With the temperatures falling, October 1st reminded me that it was time to decide which of my plants needed to be wintered over in the house. I have a Bird of Paradise, a Hibiscus, a double Hibiscus, and two Mandevilla plants that successfully wintered over last year and then thrived on my deck all summer. Even though I have not found a way to convert them to something edible yet, they are too pretty to lose to Iowa's rough winters so I had to clear places in the house for them I have no windows with southern exposure (definitely a flaw in this house) but I have several windows facing east that get some good bright sun in the mornings. So I have now brought all those plants inside to enjoy this winter although I would imagine the blooms will stop now soon.
While I was out surveying the gardens I hoped that our first freeze would not happen for a while, as I now have some wonderful green peppers on my plants that have matured in size but are still green. I read that peppers that are a green color are not ripe yet and that is why people have some issues with digesting them. My source told me that ripe peppers are always either red or yellow as they mature so I am sort of waiting to see if my green peppers will mature to a red or yellow color before I am forced to pick them.
In the strawberry bed I found a beautiful little tomato plant. He must have just showed up out there and is already about 6 inches tall with a wonderful healthy main stem to him. I decided to dig him up out of the garden and place him in his own little pot in the window sill by my greenhouse to see if I could keep him alive until next summer. Here is a little picture of my tomato plant so you can all say a prayer for me that he lives until time for transplant next spring.
Wouldn't it be lovely if that little tomato plant gave us a few fresh organic tomatoes this winter? I will keep you posted on his progress in that window.
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