This week we pulled our onions. Here in central Florida we grow onions year around. I don't know how to cook without onions. In addition to a few rows in the garden, my patio garden of about 40 large pots grows onions in the winter and flowers in the summer. We pulled all the onions and layed them on a table that hubby made for me. It is higher than a regular table and is really a frame with nylon screen for its surface. I pull the onions and lay them on there for a couple of days to begin the drying process. Then hubby takes those and using hay string strings them in bunches and hangs on an old but heavy duty laundry dryer. You know...the kind that fold up? He has about 300 onions hanging on that on the back screen porch. When they are dry enuff to store they will go into the regular net bags that onions come in from the store and will be stored in an inside closet where it is dark and cool. In the meantime we have begun eating lettuce and green onions from the garden and will pick our first tomatos this week. I don't do a lot of dehydrating any more because the garden goes year around. I just keep planting and picking. This has advantages and disadvantages. One doesn't seem to get that feeling of a "job well done" in late fall as I did with my northern garden. Here its never

Taz

-- Taz (Tassie @aol.com), April 28, 1999

Answers

"and will pick our first tomatoes this week." Taz, how COULD you? You know the rest of us are checking plants daily, looking for a tiny green globule promising a juicy, sweet tomato weeks hence--oh, just imagining that first tomato, still warm from the sun, its juice running down my stubborn chin! Kindly keep your early tomatoes to yourself.

I cheated this year and bought large plants at Home Depot, from Johnny's in Maine. Should be eating tomatoes well before the usual July 4th target date. Next year I plan to start tomatoes in the house, something I haven't done in years. I've already got some seed-starting medium and the necessary pots and such. I'll order more seeds too, probably in mid-summer. There's been a shortage of seeds (reportedly) and it might be worse at the end of the summer--do it early.

-- Old Git (anon@spamproblems.com), April 28, 1999.

Old Git how could YOU?!?!?! Mine are still 15 to the 6" pot!!!

Chuck

-- chuck, a Night Driver (rienzoo@en.com), April 28, 1999.

I cheated as well on tomato/squash/cauliflower/brussel sprouts/bell peppers...but I did plant my own carrots, beets, parsley, basil, cayenne pepper, mustard, echinacea, chamomile and am about to put out some amaranth and corn just to check out how well I can get them to grow. I hear the amaranth is low maintenance once you get it going. My plants are all showing their few weeks of green...so at least I know they've made it through the unexpected frosts and low temps we had a week ago. I didn't really plant a lot this year...was more interested in establishing some new beds and we've planted six trees...

-- Shelia (shelia@a.com), April 28, 1999.