We spent the weekend pulling all of the tomato plants that have died off. It seems it was even too hot for our everglades tomatoes! Plus the San Marzanos did not produce anywhere near as good as the Romas last year. We are going to try them again in the fall at our off-grid property and see how they do there, otherwise its back to Romas (the skins just don’t peel as nice). We have the best luck with cherries but they are so small and not as thick for sauce. If anyone has any recommendations for a paste tomato in south Florida we are more than willing to give it a fair run.
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The peppers however love this time of year! We have a jalapeño, mad hatter, chocolate bell and mini sweets going in the front and back yard. We also discovered a new method of growing hydroponically which is being demonstrated in the Home Depot bucket above. The Kratky method is a little unconventional for some gardeners but it has been shown to be very effective for off-grid so we are going to give it our best effort.
The Kratky method is not just good for off-grid but also locations with little rainfall – looking in your direction west coast! You can learn more about the Kratky method here. The short summary is that the plants are suspended in clay pebbles just at the waterline and the container is filled with enough water & nutrients for the life of the plant. An air hole is needed on the side of the container at the waterline to allow oxygen to the roots. As the water solution depletes, the roots follow. We are trying it a few ways – with the 5 gallon, 30 gallon and indoors in used sauce jars. So far the 5 gallon pepper has been thriving so we will keep everyone updated when its time to harvest them 🌶
FYI: for those of you in the SWFL area, we purchase all of our hydroponic supplies from Green Thumb. They are just past the Shell Factory in North Fort Myers and have a huge selection of hydroponic supplies. We are not affiliated with them but we have always had great service and they always seem to have the supplies we need. There are not many places that carry those kinds of supplies so its good to know they exist when you need supplies sooner. They also carry grow bags in various sizes which is nice because you don’t have to order a bulk pack for that nursery plant you just had to spontaneously bring home 😝
The Blue Riverhaus 