June so soon?

Welcome back to another episode of Lost In The Farmer’s market. This is the first episode of the summer season where it actually is acting like summer should. We ended a week or two of virtually no precipitation with rising temperatures and humidity. Fortunately we had at least 1.5” of rain to counteract the mini-drought and should be back on schedule for all things agricultural and garden. In the middle of this some great snapshots from the garden were taken and we’ll start the first real post of the summer with those.

Hemerocallis fulva - Tawny Daylily

The true common day lily if there is one has to be this guy right here. They popup in the late spring and persist as foliage all summer. The happy orange flowers of these guys can stand at 2-3 feet tall which makes them ideal for enjoying in a natural setting and for photographing.

Hemerocallis sp. ' Stella' - Stella Day Lily

The day lily is a food forager's ideal plant; it is completely edible but can cause frequent bathroom visits if too much is eaten. Day lilies are named for the fact each bloom unless the temperatures remain cool last for about one full day. Thes are not to be confused with Oriental/ Asiatic lilies which are true lilies (Lilium). Daylilies are actually grouped botanically with leaf-succulents such as aloes and the members of the Red Hot Poker's family (Kniphofia) . Stella is an important variety because it is the daylily that keeps blooming where as traditionally one might get a short bloom season and that was it for the year. As a side note, Daylilies and Oriental Lilies are BOTH poisonous to cats even the pollen can cause acute renal failure so if you have pets be wary.

Delphinum sp. - Larkspur

Good old Larkspur, a plant with a flower almost as complicated in shape as the most exotic orchids. Larkspurs are the late summer blues of the garden and are very adaptable. Common Wildflower seed mixes will have these.

Delphinum sp. - Larkspur

 What's this now? That is a pure white Larkspur who's origins are currently unclear as I only had blue. Not that it's a bad thing to see some random wildflower genes asserting themselves but this single plant was and is quite impressive compared to the one above.

Asclepias curassavica - Scarlet / Swamp/ Tropical Milkweed

I snapped a shot of the scarlet milkweed in the last post, but right after the flowers opened and as you can see they are an epic shade of flamboyant orange and red.

Hypericum sp. - Saint Johns Wort

Saint John's Wort is a herbaceous perennials that  bears incredibly bright yellow blooms followed by what you see above, pearl-like seed capsules which are colorful and almost good enough to be considered a second bloom. However, it should be noted that St. Johns wort is a useful medicinal herb as tinctures and salves made of it's leaves reduce the healing time of bruises and lacerations. Paired with betony which is known as wound wort, the two can be used to accelerate healing.

Lavendula angustifolia ' Lady Anne' - Lady Anne Dwarf Lavender.

Lady Anne was a dwarf variety of lavender I decided to offer this year because of it's tolerance of humidity and it's petite (up to 12") size. This form of English lavender is a better neighbor as it sprawls less and blooms the first year as you can see above.

The bloom of a betony plant.

 The betony family comprises of a large number of herbaceous plants often with the botanical Latin first name of Stachys. You might know it's most famous relative, Lambs Ear, or it's 'weedy' relative Rattlesnake Weed. But as more things bloom you'll see them up here with little tidbits of information and there will be a lot of stuff to talk about as the summer progresses. But I move onward to the market information for this weekend.

For those not in the know; the Fayetteville City Market is open on Wednesdays between the hours of 12:00 to 5:00pm and on Saturdays between the hours of 9:00 am and 1:00 pm. The market is located at 325 Franklin Street in downtown Fayetteville. We are located on the grounds of the Fayetteville Transportation Museum. The market is a rain or shine event that persists in all but the worst weather. For note I have resumed service on Wednesday markets so you can come on down and not only get the best local foods, but you can now get your garden plants too. Fortunately June has begun with heat humidity and rain and I am responding by turning up the heat. This month you can expect to see some of the world’s hottest pepper plants and if that doesn’t suit your fancy, June is the first month I am offering for the first time fig bushes. Bordeaux Regional Nursery is proud to present three types of figs for your culinary delight.

LSU Gold

-          Fruit is green-yellow when ripe and they have pale red flesh inside.

-          Bred for our region by Louisiana State University, LSU handles heat and humidity very well.

-          Good general use fig for all purposes.

Negronne

-          Sometimes called Violette du Bordeuax.

-          Fruit is ripe when they are a deep purple-black and have red flesh inside.

-          Comparable to Black Mission in sweetness, and is good for cooking.

White Ischia

- Very fast growing, the mother plant puts on several feet a year.

- The fruit is golden-green when ripe and has a reddish flesh.

- Good for use in breads and brewing.

But of course this is not the only thing because this week’s market list is below.

Vegetable

3x Early Black Egg Eggplant

2x Pepper, Flashpoint Habanero

1x Pepper, Cubanelle

1x Pepper, Trinidad Douglah

1x Pepper, 7-Pot

1x Pepper, Naga Viper

1x Pepper, Naga Jolokia

1x Pepper, Chocolate Scorpion

1x Pepper, Santaka

1x Pepper, Aji Pineapple

1x Pepper, Aji Citro

1x Pepper, Aji Limon

1x Pepper, Aji Chinchi Amarillo

Fruit

2x LSU Gold Fig

2x Negronne

2x White Ischia Fig

3x Ground Cherry, Cossack Pineapple

3x Tomato, Pink Stuffer

3x Tomato, Black Cherry

1x Tomato, Rainbow Cherry

3x Tomato, San Marzano

3x Tomato, Traveler 76

1x Tomato, Underground Rail Road

3x Tomato, Black Krim

3x Tomato, Cherokee Purple

3x Tomato, Brandywine

Herbs

4x Sweet Basil

1x Thai Basil

1x Cinnamon Basil

2x Santolina

2x Rue

2x Artemesia

4x Tumeric

They said it'd rain...all it's done is fail.

Welcome back to another episode of Lost in the Farmer’s market or LITFM for short. Due to workload in real life there is no real post this week however I do have the Plant list for the Saturday market and some nice pictures from the test garden. So despite the lack of normal content enjoy the following garden-licious filler.

Santolina chamaecyparissus - Levender-Cotton

Many of the customers at the farmer's market ask me just what the flowers of Lavender cotton look like and when it blooms. The picture above was taken this week and those flowers should persist roughly until the real heat of August slows things down and may return again sometime in autumn.  The flowers of Lavender-cotton are held on thin stalks and are the brightest shade of yellow imaginable but lack any noticeable petals.

Capsicum anuum 'Sangria'- Sangria Ornamental Peppers

These guys survived all winter in a small 6" pot and have been transplanted up into a three gallon nursery pot. Fromt eh same seed batch one pepper bears the distinctive purple foliage while the other is plain green and the bright fuscia-pink peppers give away it's heritage. I bet by late summer this plant will be kind of epic.

Delphinum consolida.- Larkspur

A surprising volunteer, this is a Larkspur, I don't know which variety yet  but it came with the bag of Pennington wild flower seed I spread across the berm that forms the back bone of the crescent bed. Almost mistaking the young plants for a common dog fennel I almost pulled them up but decided to be lazy as they were not in the way. Talk about luck the bright blues are fantastic.

[Update: This plant is also known as Consolida regalis and is an annual.]

Hyssopus officinalis - Hyssop

No really, I went to snap a shot of the hyssop there in the back ground and the wind shifted and suddenly  a pair of narrow leaf coneflowers (Echinacea angustifolia) was all up in the picture. Some times not even trying the plants have a life of their own.

Asclepias tuberosum - Plerusey Root / Common Milkweed

The milk weeds get better and brighter every year and this year they are off the hook. It's like a spray of orange fireworks and the best part is some of the branches are coming up inside the garden bed.  As some might know I spent an incredible amount of time growing this clump from seed collected in new jersey before I moved to North Carolina and it's one of the greatest garden successes in the test garden.

Portulaca grandiflora 'Samba Peppermint' - Moss Rose

Samba Peppermint is a pink-white bi-color variety of moss rose and finally it's decided to bloom. The picture probably does it no justice but yeah for the sake of showing you what it looks like up close there it is with a picotee red petunia for background contrast.

Capsicum anuum - Purple Bell Pepper

In the upper right side of the pot you see a small plant emerging from beneath the pepper plant. The volunteer is one of three volunteer ground cherry plants that somehow got into that one pot. As far as volunteers go I'm happy to see them given the otherwise poor results from attempts at growing them in numbers.

O. basilicum var. thyrsiflora - Thai Basil

 Thai basil is often met with a bit of unfamiliarity and dare I say suspicion. Most customers don't know what to do with the typically scraggly plants and are unfamiliar with the scent and taste. But this is a picture of a mature specimen, as you can see if there is no competition Thai basil takes on a open bushy form and it's flowers are dark reddish in color while the petals tend to be pink. Humming birds love all forms of basil but are attracted to reds so Thai basil is good for you and them.

 But putting aside this weeks photos as some of you regular readers might know on Saturday the 31st I will be manning the table at the Fayetteville Farmer's market. The market is located on 325 Franklin Street in downtown Fayetteville and runs from 9:00 am through 1:00 pm. The weather is supposed to be quite nice tomorrow and so of course it's a good chance to get out without the risk of a freak downpour.  But enough of that, with out further delay I present this week's plant list.

Southward Skies: A northern guide to southern Gardening

This is the second edition of my book, which was published using data compiled from several years of test garden operations. It’s written to aid gardeners of all skill levels in successful garden methods that are targeted for the south east but had proven to be a valued resource for gardens across the eastern coast. It’s certainly a good gift for that gardener you know or for yourself if you’d like to have a reliable field guide. The book costs $25.00 and we do take checks for this item, you can even have it signed.

Vegetables

2x Eggplant, Casper , 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Pepper, Jalapeno, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Pepper, Habenero, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Pepper, Sweet Banana , 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Pepper, Pimento, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Pepper, Carolina Wonder, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

3x Tomato, Brown Berry, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Tomato, Cherokee Purple, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Tomato, Martino’s Roma, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Tomato, Mexico Midget, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

3x Tomato, Rainbow Cherry Mix, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Tomato, Red & Yellow Currant, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Tomato, Reisotomate, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

1x Tomato, San Marzano, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

Fruits

6x Strawberry- Ozark Beauty, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

Herbs

3x Artemesia, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

4x Basil, Sweet, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Basil, Thai, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Basil, Cinnamon, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Basil, Red Rubin, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Bee Balm, Lambada, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Chives, Common, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Fennel, Black, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

1x Lavender, Munstead, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Mint, Chocolate, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

3x Marjoram, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

4x Oregano, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Parsley, Italian, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

4x Rosemary, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Sage, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

2x Tansy, 3.5” pot ($3.00)

Coming Soon:

Black Hungarian Pepper

Potatoleaf Hillbilly Tomato

Japanese Black Trifele Tomato

Louisiana Long Green Eggplant

Early Black Egg Eggplant

Angel’s Trumpet “Bloomfield”

Passion Vine

This wraps up the last LITFM episode of May and what a month it has been, from drown to drought to drenched and back to drought. Wasn’t the crazy weather supposed to be in March?! As a handy tip most plants require 8 ounces of water a day at a bare minimum to do well so even a little bit helps if it’s too hot or you’re too busy to thoroughly water. With that watering tip in mind tune in next week where we’ll show sneak previews of what you all will see on the Garden tour coming on Sunday June the 8^th.