Topic: The Good, the Bad & the Ugly? Some thoughts on this year's Varieties.

[tim]

Not complaining, but I can only just carry the morning's pick back to the house!

1. PEPPERS.
a. Big Bertha. Only just coming in red. Too big & deformed to stuff. Size just delays ripening.
b. Gypsy. Early to yellow/green (20/7) but only now going red.
c. Sunnybrook. Reddening since late August. Small - could just about stuff them.
d. Topepo Rosso. Ditto. Chunky & heavy. One plant has 15 ripening together. Size as S/brook.

2. AUBERGINES.
a. Black Beauty. A beauty, but too fat to roll-cut & too stubby to slice for Involtini. Stuffable?
b. Slim Jim. Finger-like bunches. Pick when less than 4" or seeds get like wood.
c. Orient Express. Fairly reliable & early. Pick by 6". Banana-ish shape.
d. Thai Long Green. Always my favourite. Can't slice but reliable & productive.

3. TOMATOES.
a. Santa. Always early, solid & sweet mini-plum. Stays intact in freezing for casseroles etc. Skin slips off when thawed.
b. Harbinger. Billed as an early Heritage. Nothing special & very many fruit split.
c. Mortgage Lifter. Slightly uneven ripening but, yes, a great tomato. Not prolific, but fruiting right up to 8'.
d. Nectar. Second year of these & will be on all future lists. Bigger than the average 'cherry', early & steady production.
e. Supersweet. Nothing special.
f. Fiorentino. As always, orange rather than red. 'Rustic' fruit. Patchy ripening but nice flavour.
g. Soleane. The best looking middle sized fruit that I've grown. Productive. But is picking up black speckles in its later stages.
h. Nepal. Larger than average, good flavour, fairly even fruit.
i. Palla di Fuocco. Very productive, but found, last year, too late, that it's a bush.
This year it self-determinated at one truss!!

4. CUCUMBERS. Well, you know about that! Had to scrap them after only 261 fruit - even though the predators seemed to be doing their 'thing', just in case the weather turned too cold for them - it did go down to 48F - & the RSM might have gone onto the Aubs etc. With foresight - for a change - sowed 4 more Passandra on 3/7 - first pick 24/8 &, so far, 37 fruit. Can't complain?

Well, that's about it? E&OE.  I'll correct later.

Except that a few photos will follow later. Emigrate!!

[prink13]

Tim, glad to have you back - very useful info when trying to write my "wishlist" for next year

Thanks

[Tulipa]

Tim, it's really good to see you back and have your such useful information again.  Your 'pick' today looks wonderful and it is good to see your thoughts on this year's crop.  Which do you think is the best tomato for making tomato sauce - I have some on the stove at the moment which is fuelling my interest.

Glad you are picking cues again.

Thanks,

T.

[Mrs Ava]

A light supper at Chez Tim tonight!

Amazing display Tim!

[tim]

I'm not a 'saucerer', Wendy - can't afford to set aside a special variety. We only make sauce etc when we have a glut of regulars.

I would think that you will hear such as Roma. San Marzano & possibly Principe Borghese?

[rosebud]

Great to see you posting again Tim.  Thank you for the tomatoe information!!.

[Biscombe]

What a wonderful pic!! and thanks for all the info, I'm growing Thai Long Green next year!

[tim]

Some peppers..........

Big Bertha (6")
Gypsy
Topepo Rosso & Sunnybrook.

[davee52uk]

Good

1. Purple  French beans - prolific and tasty

2. Stripey - striped tomatoes - great flavour.

3. Rhubarb and Lemon marmalade - really early in Hungry Gap.

4. Thornless Blackberry - fruited really well after sulking for two years.

5. Apple tree No.1 - incredible amount of fruit - King George variety - never fruited before in 10 years.

6. Looks like Apple tree No. 2 is doing the same - Cox's after nothing last year.

7. Tayberry - loads of great fruit.

Poor

1. All spuds - too dry

2. Onions

3. Cucumbers - dug up by a deer !!

4. Sunflowers - also attacked by deer.

[tim]

And ALL those in your greenhouse, Davee? Well done!!

[tim]

I rescind about Gypsy!

It didn't go through a brown stage this year, & one plant has produced 30 fruit like the ones above. No complaints!!

[flossie]

It's really helpful to find out about different varieties that have worked well and to see such inspiring pictures.  I will be spending the next wet weekend using this thread as a starting point for seed buying lists.

Many thanks :)

[bill22]

some nice displays, must get some photos next year.

I grew big bertha pepper, a bit slow and I ended up picking ours green, seems forever to get red ones, no patience I guess.

I also grew Ace which developed a little quicker.

After repotitng these into their final pots I found some pepper plants very reluctant to grow on fully, only quite a bit later actually really progressing.

Alls well that ends................ I guess :)

[cmorningstar]

Fantastic pictures!  :o :o :o