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Post by glen on Aug 26, 2015 10:40:12 GMT -6
Just got back from the garden. Heavyhitter okra is now on the decline. Blossom heads getting much smaller. Still putting on pods. Just slowing down. I expect another week of pods. Zeebest still has big blossom heads. It has been putting on slowly the whole season and should continue for a few more weeks. Plants are taller and wider than the HH. Less production over a longer time frame. I prefer the taste of the hh pods. Zeebest is meatier but skinnier. Zeebest gets rubbery after 2 days in the fridge. HH stays fresher longer. HH has that crunch. Better texture. Next time I plant these variety's will be in the coming May unless I just get antsy and decide to plant some earlier. I planted these plants in early May. They are almost at the end of their cycle already and it has been less than 4 months since the seeds were sunk. I have learned from experience that pruning the plants with the expectation of new growth is a waste of time. Therefore, these plants will be pulled up in a couple of weeks most likely. What will I do differently next time? For one thing, I will give the plants more space. Especially the Zeebest. Zeebest plants are big and bushy. If they don't get the sun they need, branches do not develop properly. I planted my okra 18 inches apart this time. That is not enough space for bushy okra. I believe 30 inches is better and if you got the space give them extra room between the rows as well. I should get more well developed branches that actually put on big bloom heads by doing this. Both variety's are worthy members of my garden. They provide a quick harvest of green pods. Only problem is that the picking season is short. Thats why I am going to experiment with the African okra. Growing both types should help me produce okra over many more months in my harsh climate.
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Post by glen on Aug 28, 2015 10:41:49 GMT -6
Ok, enough about the HH and ZB okra. I just planted my new African okra seeds in their new home. Aug 28, seeds sunk. Its hard to describe how excited I am. Also, my coffee okra is germinating. There are 2 plants just to compare them with the African okra. I might start a new thread. Maybe not. Probably not much interest out there. However, I do plan to send photo's to George as the plants progress and if he has the time maybe he will post a few pics on this thread. If you are interested, let me know. If there is enough interest I will start the new thread on African okra. This forum does not have other tropical gardeners I don't believe. Nor do I believe that African okra would grow well in the US. For me, they could turn out to be useful since the plants grow in harsher conditions and have a longer productive season that typical US esculentus variety's.
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Post by glen on Aug 28, 2015 10:44:16 GMT -6
George hooked me up with an interesting variety of pole bean also. It comes from Mexico. I plan to prepare a space very soon and get them started. I will also send photo's in the future once that gets up and running. Oh, peanuts are already going strong. Fast germination.
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Post by macmex on Aug 29, 2015 4:40:33 GMT -6
Glen, do keep us posted on all of this. I'll help with the pix if you need it. One never knows how such knowledge might come in handy. Perhaps, one day, we'll get more tropical gardeners and we can start a special board for them.
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Post by glen on Sept 4, 2015 8:57:52 GMT -6
Oahaxan Cream pole beans planted yesterday. Sept 4. African okra is germinating fairly well. Peanuts growing very fast. We are now getting some rain. Lots of overcast as well. Temps a little cooler.
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Post by glen on Sept 8, 2015 17:36:42 GMT -6
Almost all pole beans are germinating now. African okra is starting a second set of leaves. I had heard that the African okra might be difficult to germinate. Mine seem to be doing quite well. I soaked them overnight before planting. I didn't nick the seeds. About 75% germination rate. Every spot has at least one coming up. Growth rate is slow due to lack of sun. Out of 75 peanut seeds planted only one did not come up. Fresh seed does make a difference. I have a different planting of okra that I am letting go to seed now also.
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Post by macmex on Sept 9, 2015 7:50:45 GMT -6
Sounds good Glen. What is your weather like, this time of year, aside from cloudy?
I'm very excited about the Oaxaca Cream Pole beans. Wish I could raise them this far North. The question will be, how will they behave that far South?! They are native to a latitude slightly below the 20th parallel, I'd reckon they are native to about 17 degrees N. What is your latitude there?
George
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Post by glen on Sept 9, 2015 20:55:20 GMT -6
George, its cooler than normal due to the cloudy conditions. Occasional drizzle but not enough to complete irrigation. Daytime temps are in the low 90´s, sometimes slightly lower. It is 10pm and the temps are still 81 degree's inside the house. Lows will be in the 70´s somewhere. I have been paying particular attention daily to the Oaxaca Cream pole beans. A few have not germinated. I will plant another seed in a few spots tomorrow. One seedling appears to be wilted and most likely will die. The little seedlings are particularly stout looking, kind of lime green in color and other than that, look like any pole bean. Growth rate is slow now, due to lack of sun. Panama/Coordinates Image result for panama latitude and longitude coordinates 8.9667° N, 79.5333° W I do not know the significance of the coordinates actually. But, I do believe that my daylength is considered short. If these beans do well, I will easily be able to donate the excess seed. Lets hope for the best.
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Post by glen on Sept 13, 2015 13:37:47 GMT -6
The oaxacan creme pole beans are struggling somewhat. Not hardly growing, being attacked by some unknown pest. I have a panamanian long bean that I also grow that never shows problems at all. The African okra is struggling. Not growing. A few damping off. The Panamanian okra is growing and looking perfect. Twice the size and much more stout than the African's. I am worried. The Africans are being treated the same as the Panamanians. I do not know what is the problem. I have big hopes for the African okra seedlings. They are just sitting there. One spot has 3 seedlings that have caught some kind of virus which is making the leaves look crinkly or bumpy. I have had this problem before in this particular area of the garden. A couple have damped off also. There are a few volunteers coming up from a previous HH and zb planting and those volunteers look just fine, in the same part of the garden that I planted the Africans. African okra is supposed to be durable and resistant to illness. We'll see. Its not looking so good today.
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Post by glen on Sept 13, 2015 18:57:14 GMT -6
I found a spot in the pole bean row where nothing came up and planted a couple of panamanian long bean seeds just to have something to compare the Oaxacan creme pole beans with. I want to know if my conditions are just not right. Or, is it the variety of seed that is the problem. I have been cutting these panamanian long bean volunteers with the week wacker and they come up like weeds in the yard. But, they are always vigorous looking. No matter when they come up. And, they rarely have pest problems, and they are durable and long lasting vines that produce a nice pod for long periods of time. I take em for granted. At any rate, I got my heart set on those darn Mexican pole beans doing well. I got my fingers crossed. Same with the African okra cause they don't look so good either. Breaks my heart to find volunteer Heavyhitter seedlings coming up and looking so good right next to the sad little Africans.
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Post by glen on Sept 15, 2015 14:55:06 GMT -6
It appears that something is terribly wrong with the African okra seedlings. I don't have much hope for them. I think there is a problem with the soil where I planted them. Some are deseased. Most just fall over and cannot even support themselves. They should be somewhat stout, or stout enough to support themselves. Almost none are looking normal. Except for a few volunteer okra seedlings that are still in the row. They look fine, support themselves and are growing. The volunteers are HH or zb plants that came from an earlier planting which have acclimated to my climate somewhat. They are robust. I do not have enough African seeds to replant in the same rows. I have only 20 seeds left. They only gave me 60 seeds in the little envelope. I can only hope that a few survive and put on pods at this point so I can save seed. The Panamanian okra that I planted off to the side are growing fast and are robust little seedlings. All seedlings have been cared for in the same way. I have to save the remaining African okra seeds to be planted later, in a different part of the garden where I am more confidant in the soil quality. What a shame. I can only hope that a few that I planted survive.
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Post by glen on Sept 15, 2015 14:57:25 GMT -6
George, the Mexican pole beans just might make it. Maybe not all of them. But, they are growing and look like they will survive. I was worried for a moment there. I don't mind failing, but I sure don't like failing with the African okra seedlings that I have been talking about for so long.
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Post by macmex on Sept 16, 2015 5:30:06 GMT -6
Glen, it seems one can never know about how a plant will do in another place than its place of origin. Obviously, it is generally helpful if it comes from a similar latitude as where it is being trialed. Similar climate is also helpful. Though, I've seen some "transplants" do amazingly well in very different climates than where they came from. But disease resistance is another important matter. And, I don't know any way to find out about that, other than to try. What survives your conditions might well produce seed for plants better suited for your location. My experience is that such adaptation can be observed, at times, within a year. But most often it takes at least 3 years or more.
All your observations are helpful, not only for anyone else who might try growing that kind of stuff in a similar location. But also, to demonstrate to us all, the challenges we face when we move varieties around. Keep up the good work!
George
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Post by glen on Sept 17, 2015 9:26:51 GMT -6
George, that was a great comment. It's not the end of the world if the African okra does not survive. I have okra seed that has proven itself to use later. Even the Mexican pole beans have a replacement if they fail. Today I noticed that they seem to be pulling out of their funk and growing, getting taller and in a few days they will attach themselves to the fence. Maybe, just maybe I can get some seed out of the deal and keep trying them. They might just adapt. But, if they don't produce like they should, I can go back to my fool proof long bean that is fully adapted and produces a lot of beans. I really don't have many options here so I don't mind trying new variety's even if I fail. The idea with the African okra was that I wanted a variety that would have a deep root system so it could survive the dry season. That variety would also need to produce a good crop. I do have the coffee okra growing which does do well during the dry season if the plants have some size to them. My experience is that the harvest is very small with that variety. I have a couple growing now and the seed came from different parent plants than the first trial. Maybe they will surprise me this time around? I need okra that will produce at least 20 to 25 pod harvest during the dry season. Heavy hitter can't take the heat well. Plants run their cycle quickly, don't put down deep roots, and need to be watered daily or they will just droop and wither away during the dry season. Not a practical dry season planting. They do very well during the rainy season which starts in May so that is when I will plant them from now on.
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Post by glen on Sept 19, 2015 11:04:57 GMT -6
I am working on cleaning up the garden today. African okra looking horrible. I have pulled up some of the okra I planted in May. I have a nice root knot nematode problem in that section of the garden now. I do not know what to do about it except mix more organic material in the ground. Nematodes hate that. But, organic material only discourages them. It does not cure the problem. I checked some sweet potato vines that have been in the ground for over 6 months. No sweet potato's. This has been a horrible garden season. I don't know yet what I will do next. Its been real discouraging. I am still waiting for selected okra plants to produce seed. Thats about it.
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