gardening – Page 3 – The Arcadian Experience

Tomato Tutorial: Determinate v. Indeterminate

April 11, 2011April 13, 2011Leave a comment

Tomato Tutorial: Determinate v. Indeterminate

Determinate or indeterminate, who knew?

If you start paying attention to the info on the back of seed packages or catalogue descriptions you will start to notice one of two words showing up. Determinate or Indeterminate.

Until recently, I would just shrug not understanding what that was all about. Occasionally you will see semi-determinate, which is usually an heirloom cultivar. However the classification is similar to pole beans or bush beans.

What’s the difference?

Determinate= a bush-type plant, meaning that the plant has a “determinate” height. It will grow to a point then will stop growing up. All new growth will then take place from side-shoots off the main stem. And the plant will be bushy. These plants usually set fruit and ripen in a concentrated span of time, making this a great type if you want to can tomatoes.

Growing determinate plants: use a tomato cage, a good sturdy one, it might be helpful to also put a stake near the main stem and tie the stem to it. It will keep the plant from toppling over when its heavy with fruit.

Indeterminate= vine-type plant. This is a tomato that will continue to grow and has an “indeterminate” height. These can be unruly, if not staked and caged well. For those of you in Texas you know what I mean. In August the tomato vines will be heavy and 10 feet tall and still growing. And you will be looking at this profuse vine thinking “what am I supposed to do with this?” These types set fruit and ripen continuously, so you have an ongoing supply of tomatoes from the vine.

Growing indeterminate plants: use a very tall stake or tomato ladder so the vines can grow up. This helps to keep the fruit off the ground which leads to a whole other set of problems.

I’ve also been known to drive in a T-post and use in conjunction with a cage. When the vines get too heavy for the cage to support it, the T-post will prop the cage up. T-posts are in abundance on the ranch because we use them to build barbed-wire fences.

images — An example of using a T-post with a cage (this is not my garden, BTW)

One type is not better than the other, but it’s helpful to know what kind you are growing when planning your garden. You can select specific types depending on what you want to accomplish or the planting space you have available. Personally I like a variety of both in my garden. I have a small raised-bed garden at my house and a large plot in our family garden out at the ranch. In my small home garden I’ve planted a variety of both indeterminate and determinate tomatoes.

The determinate types will suit my purposes better at home because they are compact plants and will ripen in a concentrated period of time. I can harvest my main tomato crop, then move on to my next crop and get the most out of my small garden. I’m also hoping to have enough come off at one time to can (aka put up) my crop.

food-preservation-canned-tomato-sauce-001 — Canned tomatoes

At our ranch plot, I’ve got more indeterminate varieties because we have much more space and can provide plenty of room for the plants to spread out. I’m hoping the indeterminates can provide a just-in-time regular delivery of homegrown tomatoes to eat throughout the season.

One last note about growing tomatoes in Texas: think of growing tomatoes in 2 shorter growing seasons, instead of one long season. Tomatoes will take a hiatus from mid-July to late August when it’s too hot. In fact, most tomatoes will not set fruit when overnight temps reach 80-85 degrees.

My plan is to grow an early crop, pull up spent plants, then replant in late August for a fall harvest.

Flowers on the tomato vine now hopefully mean juicy tomatoes later.

Fingers crossed. Happy Gardening 🙂

The Victual Files: Marlene’s @ The Big Chill

March 31, 2011April 4, 20122 Comments

One of my favorite things in life to do is to go to a small town and check out the local eatin’ joints. Restaurants in small towns define the character of the town itself in so many ways. How many towns to do you know of only because there’s a restaurant there that serves good BBQ or chicken fried steak or even a great hamburger? Out here in Arcadia, it’s commonplace for us to take trips SPECIFICALLY based on eating something we’ve heard about.

So, we decided to put together a side project for the Arcadian Experience…we took a map and drew a 100m circle on it, and decided that we are going to covertly go into restaurants within that circle in north Texas and post our thoughts about the dishes and overall experience. We call this new project: The Victual Files, prounouced “vittle files”. We are Victualphiles working on the Victual Files. Catchy, campy, and all ours.

This isn’t a chance to slam restaurants or to give harsh criticism for their food. Rather, it’s a chance for us to share a little piece of life in those towns and the love and care they put into their food. Disclaimer: even though we will focus on the 100m radius, we will probably do this for any other restaurant we might venture into anywhere we go. It’s our site, our project, our rules. Another disclaimer: I seriously need to update my iPhone to a new version. The camera on this thing sucks to high holy hell. Sorry in advance for the blurry pictures.

I’m going to start with one of my favorite places to eat: Marlene’s @ The Big Chill. Owners Marlene and Ben Horst started this restaurant in 1999 and both still work there daily. When you walk in, the first thing you notice is that you’ve stepped back in time…an anachronism to a “simpler” life when sodas came from jerks and green was a much softer hue. From the outside, you see the sign and the awning that immediately give you an idea what to expect on the inside.

When you step in, TBC doesn’t disappoint. From the floors to the lights to the tables, this is as authentic as you get in a small town. One of Ben’s trophies even hangs on the wall right next to the old Dr. Pepper machine (although, the modern stereo on top of the Dr. Pepper machine might not be all that authentic).

Above the service area, Marlene writes her daily specials on a large white board. One of my favorites, the crawfish etouffee, is running today for the last time this season. It happens that her son and daughter-in-law live down in Lafayette, LA, so she’s got a little Cajun tint to her. From time to time, Marlene and Ben will have a crawfish boil dinner. I love crawfish anyway, but they make it BYOB so you can bring your cooler in and have some tasty mudbug that they cook in the alley behind the store.

The quaintness of TBC is striking. From the colors on the walls to the ceiling tiles and light fixtures…

…this place makes you want to sit down and have a nice lunch in the middle of the day. Oh, but wait…my favorite part of the entire place…

It’s this bar. I’ve been literally BEGGING Marlene and Ben to rebuild the foot bar that goes underneath the stools so I can eat up there. I tried it one day, but the stools are just long enough that you can’t get enough leverage w/o sliding off. If there’s any critique I have of TBC is that I can’t sit at the bar and eat lunch.

Above the bar:

If Tom’s peanut bar doesn’t scream “old timey”, I don’t know what does. What’s that you say? Old Dr. Pepper and Coke stuff say “old timey”? Well, ok, they’ve got that, too.

I love sitting in the booths along the mirrored wall across from the bar. They bring out the tea, and keep it flowing. A big cup of Texas sweet tea is a great way to start out lunch.

When I go to TBC, I don’t even have to order. They know that I’m there for the French Dip. I love a French Dip in the first place, but the FD at TBC is my favorite. It’s not too stuffy and not all that complicated. Just a nice hoagie roll, some melty cheese, and tasty beef consommé to dip the sandwich in. Marlene’s hoagie bun is this delicious chewy bread that holds together so well when you dip it. A lot of FD’s will have a yeasty bread, but falls apart. This doesn’t do that…it stays nice and gummy, with lots of yummy gluten to hold it together. Sorry to my celiac-suffering friends.

There are lots of other things on the TBC menu that are good as well. They have other sandwiches, special hot lunches (again, the etouffee is remarkable; the Cajun catfish is our minister’s favorite. We call him “Rev. Awesome”). Sometimes I’ll throw them a curve and order something different, but if I’m treating myself it’s the French Dip all the way.

If you order a sandwich at TBC you get choices, mainly what sort of chip you want and if you want a pickle. Nothing overly complicated…it’s either Sun Chips or Ruffles, and the pickle is just a clean, crisp deli pickle.

Let’s talk about pickles for a second. I love pickles, and not just pickled cucumbers. Pickled okra, pickled green beans, pickled eggs (Pedigree White Trash)…I love pickles. Zingerman’s Deli in Ann Arbor offers you two types of pickles with your sandwich: old pickle or new pickle. The difference is how long they’ve been in a jar. (For the record…Zingerman’s is the best deli I’ve ever been in. The reuben there might be the best sandwich alive.) I’d love to see some homemade pickles make their way to a menu near me here in Arcadia, but that’s a big order and a lot of work. “Who has time to make pickles?” one might say. Not me, which is why I want someone else to make some pickles. I digress…

My order: French Dip, Ruffles, pickle. Sweet tea. That’s all I need in this world.

Look at that cheese melting out of the sandwich. You get a healthy stack of roast beef, a decent ramekin of dip, and a good handful of chips. Luckily for me, Ben has big hands. And now I feel kinda awkward…

A closer look at that cheese oozing out…

Take that little monster and hold her head underwater for a bit…

Then let her up for a breath before you devour her…

And that’s a helluva lunch. I’ll slowly walk thru this sandwich…if I don’t have a good 20min to eat once I get my plate, I won’t go in the first place. No need to rush, and no need to rush the experience. As a matter of fact, I’ll take those plain ol’ chips and dunk them in the dip, too.

As a creature of habit, I have places I go eat for specific things, and at some point I’ll cover some of them in the Victual Files digest. I can’t think of a better place to start, though, than at Marlene’s.

Marlene’s @ The Big Chill in Graham, Texas…open M-Sat for breakfast and lunch. Breakfast at Marlene’s is suberb as well. Do yourself a favor and go give Marlene and Ben a try.

Spring’s Fling: Chocolate Covered Strawberries

March 29, 2011March 30, 20111 Comment

Spring’s Fling: Chocolate Covered Strawberries

Strawberries and Chocolate ... Simple Goodness.

Spring is the season for strawberries. I love berries of all kinds. And now is the strawberry’s time to shine. When you are making things with 3 to 5 ingredients, it’s really important to get the best available ingredients possible. This means using fresh produce. If you can get locally-grown produce, even better.

For me one of life’s simple pleasures is chocolate-covered strawberries. I’m a chocoholic and a lover of all berries. But this is simple and delicious. There are three ingredients: strawberries, cream and chocolate.

Wash a package of fresh strawberries and pat dry. I used a one-pound package for this recipe. Set them aside to continue drying. You want them to be as dry as possible to dip into the chocolate.

Strawberries! These came from United Supermarkets!

Next, use a high-quality semi-sweet chocolate. Scharffen Berger is my favorite … it’s happiness in a wrapper.

If you can’t find it in your local grocery store, Ghirardelli makes a good-quality chocolate and is readily available in most stores. If you prefer, you can use a darker chocolate, which has a higher percentage of cacao. Kitchen Tip: sometimes you can find a good chocolate bar for melting and baking in the candy section instead of the baking section.

Put 3-4 ounces (one bar) of chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl.

Add 1/4 cup of heavy cream. (technically this is chocolate ganache, which is just the fancy way of saying: chocolate with cream.)

Cream makes everything better-- that and butter!

Microwave for 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between, until the chocolate and cream have melted together.

Take your dry strawberries and dip into the chocolate and put on a chilled plate or pan covered with wax paper.

Stick in the refrigerator for 45 minutes so that the chocolate has time to set up. Then serve it up and enjoy.

(PS – my photos will improve, I promise. I’m now motivated to learn how to use my camera much better!)

Perennial Favorites and Bad Dogs

March 18, 2011March 18, 2011Leave a comment

Perennial Favorites and Bad Dogs

I was just writing about spring and how I love to watch things grow … and it’s even cooler to see perennials emerging from their winter slumber.

Half the time I forget I’ve planted them, then I will start to see this little bit of green peeking out. After an investigation, I realize it’s not a weed, but a perennial.

This is a lilly -- not sure which kind yet.

Love perennials … they are more expensive than annuals, but if you select the right varieties for your area, you will be able to enjoy them year after year.

I personally try to have a good mix of perennials and annuals. One of my most favorite annuals of all time is the pansy.

Look at this pretty, happy pansy face! Fortunately where I live, I can plant pansies in the fall and they will usually overwinter then grow all spring until the end of April. Then I rip them out and replace them with something more heat tolerant.

This is Mexican sage, a hearty perennial.

Mexican Sage waking up from a long winter's Siesta

Sometimes I find this in the garden… bad dog … if you can’t tell by the photo, my dog Ruby, dug in the flower bed and dislodged this beautiful specimen of Mexican Sage.

I love Mexican sage for my particular area, because it’s hardy and blooms continuously, it can withstand the hot Texas sun and summer, and requires very little watering.

mexbushsage — Mexican sage in full bloom -- pretty!

This is a variegated sedum, another hearty perennial that can grow just about anywhere in the U.S.

Sedum_verigated — Verigated sedum in its full bloom, in the late summer or early fall.

What’s the difference?

Annuals complete their lifecycle in one growing season, meaning that an annual plant can grow from seed to maturation (seed reproduction) in one season—snap dragons, petunias and pansies. Generally most garden vegetables are annuals.

Perennials have an ongoing lifecycle, meaning they come back every year after a period of dormancy. Trees and shrubs are good examples, but other flowers are salvia, daisies, sedums and chrysanthemums. Some perennials are grown as annuals in northern climates because they are not cold-hardy. A good example of this is dusty miller. It’s a perennial where I live, but in Kansas and north, it’s not hardy enough to overwinter.

BTW … for those of you North Texas gardeners out there, we are coming up on our last average killing-frost dates this week and next. For more info contact your local Texas county extension agent– they know all the scoop for your county’s growing particulars. (PS– if you live in a different state they have extension offices too).

The bad dog ... Looking very pretty on a spring day at the "Goat Ranch." (there aren't any goats, btw).

Tomato time in Texas

March 15, 2011March 31, 2011Leave a comment

Tomato time in Texas

About 2 more weeks and we North Texas gardeners will be able to plant our tender crops. And that means Tomatoes! [Why exactly do we have to add an “e” when we make the word “tomato” plural – don’t answer that Micki Jo].

If you have ever had homegrown tomatoes you can fully appreciate the greatness of having fresh garden-ripened tomatoes. Unfortunately half the year we are relegated to those hard, sorta red tomatoes—I call them red baseballs in the grocery store.

You can never have enough tomatoes during the summer months … when you are up to your eyeballs, all you have to do is can them. Then in the winter when you are making a stew or chili, pop open a couple jars of our canned tomatoes, and ta-dah – happiness in a jar.

I went nuts in my greenhouse this winter with tomatoes … There are about 100 or so plants. Yikes!

100_1663 — Lots and lots of 'maters ... Tomato plants galore

Calling all Gardeners! I need a few of you to take these off my hands!

Just a few good Tomatoes …

March 7, 2011March 7, 2011Leave a comment

I woke up and it’s Spring. First week of March down and it seems like it was just winter – wait it was just winter. One month ago we were still digging out of a big-time snow storm that left all of North Texas crippled — school was cancelled for a week!

Frozen Turkey Vulture — This looks like the coldest animal on Earth

Nothing says spring in Graham like Daffodils.

There was once a big push to make Graham the Daffodil Capital. [of Texas or the U.S., I’m not sure]. But you can still see the remnants all around us.

To me Spring means Baseball …

AND gardening. Oh how I love to plant stuff to watch it grow …

seedlings — Plant a seed and watch it grow ...

This year, Spring has a new element for me – my greenhouse! One of the best, most-thoughtful gifts ever given to me. (awwwhhh – thanks, babes.)

Look! Sprouted seeds! This just happens to be Nasturtiums, which are also edible. Very cool touch to throw a few blossoms into a tossed salad.

When these sprouts grow up they should look like this …

A red nasturtium ... And look at the Tomatoes! Oh I am hopeful that we will have lots of good Tomatoes! Just a few good tomatoes ... I am sharing my plants with other vegetable gardeners around me. Just a few good tomatoes … that’s all I’m looking for. That and maybe a BLT sandwich … Share this: Share Tweet Print Email Like Loading...

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