A record setting summer; that is what we have. According to the weathermen we have tied and will soon break the record for the number of 90 degree days in a summer. We are tied at 24 days of 90 degrees or more for the year. It has been a hot one, but don’t worry, we will work hard to get you the information you need to help your plants beat the heat. In fact, in this week’s show we have some tips from Jan McNeilan and also some tomato tips for the mid-summer gardener.

Don’t forget that we also have our tour of Ireland coming up. If you have never been to Europe, or would like to see the gardens of Ireland, then this is the trip for you. Right now you can save a ton of cash by signing up to join us (www.gardentime.tv/tours). It’s a great trip, that includes your hotels and airfare (and a few meals) for under $5,000. The cost will go up in a few weeks. Come join us in June of 2016 and have some fun!

This week we featured...

Jan's August Tips

The summer heat is tough on the garden, it is even tougher if you are a new plant in the garden. We met with retired OSU Extension agent, Jan McNeilan, to find out what you should do with those new plants in the garden. Jan recommended that if you have recently purchased a plant it might be better to keep it in the container and well-watered until the weather is cooler and wet, but if you want to get it into the ground, the best idea is to dig a large hole and fill it with water for your new plant. The hole should be twice as wide and the same depth as the plant. You add the water to the top of the hole and place the plant in the center and then back-fill with soil and compost. Keep the crown of the plant even with the existing soil and top dress with mulch if you want and keep it well watered until the fall rains return. Speaking of water, Jan brought out a cucumber that she had in her garden. This was an Asian cucumber that had a narrow and crooked top to it. Instead of a nice straight and smooth appearance, it looked like a gooseneck squash. This was due to a lack of water. If you notice this in your garden, or the cucumber is bitter, it could be a lack of water for your fruit too.

Finally we looked at a couple of bugs. This time of year you may be noticing a few more bugs. The spiders are starting to reappear as they try to fatten up and get ready for the fall and winter, but they are not the only ones. The flying termite was the first one she mentioned. Usually this guy appears in September but Jan thinks he will be out a little early this year. If you see one just know that they are moving nests and are looking for the right conditions for their new home. That means wood in contact with damp soil. If you don’t have that then they are just a nuisance. They will be flying in your home looking for those damp conditions, so just brush them outside and let them go about their business. The other bug that might be more of a problem is the Indian mealmoth. It is also known as the pantry moth or the grain moth. The larvae stage climbs up your walls and makes a nest at the top, near the ceiling. Then the moth hatches and looks for something to eat. Normally that will be any open grains, nuts, cat food, bird seed, or cereals. You will see them flying around in the day and that is a sign that you should be looking for that uncovered food that they have infested. Dump the food and make sure you have a sealed container before you buy some more.
For more information about dealing with the heat in the garden, or any other information for your home or garden, you can check out the OSU Extension website, http://extension.oregonstate.edu.

Oregon Garden Geocaching

Geocaching is a neat hobby and you can start doing it yourself with very little tools. But what is geocaching? To learn more we traveled to The Oregon Garden (503-874-8100) in Silverton and met with Delen Kitchen. Delen told us that Geocaching is the world’s largest treasure hunt. There are millions of geocaches around the world. They are little treasures that you use a GPS, or a GPS enabled smart phone to find. There is an official website for geocaching which will give you locations around the world, but you can also have a geocache adventure at the Oregon Garden. The Garden has 15 geocache sites of their own that are only found on a brochure that they have at the Garden. For a nominal fee you can get the list and a GPS unit and follow it to the sites at the Garden. Once you find the ‘cache’ you can take a prize from the box, but only if you leave a prize. William took some goofy sunglasses and left a packet of Garden Time seeds. In the cache, you will also find a secret password. Enter that on your log sheet and when you have all the passwords entered you can drop the sheet back off at the visitors center and be entered for a prize of a night’s stay at the Oregon Garden Resort. This is a great adventure that you can do with the whole family.

If you would like to learn more about geocaching, the Garden is having a class on the 29th of August from 10-11am. You will learn how to geocache and then head out to the Garden to search for caches. The class is free for Garden members and only $10 for non-members if you register the 26th (it goes to $15 after the 26th).

Simington Gardens Tomatoes

The weather has made this a good tomato year for most gardeners. In fact it may even be too hot for some. To get some tips for your tomato garden we traveled to Canby to meet with grower Mike Simington from Simington Gardens. Mike grows vegetables that he sells to local markets, through his CSA and also at the Beaverton and Oregon City Farmers markets.

The 2 top questions that he is getting right now is about how often to water and what do I do about blossom end rot. The answer to the first question may seem complicated, but it is really simple. Mike waters his plants well until they set enough fruit for him to grow for the current season. When he feels he has enough fruit on his plants to carry him through the fall, he cuts back on his water. This concentrates the flavors in the fruit and tells the plant to stop growing so much foliage. The second question is about blossom end rot. This is a condition where your fruit will have a black or brown area where the blossom used to be. This is a problem that is caused by a few conditions. Mainly it is caused by soil conditions. Mike adds a lot of nutrients to the soil early in the season. He starts with fresh compost and then adds kelp, lime, and oyster shell meal. This makes a fertile environment for the plants and adds calcium which is a great preventer of blossom end rot. Another way to get blossom end rot is through erratic watering or excessive heat. Look to water on a consistent schedule and try to give them a little more water on the hottest days (until you start to cut back on your water). If Mike notices blossom end rot, he will cut off that fruit and get it out of the garden. He doesn’t want to waste any energy from the plant going to grow unusable fruit.

All this talk about tomatoes made us hungry so Mike then brought out some ingredients and made a simple tomato salad. He cut a pint of cherry tomatoes in half and put them in a bowl, the added a cup of sliced heirloom tomatoes, a half cup of chopped green onion, 1 clove of chopped garlic, a quarter cup of chopped cilantro, a quarter cup of chopped basil, a dash of salt and pepper and some red pepper flakes to taste and mixed that all together. It was wonderful. If you would like to get some of his tasty tomatoes, be sure to check out his website or stop by the local Beaverton or Oregon City farmers markets.

Smith Grilled Figs

Figs are ripe and oh so sweet! What makes them better is to prepare them on the grill! We stopped by Smith Berry Barn (503-628-2172) to get a quick and simple recipe from owners, Joelle and Rich. Joelle started by showing us the figs they picked up at their store. The best tasting ones are a little over ripe, but she decided to use the barely ripe ones because they held up better on the grill. After cutting them in half, she put olive oil on the outside skins. Joelle than sprinkled feta cheese on the open face of the figs and, using her special scissors, cut small sprigs of rosemary over the cheese. Then Rich moved them on to the grill. Over medium heat he grilled them until they were lightly brown on the outside skins. They then removed the figs from the grill and Joelle then drizzled honey and pink Himalayan sea salt over the top. It was incredibly delicious! You can find all the ingredients at Smith Berry Barn, except for the grill! Give it a try and soon you will be grilling figs all the time.

Street of Dreams Appliances

The NW Natural Street of Dreams is celebrating 40 years this year and one of the presenting sponsors is Standard TV and Appliance (800-398-7177). Standard has brought out all the latest in high tech appliances for the show and to get a glimpse of the newest we met up with Misty at the Atterbury home on the tour. This home had the best from Miele appliances in the kitchen. BC Custom Construction had built a wonderful kitchen and these appliances just made it a little bit better. We started with the Miele Speed Oven. The top part was a convection oven combined with a microwave oven. They cook so fast that you can prepare a meal for 25 people in just these 2 little ovens, it even has a popcorn button for the kids. The bottom oven is actually a steam oven. It cooks with steam and that means no more dried out entrees!

Now if the homeowner has a larger meal planned, she can use the big oven in the kitchen. This large oven had the Master Chef control. You just push a button, select what you want to cook and the oven will tell you what setting to use and even the type of pan you should use. The top of the range is great too. Every burner has a high-heat setting so you can sear to simmer on all of them. The grates are all dishwasher safe and even the handles are all ergonomically designed to be gentle on your wrists. If you would like to see this great oven you can stop by the Street of Dreams or you can go to the Standard TV and Appliance location nearest you.