​I have some bad news about my growing trials.  The writing on the plastic labels I have been using is almost completely rubbed off!  I used a sharpie permanent marker and am astounded by how this happened so soon.  It is now impossible to tell the different varieties apart.  The only good thing is that the labels I used for my tomatoes and dwarf beans are different and the writing still seems legible, at least it was the last time I checked.  I am really disappointed by this as I was really looking forward to comparing and contrasting the performance of the different varieties I am growing, as well as their taste. 

​This year, I am conducting a number of growing trials in the garden.  You can read about my other trials here: tomatoes, capsicums and chillies, eggplants, okra and basil.  In addition, I am also conducting a dwarf bean growing trial for the first time.  My aim is to compare and contrast the performance of different varieties, as well as the taste of the beans.  I have never done anything like this before (for dwarf beans or other veggies for that matter), so I am excited about this project over the summer.  I intend to report back with updates during the growing season.

On the 10th of December, I harvested our Liseta potatoes and our wwoofers Geffery and Magalie sowed all of the different varieties of dwarf beans I had in my collection.  To separate the different varieties and ensure that I know which one is which, they made a neat site with string and labels (see photo above).  Prior to sowing the beans, they worked compost, sheep pellets and nitrophoska fertiliser into the ground and dug the site over well, raking it until it was smooth.  All beans were sown direct.  It’s not a good idea to raise beans in punnets for transplanting later, because they hate having their roots interfered with.  Besides, they germinate very easily when sown direct.

This year, I am growing the following varieties of dwarf beans:
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• Amish Dwarf Bean (Pennsylvania) (Heritage Food crops Research Trust)
• Baby (Egmont Seeds)
• Berrgold Improved Dwarf (Egmont Seeds)
• Blue Lake Dwarf (Kings Seeds)
• Canadian Wonder Dwarf Bean (Heritage Food Crops Research Trust)
• Colour Combo Dwarf (Kings Seeds)
• Dwarf Admires (Egmont Seeds)
• Dwarf Bean Mix (Yates)
• Dwarf Cherokee Butter (Egmont Seeds)
• Dwarf French Commander (Egmont Seeds)
• Dwarf French Contender (Egmont Seeds)
• Dwarf French Green Crop (Egmont Seeds)
• Dwarf French Jackson (Egmont Seeds)
• Dwarf French Hickok (Egmont Seeds)
• Dwarf French Top Crop (Egmont Seeds)
• Dwarf Green/Gold Mixed (Egmont Seeds)
• Dutch Brown Soup Bean (Heritage Food Crops Research Trust)
• Dwarf Bean Mix (Yates)
• Fin de Bagnols (Kings Seeds)
• French Garden Filet dwarf (Kings Seeds)
• Golden Wax dwarf (Kings Seeds)
• Kaiapoi Red Dwarf Bean (Heritage Food Crops Research Trust)
• Purple Tee Pee Dwarf (Kings Seeds)
• Red Kidney Dwarf Bean (Heritage Food Crops Research Trust)
• Red Swan Dwarf (Kings Seeds)
• Rijdal A Dwarf Bean (Heritage Food Crops Research Trust)
• Roquefort Dwarf (Kings Seeds)
• Royalty Purple Pod Dwarf (Kings Seeds)
• The Prince Dwarf Bean (Heritage Food Crops Research Trust)
• Top Crop Dwarf (Kings Seeds)
• Xera Select Dwarf bean (Kings Seeds)

Keep an eye out on my blog for updates as these varieties grow!

​This year, I’m growing a greater range of okra than I normally would because I wanted to conduct a growing trial to compare and contrast some of the different varieties available in New Zealand.  Okra is a difficult vegetable to grow because it requires a very hot and long summer, which we don’t have in Auckland.  Sometimes the plants only start fruiting in April, which is well into autumn!  Unfortunately by the time they get going, it’s starting to get cooler and growth soon stops.  I have experimented over the years and have found that growing okra in containers is the best method.  This year, I intend to do the same thing. 

Varieties I am growing this year
Yesterday, I sowed the following varieties in punnets filled with a little seed raising mix from Gardn Gro, and placed them on my heat pad.

• Burgundy (Kings Seeds)
• Clemson Spineless (Kings Seeds)
• Emerald Green (Egmont)
• Jing Orange (Kings Seeds)
• Millionaire (Kings Seeds)

I’m not sure if there are other varieties available in NZ, but these were the ones that I wanted to try and grow this year.  I’m sure the selection is greater overseas but I’m not keen on the hassle of importing seeds because MAP (the Ministry of Primary Industries) is pretty strict about what can be brought into the country due to pests and diseases.

Once the seedlings germinate and grow a bit, I will transfer them to six-cell punnets.  Then when the plants are bigger, I will pot them up into individual 10 cm pots with a bit of potting mix.  From there, when they’re big enough (and it’s hot enough outside), I will transfer them to 9 litre black plastic containers and wait patiently for them to crop.

One of the things that’s really good about okra is that it doesn’t require pollination.  The flowers are also really beautiful.  Apparently they belong to the hibiscus family.

I’ll be reporting back regarding progress of the plants later on in the season, so check back regularly for updates.
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Ideas for using okra in the kitchen

• As an accompaniment to dhal and rice
• Gumbo (a dish eaten in the Southern states of the US)
• Cooked on the stove with some onion, turmeric and chilli
• Baked
• Pickled
• Curry
• Casserole
• Vegetable stews.  You can add a handful of okra to ratatouille (BBC)
• Bhaji
• Okra with tomatoes
• Soup

Every summer, I look forward to growing eggplants.  They’re so versatile and delicious.  Here are some ways we enjoy eggplants:

• Cooked in the microwave and smashed with butter, salt, pepper, chilli and coriander
• Grilled in the oven or on the BBQ
• Eggplant parmigiana
• Grilled and sliced on pizza
• Roasted vegetable lasagne
• Curries
• Vege kebabs (Nadia Lim’s recipe in the December issue of the NZ Gardener magazine looks yummy!)

I always aim to grow a mixture of round eggplants (used in Mediterranean dishes) and long ones (used in Asian cuisine).  I read in the New Zealand Gardener that long ones are easier to grow than round ones.  I have had success with both types.

This year, I’m growing the following varieties:

• Asian Bride (Kings Seeds)
• Dok (Kings Seeds)
• Full Moon (Kings Seeds)
• Listada di Grandia (Kings Seeds)
• Ping Tung (Egmont)
• Prosperosa (Franchi)
• Purple Comet (Kings Seeds)
• Thai Purple (Kings Seeds)
• Tonda Bianca (Franchi)
• Tsakoniki (Kings Seeds)
• White Star (Kings Seeds)

I’m growing all our eggplants in black containers, as I normally do, because I have found that they don’t do so well in the ground.  I have already planted seven eggplants in some 30 litre buckets that I purchased from Palmers last year.  The rest will go into 18 litre square plastic pots.  When I run out of those, I’ll have to use 9 litre black plastic pots.

​Progress report
Out of all the varieties that I sowed, the healthiest, strongest eggplants were by far Tsakoniki from Kings Seeds.  So many of them germinated and went on to be potted up!  Asian Bride from Kings Seeds as well also performed very well.  A few varieties didn’t make it to the stage of being potted up but not to worry because I have so many plants!

​This summer, I am growing capsicums and chillies as I normally do.  For capsicums, I aim for a balance between bell peppers and Italian bull’s horn type peppers.  For chillies, I like to strike a balance between hot and sweet varieties.  This year, I purchased some capsicum and chilli plants from the garden centre as well, so I could get a head start on the season.

I’m excited to be growing a few new varieties of capsicums this year, including Sweet Classic from Egmont Seeds.  I’m also excited that I’m growing two new varieties of chilli from Egmont Seeds, which were kindly given to me to trial by John McCullough – Sweet Shishito and Hot Jalwa India.

I am growing all of our capsicums in large 35 litre buckets filled with Dalton’s potting mix from Bunnings, as I normally do.  Unfortunately, I don’t have enough of these buckets for the chillies, so I am growing them in 18 litre black square pots that I purchased from the Warehouse many years ago.  Both our capsicums and chillies have full sun, which they need in order to do well.
Set out below is a list of the varieties I am growing this year.  Unfortunately, some of the varieties I sowed didn’t make it to this stage of the growing process so I excluded them from my list.  While I am disappointed by this, there is still plenty to keep us going throughout the summer.  We usually have a surplus of chillies to our needs in summer, so these go into the freezer free flow for us to use in cooking throughout the year.
 
Varieties I am growing this season
Capsicums
Belle Combo (plants purchased from Kings Plant Barn)
Californian Early Wonder (plants purchased from Kings Plant Barn)
Chardonnay (Kings Seeds)
Chianti (Kings Seeds)
Chinese Giant (Kings Seeds)
Jingle Bells (McGregors)
Mama Mia Gialla (Kings Seeds)
Mama Mia Rossa (Kings Seeds)
Mulato (Kings Seeds)
Palladio (Egmont)
Sweet Classic (Egmont)
 
Chillies
Bhut Jolokia (Kings Seeds)
Cayenne (plants purchased from Kings Plant Barn)
Habanero Red (Kings Seeds)
Habanero Sweet Yellow (Kings Seeds)
Hot Jalwa India (Egmont)
Hungarian Hot Wax (seeds given to me in a seed swap)
Jalapeno Early (Kings Seeds)
Sweet Banana (McGregors)
Sweet Shishito (Egmont)
Thai Super Chilli (Kings Seeds)
Wildfire (seeds given to me in a seed swap)
 
Progress report
At seedling stage, my Sweet Shishito chillies from Egmont Seeds look really strong and healthy.  I can’t wait to plant them out.  Sweet Classic, a capsicum also from Egmont Seeds, is incredibly robust.  I really thought I was going to lose my seedlings back in October as I had them in an exposed area of the garden, under the eaves of our house.  When I noticed that they had become discoloured, I moved them into the patio area, not thinking that they would bounce back.  However, they all did and the plants ended up looking very healthy.

I’m also pleased by how our Chardonnay and Chianti capsicums have been doing.  Mama Mia Rossa, which I have grown in previous seasons, has also done reliably well.  I have noticed that it is more robust than its yellow counterpart, Mama Mia Gialla.

I’m very pleased to report that two of our Hungarian Hot Wax plants already have chillies on them!
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I will be reporting back on the progress of our plants throughout the season, so keep an eye out on my blog.

​This year, I’m excited to be growing an even larger selection of tomatoes than usual.  The reason for this is that I wanted to conduct a growing trial, similar to the one I am doing for basil, which you can read about here.  Tomatoes and basil are a perfect combination and complement each other really well, so they make a nice pair of growing trials.  Tomatoes are one of our favourite summer veggies and every year we look forward to growing our favourite varieties.  This year, I am excited to be growing many new varieties, some of which were given to me by Egmont Seeds and Franchi (distributed by Italian Seeds Pronto in New Zealand), for whom I am a brand ambassador.  Here is a list of varieties which I am growing this year.  This is not an exhaustive list.  There are so many interesting and unusual varieties out there but I have had to narrow it down to encompass a variety of tomatoes, as well as our fondness for cocktail size tomatoes which are great for salads in summer.  Of note is the number of container/hanging basket varieties which I will be growing this year.  I hope to compare and contrast how they perform.  Hopefully my suggestions will be useful to gardeners who are short of space or enjoy container gardening, as I do.
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I will be following up on their progress throughout the season so keep an eye out on my blog.
 
Varieties I am growing this season
 
Beefsteak varieties
Beefsteak (plants purchased from Kings Plant Barn)
Big Beef (Egmont)
Big Boy (Egmont)
Better Boy (Egmont)
Costoluto Fiorentino (Franchi)
Red Pear (Franchi)
Steakhouse (Egmont)
 
Low acid
Roma (Egmont)
San Marzano (Egmont)
San Marzano Redorta (Franchi)
 
Cherry tomatoes
Baxter’s Early Bush Cherry (Kings Seeds)
Gold Nugget (Kings Seeds)
Honeybee (Kings Seeds)
Lady Bug (Kings Seeds)
Orange Cherry (Kings Seeds)
Rapunzel (Egmont Seeds)
Red Cherry (Franchi)
Sweet Hearts (Egmont)
Sugar Plum (Kings Seeds)
Suncherry (Kings Seeds)
Sungold (Kings Seeds)
Sweet 100 (Egmont)
Sweet Gold (Egmont)
Tommy Toe (Egmont)
Yellow Pear (Egmont)
 
Medium sized tomatoes
Black Krim (McGregors)
Cluster Saxon (Egmont)
Dr Walters Special (Egmont)
Jaune Flamme (Kings Seeds)
Midnight (Kings Seeds)
Moneymaker (Egmont Seeds)
Mortgage Lifter (Yates)
Principe Borghese (Franchi)
Yellow Plum (Kings Seeds)
Potentate (Plants purchased from Kings Plant Barn)
 
Container/hanging basket tomatoes
Balcony (Egmont)
Birdie Canary (Egmont)
Container Choice Red (Kings Seeds)
Patio (Egmont Seeds)
Patio Choice Yellow (Kings Seeds)
Siderno (Kings Seeds)
Tidy Treats (Egmont)
Topsy Tom (Egmont)
Tumbling Tom Red (Egmont)
Tumbling Tom Yellow (Egmont)
Window Box Red (Kings Seeds)
 
Progress report
I’d like to highlight a couple of varieties which have really stood out for me so far.  One is the variety Steakhouse from Egmont Seeds, which was given to me by John McCullough.  Apparently these beefsteak style tomatoes can grow up to 1.3 kg.  As such, they need decent support so they have a wooden stake on either side of them, just like the fruit trees in our garden.  As they grow I’ll tie them to the stakes with some old pantyhose.  If these really do grow as large as they are said to, they would be perfect for making stuffed tomatoes.  By far the most healthiest variety of all my tomato seedlings is the heirloom variety Red Pear from Franchi Seeds, which was kindly given to me by Gillian Hurley-Gordon of Italian Seeds Pronto.  Note that this variety should not be confused with the cocktail tomato which shares the same name and which Egmont Seeds used to stock (now they only stock Yellow Pear).  This is another beefsteak variety, perfect for sandwiches and homemade hamburgers.  Another top performing variety in the garden so far is Topsy Tom from Egmont Seeds, which have been planted in twelve hanging baskets suspended from our washing line (see picture above).  As always, Tumbling Tom Red, also from Egmont Seeds, has also done reliably well and is growing healthily in our hanging baskets on the concrete slab outside our front door.