Garlic scapes! One of the treasures of the veg garden. I recommend grinding them up into pesto with some pine nuts, oil, and lemon zest. I freeze for making winter calzones and pastas, but it's also a good spread, or dip flavoring.
What a wonderful way to live boy you’re so lucky to have all the land to do what you’ve shown. Anyway, I had the best corn crop this year thanks to you. I kept tapping the corn stalks for pollen and boy did I have some large ears. Not all large but the sweetest corn. Thanks for the lessons on how to raise corn. I have shared your suggestions to many many friends and educated them on growing a garden. The love of growing things is very contagious. Next year I intend to grow more flower baskets to sell and I just increase the room in my greenhouse to hang them. I love watching you everyday before my day starts. You can’t imagine how you light up this 76 year old man’s day. Keep doing what you love and I will keep sharing your videos to every and every one who will listen to me
Glad I'm not the only one bringing out a chair, sitting in the beans and tomatoes, joyfully looking out on the greenery. This is a particular treat as we're balcony gardeners in the middle of Berlin. Sadly, it has been windy and cloudy for days now so things are a bit slow.
Don't forget to bring back in the chair. I did that when I was harvesting my hops off my balcony with a mountain top view last year and I left it outside and forgot about it. I ruined the finish when it rained on it. Now I get to refinish it so it's in my workshop.
Your beautiful personality makes your garden tours such a joy...all your other videos too.🙂 Your garden is thriving with health and yumminess! It's lovely! So glad you are having a great year in the garden. In Central Texas still planting summer squash, cucumber, etc. I have my fall-winter seeds sown in starter cells to go out in a month or so.🙂
Boy you make every day for me. Your excitement is so amazing and you get me excited to run out to the garden. Thanks again for your videos I only wish I lived near you to be at your side learning. I’ve learned so much from you and my garden is the best I have ever had thanks to your suggestions. My tomatoes are 4 feet tall already and the peppers are blossoming as well as the tomatoes. Don’t get me started on my zucchini great great garden thanks to you. Keep the videos coming
I’m in my second year growing and loving it more and more. I have a pumpkin bigger than a bowling ball, tomatoes turning red, I’ve still got strawberries forming, and I get to cook with my own grown onions and garlic. I’ve learned so much this year that I can take forward and make next year better. I ALWAYS need more French beans! I so wish I had a big area to build a kitchen garden like yours but I am in 6th place for an allotment!
GrowVeg, you inspire my garden of the future. You are honest, truthful and show the harvest. Best youtube gardening channel of 2022? It's my gold medal winner. Thank you, you are wonderful.
Ben, you are right about picking the sweet corn and then RUNNING to the boiling pot. However … there is an even BETTER way! I grew up in corn country, and run & dunk was what we always did. Then I learned about roasting and it changed my life! (Well, that may be a bit of hyperbole!!!) I don’t grow corn, but I have a fresh supply just up the street, and on holidays in farm country I can get corn that’s very fresh as well. Here’s what I do: 1. Put the corn (in the husks) into a bucket of water. Let the ears soak for a few hours. 2. Prepare a fire - it can be a grill, a campfire, a fire pit - it doesn’t matter. 3. When ready to cook the corn, put them on a grill on top of the fire or, if it’s a camp fire and you have no grill, straight into good coals. 4. Roast until most of the leaves are quite brown to just black. 5. Shuck the corn, placing the leaves into a bag or other container. 6. Roll the ears in butter, season with salt, pepper or whatever seasoning you prefer. 7. Enjoy, wipe the butter off your face and grab another ear!
That was beautiful, Ben! As you mentioned, the best thing is the surprise when you discover something has popped out or ripened where there was nothing a few days ago.
In the Finger Lakes of New York State we've had a crazy year for gardening. We had late frosts followed by drought and heat. July was one of the wettest ever with 6" of rain in 4 hours. That was followed by rain every other day with high temps. August began a bit cooler with lots of sunshine and now (the 2nd week) it's cooler by about 20 degrees and rain predicted for every other day again! Nothing produced well until the last 2 weeks and now I have.cherry and heirloom tomatoes, peppers and miniature peppers, cucumbers and green beans. The eggplants have finally started to grow and I am keeping my fingers crossed for late frosts.
The envy of seeing such a beautiful garden is taking over me. Competition invades me too and my waist says enough! Thank you very much for sharing the success of your endeavor!
My mouth is dropping with excitement! You see I live in southeast Texas. In July or August everything is no no other than hot peppers. Even the seeds packageds are so wrong. My only hope is 3 months from now. Thank you for making my day. Lovely garden! God bless!
I’ve been using this garden planner for several years and absolutely love working on it when the cold winter days keep me inside. Daydreaming about the following summer’s garden.
I love your enthusiastic nature. Beautiful garden and thank you for all the tips. Many people in my family are great gardeners but they don't teach me a thing. So I'm learning from you! Thank you for sharing. 🌈
I was looking for something pleasant to watch on this Sunday morning, and found your totally delightful garden tour from a few months back. Your garden is lovely (I'm sitting in a chair and enjoying it on screen!) and your enthusiasm is infectious. Thank you so much!
Mmmmm....beautiful garden, & loved the new trick of self pollinating the 🌽 & tomatoes 😀 especially useing an electric toothbrush 😂. But yes l like the shake...shake...shake of the corn, never thought of it. Even self pollinating the tomatoes as l only knew about self pollinating the 🎃, squash,& 🥒 cucumber but l suppose one has to self pollinate anything then reamy that has a 🌼. Thankyou so much for sharing, am really envious of your lovely garden & especially your bean archway 🤗 Thankyou so much for sharing. Greetings from South 🇿🇦 Africa.
This yet is my 3rd seeing planting the tubers. now 3 Hugh ones... that developed after I grew some from seed originally. In fact they generally have fared better than standard dahlias that either got eaten by slugs or as this year rotted b4 they cud flower.🙈
I retired and moved into a very small valley in the mountains of eastern Oregon US. The tiny backyard had a wooden deck and two abandoned raised beds. I’m working hard and thanks to your videos it’s going on 3 years of lovely food and flower beds, a joy to sit and watch it grow ( as well as eat ). Funny you would mention Portland in this video. The best garden video host I’ve found. Thanks so very much for your smile and information. 🤗
Shuck the outer leaves off your corn cobs, but leave about two layers. Soak your corn for an hour or so in water, then place them on the grill. The leaves might burn off and leave some marks on the kernels, but the steaming in the leaves with some grilling really tastes nice. If the corn is past its prime, then the roasting gives the kernels a nutty flavor. Mmmmm.
I really enjoy your fantastic mix of pure enthusiasm as well as a sort of calmness to your narrating. It is quite therapeutic to watch your videos, as well as really inspiring and educative. Keep up the great work :)
So heartening to see pictures of your beautiful garden in the midst of my winter. It give me hope for the coming months, that the sun will still shine and the Earth will again warm...
Excellent, Ben. Always enjoy your videos. Today it's throwing it down here in Johannesburg so we are housebound - no digging in the dirt today, but the rain always brings on a spurt of growth. Something to look forward to when the weather breaks!
I've not had the time to spend at the allotment that I wanted this year, so my partner has been popping over every few days to water the greenhouse... I've been rewarded for my neglect with monster marrows, leeks and celery, gluts of tomatoes and beetroot and so much rhubarb I can't make crumbles quick enough! It's not always hard graft that does the trick :D
I didn't realize this was from a year ago - I hope this year's bounty has been just as exuberant! What a lovely start to my rainy morning here in Guelph, Ontario Canada. I must admit my garden did not go according to plan, though if gardens could be sown purely on the optimism of the gardener, I would have heaps of goodness! Next year I think I will move to raised bed/container gardening to cut back on the amount of weeds. I look forward to more of your informative and inspiring videos, Ben!
Thanks so much for your lovely comment. As you say, gardeners are an optimistic bunch and this year's disappointments are next year's inspiration to do better! :-)
With pickles, the sky is the limit! I always add fresh herbs, and not just dill, to my pickles. I also like to add a small hot pepper or garlic, sometimes both, to my pickles. Plus, I always cold can ferment mine. I’ve never written down a recipe for them, I just make sure that I add 1 full table spoon of salt to each quart jar I fill.
Glad to see i was not the only one cursing the late start we got last year. I thought i was just being useless but to see you note it to eases my green fingered anguish. Lovely presentation Ben, good luck with your garden this year.
Pickle the nasturtium seedpods along with the gherkins. Add some dill and a bayleaf with peppercorns and mustard seeds. What varieties of tomato do you recommend for outside?
I did not know that about nasturium seeds! I have nasturium everywhere, we eat them in salad. I harvest seeds from almost everything for next seasons garden. Saves $ € £ ¥!
There are so many outdoor tomatoes you could try, and it really depends on where you are in the world, as some varieties are better suited to some areas than others. I grow 'Moneymaker' a lot - an old, tried-and-tested variety.
So good to see such abundance after a very slow start , I’m thrilled to have been harvesting some lovely vegetables already this year in my garden too.
You are so fun to watch!!! We have a pretty amazing pickling recipe! We tweaked it so it is sugar free and low salt. People go nuts over them. We made about 34 jars this year!
The zucchini are taking over. 3 varieties. Time to share! My garlic harvest was awesome. Onions not bad, was a bit wet for them. Both are hung to dry. Carrots good. Tomatoes good. Winter squash and corn coming along nicely. Loads of other stuff on the grow. Thank you for the tour!
I have made so many jars of pickled and fermented gherkins. Crazily abundant harvest. My favourite so far are the sour dill fermented pickles, less faff too than pickling but just don’t last as long. For the pickling I have used lots of different spice combinations, with ACV and sugar. Remember to add a few grape or oak leaves for the tannin content as that keeps them crunchy. I water bath can all of my pickles. I have so many jars that I’m hoping they’ll last all year.
I have been watching and re watching loads of Ben's videos. Very informative, energetic, enthusiastic and quite meditative at the same time. Keep up the good work. 👍
I love gardening. I am making gold tomato salsa tomorrow and this week I will start a ferment of my red cayenne and ripe jalapeños to make a slightly sweet hot sauce my family is bonkers for.
Ben, your enthusiasm is infectious, and I always enjoy your videos. It also looks like you have quite a bit of property and, if I'm not mistaken, you make a living out of gardening and your great videos. How about some videos for people who have day jobs, who can't or don't want to spend this much time on their gardens. Have you done any like that? I think it would be very useful. Keep up the excellent and inspiring work! Theresa SF Bay Area
The raised beds make life a lot easier it has to be said, while the chippings on the path remove the need to mow between them. I don't get to spend nearly as much time in the garden as I'd like! You might find this playlist useful: ruclips.net/p/PL3VEy0_tuFgQhuPkhdjRZKB4CpzqDGKUl And check out these videos on time-saving tips: ruclips.net/video/nG2UntRMw3E/видео.html and ruclips.net/video/bDctH3WyNwo/видео.html
1 bottle green ginger wine (750 ml) enough small gerkins to fill a quart jar, brown sugar ( 2 Tbl sp ) salt (8 Tbl Sp ) toss all into jar and leave for a week or 3 in the fridge the left over juice can be reduced to a sauce base with the addition of a Tbl Sp of corn flour , goes well in stir fries ( glazed gingered pork )
This year for our bountiful crop of gerkins, have fermented some to make dill pickles, canned some for sweet relish, and made cucumber salad with the others!
Thank you for your honesty. Everything of mine is at least 3-4 weeks behind what it usually is. I find it reassuring that someone on RUclips shows the reality of a slow season. That being said, your garden is wonderful and the beans and corn are tremendous! Pickle variations - why not try star anise rather than dill? I also pickle rhubarb (for next year?) Thank you for your uplifting videos.
Such a beautiful garden space! I have had good luck trellising squashes, not courgettes yet, but Acorn, Spaghetti, and Butternut squash. I do, also remove all the lower leaves off my tomatoes. Brings in more ventilation and staves off molds and other fungi.
As with the flowers in your beds, your videos spread summertime joy, thank you for sharing your garden tour! I wish I remembered to remove the tops of my indeterminate tomatoes as they are 6-7' high now. Congrats on your fabulous garden!
I'm with you on the corn. First I grew sweet corn. Then I grew a grain corn. Lately I pick up lots of animal corn at work. Next year is going to be awesome.
Yes, this is our reward time! Great garden this summer overall. Have 2nd planting corn 5' high already & 2nd planting tomatoes to go into the fall, hoping diseases from the first planting do not spread. Watermelon a total bust. Have 2nd planting in, hoping for a go. Zone 7b USA.
This is really inspiring. I am sure that so many others will agree with me that your enthusiasm is really inspiring and encouraging. Absolutely love this video.
Wow, I love your garden! I'd love to have that many flowers in mine. I've had a few tragedies this year: verticillium wilt killing potatoes and powdery mildew killing squash, but overall it's been a good year. In June I commented that my Swiss chard didn't seem interested in growing more than 5 inches, but that has really changed! It's been my most successful leaf vegetable this year. I'm also enjoying excellent harvests of beans, okra, and tomatoes.
I got over 600 tomatoes from six varieties, 18 plants total. I've made 60 pints of tomato and spaghetti sauce which I've frozen in the deep freezer. Its been a good season with carrots, lettuce, chard, cornfield pole beans, crowder and black eyed peas and butternut squash.
Last year i ordered seeds from Uk....so i have lots to choose from..now if i lived in Uk i could give seedlings and receive ,something which can be done here seldom as near me i done have people who do that...only one does...i was the one who gave lots of tomatoes and i took rose seedlings!
I think the heat in southern CA, 50 miles east of L.A., has affected many of my plants. The green beans were coming along nicely, for example. I was watering them regularly, then they developed rust or burn...I fed them too with Miracle Grow, which I don't usually do so, maybe the burn look came from the fertilizer. I've shaded the peppers and Purple Cherokee tomato plants. I'm going to follow your advice and pinch off the tops and side shoots of the Cherokees because they have grown tall, but not flowering like they did at first. I've opened the shading so that the pollinators can get at them in the mornings. I've noticed way less bees than last year and not one swarm. We always get a swarm. I wonder if the heat isn't affecting them too. My garden, as well as most of my neighbors have plants that attract bees and butterflies so I'm guessing the heat is the problem. 2023 has been a garden challenge for me.
Always a joy to watch your videos and see how well your garden is doing, I’m erecting new trellis for my climbers and tilled the soil ready for a wide a range of wild flowers on four separate plots in and around both the front garden and back garden. Hopefully by mid year they should all come into bloom and my veg crop will be on the way too, it’s lovely to hear from all the other gardeners and what they’re doing 😁
Most things in my garden seem to b on the way out/nearly over and there was a distinct feeling of sutum on its way today i thought. East Riding UK.i grew a bell pepper on the kitchen window sill n moved it outside in June. It had lots of little green peppers arrive but all but one fell off/got eaten.I grew broad beans (planted very late) for first time I. really had no clue how they grew. Sadly I also had no clue about black fly n lost most to theyn plus drought I think.. The place where the bean grows had just a blackened scrap. My runners were huuugh, as were the leaves as I didn't know about pinching out tips. As usual I had a wonderful red currant harvest n the freezer is now full!!I agree with everyone that Ur videos Ben are the easiest to understand n learn from by far. Thank you
Honestly John - I've had my share of failures: bolting fennel bulbs, tomato blight (just as the fruits were ripening!), onion downy mildew etc. No garden is perfect alas!
Another lovely enthusiastic tour, thanks a lot Ben! I'm fortunate to be up in the Algarve hills where the heat-lovers, the tomatoes, peppers and aubergines especially, have been cropping profusely for some weeks now. One of the varieties of tomatoes I've been growing for the last few years in tomberry, a tiny variety which makes the cherry varieties look big! Has anyone tried this type? They're delicious thrown whole in green salads. I also wondered if you had tried growing in your greenhouse two plants which are doing very well here this year out in the open, tomatillo (physalis) and okra (or ladies' fingers). Tomatillo is the basis of a delicious Mexican-style 'salsa verde' and young okra is delicious cut into small chunks and tossed in salted olive oil.
@@GrowVeg Keep in mind okras grow very large and need to be harvested frequently. Line up a group of friends with whom you can share or prepare to eat gumbo and sautéed okra by the bucketload for several weeks.
Really enjoy watching your garden tours, passion and tips. Your garden looks lovely and full of delicious fresh food. Thank you for all the useful tips and sharing your garden with us
Thanks so much for that. Please do check out our playlists on container gardening: ruclips.net/p/PL3VEy0_tuFgQhuPkhdjRZKB4CpzqDGKUl and vertical gardening: ruclips.net/p/PL3VEy0_tuFgRqQHH9WVw7SeIKevTnVzYh
Late spring here in south texas saw lots of promise with my peppers, tomatoes, chard and herbs. was able to harvest some carrots too. June hit with a vengeance and we’ve had over 20 days with over 100 degrees (we normally have only 3-4). with heat index numbers running as high as 125 my motivation to get outside has waned and will be yanking everything soon and wait for fall.
I love watching your video first year for us growing our own fruit veg herbs saled and we've had loads so far my kids are loving it bless you for all your help and tips 😊🙏
Really enjoy these videos! They inspire me and sometimes even educate me. After 40 years of gardening, there's not a lot I haven't experienced in a small vegetable plot. We pickled some cukes, daikon radish and beets this week. Didn't take too long and it wasn't too warm a task for our hot Oregon days.
I LOVE to watch your super informative videos! I thoroughly enjoy your enthusiasm and knowledge. I’m a fairly new gardener and refer to your information often. I love listening to you speak and seeing Rosey help! Thank you so much for your time and information!!
It's so cool that you've been to Portland! It's always a surprise to hear people mention it 😄I hope when you were there you got a chance to pop over to Hood River and visit the Fruit Loop! My family loves to go there and pick cherries in the summer (there's nothing like eating fresh sun-warm cherries right off the tree while you pick huge buckets full!) But of course there's all kinds of berries and fruits, especially apples and pears towards fall.
@@GrowVeg Yeah! I hope you get a chance to see it 😄 I It's a really pretty drive as well - as the name suggests, it's a 35-mile "loop" of roads that connects all these farms, fruit stands, vineyards, and tasting rooms, all with breathtaking views of the other side of Mt. Hood (it looks so different from the side you see from Portland!). Also, I've never been able to try it myself, but apparently they have amazing pear wine and all sorts of fruit wines at the wineries. And on your way down to Hood River from Portland, I definitely recommend stopping at Multnomah Falls and the Vista House at Crown Point! They're both two of the jewels of the Columbia River Gorge 😄
Not sure about anywhere else but I know sweet corn is a staple for Americans in summer. Salt pepper and butter right off the cob. Can’t wait till I can get some seeds in the ground! I have also heard to not cover the roots on the bottom that get exposed??? Interested to hear if you have heard that. I didn’t last year and they did very well. Great videos and thank you!
Thanks for sharing that. I was always told to cover them to offer support, but interesting you've heard the opposite. I may leave them as they are this year to compare, thanks.
Appreciate your videos! Probably suggested before but I let my leeks flower beside my pumpkins, unbelievable amount of bees turned up, no interference with light, perfect companion?
Roast the scapes. Cut them into 6" (15-16 cm) long pieces, toss them in a bit of olive oil, lightly salt, then - after roasting (hot oven) - grind a bit of pepper on them. They're amazing just like that or cut up into a salad or stirred into a bowl of grains. One of my favorite summer foods.
I lived in what is called the garden state where our main crop was corn. I was taught the best way to eat corn is RAW right off the stalk. Try it sometime you will not have to boil them anymore. Love all your videos thanks.
@@GrowVeg thanks to you and your great tip I have gone mad this yr and loving every minute of watching and wait for all my crops to grow and talk to than lol thanks Ben for your great tips much appreciated and will have alot more planned for later
What a beautiful little kitchen garden. I wish I would have so much space to grow vegetables. My balcony has a propper size for some pots and little high beds - but not enough for real self sufficiency. So I use the height to grow beans, peas, gherkins, zucchinis, tomatoes, peppers and some eggplants. Next year I wanna try Sugar Baby watermelons because my balcony has full sun from late morning till sunset and gets pretty hot in summer. 😉 Here in southern Germany, we had the same trouble with longtime cold till freezy spring until end of may. So planting and sowing outside was really late. My indoor sown plants became long and longer so I put them outside during the day and back inside most evenings to keep them propper growing. June was very hot and dry. So many plants grew hardly and threw off their flowers. Beetroot and cellery stayed small with little bulbs. July was too cold and much too wet. Nevertheless plants grew a little better. Good summer season started mid August till Octobre. This was the time tomatoes got red, eggplants got fruits to ripen. Late summer was the best time of the year. Salads and spinach grew well in autumn. Tomatoe blight was no problem for me because of the covered balcony. Others lost most of their plants in the gardens. Additional I could keep some plants inside till the fruits became completely red. So I have fresh cocktail tomatoes in Decembre. That's cool. I hope next year will work a little better. I'm allready planing my sowing and planting for next season while I'm still harvesting some fresh little autumn carrots, beetroots and salads from my balcony pots now in mid Decembre. We allready had pretty much snow. I covered the pots with mulch, use bubble foil over night and as a rain shield. I just tried and hoped it would work. It does. 😊 It's my first time winter gardening. I just found your channel and look forward to see more of your gardening videos.
It sounds like your balcony is really productive Christiane. Well done on getting so much from your space - that's inspirational, it really is. It's great to have you watching the channel - really appreciate your support. Happy gardening! :-)
I've been using your garden planner for years now and I can honestly say if I don't use it my garden is always a mess. Thanks for creating such a useful product that's easy to use and so very effective. God bless.
Watching your video this morning was so uplifting - thank you. I am afraid that although I have and use your garden planner, I still over plant 😕. I grow too much and then have to find somewhere to put it, and the result of this of course is over crowding. I kick myself every year but never seem to learn. When a new year comes around my enthusiasm out weights my ground space. Bearing in mind I grow all my veg on an allotment (it’s not a big one, just 20m x 20m) you would think I would do better. I particularly love your runner bean arch and if I can cadge some old pig netting from someone I will be making one next year. It would also be good for the butternut squash - think I will need some strong poles and cross beams to hold them up though. My sweet corn should have been shaken - like an idiot I left the wind to do it and some of the cobs are not particularly good. I would like to say we live and learn - for some reason that bypasses me 😬. Thanks again for your happy and informative video - happy gardening and eating.
I have a small urban garden n never manage to leave appropriate space around plants...I wish I had more space as I seem to spend most of my time playing chess with them to try to fit them in. I'll try the garden planner Ben suggests but fear it will only,,'allow' me one or two plants,!!!
The Garden Planner is really useful for getting spacings right. It's often frustrating knowing I can't plant as much as I'd like, but it does discipline you into planting at the right spacings so plants thrive. The bean arch was great fun to make and looks really great once covered - a real feature. It's quite easy to make one.
I am starting to really enjoy my garden now, our summer was horrific- the rain & weird weather was just so hard. We are now in Autumn so all the brassicas etc will take off. Wish I could grow beetroots but having struggled the last couple of attempts, it won't deter me from trying again though. Cheers Denise- Australia
Hi, I’m going to be a complete beginner next January. Bed are made. Soil and compost is to be delivered next week. Love your enthusiasm, it’s very contagious. Do you have a cooking channel too 😁
Hi Tammy - very best of luck with your new gardening journey. Most importantly, enjoy it! We don't have a cooking channel, but if you look among our videos we have a few cooking/preserving-themed videos. Check out the most recent video on green tomatoes - two stellar recipes in there for fried green tomatoes and green tomato chutney.
Ben I forgot to say that I have been using Epsom salts on some of my veg this year. When I planted my tomatoes and peppers I added a scoop to the potting mixture and they have been tremendous. You can still use it now by sprinkling a tablespoon around the roots or dissolving it in water and spraying the foliage. Used it on my courgettes and butternut squash too and they have gone crazy.
@@le2584 I have to admit that it does sound that way from the name, but Epsom Salts is a natural mineral compound of magnesium and sulfur - often referred to as magnesium subcategory. Apparently, Epsom Salt is highly soluble and easily taken up by plants when combined with water and sprayed on leaves. When added to soil additive it becomes soluble with soil moisture and is drawn up through the roots. I have to admit that I am not that clever! I just like reading up on stuff - most of which I have forgotten by the time I stand up 🤣. BUT this year I used it on my tomatoes and peppers and they have seriously out performed all other years. One of my beef steak tomatoes weighed 1.255kg. I wish I could attach a photo. Give it a go!
@@traceytaylor2041 For foliar spray during the season, add two tablespoons (42 grams) of Epsom salts to a gallon (3.8 litres) of water and mix well, then put it into a sprayer and spray once a month. Or if you want to spray more often, half the quantity of Epsom Salts and dissolve in one gallon of water. If you can find a website called Harvest to Table you will find this info and more. Happy growing 👍😀
Interesting Vanessa. I've never used Epsom salts myself but have heard great things about it. I may give it a try next year - sounds like it does wonders!
Garlic scapes! One of the treasures of the veg garden. I recommend grinding them up into pesto with some pine nuts, oil, and lemon zest. I freeze for making winter calzones and pastas, but it's also a good spread, or dip flavoring.
Sounds totally delicious!
I recommend eating them straight off the plant.
Thanks for sharing, sounds really good
never heard of calzones
What a wonderful way to live boy you’re so lucky to have all the land to do what you’ve shown. Anyway, I had the best corn crop this year thanks to you. I kept tapping the corn stalks for pollen and boy did I have some large ears. Not all large but the sweetest corn. Thanks for the lessons on how to raise corn. I have shared your suggestions to many many friends and educated them on growing a garden. The love of growing things is very contagious. Next year I intend to grow more flower baskets to sell and I just increase the room in my greenhouse to hang them. I love watching you everyday before my day starts. You can’t imagine how you light up this 76 year old man’s day. Keep doing what you love and I will keep sharing your videos to every and every one who will listen to me
That is so lovely to hear, thank you for your lovely comment. Great you’ve got great corn this year - top job.
Glad I'm not the only one bringing out a chair, sitting in the beans and tomatoes, joyfully looking out on the greenery. This is a particular treat as we're balcony gardeners in the middle of Berlin. Sadly, it has been windy and cloudy for days now so things are a bit slow.
Don't forget to bring back in the chair. I did that when I was harvesting my hops off my balcony with a mountain top view last year and I left it outside and forgot about it. I ruined the finish when it rained on it. Now I get to refinish it so it's in my workshop.
Me too! My husband asks what are you doing?
My response: looking at my plants! Hehe
Being surrounded by greenery is a real joy!
L
Me too! I drag a chair out to admire my 3 small gardens. Lol
Your beautiful personality makes your garden tours such a joy...all your other videos too.🙂
Your garden is thriving with health and yumminess! It's lovely! So glad you are having a great year in the garden.
In Central Texas still planting summer squash, cucumber, etc. I have my fall-winter seeds sown in starter cells to go out in a month or so.🙂
Thank you Valorie. It sounds like you have a great feast to come from your fall seeds - lots to look forward to!
I totally agree with all you've said about this delightful gentleman and his gardens ❤
Your genuine enthusiasm is both appreciated AND inspiring. Thank you from Nova Scotia. 🇨🇦
Cheers so much! :-)
Boy you make every day for me. Your excitement is so amazing and you get me excited to run out to the garden. Thanks again for your videos I only wish I lived near you to be at your side learning. I’ve learned so much from you and my garden is the best I have ever had thanks to your suggestions. My tomatoes are 4 feet tall already and the peppers are blossoming as well as the tomatoes. Don’t get me started on my zucchini great great garden thanks to you. Keep the videos coming
Oh wow - sounds like you are off to a great start this summer. Keep up the good work! :-)
I’m in my second year growing and loving it more and more. I have a pumpkin bigger than a bowling ball, tomatoes turning red, I’ve still got strawberries forming, and I get to cook with my own grown onions and garlic. I’ve learned so much this year that I can take forward and make next year better. I ALWAYS need more French beans! I so wish I had a big area to build a kitchen garden like yours but I am in 6th place for an allotment!
I hope you get your allotment soon - that will certainly keep you busy and your fingers dirty!
GrowVeg, you inspire my garden of the future. You are honest, truthful and show the harvest. Best youtube gardening channel of 2022? It's my gold medal winner. Thank you, you are wonderful.
That is so kind of you to say - thanks so much for watching!
Ben, you are right about picking the sweet corn and then RUNNING to the boiling pot. However … there is an even BETTER way! I grew up in corn country, and run & dunk was what we always did. Then I learned about roasting and it changed my life! (Well, that may be a bit of hyperbole!!!)
I don’t grow corn, but I have a fresh supply just up the street, and on holidays in farm country I can get corn that’s very fresh as well. Here’s what I do:
1. Put the corn (in the husks) into a bucket of water. Let the ears soak for a few hours.
2. Prepare a fire - it can be a grill, a campfire, a fire pit - it doesn’t matter.
3. When ready to cook the corn, put them on a grill on top of the fire or, if it’s a camp fire and you have no grill, straight into good coals.
4. Roast until most of the leaves are quite brown to just black.
5. Shuck the corn, placing the leaves into a bag or other container.
6. Roll the ears in butter, season with salt, pepper or whatever seasoning you prefer.
7. Enjoy, wipe the butter off your face and grab another ear!
That does sound delicious - and several others have recommended a similar method. I'll be trying it out for sure!
I would try spicy garlic dill gerkin with a usual brine for dill pickles but add more garlic and a cayenne pepper or other hot pepper in the jar.
your content is the best for me traditional farmer to learn a lot 🇲🇨
That was beautiful, Ben! As you mentioned, the best thing is the surprise when you discover something has popped out or ripened where there was nothing a few days ago.
In the Finger Lakes of New York State we've had a crazy year for gardening. We had late frosts followed by drought and heat. July was one of the wettest ever with 6" of rain in 4 hours. That was followed by rain every other day with high temps. August began a bit cooler with lots of sunshine and now (the 2nd week) it's cooler by about 20 degrees and rain predicted for every other day again! Nothing produced well until the last 2 weeks and now I have.cherry and heirloom tomatoes, peppers and miniature peppers, cucumbers and green beans. The eggplants have finally started to grow and I am keeping my fingers crossed for late frosts.
Sounds like a bit of a challenging summer! Ours has been very cool and wet, unlike southern Europe!
The envy of seeing such a beautiful garden is taking over me. Competition invades me too and my waist says enough! Thank you very much for sharing the success of your endeavor!
My mouth is dropping with excitement! You see I live in southeast Texas. In July or August everything is no no other than hot peppers. Even the seeds packageds are so wrong. My only hope is 3 months from now.
Thank you for making my day. Lovely garden! God bless!
Corn falling over? Here's something to try ... make yourself a vertical trellis. Works great for small home growers
I’ve been using this garden planner for several years and absolutely love working on it when the cold winter days keep me inside. Daydreaming about the following summer’s garden.
This man is so pure
I love your enthusiastic nature. Beautiful garden and thank you for all the tips. Many people in my family are great gardeners but they don't teach me a thing. So I'm learning from you! Thank you for sharing. 🌈
You're very welcome Diana. Thanks for watching. :-)
I was looking for something pleasant to watch on this Sunday morning, and found your totally delightful garden tour from a few months back. Your garden is lovely (I'm sitting in a chair and enjoying it on screen!) and your enthusiasm is infectious. Thank you so much!
You're so welcome Gayle. Thanks for letting me be a part of your Sunday morning. :-)
Mmmmm....beautiful garden, & loved the new trick of self pollinating the 🌽 & tomatoes 😀 especially useing an electric toothbrush 😂.
But yes l like the shake...shake...shake of the corn, never thought of it. Even self pollinating the tomatoes as l only knew about self pollinating the 🎃, squash,& 🥒 cucumber but l suppose one has to self pollinate anything then reamy that has a 🌼.
Thankyou so much for sharing, am really envious of your lovely garden & especially your bean archway 🤗
Thankyou so much for sharing.
Greetings from South 🇿🇦 Africa.
Thanks for watching Rina. Yes, tapping the corn to pollinate is the best tip I've learnt recently. The cobs had such a better fill.
What a lovely chap - fizzing with the enthusiasm of a gardener in mid summer. I can relate!
Cheers for that!
As a teen, I was lucky enough to have grilled corn on the ear fresh from the farm field at a party. Great treat.
Scapes are our favorite! We use them in omelettes, pesto, stir fries, salads... Yummmmy!!
Yummy indeed!
I've grown some lovely open flowered dahlias from seeds. There in pots and the bees love them!
This yet is my 3rd seeing planting the tubers. now 3 Hugh ones... that developed after I grew some from seed originally. In fact they generally have fared better than standard dahlias that either got eaten by slugs or as this year rotted b4 they cud flower.🙈
I retired and moved into a very small valley in the mountains of eastern Oregon US. The tiny backyard had a wooden deck and two abandoned raised beds. I’m working hard and thanks to your videos it’s going on 3 years of lovely food and flower beds, a joy to sit and watch it grow ( as well as eat ). Funny you would mention Portland in this video. The best garden video host I’ve found. Thanks so very much for your smile and information. 🤗
Thanks so much for your kind words. It sounds like you have a lovely garden. :-)
Shuck the outer leaves off your corn cobs, but leave about two layers. Soak your corn for an hour or so in water, then place them on the grill. The leaves might burn off and leave some marks on the kernels, but the steaming in the leaves with some grilling really tastes nice. If the corn is past its prime, then the roasting gives the kernels a nutty flavor. Mmmmm.
What a great tip - thanks for this! :-)
Thank you very much for this video :) I start from scratch in a smaller garden and I need all the inspiration I can get! /Anneli, Sweden
I really enjoy your fantastic mix of pure enthusiasm as well as a sort of calmness to your narrating. It is quite therapeutic to watch your videos, as well as really inspiring and educative. Keep up the great work :)
You are right. It is a busy time of year. Harvest time is so much fun.
When you tapped the Sweetcorn stems it reminded me of keeping plates spinning on rods :)
Haha yes, I know what you mean!
Thank you for this tour, so glad I'm not the only one so crazy in love with growing our food, we truly appreciate what you do!
Thanks Anthony!
So heartening to see pictures of your beautiful garden in the midst of my winter. It give me hope for the coming months, that the sun will still shine and the Earth will again warm...
It will soon. In the meantime we can dream!
Excellent, Ben. Always enjoy your videos. Today it's throwing it down here in Johannesburg so we are housebound - no digging in the dirt today, but the rain always brings on a spurt of growth. Something to look forward to when the weather breaks!
That's super Douglas - lots of fresh growth to look forward to.
I've not had the time to spend at the allotment that I wanted this year, so my partner has been popping over every few days to water the greenhouse... I've been rewarded for my neglect with monster marrows, leeks and celery, gluts of tomatoes and beetroot and so much rhubarb I can't make crumbles quick enough! It's not always hard graft that does the trick :D
Some crops you just can't hold back!
I didn't realize this was from a year ago - I hope this year's bounty has been just as exuberant! What a lovely start to my rainy morning here in Guelph, Ontario Canada. I must admit my garden did not go according to plan, though if gardens could be sown purely on the optimism of the gardener, I would have heaps of goodness!
Next year I think I will move to raised bed/container gardening to cut back on the amount of weeds. I look forward to more of your informative and inspiring videos, Ben!
Thanks so much for your lovely comment. As you say, gardeners are an optimistic bunch and this year's disappointments are next year's inspiration to do better! :-)
Your so clear on your instructions, thank you for your wisdom. ❣️🙏
With pickles, the sky is the limit!
I always add fresh herbs, and not just dill, to my pickles. I also like to add a small hot pepper or garlic, sometimes both, to my pickles. Plus, I always cold can ferment mine. I’ve never written down a recipe for them, I just make sure that I add 1 full table spoon of salt to each quart jar I fill.
Sounds like you're a natural at it Tondria. :-)
Glad to see i was not the only one cursing the late start we got last year. I thought i was just being useless but to see you note it to eases my green fingered anguish. Lovely presentation Ben, good luck with your garden this year.
Thanks so much. Feels like spring has sprung already!
Pickle the nasturtium seedpods along with the gherkins. Add some dill and a bayleaf with peppercorns and mustard seeds. What varieties of tomato do you recommend for outside?
I did not know that about nasturium seeds! I have nasturium everywhere, we eat them in salad. I harvest seeds from almost everything for next seasons garden. Saves $ € £ ¥!
They usually self seed in abundance. You can also East every part of them.. Flower, leaf, seed... But they can b very spicy,!!
There are so many outdoor tomatoes you could try, and it really depends on where you are in the world, as some varieties are better suited to some areas than others. I grow 'Moneymaker' a lot - an old, tried-and-tested variety.
@@GrowVeg Thanks for the tip! Great channel, very informative.
So good to see such abundance after a very slow start , I’m thrilled to have been harvesting some lovely vegetables already this year in my garden too.
You are so fun to watch!!! We have a pretty amazing pickling recipe! We tweaked it so it is sugar free and low salt. People go nuts over them. We made about 34 jars this year!
You've been busy!
The zucchini are taking over. 3 varieties. Time to share! My garlic harvest was awesome. Onions not bad, was a bit wet for them. Both are hung to dry. Carrots good. Tomatoes good. Winter squash and corn coming along nicely. Loads of other stuff on the grow. Thank you for the tour!
Glad you've had a productive season. My onions have sadly just got struck with mildew, but they're still useable at least.
I have made so many jars of pickled and fermented gherkins. Crazily abundant harvest. My favourite so far are the sour dill fermented pickles, less faff too than pickling but just don’t last as long. For the pickling I have used lots of different spice combinations, with ACV and sugar. Remember to add a few grape or oak leaves for the tannin content as that keeps them crunchy. I water bath can all of my pickles. I have so many jars that I’m hoping they’ll last all year.
I've never heard of adding grape or oak leaves for the tannin - what a genius tip, thank you!
As always, I love your energy and the way you teach us all! Looking forward to the gardening season!! Thank you SO much Ben!
You're very welcome - cheers for watching!
I have been watching and re watching loads of Ben's videos. Very informative, energetic, enthusiastic and quite meditative at the same time. Keep up the good work. 👍
I love gardening. I am making gold tomato salsa tomorrow and this week I will start a ferment of my red cayenne and ripe jalapeños to make a slightly sweet hot sauce my family is bonkers for.
Beautiful and inspiring lovely garden.
Absolutely love these videos! Please keep them coming. It is almost as much fun as having another enthusiastic gardener tour my oun garden or hers.
Ben, your enthusiasm is infectious, and I always enjoy your videos. It also looks like you have quite a bit of property and, if I'm not mistaken, you make a living out of gardening and your great videos. How about some videos for people who have day jobs, who can't or don't want to spend this much time on their gardens. Have you done any like that? I think it would be very useful. Keep up the excellent and inspiring work! Theresa SF Bay Area
The raised beds make life a lot easier it has to be said, while the chippings on the path remove the need to mow between them. I don't get to spend nearly as much time in the garden as I'd like! You might find this playlist useful: ruclips.net/p/PL3VEy0_tuFgQhuPkhdjRZKB4CpzqDGKUl And check out these videos on time-saving tips: ruclips.net/video/nG2UntRMw3E/видео.html and ruclips.net/video/bDctH3WyNwo/видео.html
Your enthusiasm is contagious. Beautiful garden.
Thanks Beth. :-)
Wonderful production of vid and garden! Going to look at the veg canning and freezing vids. 💚
1 bottle green ginger wine (750 ml) enough small gerkins to fill a quart jar, brown sugar ( 2 Tbl sp ) salt (8 Tbl Sp ) toss all into jar and leave for a week or 3 in the fridge
the left over juice can be reduced to a sauce base with the addition of a Tbl Sp of corn flour , goes well in stir fries ( glazed gingered pork )
Wonderful recommendation, thank you! :-)
Incredible! We never get the sizes that you do. This year, the deer, the chickens and the slugs have all taken a toll.
Gardening always feels like a bit of a battle against other hungry mouths!
This year for our bountiful crop of gerkins, have fermented some to make dill pickles, canned some for sweet relish, and made cucumber salad with the others!
Sounds yum!
Thank you for your honesty. Everything of mine is at least 3-4 weeks behind what it usually is. I find it reassuring that someone on RUclips shows the reality of a slow season. That being said, your garden is wonderful and the beans and corn are tremendous! Pickle variations - why not try star anise rather than dill? I also pickle rhubarb (for next year?) Thank you for your uplifting videos.
Thanks for the encouragement - and I love star anise, so might try that as you suggest.
My loose-leaf lettuce has already bolted from out mid 70-degree weather here in Mesa, AZ. I just planted potatoes in their place.
I added my garlic scapes to my pickle solution qnd it worked out well, you could use the garlic bulb instead if you wanted to save the scapes
Such a beautiful garden space! I have had good luck trellising squashes, not courgettes yet, but Acorn, Spaghetti, and Butternut squash.
I do, also remove all the lower leaves off my tomatoes. Brings in more ventilation and staves off molds and other fungi.
Yes, that's a smart move to remove some of lowest leaves on tomatoes. Thanks for watching. :-)
As with the flowers in your beds, your videos spread summertime joy, thank you for sharing your garden tour! I wish I remembered to remove the tops of my indeterminate tomatoes as they are 6-7' high now. Congrats on your fabulous garden!
Thank you - and thanks for watching!
That's hardly an average garden ! its enormous compared to the pocket handkerchief plot that is usually at the back of most modern boxes !
The bed area is relatively modest, but yes, I'm very lucky to have a good sized garden. :-)
I'm with you on the corn. First I grew sweet corn. Then I grew a grain corn. Lately I pick up lots of animal corn at work. Next year is going to be awesome.
Yes, this is our reward time! Great garden this summer overall. Have 2nd planting corn 5' high already & 2nd planting tomatoes to go into the fall, hoping diseases from the first planting do not spread. Watermelon a total bust. Have 2nd planting in, hoping for a go. Zone 7b USA.
Hope those second plantings do you proud!
Zone 8a USA here! My watermelon was a bust as well.
This is really inspiring. I am sure that so many others will agree with me that your enthusiasm is really inspiring and encouraging. Absolutely love this video.
The best corn is grown in Chilliwack BC on the outskirts of Vancouver
the garden planner is absolutely amazing
Wow, I love your garden! I'd love to have that many flowers in mine. I've had a few tragedies this year: verticillium wilt killing potatoes and powdery mildew killing squash, but overall it's been a good year. In June I commented that my Swiss chard didn't seem interested in growing more than 5 inches, but that has really changed! It's been my most successful leaf vegetable this year. I'm also enjoying excellent harvests of beans, okra, and tomatoes.
Once chard gets going, there's nothing to stop it. Glad it came good in the end.
I got over 600 tomatoes from six varieties, 18 plants total. I've made 60 pints of tomato and spaghetti sauce which I've frozen in the deep freezer. Its been a good season with carrots, lettuce, chard, cornfield pole beans, crowder and black eyed peas and butternut squash.
Do u make green tomato chutney?
Wow - that's a lot of sauce, but well done for getting all processed - that must have been quite a task.
Last year i ordered seeds from Uk....so i have lots to choose from..now if i lived in Uk i could give seedlings and receive ,something which can be done here seldom as near me i done have people who do that...only one does...i was the one who gave lots of tomatoes and i took rose seedlings!
10:36 …they’re big, beautiful, ballsy tomatoes!😅 I love the descriptions of your garden growth!
Haha - thank you! :-)
I think the heat in southern CA, 50 miles east of L.A., has affected many of my plants. The green beans were coming along nicely, for example. I was watering them regularly, then they developed rust or burn...I fed them too with Miracle Grow, which I don't usually do so, maybe the burn look came from the fertilizer. I've shaded the peppers and Purple Cherokee tomato plants. I'm going to follow your advice and pinch off the tops and side shoots of the Cherokees because they have grown tall, but not flowering like they did at first. I've opened the shading so that the pollinators can get at them in the mornings. I've noticed way less bees than last year and not one swarm. We always get a swarm. I wonder if the heat isn't affecting them too. My garden, as well as most of my neighbors have plants that attract bees and butterflies so I'm guessing the heat is the problem. 2023 has been a garden challenge for me.
Sounds like the heat is causing big problems. Hopefully next summer will be a little cooler.
Always a joy to watch your videos and see how well your garden is doing,
I’m erecting new trellis for my climbers and tilled the soil ready for a wide a range of wild flowers on four separate plots in and around both the front garden and back garden.
Hopefully by mid year they should all come into bloom and my veg crop will be on the way too, it’s lovely to hear from all the other gardeners and what they’re doing 😁
Sounds like you are going to have a stunning garden this year. Keep up the good work also. :-)
Most things in my garden seem to b on the way out/nearly over and there was a distinct feeling of sutum on its way today i thought. East Riding UK.i grew a bell pepper on the kitchen window sill n moved it outside in June. It had lots of little green peppers arrive but all but one fell off/got eaten.I grew broad beans (planted very late) for first time I. really had no clue how they grew. Sadly I also had no clue about black fly n lost most to theyn plus drought I think.. The place where the bean grows had just a blackened scrap. My runners were huuugh, as were the leaves as I didn't know about pinching out tips. As usual I had a wonderful red currant harvest n the freezer is now full!!I agree with everyone that Ur videos Ben are the easiest to understand n learn from by far. Thank you
Thanks for your kind comments. So pleased you've had a bumper redcurrant crop - they're the best!
Your crops are so healthy, mine have all got problems including blight. Even my tomatoes have failed.
Honestly John - I've had my share of failures: bolting fennel bulbs, tomato blight (just as the fruits were ripening!), onion downy mildew etc. No garden is perfect alas!
Another lovely enthusiastic tour, thanks a lot Ben! I'm fortunate to be up in the Algarve hills where the heat-lovers, the tomatoes, peppers and aubergines especially, have been cropping profusely for some weeks now. One of the varieties of tomatoes I've been growing for the last few years in tomberry, a tiny variety which makes the cherry varieties look big! Has anyone tried this type? They're delicious thrown whole in green salads. I also wondered if you had tried growing in your greenhouse two plants which are doing very well here this year out in the open, tomatillo (physalis) and okra (or ladies' fingers). Tomatillo is the basis of a delicious Mexican-style 'salsa verde' and young okra is delicious cut into small chunks and tossed in salted olive oil.
I haven't tried either tomatillos or okra, but would love to do so. I think that me be a project for next growing season Alan.
@@GrowVeg Keep in mind okras grow very large and need to be harvested frequently. Line up a group of friends with whom you can share or prepare to eat gumbo and sautéed okra by the bucketload for several weeks.
So exciting in the garden this time of year. I have never made pickles but you could ferment the gerkins.
Great idea, thank you. :-)
Really enjoy watching your garden tours, passion and tips. Your garden looks lovely and full of delicious fresh food. Thank you for all the useful tips and sharing your garden with us
You're welcome Gabby - thanks for watching.
Where's the "Super Like" button for this??? Loved this video
Cheers for that! :-)
You should do a video on small spaces or apartment/city dwellings.
How lovely is your yard btw.
Thanks so much for that. Please do check out our playlists on container gardening: ruclips.net/p/PL3VEy0_tuFgQhuPkhdjRZKB4CpzqDGKUl and vertical gardening: ruclips.net/p/PL3VEy0_tuFgRqQHH9WVw7SeIKevTnVzYh
Late spring here in south texas saw lots of promise with my peppers, tomatoes, chard and herbs. was able to harvest some carrots too. June hit with a vengeance and we’ve had over 20 days with over 100 degrees (we normally have only 3-4). with heat index numbers running as high as 125 my motivation to get outside has waned and will be yanking everything soon and wait for fall.
So sorry to hear you've been having such a savage summer. I do hope it cools off for you soon.
I love watching your video first year for us growing our own fruit veg herbs saled and we've had loads so far my kids are loving it bless you for all your help and tips 😊🙏
What a great experience for your kids - they'll be so much happier and healthier for it I'm sure. :-)
Really enjoy these videos! They inspire me and sometimes even educate me. After 40 years of gardening, there's not a lot I haven't experienced in a small vegetable plot. We pickled some cukes, daikon radish and beets this week. Didn't take too long and it wasn't too warm a task for our hot Oregon days.
Your pickles sound delicious Barb.
I LOVE to watch your super informative videos! I thoroughly enjoy your enthusiasm and knowledge. I’m a fairly new gardener and refer to your information often. I love listening to you speak and seeing Rosey help! Thank you so much for your time and information!!
You're very welcome Staci - thanks so much for watching.
It's so cool that you've been to Portland! It's always a surprise to hear people mention it 😄I hope when you were there you got a chance to pop over to Hood River and visit the Fruit Loop! My family loves to go there and pick cherries in the summer (there's nothing like eating fresh sun-warm cherries right off the tree while you pick huge buckets full!) But of course there's all kinds of berries and fruits, especially apples and pears towards fall.
Lovely part of the world it really is. Missed Fruit Loop while I was there but will have to pop over to take a look when I next visit - sounds fab! 🍎
@@GrowVeg Yeah! I hope you get a chance to see it 😄 I It's a really pretty drive as well - as the name suggests, it's a 35-mile "loop" of roads that connects all these farms, fruit stands, vineyards, and tasting rooms, all with breathtaking views of the other side of Mt. Hood (it looks so different from the side you see from Portland!). Also, I've never been able to try it myself, but apparently they have amazing pear wine and all sorts of fruit wines at the wineries. And on your way down to Hood River from Portland, I definitely recommend stopping at Multnomah Falls and the Vista House at Crown Point! They're both two of the jewels of the Columbia River Gorge 😄
Not sure about anywhere else but I know sweet corn is a staple for Americans in summer. Salt pepper and butter right off the cob. Can’t wait till I can get some seeds in the ground! I have also heard to not cover the roots on the bottom that get exposed??? Interested to hear if you have heard that. I didn’t last year and they did very well. Great videos and thank you!
Thanks for sharing that. I was always told to cover them to offer support, but interesting you've heard the opposite. I may leave them as they are this year to compare, thanks.
Appreciate your videos! Probably suggested before but I let my leeks flower beside my pumpkins, unbelievable amount of bees turned up, no interference with light, perfect companion?
I think you may be onto something there, for sure. Leek flowers are beautiful and, as you say, the pollinators love them!
Roast the scapes. Cut them into 6" (15-16 cm) long pieces, toss them in a bit of olive oil, lightly salt, then - after roasting (hot oven) - grind a bit of pepper on them. They're amazing just like that or cut up into a salad or stirred into a bowl of grains. One of my favorite summer foods.
Sounds totally delicious Noelle, thank you for sharing.
@@GrowVeg you are most welcome. Bon appetit!
I lived in what is called the garden state where our main crop was corn. I was taught the best way to eat corn is RAW right off the stalk. Try it sometime you will not have to boil them anymore. Love all your videos thanks.
I'm going to do just that, thanks for the suggestion!
Thanks to you and you great tip I have just ordered 2 tonne of soil to fill my beds to plant more crops and hope they all settle in well
Great job! Bets of luck getting it all spread and growing more. :-)
@@GrowVeg thanks to you and your great tip I have gone mad this yr and loving every minute of watching and wait for all my crops to grow and talk to than lol thanks Ben for your great tips much appreciated and will have alot more planned for later
Romanesco is the absolute best !!
Everything looking really good
What a beautiful little kitchen garden. I wish I would have so much space to grow vegetables. My balcony has a propper size for some pots and little high beds - but not enough for real self sufficiency. So I use the height to grow beans, peas, gherkins, zucchinis, tomatoes, peppers and some eggplants. Next year I wanna try Sugar Baby watermelons because my balcony has full sun from late morning till sunset and gets pretty hot in summer. 😉
Here in southern Germany, we had the same trouble with longtime cold till freezy spring until end of may. So planting and sowing outside was really late. My indoor sown plants became long and longer so I put them outside during the day and back inside most evenings to keep them propper growing.
June was very hot and dry. So many plants grew hardly and threw off their flowers. Beetroot and cellery stayed small with little bulbs. July was too cold and much too wet. Nevertheless plants grew a little better. Good summer season started mid August till Octobre. This was the time tomatoes got red, eggplants got fruits to ripen. Late summer was the best time of the year. Salads and spinach grew well in autumn.
Tomatoe blight was no problem for me because of the covered balcony. Others lost most of their plants in the gardens. Additional I could keep some plants inside till the fruits became completely red. So I have fresh cocktail tomatoes in Decembre. That's cool.
I hope next year will work a little better. I'm allready planing my sowing and planting for next season while I'm still harvesting some fresh little autumn carrots, beetroots and salads from my balcony pots now in mid Decembre. We allready had pretty much snow. I covered the pots with mulch, use bubble foil over night and as a rain shield. I just tried and hoped it would work. It does. 😊 It's my first time winter gardening.
I just found your channel and look forward to see more of your gardening videos.
It sounds like your balcony is really productive Christiane. Well done on getting so much from your space - that's inspirational, it really is. It's great to have you watching the channel - really appreciate your support. Happy gardening! :-)
I've been using your garden planner for years now and I can honestly say if I don't use it my garden is always a mess. Thanks for creating such a useful product that's easy to use and so very effective. God bless.
So pleased it's so useful - that's really great to hear. :-)
@@GrowVeg Just curious, is that only for the UK? Or couldn't it work for the US too? Thank you very much for helping 🙏❤️
This made my heart smile.
Thanks Lisa - so pleased you enjoyed it. :-)
Watching your video this morning was so uplifting - thank you.
I am afraid that although I have and use your garden planner, I still over plant 😕. I grow too much and then have to find somewhere to put it, and the result of this of course is over crowding. I kick myself every year but never seem to learn. When a new year comes around my enthusiasm out weights my ground space. Bearing in mind I grow all my veg on an allotment (it’s not a big one, just 20m x 20m) you would think I would do better.
I particularly love your runner bean arch and if I can cadge some old pig netting from someone I will be making one next year. It would also be good for the butternut squash - think I will need some strong poles and cross beams to hold them up though. My sweet corn should have been shaken - like an idiot I left the wind to do it and some of the cobs are not particularly good. I would like to say we live and learn - for some reason that bypasses me 😬. Thanks again for your happy and informative video - happy gardening and eating.
I have a small urban garden n never manage to leave appropriate space around plants...I wish I had more space as I seem to spend most of my time playing chess with them to try to fit them in. I'll try the garden planner Ben suggests but fear it will only,,'allow' me one or two plants,!!!
The Garden Planner is really useful for getting spacings right. It's often frustrating knowing I can't plant as much as I'd like, but it does discipline you into planting at the right spacings so plants thrive.
The bean arch was great fun to make and looks really great once covered - a real feature. It's quite easy to make one.
Your videos always put a smile on my face! Love your garden!!
Thanks Bobbie, that's very kind of you to say.
I really enjoy your tips on gardening...
Thanks! :-)
I am starting to really enjoy my garden now, our summer was horrific- the rain & weird weather was just so hard. We are now in Autumn so all the brassicas etc will take off. Wish I could grow beetroots but having struggled the last couple of attempts, it won't deter me from trying again though. Cheers Denise- Australia
Hi, I’m going to be a complete beginner next January. Bed are made. Soil and compost is to be delivered next week.
Love your enthusiasm, it’s very contagious.
Do you have a cooking channel too 😁
Hi Tammy - very best of luck with your new gardening journey. Most importantly, enjoy it! We don't have a cooking channel, but if you look among our videos we have a few cooking/preserving-themed videos. Check out the most recent video on green tomatoes - two stellar recipes in there for fried green tomatoes and green tomato chutney.
Ben I forgot to say that I have been using Epsom salts on some of my veg this year. When I planted my tomatoes and peppers I added a scoop to the potting mixture and they have been tremendous. You can still use it now by sprinkling a tablespoon around the roots or dissolving it in water and spraying the foliage. Used it on my courgettes and butternut squash too and they have gone crazy.
I thought salt on plants was a big no no?! Are Epsom salts different...I use them for their magnesium in a bath but....
@@le2584 I have to admit that it does sound that way from the name, but Epsom Salts is a natural mineral compound of magnesium and sulfur - often referred to as magnesium subcategory. Apparently, Epsom Salt is highly soluble and easily taken up by plants when combined with water and sprayed on leaves. When added to soil additive it becomes soluble with soil moisture and is drawn up through the roots.
I have to admit that I am not that clever! I just like reading up on stuff - most of which I have forgotten by the time I stand up 🤣. BUT this year I used it on my tomatoes and peppers and they have seriously out performed all other years. One of my beef steak tomatoes weighed 1.255kg. I wish I could attach a photo. Give it a go!
@@vanessataylor4125 Sounds great! How much Epsom salt do you use please, when you mix it with water? I'd like to try that 😊
@@traceytaylor2041 For foliar spray during the season, add two tablespoons (42 grams) of Epsom salts to a gallon (3.8 litres) of water and mix well, then put it into a sprayer and spray once a month. Or if you want to spray more often, half the quantity of Epsom Salts and dissolve in one gallon of water. If you can find a website called Harvest to Table you will find this info and more. Happy growing 👍😀
Interesting Vanessa. I've never used Epsom salts myself but have heard great things about it. I may give it a try next year - sounds like it does wonders!
You can also dry them and powder for any application, soups and meats and such.
Garlic caps
Ah super, thanks for the heads up on that.