Orchard Garden update - OP Corn - Ornamental Grass

Beautiful Sunday morning!

I finally made it back to the Orchard Garden.

The OP corn is drying nicely and the pole beans Cherokee Trail of Tears may yet make some beans before frost. There are pretty pinks blooms on it now.

From Harvest 2010

The Seminole Indian pumpkin is looking very iffy. Just a few small fruit and the center of the vines is dead from the dratted gray squash bugs. I dusted with Sevin, but too little; too late. I still have lots frozen and canned from my bounty of Long Island Cheese from last year so if I just get one to test, I won't complain (too much).

Sweet potato vines are lush.

Something is stripping the tomato plants of leaves but I can't see the worms. Maybe the birds have found them; I hope! I have plenty of them already processes so no real issues there.

The sad thing is I didn't get a single turnip plant. Then the heavy rains ran across the area and there are deep rivulets in the soil. I will be retilling that soon. The planting should be in a different direction from the drainage. All must be north and south. I hope I remember that next year.

The small orchard looks wonderful. All needs mowing but that is a quick and easy job with the riding mower and DH has been doing it for me.

I hope next year to have a hoophouse of cattle panels out there for pole beans.
I will just keep the kitchen garden out behind the house for lettuces, radishes, spinach, and maybe flowers.

Strawberries out there succumbed to the drought and my forgetful watering.
I do want a new bed but may do it in the new area.

This winter will be for planning.

The open pollinated field corn is Reid's Yellow Dent. I think it is going to be a great success. It got 12 feet tall and the ears are about 9 to 10 inches long.
I just had to pull a few ears to check it out. It is beautiful with almost white clean husks (wouldn't they be great for tamales?). I was afraid the kernels were going to be tiny, but they arent.

From Harvest 2010

From Harvest 2010

I used to help Grandma feed her chickens with field corn that Grandpa planted every year. They kept it in a corn crib behind the barn. We would go back there and Grandma would put a couple of ears into her apron that she always wore (I do too!). Then we would shell it for the chickens. I was delighted I remembered how to do it.....I would need leather gloves to do much though. I plan to buy a cast aluminum sheller.....maybe.

From Harvest 2010

From Harvest 2010

OK, don't mean to be so boring here about the corn. You can see what excites me.

Here is a picture of my grasses. You can see why they call the miscanthus 'Morning Light'. I love how the early morning sun shines through the blooms/seed heads.

From September 2010