Well not exactly what I was looking for. I guess in zone 4 anything can happen.
When I started my pepper plants in January I also planted some early tomato plants. Really a little bit too early. How ever the weather here in Upper Michigan tells the story. A very comfortable summer but not good at all for plants that require some weather on the hot side. Those early tomato plants saved me. I picked the 1st one the beginning of august. The ripe tomatoes have not been real plentiful- how ever they have been enough for the table.
Ok. There is not a lot you can do about it at this point. What can you do with green tomatoes?

1. Pick the fairly mature green tomatoes and ripen them indoors. I place them in a basket and cover them with old news paper. Be sure to keep an eye on them some will ripen very quickly. Keep them dry and discard any tomato’s that show signs of deterioration.

2. Can or freeze any extra tomatoes. I prefer canning myself. I just like the flavor better.

3. If you are in a hurry for tomatoes for the table put a couple in a small paper bag. Place them in a warm spot for a day or 2.

4. COOK THEM-Fried green tomatoes. I have included a link here for a fried green tomato recipe.

Fried Green Tomato Recipe

I know its early. But I just thought I would touch on this. I don’t think canning is really a dieing art. But with today’s busy life style it is clearly not as popular. But will the economy bring it back?
There are some fruits and vegetables I prefer canned, and some I prefer frozen. So I preserve according to my taste. Sometimes we don’t always have that option. If you don’t have a lot of freezer space-then canning is the only way to go.
If you grow and preserve you own food with today’s prices you can save a lot of money. In most cases the quality of your own food will be much better.
The cost of getting started is not huge and the equipment can be reused for years. My pressure cooker canner is 30 years old and still works as good as the day I purchased it. I am reusing jars I purchased years ago. Stay tuned as we get in the gardening season. I will cover a lot more on food preservation. In my mind if you can grow it-there is a good way to preserve it.
My kids are grown now. But I can remember the days when they couldn’t wait to open that first jar of pickles or that delicious jar of salsa. The list goes on and on. So if food prices are getting you down, give this a try. You wont regret it.
And by the way-What a since of accomplishment!

Yes it can be done. It takes a lot of care. I live close to Lake Superior which has a tendency to create a micro climate. Very seldom does it get below 20 degrees below here. I have had some success with the Reliance peach variety. The peaches are a little on the small side. But what a treat!
Plant the tree in the spring. When fall comes around and the ground freezes place a layer of straw for mulch around the tree a couple feet, and about 3 inches deep. In the spring don’t remove the mulch. It will help the tree break dormancy a little late so the blossoms don’t freeze out.
Henry Fields has another Peach Tree out this year that caught my eye. I am going to give it a try. It is also good for zone 4. It is called Contender. I have listed the link below.

Peach Tree, Contender Produces top-quality peaches in the North and South.

Peach Tree, Reliance Old Reliable Reliance!

If you started your pepper plants early like I did they are getting to be pretty good size. I spent a few hours this week end transplanting them to larger containers. I like to only move them once between the time I start them and move them into the garden. 70 plants so far and more on the way.
Just another note- as mentioned earlier if you use or are planning on using hot caps -now is a good time to order them. If it gets to close to season they can be hard to get.

Also if you are planning on planting berries or fruit trees now is the time to get your order in.

Hopefully if you grow your own vegetable plants, and you live here in the North County- you have got a start on some of them. My green pepper plants have be growing for little over a month now, and looking very good. But compared to the tomatoes they grow so slow. But that’s ok. They have a lot of time. I planted a dozen tomato plants at the same time. You can see in the pictures the difference is huge. This coming week I will move the Tomato plants into Jiffy Pots. In this extremely cold winter we are having here the smell of the fresh tomato plants is very refreshing. A true sign of good things that come in the spring.
If you have not started your plants yet it is not to late. Still a lot of time-before planting time. I start earlier- I think than most do. I guess it’s the excitement-I just cant wait.

System Used for growing the Tomato and Pepper Plants

I used a self watering system. Water is stored in the first tray. There is a matt between the plant cell tray and a base . The water makes its way up though the matt supplying a constant moisture supply for the young plants. I have been using this type of system for a number of years. It works very well. The one in this picture was purchased from Burpe’s. Most all of the seed companies have them. You may even be able to find one at Wal-Mart.

For lighting- I am using a standard florescent light fixture with Ecolux F40 bulbs.

In this part of the country around the Great Lakes we don’t get quite as cold in the winter time as they do inland. A big reason for that is the cloud cover off Lake Superior. Known as the Lake effect weather this area is so well known for.
This can create a challenge for starting your plants indoors even if you have a very well lighted area. Plants can get spindly very quickly with out adequate sun light. Sometimes even a day or two with out proper lighting can ruin the hard work you have put into growing your seedlings.
The problem is -there is a point where its just not worth spending the extra money for lighting-if it gets to that point you are better off to buy the plants. So what is the solution?

Stay away from the expensive grow lights. You don’t need them.

Go to Walmart or Menards and pick out a florescent light fixture the length you need for your growing area. Approximate price $20.00 or less- I have seen 48 inch for around $12.00. Add 2 Agra Grow or Gro Lux fluorescent lights for about $8.00 each and your set .
I purchased some light chain long enough to lower the light fixture down to a couple of inches above my seed starting trays. As the plants grow you can raise the chain keeping your grow lights above your plants.
The way the economy is plants have gotten very expensive. You can save what you spent on your growing system very easily.

Bell Pepper

I just finished placing my order for pepper seeds. It seems early. But it is time. Pepper plants grow slow and in this part of the country I like to give them a long head start. With any kind of luck I may even see some peppers forming on the plants by the time they are moved out to the garden.
There are many varieties to chose from, but it seems like I always have my best luck with California Wonder. It is not a premium seed which keeps it low cost. It grows large enough for stuffing and sets a large number of peppers per plant. ( great for chopping up and freezing for over the winter )
There are also some varieties that are just huge. Like Big Bertha and Great Stuff-up to 5 inches wide and 6 to 8 inches long. I have had some success with these but found they do not set as heavy as California Wonder..
Start your plants in a seed starter tray. Two seeds per cell. Once they start to form their second leaves I cut off the weakest plant. In about 4 to 6 weeks if your plants are doing well you will want to transplant them into larger containers to give them room to grow and form good root development. I use round Peat Pots for this so when it is time I can plant them with out disturbing the plant.
About 2 weeks before moving your pepper plants into the garden start hardening them off. Move them outside into shady areas for short periods of time to get them broken in to the outside environment. Increasing their exposure time every couple of days. When it is time to plant try and pick a cloudy day.

In the garden place your plants 1 to 1 ½ feet apart. About a month into the season I side dress with ½ teaspoon of triple 10. Do not over fertilize.

Peppers are very easy to freeze-Just chop them up into zip lock freezer bags and freeze them and they are ready to use.

Watermelon is 92% water. But look what you get in the other 8%! Watermelon provides more lycopene than any other fruit or vegetable. Lycopene is a cancer preventing antioxidant. Along with this added benefit it is also a great source for vitamins A, B6, and C.

I was out hunting mushrooms and came across some ripe wild strawberries. They are so good but also so small. They are no match for the present day strawberry plants we have available today.
If you have wanted to start a strawberry bed but missed your opportunity this past spring. Get your garden area for the strawberries planed out for next spring. You can usually get a very good price on plants during a fall sale. The nursery you order them from will ship them to you at the proper planting time early next spring.
A strawberry bed can take many forms. If you don’t have a lot of space available you can make a strawberry pyramid with as little as 6 feet of ground. Or you can plant them in rows or hills.
Plant your berries in an area that has a good exposure to the sun. Try to avoid low spots. Strawberries need to be planted in well drained soil. Low spots also encourage the chances of early frost damage.
If you have the room planting on raised beds is usually a good option.
Test your soil- strawberries require a ph of 5.8 to 6.5. If you need to change the soil ph this fall is a good time to do it.
In the spring when you are ready to plant add one bushel of organic matter and 4 cups of 5-10-10 fertilizer for every 25 feet of growing area.
Start your strawberry patch with good virus free plants. These are usually sold in bundles of 25. One or 2 bundles will usually give you a very good start. Choose a variety that is good for your growing area. If you live in zone 4 you want to choose varieties that will avoid a late frost. Better to have berries a little later in the season then no berries at all.
Plant as early in the spring as you can. Preferably on a cloudy day to keep the sun from damaging your new plants. If that’s not possible plant them in the evening. Start soaking the roots in water a couple hours before you start planting them. The roots should be trimmed to 4 or 5 inches. I take a pair of scissors into the garden with me to do the trimming as I am planting. Space the plants about a foot apart with the crown base at ground level. Water them very well after planting.
Keep your new strawberry bed as weed free as possible. Mulching berries is always a good idea. It will help keep the weeds down and the moisture in. Pinch off most of the blossoms the 1st year. This will allow the plant to put most of its energy into developing a good root system and some runners to increase the bed size. I like to leave enough blossoms to at least get a taste.
In the fall cover your patch with a layer of mulch to give them winter protection. 6 inches of hay or straw works very well. If you live in an area that gets heavy snow fall like I do that helps even more. I hardly ever loose plants to winter damage. With the right care the following summer you will have that awesome berry patch you always wanted.

After a long cold winter here in Upper Michigan it has carried on into the summer. I don’t think we have had one day above 85 degrees and many days 70 or lower with very cold nights. We have had plenty of moisture so most of my vegetable plants are doing very well. But it does not do me a lot of good to grow a very nice looking plant if it doesn’t produce any vegetables. Tomato plants need warm weather for pollination. Temperatures lower than 55 degrees or over 104 will interfere greatly with the pollinating process. Blossom set has come to my rescue more than once during this type of growing season. Bonide claims it increases yields and speeds harvest. Which makes sense. If the blossoms set quicker your vegetable plants will produce earlier. I use this mainly on my tomato plants but Bonite claims it also works on beans, cucumbers, squash and many others. This is a good product. If you are having problems with pollination give it a try.