Spotted cucumber beetle Cucumber beetles—spotted and striped—eat a variety of crops, not just cucumbers. Cucumbers, corn, lima and snap beans, melons, peas, pumpkins, potatoes, sweet potatoes, peanuts, eggplant, tomatoes, summer and winter squash—cucumber beetles feed on more than 280 plants. They feed on leaves and flowers and tunnel into fruit; early in the season they
Cucumbers–natives of India–love warm weather. Wait until soil and air temperatures averages 70°F each day before sowing or transplanting cumbers to the garden. While warm temperatures are required for growing, cucumbers require a relatively short season–55 to 60 days from sowing to harvest. In long-season regions, you can plant successive crops. In cool or short-season
Oyster mushroom When it comes to cookery, the term mushroom refers generally to cultivated mushrooms. Almost all of the mushrooms that you will take home from the market for use in the kitchen have been cultivated indoors under controlled conditions. The mushroom is a fungus and to keep the strain pure, mushroom growers work hard
Daikon and green salad Daikon is a long white radish sweet-mild to peppery in flavor and juicy crisp. Daikon–which means “long root” in Japanese–is most commonly eaten raw or stir-fried. It is a staple in nearly all meals in Japan, Korea, and China. Daikon is often shredded and served as an accompaniment to Japanese raw
Salad with dandelion leaves boiled chicken eggs and onion Dandelion greens can be added to a lettuce salad to add some tang. Young bright green dandelion greens can be served raw in salads. Mature dandelions are better cooked. Spring is a prime time for tender, free-range dandelion greens. How to Choose Dandelions The leaves of
Partnering dill with fish and seafood got its start a few thousand years ago in the Nordic countries of northern Europe. Dill—which has a flavor somewhere between celery and parsley with the peppery undertones of anise and the feint aroma of lemon—brings lingering warmth to cured and marinated salmon and herring as well as fried
The donut peach is juicy and sweet—many say the best tasting of all peaches. It has a creamy texture with a pit that does not cling. It is a peach wrapped in a nearly fuzzless skin. I want that peach! The donut peach The modern-day donut peach is the most ancient Chinese pan tao peach.
If you live where water is scarce, choose vegetables that do not demand a lot of water. Here are drought tolerant vegetable varieties that are very good performers. One note, even plants that do not require a lot of water, do require water to germinate and begin growing. Once these plants are well established, they
Dry gardening–called dry farming on a grander scale–is a strategy for gardening where rainfall and irrigation water are in short supply. By definition dry farming is non-irrigated agriculture in a climate where there is 20 inches of rain or less a year. Vegetables require water to germinate, grow, and fruit. Plant cells are made mostly
Early-season tomato varieties reach ripeness or maturity 70 days or less after the tomato seedling is transplanted into the garden. Early-season tomatoes are often smaller and firmer than mid- and late-season varieties which stay on the vine longer and are exposed to more hot weather. Early-season tomatoes are the best choice for regions where the
