Late Heat

five color pepperI’m not really in a good decision-making place this late in the season, but my sense is that there’s been more quantity than quality in the garden this summer. Maybe the quantity just makes one weary! After several dozen cucumbers, they just don’t taste quite as good. Tomatoes? I never thought I’d get sick of tomatoes.

Also, some things hit their peak right as the season is shutting down. The ornamental peppers look so gorgeous right now on the patio, especially with the flowering Thai basil. But it took until September for them to become the five-color that was promised on the seed packet.

feher ozenFeher ozen paprika peppers take forever to turn red, and they’re starting to shrivel before fully changing color. Today I’m roasting and peeling them for my jar of roasted peppers in oil. I’m also blanching and dicing my one red pimento pepper (we’ll see if any of the others have time to fully ripen) for the freezer.

 

We did have one week of heat– humid heat, unfortunately, the kind where you don’t even want to run the dehydrator inside, let alone the oven. We call it “Minnesota State Fair weather.” It threatened the lettuces toward early bolting, and it also spurred one last broccoli plant to head out and the eggplant to kick into full gear. Come on! It’s way too late for the eggplant to get busy, but I’ll take the last immature fruit just before the first frost.

late eggplant

late tomatoesThe tomatoes loved the heat but hated the humidity, and boy do the plants look sad. The fruit also looks a bit sad, not quite getting to full on redness, kind of hanging out in the orange stage. Still makes mighty good sauce. I’m really liking the New York Times recommendation to grate them as a way of getting most of the skin off without a food mill. I’ll probably be making sauce to freeze today as well.

Meanwhile, we’ve entered “seasonal” temperatures this week. There’s nothing more glorious than fall in Minnesota. And I’m never sad, despite the short season, to put the garden to bed.

chicken dirt bathAnd the chickens are so happy. It’s great fun watching them chase grasshoppers, and the grasshoppers have lured them into new territory. Also, anything off limits is fenced, so they’re enjoying the dirt baths!

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