The Cheap Vegetable Gardener

How to save corn seeds (Kernels)

14.5 years ago corn, harvest, seed saving, seeds

Corn is one of those crops I really don’t have space to grow but still like to try every year.  This past year I only had one ear that made it to maturity, in the plants defense we have a very hot summer and I didn’t have the most consistent watering schedule so I am to blame for most of their demise.  Given I used the last of my corn seed this year and wanting to make the best out a bad situation, I decided to use this ear for seeds for next year. 

I decided to go the natural route and simply let the corn stay on the stalk until I was ready to pull up my corn stalks my wife got tired of looking at our dead corn stalks in the backyard which turned out to be yesterday (October 31st)  As you can see from the picture above the corn kernels have dried out pretty well, though still contain a little moisture.

To remove the kernels I started by braking the cob in half and then starting where I split the cob pushing the loose kernels off with my thumb starting from one end to the other.  Once I have this first row off it should be pretty easy to attack these kernels at any angle. 

Lastly I layered the kernels in a single row in an open ended brown lunch bag to allow air flow to allow the remaining moisture to be removed.  I put the bag on top of our cabinets in the kitchen and will add them to a homemade paper seed packet after a few weeks or drying (or when I remember they are up there more like a few months late) then store in the refrigerator until time for planting next year.

Now I have more seeds than I probably will ever need for a few years and hopefully will have better luck (or at least remember to water them better) next year.

Tags: cheap, garden seeds, outdoor plants, vegetables

Garden Salsa recipe

14.7 years ago cilantro, garlic bulbs, harvest, onions, recipe, tomato

Big moment this week, I was able to make salsa entirely from ingredients.  I normally don’t use cherry/grape tomatoes for salsa but my Early Girls are not that early this year and have not quite turned red. 

CVG Garden Salsa Recipe

• 2-3 tomatoes (or 12-15 cherry/grape tomatoes)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 small onion
• green onion
• 5 sprigs of cilantro
• tablespoon vinegar
• 1 jalapeno pepper (seeded)
• sugar

Directions:  Coarsely chop tomatoes (removing seeds, though if I few sneak in it is not a big deal), onion, and green onions and add to bowl.  Finely chop garlic, cilantro, and seeded jalapeno pepper and add to mixture.  Add vinegar to bowl and mix thoroughly.  Let sit for 10 minutes and add sugar until salsa does not have a spicy aftertaste (normally 1-2 teaspoons)  If you like the spice skip the sugar and include seeds from the jalapeno.

Tags: cilantro, garden seeds, garlic bulbs, pepper plants, salsa garden, tomato plants

How to save pea seeds from your garden

14.8 years ago harvest, peas, seed saving, seed storing, seeds

Most of the seeds I purchase, I am able to keep for at least a few seasons before running out.  The one exception to this rule is peas, which I always have to buy each season.  To save myself a couple dollars next year after I had my fill of peas from my garden I let quite a few mature which I will reuse for seeds this fall and next spring.

Out of all the seeds I have collected peas definitely are the easiest by far.  If you want to go with the ultra lazy easy approach just let them dry on the vine until the pod no longer has any moisture and the peas are loose in the pod.  You even can store them in the pod and crack them open for planting.  One disadvantage to this technique is the peas could end up getting enough airflow and could result in some moldy peas.

To be on the safer side here is a more conservative approach:

1. Pick pods when fine is yellow.  The basic idea at this point the plant is not really providing anything to the pods so you might as well take on the responsibility
2. If the pod still feels a little moist store it in a dry location.  If the pod feels dry using a small knife carefully cut a small slit lengthwise into the pod being careful to not to injure the peas.
3. Once the peas get all shrived up and look like what you planted to begin with store in a cold dry location (jar in the refrigerator)

Now you have seeds ready for fall planting (or spring planting next year)  If you go a little crazy with your dried peas you can also add them to soups or stews during the winter time.

Tags: garden seeds, outdoor plants

How to save spinach seeds from your garden

14.8 years ago harvest, seed saving, spinach

Growing up in rural Washington state, the job market was a somewhat lacking for those under the age of 16.  Given this at the age of 14-15 I was sucked into the attractive and lucrative career of spinach rouging, also known as “The Worst Summer Camp Ever”  The basic premise of the job was to walk down endless “female rows” in the hot sun and destroying any male spinach plants.  For every 12 “female rows” there were 4 “male rows” of higher quality spinach plants which were desired for pollination.  So in other words I was facilitating the hybridization of spinach plants.

Hoping to keep these memories behind me when I decided to grow spinach seeds this year, I realized I actually learned something which I thought I would share.  In my case I am open pollinating so no rouging required though it is good to still know how to identify the boys and the girls since no matter how hard you try those boys will not be creating any seeds.

The plant on the left is a male plant, you can identify it by the little yellow balls under the leaves.  As you may have guessed the one on the right is a female plant which only have green balls under the leaves.  Not to over complicate things there is also monacious plants which are basically both male and female which I would normally just pull up since it will make things easier during harvest time.

Spinach seeds for the most part will wind pollinate on their own but if you garden is somewhat protected from winds it may be helpful to flick the male plants every week or so to help out the process.

Once the plants turn yellow go ahead and pull them up.  If they are males throw them in the compost.  If they are females hang them in a dark dry place.  I chose to hang mine off my mountain bike’s brake cable.

After a few weeks of drying you should see the seeds brown and dry just like they came out of the package you planted them with.  Store the seeds in a dry cool place (jar in refrigerator) and you should have a great stock of seeds for the next year.

Tags: compost, garden seeds, outdoor plants

Cool way to collect rain water – Rain Drops

15.2 years ago cheap, harvest, water

I came across this great new design and thought I would share.  The inspiration is to provide a cheap way of capturing rainwater for developing countries.  This would be a great way to prevent some water bottles from going into landfills but also a space saving way to capture some rainwater without requiring the large footprint or cost that rain barrel(s) can take up.  No word on these going on sale yet, seems to be in the design stage but great idea.

“The RainDrops system simply allows people to adapt standard plastic bottles to an existing gutter system to collect rain water. This changes water storage from the most to the least expensive part of the system. These are much easier to clean and replace than larger storage units. The repurposing of these plastic bottles will also give value to many bottles that are otherwise headed for landfills. Corruption in the water sector is a real problem in many developing countries. The scalability of this system helps to give more power to the communities in need.
Another large benefit to using plastic bottles as a water collection system is that it fits in nicely with the process called SODIS, which uses a combination of the suns UV rays and heat to remove pathogenic microorganisms that cause disease. This process is spreading across many developing countries due to its effectiveness and low cost. “

Tags: cheap, led

Garden with superhuman strength with a Japanese power suit

15.3 years ago electronics, harvest

Don’t want your back aching after working in your garden?  Our friends at the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology have got your covered.  With 3 years for only $10K you can have your very own power suit to complete your gardening choirs.  At a current weight of 55 pounds it will support your joints as you squat and reach.  Though for that much money might be a better idea to outsource your gardening tasks, or in my case work out a little more.

Tags: led