Tomato List: Seed Sewing - Straw Bale Garden 2023

 

And we're off! The 2023 garden season is officially underway. I purchased my seeds at the beginning of February but managed to neglect them until mid-March. Oops! We have started tomatoes and peppers, so far. I thought I had seeds for Fire & Ice, Ancho, and Bell peppers. It turns out that I only had Fire & Ice. It is also too early to plant sunflowers, but my little Koala wanted to see what they would do if she started them in a cup, so I gave her four American Giant Hybrid seeds. :) Otherwise, here is the list of tomato seeds that we are going to try this year:

Paste
San Marzano
Golden Fang
Banana Legs

Cherry/Pear
Little Birdy Yellow Canary
Wapsipinicon Peach
Chocolate Pear
Pink Princess Cherry
Blueberries
Black Strawberry
Bumblebee Mix (Sunrise, Pink, Purple)
Litchi
Aunt Molly's Ground Cherry

Tiny
Spoon

Slicing Tomatoes

Pork Chop OG (from the Barred Boar family)
Yellow Brandywine
Dr. Wyche's Yellow
Nebraska Wedding
Kellogg's Breakfast
Orange Accordion
Pink Brandywine
The stump of the World
Chef's Choice Pink
Hillbilly Potato Leaf (this callback to my childhood is an annual 'must' in my garden)
Striped German
Solar Flare
Watermelon Beefsteak
Climbing Triple-L-Crop

Straw Bale Garden Update :)

After what felt like an eternity of winter, no spring at all, and what has amounted to being flung face-first into summer... it is safe to say that we are hitting our stride in the garden. That feels incredible! :D I thought I would show you where we are with our garden this past and present week. <3 

This is a view of my messy but happy backyard. :D If my bales look as though they are casually laid around without thought, you are wrong. I wanted them to extend further out this side, closer to the picture. However, we live in a neighborhood that has a governing HOA. They graciously allow me to put up my garden year after year, with two stipulations: 1. It must not be visible from the road. 2. It must be temporary... no permanent structure. 

The bale closest to us was just a wee bit visible from the road when it was aligned with the rest. (Poo!) We had no choice but to point him inward. As you can see, the swingset is in this portion of yard. I did not want the kids' play to be impeded and I did not want my bales to be in harm's way, so we stopped at the one bale. In the far side of the yard, the bales came up to and then skirt around our small patio. The layout doesn't "appear" to make sense, but it does. Bales closest to the house will receive the most shade. They will host the plants which require it. 

This is some of what it looks like from my door. You get a better idea of the layout. Most of the bales are doubled, so we have two full rows. There are 22 bales in all. You can also see what most excites me in this picture!!! Eeeekkk!!! Hubs brought me a cattle panel! Measuring 50" by 16', this beauty supports 10 bales, front and back!

I have planted an assortment of tomatoes (18 varieties) along those back rows. Interspersed in between the tomatoes are cucumbers on the front and cantaloupe on the back. The cucumbers will vine upward through the summer, helping to hold up the tomato plants when they get really tall! The cantaloupe will be directed down the back, out of sight. I simply *cannot wait* to see these bales fully loaded and growing!

Here is a little peek at the bales. We are not done yet, of course. I ran out of dirt, so I need to get more to put around the base of these plants and the plants in the back row. We are still not done inserting plants, either. I have around 30 plants in the house yet, and more on the back porch. I am also germinating beets and carrots. I have peas, more bush beans, some flowers, and a few other seeds I still need to get started, as well. 

This is the view from the side of the patio. Please excuse the red flag in the background. We call 811 before we place stakes, even though we know by now that our garden is not in the way of anything. It is the responsible thing to do. ;)

As previously stated, these will hold plants that need a little bit more shade. We don't get much as it is. Any bit helps.

These are some of the lettuce plants I have growing. This pot contains mostly red romaine lettuce. There are two regular romaine plants growing in there, as well. The other varieties of lettuce are in other containers. They seem to like it in there, so far!

I know that this update doesn't cover 'everything' today. It is going to be harder to cover everything with every post or they would be unending! haha

Anyway, I hope that this at least lets you know what our progression is like. We continue to place plants into bales and containers as we have time - and weather permitting. The rain is free water, so I am not complaining! haha We also continue to germinate new plants so that we are staggering our grow cycles through the summer. We have begun to harvest bush (green) beans and radishes. We could harvest the lettuce while it is small, but I intend to get it grow a bit yet. 

The last thing I haven't mentioned here is the conditioning process of my Mother's Day bales. All eight bales are a solid seven days into the process. They will be ready to plant into by this weekend. Yay!  In all, I would have to say that we are having a successful garden season so far. Surely, a ton of life has burst forth from my dad's heaven-date anniversary this year. We will be continue to nurture, protect, and eventually enjoy consuming the fruits (and vegetables) of that labor of love for months to come. <3 <3 <3 

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Are you tending your spiritual garden? Fill your heart and life with fruits of the spirit. These may be found by time spent daily in His Word. <3 

Garden/Spring Update June 11, 2017

Things are really growing in the small backyard of this small but contented family! <3 :) 

This is a bucket of lettuce. There are many kinds in here, as you can see. We have been consistently eating them and they are still booming! haha

I looove having these on sandwiches, tacos, burritos, as a salad, and any other thing you would add a 'green' to. 

The flavors and scents range from sweet to herbal. My daddy would be *so* pleased to see his buckets so full of life! There is not one bucket he gave us that is not booming!

Giraffe's zucchini plants have really taken off! We planted almost everything in our garden this year from seeds. It is extremely gratifying to watch them grow and produce!

The first zucchini came in from the garden the other day. (Not pictured.) It was at *least* around eleven inches long and was also nice and fat!

We cannot wait to share our bounty with our favorite neighbors! It is a highlight of our summers to share the bounty of our garden with them each year. They love zucchini the best. We're ON it!! :D

Tomatoes are also on the way. There are many little flowers blooming and a few tiny fruits themselves. :) 

Our markers got misplaced, moved, or weren't placed at all so each plant is going to be a surprise to us when they ripen. 

Will this one be red? Brown? Yellow? Yellow-red? Large? Medium? Tiny? Huge? It is hard to tell! 

It is late to add to our crop but I am eager to get more plants started. I want to make sure that every single variety is well represented! I am most eager to sample the steakhouse, sunrise bumblebee and big rainbow!

Some of the plants are small and just starting out. These were seeds sewn directly into the straw of the bales.

We kept an eye open for what was growing well and what wasn't. On my dad's birthday, little Koala and Giraffe went through the garden, adding seeds wherever we had empty spaces. Some of those are just now showing up. 

They planted everything from more watermelon to cucamelon, pumpkin to pole beans... you name it, we have seeds for it planted in here somewhere! :D This is SO much fun! We will continue the process of seeding and planting until the garden is nice and full. :)

My spinach is growing well and tastes delicious! I believe that we have a variety of four types of spinach this year. These were planted by Giraffe on the same day in which I planted all of the lettuce and the red cabbage into other buckets.

You can see that we need to thin it out a bit. That is exceptionally hard for me to do, though! lol I tend to eat the leaves when they are still small 'baby' spinach. I'm sure I will try to grow some guts and thin these beautiful babies out. 

I love the lettuce and spinach mix we have going this year! I know that I am a broken record about it, really, I do. This just brings me such joy, generally. This year, it brings much-needed relief to my heartache. 

My herbs are still growing well in the cast-off straw from last year's bale garden. 

You can see that my basil (far left) is starting to flower. This has never happened to me before. I need to look into that. 

Purple basil is in the middle and looks lovely. Parsley is far right. I am most enthusiastic about using this herb. :)

Cantaloupe and cucumbers also coming along. This year they are primarily growing out the back of the garden. I have two rows of bales, where last year I had just the one. 

I would still like to tie these up to the trellis. Last year, the cantaloupe and cucumbers helped hold up tomatoes. I never had a problem with one strangling the other. They made great trellis mates. I may have to go again.

Here is a better picture of some of our little cucumbers that are growing. Again, these came from seeds we planted! Yay!

I also have to tell you something else... these belong to my littlest little! She has two bales that are hers. In them, she is growing cucumber, zucchini, cucamelon, watermelon, and beans. 

I let her choose what to plant and where she wanted them. It has been both sweet and joyous, watching my little baby tend to the garden in her own little way! 

It is never too early to teach children the value of life... all life... and to encourage their love of cultivating it! <3 <3 <3 

My peppers are struggling, I'll be honest. I have two Sweet California Wonder. These are what you might recognize as the multi-colored bell pepper. There will be red, yellow, and green when they finally grow tall and well. 

I also have two Emerald Green bell peppers growing. I couldn't tell you which set of two this is. You can see that they are quite tiny. I am going to be fertilizing them soon and keeping a closer eye on their progress.

Peppers are meant to be planted two plants at a time, as companion plants. This helps them to flower and produce better, and provides them better protection. When they are larger, I will be staking or caging them, as well.

This is one of my Red Acre Cabbage plants. :) I planted these seeds much earlier than my Green Acre Cabbage so they are larger. 

I absolutely love the purple coloring and veins stretching through the leaves. I truly cannot wait to have entire heads of red and white cabbage! This is one of those 'first time' veggies that has me beside myself! hehe

This set of buckets contains another mix. There is celery growing in the small blue bucket. I keep telling myself that I will move that poor thing to a bale somewhere! lol 

The celery plant has been hidden by the massive leaves of my Snow Cauliflower. You can see that it is the star of the show in that particular green bucket. The bucket split but I am unwilling to lose it, since it was my dad's. I red-necked that thing together with some duct tape and am going to keep growing in it! haha

The smaller, lighter green leaves are from my radishes. I am growing these every three weeks. They do very well every time, so far!

I still have another 40-ish pictures. I won't be able to share every plant in the garden this year. 

I am going to end this by abruptly switching tracks on you. Okay? lol

We have continued to use our new popsicle molds, much to the children's delight! Mine too... who am I kidding?

This week we did some that were strawberry, some strawberry-peach (in strawberry-banana jello), and a special more diabetic-friendly combination for me. 

Instead of jello (with its high sugar content), I added peaches and strawberries (which have their own sugar) to blueberry tea. I found this to be an especially good idea for me. I will continue to make tea pops for myself through the summer, with and without fruit. :)

Father's Day is coming up. I am a wreck of emotions this year, given that I've just lost my dad in March. However, mixed in there is the deep love I have for my husband and partner in life. He is a million kinds of wonderful. I look up to him in a great many ways. 

He is kind, strong, compassionate, gentle, loving, assertive when he needs to be, and a strong defender of his family. We are best friends and lovers, individuals and equals. I am very secure with this man. That says a lot for me, as I struggle with feeling safe anywhere in general. 

God has been kind, in sending me someone to walk through both the beautiful and the ugly of this life. I recognize the great fortune I have in being his and do not take it lightly. From the bottom of my heart, I love you forever, Hubs! 

Happy Father's Day!<3 <3 <3 

Straw Bale Garden 2017: So it Begins

Take one look at my very spring-y, messy backyard and you will know it is true: we are at it again! :)

Straw bale gardening is underway at our little home. Spring 2017 limped into view but is now fully underway. 

See that mess, folks? That's pure joy and contentment right there.

Happy little garden sticks poking up out of the dirt smile at me through the glass all day long. This little guy (and his companion) came from the local Dollar Tree. That's a buck well spent, I think.

These buckets and planters are extra-special to me. My husband brought them home from my parents' home after my dad passed away and right before my momma moved out-of-state for good. 

The little ones and I intend to plant lettuce, spinach, and possibly also cabbage plants into these planters. For now, they've been fertilized and watered.

Things are sprouting inside the house, as we speak. :) This year, I purchased a 4' long grow light so my seedlings could grow better, faster. Pictured in the forefront to the left are my little Cherry Belle radishes. I will be adding more seeds to bales when it is time to plant, of course. :) 

My cucumbers are really taking off. It is going to really upset me to thin them out. I probably should have by now but oh, how I hate to do that!

These guys prove that my long little grow lamp is doing its job. Any other year, these would be tall and wiry instead of having thick, strong leaves. I am so pleased about this!

Giraffe is most excited about the zucchini. She has high hopes for a massive, productive plant again this year. 

Her plant did beautifully last year until squash bugs attacked. We had no clue what was happening, having never experienced this particular pest previously. It was an awful experience!

B.R.O.C.C.O.L.I.... just sayin'

If the broccoli plants survive thinning and continue to grow, this will be the first time we have grown them from seed to harvesting. We are all pretty stoked about this possibility! Steamed, cheesed, or on a cold veggie pizza, all of us but the hubs love eating the small trees of this particular plant. :) 


This lone sprout holds large tomato hopes and dreams! :D Known as the 'Brandywine', it produces sandwich-sized pink, fleshy tomatoes that have a rich, deep, practically-perfect-in-every-way flavor. I would have to call this the "Mary Poppins" of tomatoes! 



Don't let these two unimpressive sprouts fool you. See the name on the stick? Steakhouse tomatoes, baby! Look it up! :D These wee sprouts purportedly grow into monster-fruit producers! Seriously, pop on over to the Burpee website and look at their photo of the magnificent Steakhouse tomato potential! Eeeekk! I can't wait!

Last year, we had *such* luck with our spaghetti squash that we simply *had* to have them again. In fact, at the beginning of April, my mom still had a small spaghetti squash left from our 2016 garden! These guys grow well, quickly, and mass-produce delicious buttery-tasting squashy innards we cannot wait to devour!

One of our 'newcomers' for the 2017 garden season is cauliflower. It is true, I also need to thin these guys out. It is just so hard to do!

We have never grown our own cauliflower but we *do* love eating it. Grow little guys, grow! :D

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OKAY... I have a million more plants and only a dozen or so more pictures. This blog post is already running long so I will try to list out what all else is in seed trays or on the docket for the season. :) I believe we have around 35 this time.

Tomato Varieties
Early Girl (My favorite 'tangy' tomato from last year... very acidic!)
Steakhouse (The hopefully monster-sized tomato!)
Big Rainbow (Large like a beefsteak, yellow/red/orange in color.)
Sunrise Bumblebee (Tiny like a cherry tomato but yellow/red striped.)
Mirabelle Blanche (Tiny yellow/orange, very sweet)
Red Cherry (large fruited cherry tomatoes)
Brandywine (large pinkish-red hue)
Beefsteak (the original big bad boy)
Abe Lincoln

Squash
Spaghetti Squash
Butternut Squash (growing in honor/memory of my dad)
Dark Green Zucchini Squash
"Big Max" Pumpkin (supposedly huge *and* edible)
Small Sugar Pumpkin

Melons
Congo Watermelon (Supposed to be huge!)
Hales Best Cantaloupe 

Cruciferous Veggies
Snow Crown Cauliflower
Waltham Broccoli
Cherry Belle Radish
Golden Acre Cabbage
Red Acre Cabbage

Carrots
Tendersweet 

Peppers
Sweet Emerald Giant (green bell pepper)
Sweet California Wonder (mixed colors)

Cucumbers
Tendergreen
Muncher
Straight Eight

Beans
Top Crop Bush Beans (long green beans for snapping)

Lettuce
Black Seeded Simpson (we grew this last year with great results/flavor)
Arianna (new to us... can't wait to try)
Summer Bibb (named such for its tiny bib-shaped leaves)
Red Romaine (thought it was high time for some color)

Spinach
Bloomsdale
Giant Noble
New Zealand

Strawberries

Potatoes
Russet
Red

This is more than we have ever attempted before. Almost all of it is organic. I believe that my dad would be proud. <3 

I Need Springtime

I need spring to arrive. 

Just that. 

I'm falling apart and I need to nurture life. 

I need spring.


We have started a GoFundMe Campaign on my dad's behalf. Please consider sharing it to social media.