Bradford Pear Tree Branches

Sometimes I forget that the flowering trees can also make beautiful arrangements, not just cut flowers.

2011 Brasiccas, Herbs, Pepper and Eggplant Reviews

Premium Crop Broccoli - It is going to be awhile before I grow broccoli again.  These were extremely slow to grow.  Out of 6 plants I ended up with one head before I had to pull them all out because they were infested with cabbage moth caterpillars and I needed the space for other plants.

Toscano Kale - I was really pleased with the growth, size and flavor of the Kale.  Next year I just need to put row cover over them so that I can enjoy them before the cabbage moth caterpillars do too.

Bouquet Dill - This was my first experience growing dill.  It took longer than I anticipated for it to germinate and get growing but once it did they were quite large, hardy and the flavor was wonderful.

Barbecue Rosemary - I won't start picking my rosemary until it has a good amount of growth going on, so I felt like I was waiting forever before I could start picking and still be left with a healthy plant.  But by the end of the season my rosemary was huge.  The flavor was wonderful but I felt the leaves were more tender to the cold than other varieties I have grown.

Red Beauty Red Pepper - I gave the pepper the sunniest, warmest spot in the entire garden.  I ended up with one green pepper by the end of the season.  I don't think I get enough sun to grow really great peppers.  I was thinking I might have better success next year trying them in a pot or I might give up all together on peppers.

Classic Eggplant - This plant was the workhorse of the garden this year.  We were supplied with an abundance of deep purple, glossy fruit.  I was absolutely thrilled with the harvest and quality of this plant.

2011 Lettuce, Radish, Carrot, Parsnip Reviews

Lettuce- I grew the following varities: Black Seeded Simpson, New Red Fire, Beleah Rose, Red Sails, Arugula, Baby Romaine, Rouge d'Hiver, Buttercrunch, Q's Specialty Mix, Space Spinach, New Zealand Spinach, Vegetable Amaranth, and Mache.  All were disappointing.  I don't know if I got my lettuce in too late or not but by the time they got large enough to pick all the lettuce was bitter.  In the Fall it was the same story.  Some of the following varieties completely fell flat and didn't even germinate.  I will try a few again but overall I am doing a major overhaul in picking lettuces this year.  We eat lots of salad and we want lots of lettuce to pick next year.

Radishes - I grew the following varieties: Cherry Belle, Purple Plum, and French Breakfast.  I loved the colors this year.  I'm not sure if I left them in the ground too long but they all seemed to be a bit hot and too spicy for my liking.  They were all also smaller than I would like so I am going to try different varities.

Carrots - This year I tried Red Cored Chatenay and Cosmic Purple.  I was seduced by the colors of these carrots and thought I would give them a try.  They were ok but I wasn't in love with their flavor.  And for the amount of work it takes to carefully seed them and thin them I'm not sure if I will include them next year.  I really want to try some winter varieties that are supposed to get sweeter with frosts.

Hollow Crown Parsnips - This was my first year for parsnips and I loved growing them.  Many were much larger than I anticipated and I delighted in having a late fall harvest.  Some of the roots were weirdly shaped and mangled but overall I was very pleased with them and will definitely be planting them again.

2011 Bean, Leek, Garlic, Onion Reviews

Tendergreen Snap Green Bean - I was happy with this variety.  It grew quickly and provided one main crop with a second picking.  I liked that it was a bush variety and didn't need to be trellised.  The beans were typical green beans with good flavor.

Royal Burgundy Snap Beans - These beans are a wonderful deep purple.  I picked them specifically just for the color.  They were prolific bushy plants.  My only wish is that they held their color when cooked.

Kenearly Yellow & Jacobs Cattle - Both of these drying beans did similarly.  Both had trouble with disease and were spotted with yellow and brown splotches.  The harvest was mediocre.  I have extra seeds so I might try them again but I'm not sure if it is worth the space.  I will have to try the beans soon and decide if they have excellent flavor worth taking up the space.

American Flag Large Leeks - This was my first time growing leeks.  I was overall happy with the final plants.  Some were very large, some skinny.  I still have some in the ground waiting to be picked, I want to see how well they do with in ground winter storage.

California Garlic - This is a soft neck variety that did poorly two years in a row.  Every bulb was tiny and if I was lucky some were small.  I don't ever want to try this variety again.

Yellow Stuttgarter - These onions also did poorly.  All of my onions were tiny and small.  It might be my clay soil, despite the fact that I have amended it and loosened it.  But I am still on the quest for an onion that does great for me.

2011 Squashes, Melons, Cucumber Reviews

  

Aristocrat & Dark Star Zucchini - I have lumped these together because I didn't really notice one doing better or worse than the other.  Both provided me with a start of good fruit but overall they succumbed to powdery mildew early on.  However they did better than last year's zucchini that never produced anything.

Supersett Summer Squash - The summer squash did the same as the zucchini.  They started off well but were overtaken by powdery mildew.

Spaghetti Squash - I grew a non identified variety from a big box store, which was the only place I could find spaghetti squash.  The squash did not do well.  I got two medium sized squashes and again this squash had the same fate as the others, powdery mildew.

Homemade Pickles Cucumber - I bought this start at the garden center because it was the only pickling variety available.  I was happy with the cucumbers and the amount we were starting to get.  They made delicious refrigerator pickles.  But the plant died from bacterial wilt half way through the season.

Sugar Baby Watermelon - The plant grew two baby watermelons but I left one on the vine too long and lost it.  I was happy with the watermelon we got.  It took up a lot of space so I don't plan on growing one again because in our small garden I want to maximize our growing potential.  But I would definitely try this variety again if I decide to grow watermelons some other time.

2011 Tomato Reviews

As I pick out seeds for next year I need to look back at the success and failures of 2011 to determine what to include again and what to leave behind.  Here are the results of my 2011 tomatoes.

Arkansas Traveler - I loved this tomato and plan on including it again.  It is a reliable tomato that constantly produces small/medium pink tomatoes that rarely cracks with wonderful flavor.  They are perfect for canning whole.

San Marzano - This tomato is revered as the King Italian paste.  I don't think I will ever grow it again.  More than half of the tomatoes on this plant had blossom end rot when none of the other varieties I grew had blossom end rot.  The plant provided an OK amount of tomatoes but even if none had been lost to blossom end rot I would have to grow multiple plants in order to have enough for a canning batch.

Black Krim - This variety provided me with large quantities of large, juicy tomatoes.  It is a black variety and one that I would be happy to include again.  I think next year I would like to try a different purple/black variety to see which would be my favorite.  The only downfall is that they do crack easily after a heavy rainfall.

Sweet 100 Cherry Tomatoes - This was the second year for this variety in my garden.  Last year they did better and provided more.  They have great flavor and in the past had been abundant.  This year the plant wasn't sparse but I might want to try a different variety next year just because.

Brandywine - This year I had to try the variety that was revered by many.  And I have to say I understand why.  This large heirloom has wonderful flavor but they do crack easily.  The plants aren't prolific and I had to fight the squirrels and deer for them but I am planning on including them again next year.

Pineapple - I grew this plant for a second time.  Last year it didn't do well but the tomatoes are large and gorgeous pink/red and yellow stripped so I thought I would give it a second try.  But the plant grew maybe six tomatoes and I lost at least half to the squirrels.  I don't plan on ever growing this variety again.

Yellow Plum - This is another variety that I grew for a second time.  Again I wanted this one for its unique shape and visual attractiveness.  But all of mine were oval and not the chic pear shape.  The flavor and texture is mediocre so I doubt I will grow them again unless in a couple of years I stupidly want to try to grow them for aesthetics again.

Jubilee - This was a nice orange variety that grew a decent amount of medium sized fruits.  They rarely cracked and were consistent in size, color, taste and texture.  This variety didn't wow me but I would possibly include it again for its dependability.