Garden Pictures

[Atash Hagmahani]

HelIconoid butterflies. I am sorry. Typo. Heliconoid = "like a Heliconia".



Ah, yes, I know Passiflora ligularis. Never tasted it though.

Yes, Passionflower seed has short longevity. However, all is not lost. Fresh seed germinates quickly, but stale seed isn't necessarily dead; it tends to go into a deeper dormancy, that is harder to break.

BTW, you almost certainly already know that it takes two Passionvines to make fruit. They are self-sterile.

Passionflowers cross readily, but being an ancient breed, they don't always, and sometimes the hybrid offspring are themselves sterile. Try to stay within the same subgenus. P. mollisima is a Tacsonia; it crosses well with other Tacsonias--and it is one of the easier ones to grow. It is coldhardy BRIEFLY down to about -5C.

The only Passionflower common here is P. caerulea, the Bluecrown Passionflower, from southern Brazil, that is strangely coldhardy (down around -15C or so) and rampant. One reason it is so coldhardy is that it suckers readily from the roots. Unfortunately, it has some of the poorest fruit of the genus.

[The Future]

Surprised google did not suggest alternative spelling.  We don't have those type of butterflies that I am aware of.  The cateroillar look something like this but with less black in them.  Or like this with less white in them.

Some say - an of course this is all opinion - the mollisima is LESS tasty than the purple passionfruit.  I'll wait a year or two and see! 

The ligularis is by far the best I have tasted.  Non of the sourness of edulis, much sweeter.  I know people who as children who went wild eating them (growing in their yard) to the point of making themselves sick.

Delicious.

[The Future]

John Vanderplank says that his favorite is P. antioquiensis, and that, generally, the Tacsonias are the best-flavored. They're not grown as much as P. edulis, in part because they are high-elevation Andean species that need "eternal spring-like" climates. Bermuda being north of the real tropics can probably grow some of them.

After a search online, I managed to connect with someone willing to trade some fresh P. antioquiensis seed!

"Passiflora antioquiensis, the red banana passion flower, also known as the red curuba, is a close relative of Passiflora mollissima" so I should be able to even work on a cross if I am successful with both.

[Atash Hagmahani]

It's a lovely species, and bears John Vanderplank's favorite passionfruit. John Vanderplank is an expert on Passifloraceae.

[The Future]

Here is the type of caterpillar.

Also the first of the sweet dumpling winter squash flowers opened today.  There are reported to be beauties.  They are listed as 100 days to maturity.  With flower opening at 56 days, looks on target.  You might notice I have stuck some male flower stamens into the female.  They must be eaten when fully ripe to get the sweet rich taste.  Some call these the "avacado of squash" for their rich texture and taste.

[The Future]

Some dried lab lab beans.

A cured feral pumpkin.

Baby sweet dumpling pollinated and growing now.

Sakata sweet melon ready to pick.

[Atash Hagmahani]

I saw some Lablabs growing LUXURIANTLY at the University of Washington recently. I was very surprised! I didn't think a tropical plant would grow so well this far north (47.5 degrees north).

It was loaded with pods. Nobody's harvesting them. I felt some of the pods. They sure feel TOUGH. Maybe they were past harvesting stage, but now I am curious what you've found, Future. Are they tough, or tender? Palatable?

The ones at the U. of W. are green-podded. I have seed for the purple-podded type. Might grow them out next year, if they are worthwhile.

[The Future]

Mine were advertised as purple podded but are actually green.  I have never seen a flower on mine either but and I am seeing pods now.  I haven't eaten any as I only received 3 beans when I bought them and wanted to be sure I saved some fully mature to grow out.  Now that I have enough for that, I will start looking for immature pods to try eating.  Mine have explosive growth, they are climbing into tall cherry bushes at least 20 feet up.  In cold areas these plants can make a good run during spring summer.  In warm areas they will get woody and grow year round as perennials. 

The pods immature I have seen do NOT seem tough.

[The Future]

Moringa, sunflower seedling and sweet dumpling squash in a pot.

First sweet dumpling squash

[The Future]

Oh, and the lablab has edible edible leaves, flowers, pods, seeds and roots.

With copious amounts of leaves on hand, I am starting to pick them for freezing.  We will have no shortage of greens around here.  Pumpkin vines are exploding.  Add beans and wild and cultivated amaranth (calallo) and we have alll we can eat.  Which reminds me, I need to post a picture of my mexican amarath flower (opopeo).  Starting to release seeds now.  Oh and the chia are starting to flower.

Oh, 3 seminola pumpkins on the vine and they are beauts!

[Atash Hagmahani]

That must be the African Moringa. Looks like it is getting out of the danger zone.

[The Future]

yea.  I have been pinching out any central leader growth every few weeks.  This one needs to become part of a new edible hedge.  Two others I have left elsewhere untouched and boy are the booming.  They will be 5 months old on Nov 6 and both hav just cleared 6ft with thick stems formed.  I am going to prune them to keep them at 6ft and we'll have our first harvest.  Should provide seed next year!

I was supposed to send you the bottle moringa seed....and something else?

[The Future]

Daikon (white) and China Rose radish.

Both planted Sept 23rd.  This would seem to indicate Daikon grows much faster.  Haven't tasted it yet - this one is actually 3 weeks from maturity and I picked it just to see as the top of the roots are so mature looking (wide and poking up fromt he earth).  I will experiment with replanting the top to see if it will regrow.  Also need to check to see if daikom readily seeds in this climate.  If it is tasty, looks like a useful crop.  Sells for $$$ locally.

[The Future]

Sugar peas

This is my first year growing these "oregon sugar pod II".  Picked these up from Thompson and Morgan.  There were meant to climb my short season corn but that all got killed by aphids.  So they clinging to what they can.  I was surprised how few plants produced this many pods.  Once I save seed, I'll setup a decent vertical system for them to grow.  If they are as tasty as adverstised, this should be good.

[The Future]

I topped my two best moringa trees today.  These were planted June 6 and were about 6 ft 6 inches tall.  Amazing.  The pic is of the clipped off tops.  (I did take pics of the trees first but those are on my cell)These will bush out now and next year should start to flower and produce pods, then seeds.  Fascinating how fast these trees grow.  Even more fascinating how useful they are.  One day I will guerilla plant these all over this nation.