are hot this year because of the hot weather....hotter weather gives you hotter peppers every time. I don't know if that is a scientifically-proven fact, but I know it is true in our garden. In an exceptionally hot drought year like we had in 2006, the habaneros are so hot you can barely eat them.

Yep. We got the freezer---a 19.7 cu. ft. Frigidaire chest freezer that is nestled snugly against the north wall of our garage/multipurpose building. With this new freezer, I should have all the freezer space I need to put up the rest of the summer crops and all the fall ones. I guess if I run out of freezer space, I'll have to resort to canning. I like fresh-frozen veggies better than canned ones though.

If you are blanching for 2 minutes and the beans are still mushy, try upping it to 3 minutes. Then, be sure you immediately plunge them into an ice bath to stop the blanching process. If you skip the ice bath step, you get mushy veggies. If you ARE using the ice bath and they still are mushy, I don't know why that's happening.

Jay, You are making me hungry for Hatch chile peppers, so stop that right this minute! : )

Carol, You beat me to the name of the roasted peppers! We do love chipotles.

Dawn

In some things, I like to use the pickled jalapenos so you get the taste but not so much of the heat. I make regular cornbread batter, then add whole kernal corn, chopped Jalapenos, and cheddar cheese. It's great with other fresh vegetables or beans.

Jay has been very quite in the last few days. Do you suppose we overwhelmed him with our tomato seed requests? After all, he had a store size inventory.

Thanks Jay, Dawn, Carol & Bella! Chipotles were what I was hoping for! I think they'll be very tasty at deer camp this year in the Venison Chili! Before I freeze these little roasted morsels, do I remove the seeds? If left in, won't that add to the heat?

I've taken today and Monday off of work to catch up on working the fruits from the garden. That Cooper Sulfate soap has worked wonders on the fungus! I've got almost healthy looking plants again! Picked about 3 gallons of jalapenos, bells and marconi's this morning so all this advice came just in the nick of time!

Paula

Oops, also chopped onion in the recipe above.

Paula,

I do it the way Bella does---putting them whole in bags after roasting and then putting them in the freezer. When you're ready to cook with them, the skin slides right off and you can seed them and remove the membrane at that time.

I suppose if you wanted to you could remove the membrane and seeds and skin before you put them in the freezer, but....any time I have enough "extra" peppers to roast, I tend to be very busy putting up the harvest, so just do what is fastest. Later in the year when I am cooking with them, I am less rushed and have the time to seed them as I prepare the meal.

Jay may do it differently.

Carol, I haven't even sent Jay my list yet because I haven't had time to look at his list and narrow it down. Oh, I have tried, but I haven't narrowed it down enough yet to have a list of serious 'needs' and not just frivolous 'wants'.....because there is a part of me that wants them ALL....but the sensible me knows I don't need them all!

Dawn

Paula,
I usually always leave the seeds if they are going to be for my use. Yes they may be a little hotter but still after roasting will be milder than they were originally. I skin them if I have time. if not just leave them on and freeze. Time dictates how I do it. There is no right or wrong way. For most I would say at some point they might want to remove part or all of the seeds.

Dawn I'm growing two plants from Hatch chile seeds I'm saved from peppers I bought. Still haven't picked any so too early to tell if they are true or hybrids.

We have had a contract electrical crew on the construction we've been doing. The crew are Navajo's from Arizona and NM reservations. The lead told me if he comes back in a month or so to do another project he will bring me some pepper and corn seeds they grow and save. They grow blue, white and red corn and use it for ceremonies and try to keep it pure. Hopefully I will be getting some. I'm looking forward to it. Also maybe some beans.

I have been busy at work and my sinuses and allergies have been kicking my behind. Stayed home last Friday and again Monday and finally gave in and went to the doctor. Two shots and some antibiotics later I'm feeling some better. After this coming week hopefully things will slow down some. And then got booted from a forum I guess where I haven't posted in six months. So trying to be a good boy for a change. LOL.

It has been hot here. They are saying it should cool down a little starting Sunday. Looking forward to that. Tasting a few tomatoes but no big numbers yet. Still losing a few to the insects but think it is slowing down some now. Amazon Chocolate has been my leader so far. Setting well, a big pretty vine and tastes great. Mine have been some smaller than normal but know that is due to the heat and drought. The ones on the vines now show signs of being bigger. Already saving seeds of them.

Jay

Jay,

When we lived in Ft. Worth, the local Central Market (a very impressive gourmet, organic-type store with an amazing produce section) always put a big ad in the paper to announce when Hatch chiles were going to arrive. They sat up a roaster outside and you could buy your peppers and they'd roast them for you free of charge. (Of course, the people in Ft. Worth love their Hatch chiles and it becomes a total mob scene!) The smell in the air is heavenly all day long while they are doing that. We don't get Hatch chiles here, but sometimes I go to Ft. Worth to get them there.

How exciting that the crew may bring you some seeds when/if they come back. That sure is nice of them.

I assumed you were busy at work or were outside every evening killing hornworms. We are having a major flight of their moths right now. My son and new daughter-in-law even saw a white-lined sphinx moth flying around inside the Golden Triangle Mall in Denton last week! I've been seeing a lot of them, a lot of the clearwing snowberry moths and various other sphinx moths lately.

I hope your allergies are better. We have had the H1N1 flu here this summer, and about all I can say about that is that I hope we're immune so we won't have it again this winter. It is the worst flu we've ever had in terms of sinus drainage and feeling like you "can't breathe" because of the congestion. I did not, however, have the severe aches and pains I've had with some other types of flu.

It is grasshopper time here. Although we've had scattered grasshoppers all summer long, they are now arriving in hordes. I know they've been bad in some parts of the high plains, and I guess we're about to get hit and hit hard here. Thanks to the cougar, I have no guineas left to eat them, and can't let the chickens free range either, so I am hoping they don't just wreck my garden. Grasshoppers can be quite vexing.

I think we begin to cool down slightly Sunday (97 or 98 instead of 100) and then it drops about a degree a day, so we're supposed to be about 92-93 by next Friday or Saturday. I'm looking forward to slightly cooler weather.

Everything is ripe all at once, so I am harvesting early every morning and then putting up food during the day. Yesterday I roasted a big batch of jalapenos and put them in the new freezer, and also cooked down a big pot of tomatoes into tomato puree and froze that for cooking. Today I'm going to be dehydrating bite-sized tomatoes, shelling several gallons of black-eyed peas, and picking sweet peppers, hot peppers, okra, more black-eyed peas and more tomatoes....and some squash....and maybe some melons.

The harvest will, by necessity, slow down this weekend as I begin pulling out plants to replace with new plants for the fall garden. I'm glad, because I need a break.

Dawn

Dawn,
I finally found a BT spray. I sprayed once with spinosad and once with the BT spray and haven't had anymore trouble with the hornworms. But some of the other things like aphids, thrips and pysllids started increasing so added Garlic Barrier the other night with I sprayed. The only things I've found that kills all I don't like on what I eat. And can't find it anymore and can't figure out what I did with mine. I bought a small can 2-3 years ago when I was having troubles with thrips. Then spray the plants I plan on pulling and it seems to wipe them all out. Hate to use it as it wipes everything out. But still having insect born diseases and getting to the point I don't want to lose anymore. Only had one left I was debating about and left it and now 2 others I'm afraid have it. Should of pulled the first one. So going out shortly to look. May pull some. We are supposed to be 100 today then drop tomorrow and be 90-95 from Tuesday on. The long range looks better than it did Monday morning. But we all know that is subject to change. We didn't get as high as they predicted till yesterday. And sure today will as the SW wind has blown all night. At least 36 hours now. We hadn't had the severe wind and hopefully it will die down some. Sure blowing some of my sprawlers around.

Okra has been light yet. Sure looks good. I may have it a little close. Sunflowers are 708 feet I would say. Peppers are picking up. Two of them got the yellows from the pysllids and one cucumber got the mosaic. Most of this happened before or just when the rain started.

Have a load of grass clipping to haul. I think I will tell them not to save me anymore. I need them but they bother my sinus and allergies so bad I don't need to add to it.

After this upcoming week at work and a DOT visit I plan on taking a few days off to get a few things done.

Won't comment about the hoppers as I don't want to bring them in.

Most of the tomato plants sure set well during the cooler period. And why I've hesitated on pulling some. The last few plants I've pulled have had 20 or more fruits on them. And at least two of the three I'm debating about are loaded. The Gigantesque is loaded. And I blame myself for not pulling the one south of it. But not sure about it yet.

Better get outside and check things and get started. Hope everyone has a blessed weekend. Jay

Jay,

I hope the dreaded hoppers stay away. They are all over my veggie garden today.

Since it rained last week, almost all my tomato plants have nosedived into a serious decline. It is a combination of Early Blight and Septoria Leaf Spot. I was irritated about it yesterday and grumbling to myself saying things like "Why can't I go one summer without this darned EB and Septoria....." Then, later in the day I logged on to the computer and visited some university websites, and there Dr. Zitter was talking about how a lot of people in his area are misdiagnosing EB and Septoria as Late Blight and that both are showing up heavily in the area, including in his plots. (I assume he means in his research plots there at the university.) He also talked about how quickly the combination of the two can kill his plants. I felt a little better then.....if even "he" is having trouble with EB and Septoria, then whom am I to be getting overly frustrated about the same thing?

I need to spray my plants, but the dispersal conditions are horrible this morning. Maybe the wind will drop in the late afternoon or evening and I can spray then.

I was curious about how far LB has spread beyond the New England states, so I spent quite a lot of time researching it yesterday and I'll write a separate thread about that. From our location here in the center of the country, the dreaded Late Blight outbreak seems so far away. However, it certainly has moved farther south than I would have expected, so I worry it will find us in October or even in September if we have a cool, early fall.

I just came in after a few hours in the garden. It looks pretty good for August....of course, it is easy for me to say that because we usually have summer drought here which leaves very little still alive in a veggie garden by August. Thus, it isn't too hard to look "better" than average. If someone had told me in June I'd be happy with my garden in August, I just would have laughed.

I do think this is one of the worst pest years ever. Apparently the garden pests are enjoying the recurring cold fronts and rain too....or the pests have all flown west since there's a lack of potatoes and tomatoes in the eastern part of the country for them to enjoy.

Dawn

They are saying after today that the temps should start falling some. I even see one day in the 80's next week. I'm ready. And like you said this year the difference between the hot and drought and rain and cool is the diseases change. After the rain and cooler weather last week I'm fight Early Blight, Septoria leaf spot and Bacterial spot. Now with the heat seeing the stress issues showing up again. I sprayed with copper for the spots and that gave the Early Blight a chance to come back again. Hope I have it at least slowed down to tolerable level. Still haven't decided whether some have and insect borne disease or if it is stress related. Headed out to pull two this morning and talked myself out of it. Hope I'm not messing up and letting the insects spread it too my good plants. Also went back to the Garlic Barrier. Think i need to go to a 5 day rotation with it. Jay

Oh Mercy Me! Just pulled the basket off of grill filled half way with my huge jalapenos and they smelled and looked so good I was tempted to just eat one right then!! Smelled like most of heat left the peppers when we first started cooking them. We had grilled some sirloin for supper and I decided to make good use of the rest of the fire. Yum, yum! I'm going to have to find a recipe to use these! Entertaining some old high school friends next weekend so I'm thinking a Chipotle Dip of some kind! I'll have to roast some more for DH's deer camp chili this fall!

Jay - I've had the BEST luck with that Copper Soap. We've seen what looks like Septoria on lots of our vegetation around here. I have a Sand Cherry bush that looks like it's been bit by it. DH has been spraying everything every 5 to 7 days and all are looking cosiderably better. The melons new growth doesn't seem affected, although some of the existing vines that had it have died. I think since we really didn't have that hard of winter followed by this wet spring, a lot of things got a head jump on their growth cycle....and it was't our gardens!

Next year (yes, I'm already dreaming) I going to try growing a few more types of peppers. I love their flavors and I love the pretty plants. I'll be watching the forum for suggestions!

Thanks Jay & Dawn for your guidance! My DH laughs at me because I quote you all like you're my best friends that I see everyday!

Paula

Okay - I'm weak...I went to the peppers to bag them since they have cooled....and just couldn't resist tasting one. OH MY GOSH!!! The heat has diminished but not dissappeared and the flavor is FABULOUS!!!

I wish I had roasted more....I'm making salsa tomorrow and these beauties are going in it! Maybe the fire's not completely out yet on the grill? Gotta go check....

Paula

Paula,
Glad you like them. I can't imagine eating peppers without roasting some. Like Dawn said around here the Hispanics have roasters they pull and set up and roast them and people line up to buy them. Along the Ark valley in CO every market roasts peppers and several of the convenience store also have roasters. In the fall you drive along the valley east of Pueblo and it is filled with the aroma off the roasters. People buy them by the gallon and take them home and freeze them. I do mix mine with unroasted. They give a dish an unique flavor. I use them in chili in the winter. Sometimes just them.

I bought another kind of copper. What I had been using was the copper soap. This was one several recommended and is Copper sulphate I think. May try it the next time I spray with copper. Trimmed more leaves tonight. Think I go the Early Blight headed off again. The hot wind sure burned the tips on most of the plants today. They had been doing ok even with all the new growth in the cool weather but yesterday and today really got to them. I had to water my containers this morning. Even during the last hot period I only watered every 4-5 days. This evening would of been the 4th day. I went out this morning as I got home late last night after sundown. And they were showing signs of needing a drink. Also a little bigger now. They looked ok tonight. Getting quite a bit of fruit set. Most have at least a few now.

I made a big oops the other night. Was trying to clean up as many as possible before it got too dark. And was pushing the limits a little. Sure you have read where Dawn and I have posted how hard it is too get hearts to set here. I reached in amongst the foliage on the bottom to trim out a branch and got a stem with three little hearts on it. So know I would of had 3 even if no more set. Imagine there is some more if I really looked. Picked about 8 tonight but mainly small ones. Have another big Amazon Chocolate changing. Saw my first Casey's Pure Yellow tonight. Looking forward to eating it.
Let me know if you want to try any of the pepper seeds I use. Jay

Paula,

I'm weak in the same way. Nothing makes it into the freezer without me 'testing' it first, and that includes dehydrated tomatoes and roasted peppers. As soon as I have a taste, though, I have to put the containers in the freezer or I'll eat the entire batch I just prepared.

This afternoon I am going to cook down another batch of tomatoes into stewed tomatoes to freeze for winter, dehydrate some more bite-sized tomatoes, and blanch and bread okra to freeze. I might can peppers if I can make myself go out to the garden to pick them in this heat. I ran out of time earlier this morning when it got too hot too fast. (Not that it is cooler now, but the humidity is a lot lower.)

Jay,

Your wind was much stronger than ours. I think ours has been no higher than the low to mid-20s the last couple of days, so not enough for tip burn but the hot wind sure does wilt plants quickly. It is hard to get fall garden seedlings to grow with this kind of hot wind.

That's a heart-breaking story (literally!) about the branch with the three hearts on it. I hope the plant has set some others.

Every time I try to push the limits in semi-darkness I prune or pull or break something too.

It is hot here again today and I am so tired of it. Those of you getting the cold front in the next day or so, please tell it to hurry up and get down here to southern OK. We're just roasting in these hot winds.

Dawn

Jay, have you ever tried Zyrtec for your allergies? Take it about an hour before you plan to go out to work amongst the allergens. It REALLY helps DGS by blocking the histamine response.

I never knew that a Chipotle was actually a roasted Jalapeno. I'm kind of glad I didn't ask anyone why they didn't have Chipotle seed. LOL!

I am so looking forward to the cool front and hope the rain promised actually materializes. Twice now we have watched people get rain maybe 30 to 50 miles from us and we havn't had anything but clouds. The clouds helped us stay cooler, though, so at least we enjoyed that.

I see we're supposed to have a cool night on Tuesday so I guess early Wednesday morning I'll be canning tomatoes. We have a 23cf chest freezer and bought our DS's small freezer, it's maybe only 10cf but it has helped. We caught a sale on beef roast and steak and I've been freezing more tomatoes every morning so now both freezers are at capacity again. I have some open shelves in the kitchen where I store some of my canning that's not real light-sensitive, and I enjoy seeing the shelves full of different-colored stuff. Right now it's the yellow of sauerkraut and the green of dill pickles, so jars of red tomatoes will make a nice contrast.

I am wanting to BAKE really bad..... I hate to run the oven and heat up the kitchen, because it is centrally located and heats up the whole house. Then the air-conditioning works harder at keeping us cool. We're well insulated and all but I hate to bring in any unnecessary heat when we're air-conditioning. I've got a new flour mill and some freshly milled whole wheat flour burning a hole in my apron, so to speak. Not to mention that when it's too hot to work in the garden, I go to Allrecipes.com and Recipezaar.com.

Everybody gets grumpy when it's hot several days in a row. I keep trying to remember how tired I got of being cold last winter and to be grateful that at least there are still things growing outside, that the grass has not turned all yellow as in many years past, and that we don't have hoards of grasshoppers. Three or four years ago, it was so hot and dry in the summer that everybody's gardens burned up, especially after they discovered that Copan Lake was almost dry and started rationing.

All the talk of chile peppers, especially the Hatch chile peppers made me start thinking it is almost "Hatch time" in Fort Worth.

I know it is unlikely anyone other than me will be traveling down to Ft. Worth in the next couple of weeks, but I'm posting the attached link because it gives Central Market's Hatch Chile Pepper dates. If by chance any of you are going to be in Fort Worth during that time, don't miss a chance to pick up some Hatch chile peppers and let them roast the peppers there for you outside the store.

Dawn

Here is a link that might be useful: Hatch Chile Peppers at Central Market

Dawn,
That reminds me I haven't really looked to see if I have any set on my Hatch chili's. I know most of the NM chili types do but not sure about the Hatch. Will go take a look. Yes I agree about the NM chili peppers. I like them all but the type and flavor varies from area to area. Most farmers started from basically the same type years ago but just like with tomatoes each selected till he had something that was a little different than the original. And the further north you get and the higher the elevation they are usually a shorter season and a smaller pepper from what I've seen. Heat varies with area also. Also the few peppers I've ate from the reservations is some different than the Hatch chile's. I'll be roasting here before long.I like a fleshier pepper for roasting which many Hatch chili's are. Jay

Man, this is my kind of thread. I have jalapeno peppers out the yahoo since we were gone for a few days. I'm going to start a new thread about Jay's area since I have some questions and I am afriad he won't read this thread again.

Scott,
I answered your other post. Have been trying to keep up with this one as it is about one of my favorite veggies. Jay

AMEN! I'm here...Scott, don't think he's (Jay) not watchin'!!!! I've got to tell you guys....I love gardening in general...but I've NEVER had such a wonderful taste as my roasted jalapenos. Don't know why I never tried it but now that I have, I'm THERE! I'm probably going to focus my spring plans on peppers if DH will let me have a large spot just for my urges! I can come up with so many wonderful flavors to accompany anything else that grows!

If y'all want some really, really hot and yummy jalapeno peppers that roast up well, try Biker Billy, named after Biker Chef Bill Huffnagle. I grew it for a couple of years and it produces heavy loads of very large, very hot jalapenos. The only reason I haven't grown it recently is because I usually don't order from the company that sells it and I hate to order and pay shipping for just one packet of seeds.

If you like to cook with peppers, check out Bill's book there on the Burpee website, or at Amazon or somewhere. It is called (and this is from memory, so it may not be exact) Biker Billy Cooks With Fire.

Dawn

Here is a link that might be useful: Biker Billy

P-mac. I think you have me figured out. You will need another 1/2 acre for peppers and Dawn is going to need to break out another acre and buy another freezer for the tomatoes I've tempting her with. And like stated above I can supply some pepper seeds to keep this addiction growing and also so you don't experience withdrawals. Jay

Jay,

Now, you stop that right now! What kind of a person are you, teasing us and temping us and making us want to grow more tomatoes and peppers than we should?

It starts out so innocently, you know, with just one or two plants and you look disdainfully at out-of-control gardeners up the road who are enlarging their garden for the fifth time in 5 years and you say "I'll never be like that because I can stop anytime I want". You start thinking that you like it and you can handle more. Then, it starts getting out of control.

You start sneaking out of bed to look at seed catalogs at night so that no one else will realize you're losing control. You order seeds under an assumed name and have them delivered to the empty mailbox next door, so that no one will realize you're on a seed-buying binge.

What once was an innocent little thing becomes an addiction. You start saving and scrounging 5-gallon buckets and larger molasses tubs so you can grow just a few more without plowing up some of your spouse's precious green lawn. You start eyeing the sloping pasture north of the house and saying "Well, at least it would drain well at the top though not so well at the bottom."

You start hiding packets of seeds all over the house...just a bit of a secret stash here in this cabinet and over there in that drawer, and in the closet in the spare room. Still, you tell yourself, I can stop this madness whenever I want to.

The holidays are coming, and while everyone else has visions of sugarplums and candy canes and Santa, you're dreaming of hoophouses, coldframes, a greenhouse and even Wall 'O Waters so you can start feeding your addiction even earlier in the spring....or, maybe even in the winter.

You convert the guest room to a seed-starting room with shelves and a fan and banks of lights. Who needs a guest room anyway? We'll just let the guests stay at the hotel!

One day....sob! It comes to an end. Your spouse discovers your pile of seed flats, 2-liter coke bottles, milk jugs and the like that you're saving for seed-starting. He finds the bags of compost and manure and Pro Mix you've stashed behind the garage, the stakes and fence poles that keep piling up beside the driveway....the every-growing pile of tomato cages....big ones for indeterminates and small ones for determinates and peppers.

Your family stages an intervention and demands you stop enlarging the garden. They just don't "get" your vision of converting the driveway to long rows of containers with a drip irrigation line connecting them. As you listen to them and nod your head as if in agreement, you're thinking "Who needs a drive way? They can park in the bar ditch and walk." Of course, you can't say that to them now. They want you to cut back, get a grip, slow down. They think you've "lost it".

So, to keep peace, you agree. You turn your thoughts to winter time and holidays and shopping and baking and family visits and such. You put on your holiday clothes and smile, but inside....down in your soul....where no one can see, you're still planning the garden of your dreams. It isn't your fault you know. Those darn seed companies just keep sending you seed catalogs and e-mails and web newsletters. You know you shouldn't look at those catalogs and you should just delete the e-mails and webletters, but you can't. You realize you can't control your passion for gardening, and even worse, you realize you don't want to control it!

And, thanks to Jay, that garden's getting bigger and bigger every day....at least in your mind and in your plans.

Around the new year, when "they" are preoccupied with their college football bowl game/NFL championship game/NFL Super Bowl and such, you'll quietly put on your team sweatshirt and sit on the couch and watch the game....but in your mind, it isn't winter and football that you're thinking about, it is seed-starting and the time is now! Or, at least, it is close. Why, if it is January, surely you've already sent Dixondale your order, and if not now, then when?

So, see what you've gone and made me do? Now you're getting to Paula too. Where does it end, Jay, where does it end?

Dawn

:)

well-done

"I'll never be like that because I can stop anytime I want". They always say the first sign of addiction is denial. I remember when a friend whose garden was growing in size said the same thing. A few years later when I still had some control myself I reminded them of what they said. And was told to read her lips. And she said I said anytime I want and I don't want too. That is my boat now. My family and even friends wonder why I spend so much time gardening but also appreciate the produce they get. Of course this year my sister is beginning to wonder when the tomatoes will start coming.
Another sign is when you can't wait to check the mailbox to see if a new catalog has arrived. But when someone says something about you receiving so many you say I can't figure out how I got on all of those lists. But just let them throw away one of the 20 plus and you'll notice it before you turn in to sleep. And the seed companies are like the people selling Christmas goodies. Start earlier every year. Now we can blame them for keeping our addiction growing. And then when they why weren't you at the wedding you were invited too and you say oh I didn't feel like going. When the truth is you wanted to take advantage of the nice fall day and spend it in the garden. And then when they say you were seen in the garden you reply I just went out to check on it and time got away.

It is nice to be around a bunch of fellow addicts. Because we all need company and a non addict can never understand. Jay

Oh my! I was reading Dawn's symptoms of the disease, and I was getting paranoid, but now I know it wasn't me she was describing because I asked for potting soil for my birthday, not Christmas. Another reason I know it isn't me is that my DH actually helped me enlarge the garden.

I do love my peppers and tomatoes, and I can grow some great peppers, but I still have a lot to learn about tomatoes. Mine always look pretty good until about the time they are loaded with fruit, then they get kind of embarassing looking. Mine are never those big full, dark green beauties that others grow.....but then we don't go hungry....and maybe I should move that fence out and just enlarge a "little bit" to make room for more peppers. Well....you know.....now that I am roasting a few.

Scott, Thank you. I had fun describing my gardening addiction. Of course, that doesn't mean I'm ready to enter a 12-step program yet.

Jay, Denial? Me? No, never. I'll just freely admit it. I am totally and completely addicted to gardening and to eating all the yummy food we raise in the garden, and my addiction is stronger and deeper every year.

I dream of being able to raise ALL our veggies (well, can't grow avocados and celery here) and being able to sail past the produce section of the grocery store because there is nothing there we "need".

Carol, I think I might have been describing you too. LOL

And, as for the appearance of tomatoes, my plants look their best about the third week in June. That's when the foliage still looks gorgeous, there are still some blooms, and the plants are covered in fruit. From that point on, they go straight downhill. By late August (and even earlier in a drought year), I'm embarassed for anyone to look at the plants themselves. What matters, though, is that they produce tomatoes....which they do!

And, if you move the fence and enlarge the garden a "little bit", you might as well enlarge it "a lot" because we'll keep discussing varieties all winter long, and that leads to the illness known as "gotta grow it too".

Dawn

Dawn - I have laughed 'til I cried this morning over your description of our journey into addiction!!! Back at work after a 4-day weekend to work the fruits of our labor. Let me tell ya, while water-bathing those jars all I could think of was "what about next year?" "what and how many do I need to grow to make this recipe?"....I didn't realize it, but now that I look back, I've had this disease a while. Last year for my birthday, I asked for, and got, the little rolling stool with the swivel tractor-seat (it also has a tray underneath!). Great comfort for picking green beans or peppers or planting! I should have known then!

Jay - I'd be very honored and happy if you'd share some seeds!!! What do I need to do? I've saved to my "favorites" the post from earlier this year with the list and position of all that you had planted! Dawn's list is right after it!

I also read earlier this year that a "Seed Swap" meeting might be held. I don't really have much to offer like that but would love to attend just to be around other gardeners!!! um....wait! I do/will have seeds for what I call Egyptian Vine! The nursery's around here call it "Hydrangea Bean". I have them in white and purle. I've got to get that Photoshop account set up so I can post pictures!

I would handle a seed swap (within this forum) if anyone is interested. I know a lot of people are seed savers, and also a lot of the better pricing on seeds is when you buy in quantity. Some of those packages are big enough for four or five people but are $4 or $5 also.

Maybe we could have a rule like send 25 trial size packs and get back 25 packs. Not a lot of seeds, but maybe 10-12 of a tomato or pepper or melon, 30-40 of a bean or pea, etc. A size pack that you would be likely to plant in a year. We would need to have them clearly marked as to wheather they are Hybrid or OP for the seed savers. In the wedding department at Walmart you can buy small plastic bags very cheaply and you could either stick on a label or slide one inside.

We could decide if we wanted to do flowers also, or just veggies.

Everyone could send their seeds to me in a bubble mailer with an address label inside and a couple of stamps for the return trip, and I would sort and return. We could pick a month to send them in and then as soon as I had them all, I could send them back out. You could even post a wish list if you wanted to and if someone could fill that particular thing, they could just put your name on a little pack when they send it in. Anyone interested?

LOL, Dawn, you really do know.

I'd like some of that Egyptian Vine, p-mac!

IS there a seed-swap get-together planned? I need to know ahead of time 'cause I'm old.

I should have also said......this thread is NOT for signup, but is just added here asking about interest and discussing if we want to do it and what we want to do. If there is interest, then I will start a new thread and start making a spreadsheet of players.

Paula,

I probably could have gone on and on forever, but I knew fellow gardening addicts would understand based on what I did write.

I grow both the purple and white-flowered hyacinth beans most years (only purple this year) and they sound like your Egyptian vine. The blooms of the purple-flowered ones do look a lot like wisteria vines.

Dawn

Soonergrandmom - that is so gracious of you to volunteer. I'll watch for a thread about this soon!

Dawn - does your's smell almost like cinnamon? And you're right, I goofed. It is the hyacinth beans, not hydrangea.

Ilene - I've got lots of pods so by sometime late November I'll have plenty of seed. Depending on our seed-swap, I make arrangements to get some to you! I passed them out to any and everyone I could this year! They're such a pretty plant and so easy to care for!

okie dokie! If the get-together doesn't come together, just click on my forum name and that will provide you with a way to e-mail me.

I'm surprised to hear that cucumber will volunteer. The seed packets are always so specific about waiting till the ground has warmed after the last frost. Seems I learn something on this forum nearly every day!