Harvest Extravaganza in New York!

Fantastic Harvest!

I harvested a bunch of tomatoes and habanero peppers this past week! Even though it is October, this is the most I have harvested all season. The heirloom tomatoes are spotless with no cracks, which I am happy about. The habanero peppers are also looking healthy, and should be great in salsas. So blessed!

Peppers are finally turning RED: Vegetable Garden Update

Hey guys! I just wanted to give everyone an update on how my vegetable garden is doing as summer comes to an end. I think we have only a few more weeks of good weather, so hopefully I'll still be able to harvest a good amount before the cold settles in.

I'm sad to say that the tomato garden is no more. Tomato plants are pretty sensitive to cold weather and they MUST have sunlight in order to survive, so I guess the few days we've already had of rain and cloud did away with the heirloom, cherry, and grape tomato plants. Here is a picture of my last summer tomato harvest.

Tomato harvest

I had an excellent haul of tomatoes this year, and I definitely want to expand next year's crops and grow  roma varieties too. Luckily my tomatoes did not contract any diseases, although a few of my tomatoes cracked a bit.

My peppers, on the other hand are still going strong! My habanero pepper plants are still doing well and some peppers are even starting to turn red-orange. I picked a few when they were still green, and they were already spicy, but I'm thinking leaving the peppers on the vine.

Habanero Pepper

My bell peppers are also doing well, a few of them are starting to turn red as well. Bell peppers are still coming up in  a few plants, so I hope the weather stays warm enough to allow them to grow.

Bell pepper

Gardening is a great experience and I am glad to share my stories with you. Leave your comments below!

Anyone's Garden Still Going Strong?

Growing Tomatoes in the Garden

Sadly, summer is coming to an end, but my garden is just starting to come alive with red tomatoes, bell peppers, and spicy habaneros. Its exciting to see all my hard work pay off; everytime I step out to check on my garden, there's always something that's ready to be picked to make lunch. The cherry, grape and heirloom tomatoes are all looking great, I can harvest about five tomatoes every couple of days. The habanero peppers, are also doing well and maturing, but they have'nt turned into the red-orange color, so I am trying to exercise a little patience and wait until they are red until I pick them, but its really hard!

The green habaneros are still pretty hot; I used one just yesterday to make spicy beef quesidillas. Habanero plants are perrenials, which means that as long as the weather is hot and sunny, the plants will still produce peppers. But because the weather is getting colder, I'm afraid the frost will come to soon and kill the plants off before the habaneros are able to mature fully. Last year at this time, most of my habanero plants were turning red already and I was harvesting them by the handful, but for some reason the habanero plants are just now getting started. I'm still happy, though, that my garden is thriving now, and hopefully this cold air will recede a little for a few weeks to allow my plants to continue growing.

Gardening can be something of a crapshoot; you may plan for the best, but if the weather takes an unexpected turn for the worse, or there is  a sudden increase of pests you didn't foresee, your garden is toast. So instead of feeling worried, I'll say that I am grateful that my garden is still going strong :)

Easy-to-Grow Vegetables: Habanero Pepper

Habanero peppers forming in my vegetable garden

Habanero pepper plants are popular vegetables to grow in the garden and require little expertise  Habaneros are one of the spiciest pepper species in the world, with a Scoville scale ranging from 80,000 to 600,000! Sunlight, water, and care-- that's all habaneros need to grow, and because habanero plants are perrenials, they can continue to grow and produce hundreds of habaneros, as long as the weather conditions are warn and growing conditions are good. Check out my webpage, 'How to Grow Spicy Habanero Peppers' for fun facts and tips on growing this hot treat.