I'm so excited...I just placed an order with Evergreen yesterday morning...my mother-in-law and I went through the site (b/c we're sharing seeds). We ordered Uchiki kuri, Blue kuri, red and green shiso, white eggplant, bush blue lake beans, mizuna, and red stripe amaranth...

now to figure out where to put everything...

Nms2k, might your fungal disease be powdery mildew? It can be a real problem here  I blame wide temperature ranges between day and night, tissue damaging dry climate, and overhead watering . . . As the plant ages, it seems to have more problems or, maybe the mildew just has more time to cause damage. You may have your plants a little too crowded for good air circulation.

Mildew resistant varieties are out there but I donÂt know if they have tomato and eggplant choices. (powdery mildew is a real killer of cucurbits)

Iowa State has a pdf document (see below) that has some (horrible) pictures of tomato diseases and recommendation for resistant varieties.

I've been curious about Komatsuna and now they have this hybrid Komatsuna/cabbage, Senposai. Another tempting green! Large enuf leaves for cabbage rolls, huh? Flip, did you put the quotation marks around cabbage because they aren't cabbage or because your rolls were really tiny?

Cabbage rolls were once a very important part of my menu. Cabbage was a big part of storage crops for the Winter, years ago. Herbivore meat filling and tomato sauce with onions and oregano to go over the cabbage rolls.

We still have cabbage rolls. My wife makes them with bean thread noodles as a binder and cilantro/scallions instead of the oregano. HadnÂt thought of using the Asian greens. We grow the baby bok choy but, IÂd suppose, the leaves of the larger varieties might work.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Tomato diseases pdf

this is what I (actually my father in law) will be growing this year (the list is from seeds of india and evergreen) :

.bottle gourd-alok,
.ridge gourd - rishi
.ash gourd- yash
.cukes/carrots- dosakkai, kakdi, kesar
.greens- totakoora, gongura(light and dark green), spinach- karma, sagar
.bitter gourd - jawahar, india baby, baby doll, green queen,
.eggplant - ratna, shyamala, bali, apsara, ma-zu, ping-tung,
.snake gourd - extra long dancer
.tomatoes - sun cherry
.sweet/hot peppers - taza, sona, jwala, damini
.okra - komal, nirmal, chanchal
besides these, there will be many sweet 100 and sweet 1million cherry tomatoes.

will probably need to research square foot gardening before i sow the seeds! I have only about 150 square foot right now.

digit,
Thanks so much for the link. I think we had either septoria leaf or early blight or both. the eggplant probably had powdery mildew. With the tomatoes, the overcrowding or not providing support early enough along with watering from the top probably worsened the condition. We have only about 6-12 inches of dirt as the house is on a ledge and we have a small plot. Not sure how to go about this. Raising the beds further might not help since the roots will still go deep. I am planning on growing tomatoes in planters (some 25 of them!) But don't know what to do with the others. In fact, even the pumpkin leaves got some disease and we could only harvest 2 (huge) pumpkins.
Is there a thread about crop rotation / organic remedies to prevent diseases?

Thanks!

Lots of planters, Nms2k.

I'm curious about your garden's exposure to sunlight. Most plants require sunlight thru half of every Summer day. Greens do not have as great of need but fruiting plants like tomatoes and eggplants need a good deal of sunshine to stay healthy and produce.

No greens, or am I missing them on your list?

I hate to see blight on tomatoes and it will even kill the early determinates in my garden after their first rush of fruit. Sweet 100's are not determinates so it takes longer for them to "grow old" and become vulnerable. You may have better luck with Sweet Millions because they are supposed to have excellent disease resistance. (Sun cherries will be a new one for us this year! :o)

Generally, it is always better to have soil that is deeper and more fertile. Cornell University is such a good place to look for information. Don't get mired down . . . the link is to their pages on organic methods for tomato, pepper and eggplant problems. There are other plant families listed on the left side of the page. Hope it helps.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Cornell's Resource Guide

"Large enuf leaves for cabbage rolls, huh?"

Huge leaves. They were, ohhh, about 10 inches long and 7 inches wide when I harvested them. I think they can get even bigger than that but I'm treating them as "cut and come again" plants rather than letting the whole thing mature and harvesting at once.

"Flip, did you put the quotation marks around cabbage because they aren't cabbage or because your rolls were really tiny?"

Heh heh... Because they aren't cabbage. Although, I guess they're half cabbage, so that sort of counts, right? I think Fedco refers to them as collards. Whatever they are, they're pretty darn good.

I won't call them "collards," Flip if I can get around to ordering from one of these companies where they're offered. (And, even if I don't know how to pronounce "Senposai." ;o)

I used to get mildly aggravated every time I felt the need to comment on one of my favorite greens - Perpetual Spinach. I predate the closer amalgamation of scientific names for spinach and beet/chard families. The science community now place these plants in family Amaranthaceae but spinach used to be with orache and lambs quarters in Chenopodiaceae. Oh well, getting off topic unless I actually knew something about Asian amaranths.

I'm not really very cosmopolitan, altho' my Asian wife is willing to join me in gathering a "mess" of the nicest redroot pigweed every year for dinner. "Perpetual spinach" might better be called "spinach beet." It is a type of chard with smaller petioles and midribs. Cultivating it are those exotic English, Steve, and a few "others."

Now back to what the Japanese apparently have done in crossing Brassica oleracea with Brassica rapa.!?! Senposai cannot be collards - Brassica oleracea (acephala group). I bet it's tasty whatever it's called.

The English will probably call it: "potherb mustard" . . . First there was "perpetual spinach" . . . the English-speaking people have attempted to control every facet of our education . . . Wee muuust reeziissst . . .

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: The Triangle of U

Steve- if you want to try the Senposai, I can send you a few seeds. Send me a mail if you're interested.

If it's half cabbage, half mustard... perhaps we could call it... Cabbard! Or Mubbage. In all seriousness, what would the species & genus of Senposai be? Maybe that's off topic for this particular discussion. If you want, you can mail me about that, too. :)

Well, Violet, since you asked... ;-)

I am as much an amateur researcher as I am a gardener, and my vegetable garden is increasingly oriented toward trials & preservation efforts. Every year I plan several major projects & experiments, including at least one involving Asian vegetables; and the main project this year is a trial of vegetables from the Philippines.

I have been fortunate in my seed collecting this past year, so it all came together. There will be 2 Filipino varieties of yardlong beans ("Galante" and "Sierra Madre"), 2 of cowpeas ("Bush Sitao Var. BS-3" and "CES-18-6 Paayap"), 4 of mung beans/green gram (from USDA), 4 of eggplants (also from USDA), and 1 cucumber ("Beit Alpha MR").

Day-length sensitivity & long-season requirements are often issues with seed from tropical sources, so I don't expect widespread success. Hopefully, at least a few will be able to adapt to my climate; if so, I will attempt to re-introduce them into the Filipino-American community.

This year will also be Year 2 of my bunching onion trials. Eight varieties survived the trial for winter-hardiness, to greater or lesser degrees: "Evergreen", "Four Seasons", "Franz", "Fuyuyo", "Red Beard", "Shimonita", "Stevenson", and "Welsh".

Some of these varieties have proven to be multipliers, splitting from the base - often forming clumps in large numbers. Others had predominantly one single large stalk (similar to leeks), which seldom split. The single-stalk varieties had the greatest winter mortality, so I will try to get seed from them this summer. Specific information on each variety will be posted on the Allium Forum at the conclusion of the trial.

My soybean trials continue, with around 20 varieties this year (still in planning stages). Of these, only 5-6 will be true "edamame" types; but I test them all as edamame regardless. Many of the other cultivars I grow are high-protein, so if they prove tasty as edamame, then they have potential as a nutritious garden crop.

Several last year showed great potential; one North Korean variety in particular (GL 2216/84) was tested as 57% protein & 14% oil dry. It proved to be a very early edamame, with dwarf 12" plants. I am hopeful that there will be some surprises this year as well.

Rounding out my Asian vegetable trials will be an adzuki bean ("Red & White"), a Japanese cucumber ("Yamato Extra Long"), and two bitter melons ("Abashi" and "Taiwan Large"). An additional adzuki bean, "Murasaki", failed to mature last year, and will be re-attempted this year from large transplants.

Thanks for your kind offer, Flip, but IÂm still trying to come up with a list for Fedco since theyÂve got Santoh seed. And, right below it in the catalog is . . . Senposai. (Santoh is wonderful stuff, BTW, very tender and mild enuf to be eaten mature in a salad.) Seed seems to be much more widely available in Australia than here in the US - where I only find it at Fedco and Evergreen.

Amongst my search results for Senposai, I came across a book by Joy Larkcom titled Oriental Vegetables, the complete guide for the gardening cook. It refers to Senposai as the "one thousand treasure vegetable." I actually checked this out of my local library some years ago. The book is from 1991 and Senposai was brand new at the time.

Now that IÂve sat around for the last 16 years, I have learned that it was developed by Tokita Seeds which the San Francisco Chronicle notes also as the breeder of the SunGold tomato, hmmm & mmmm. Perhaps not strangely, searching the Tokita website turns up nothing for Senposai  apparently they have gone on to new generations of plants while I have been off sleeping in the garden.

Senposai in North Carolina State U. trials is listed as a "collard." I may be swimming against the tide here. The researcher does identify it as Brassica rapa x Brassica oleracea.

Zeedman, it is good to see that you are busy again this year. Personally, I will be looking forward to a report on your results especially on those bunching onions.

Steve

Hi, I am new to this website and I am in zone 6, not sure 6a or 6b .I am in outside of Chicago.
I grow a lot of Asian veggies every year. I alway grow the basic stuff such as Pak choi, Eggplant, Thai pepper etc.

This year I am going to grow marlabar spinach. I started it indoor and the seedings have first true leave. I also planted bitter melon seeds indoor about 2-3 weeks ago, I saw the soil starts to break.
Last year I planted buttercup and I really liked it. I did some research on buttercup squashes and decided to grow Kabocha type this year. I grow Sweet Mama and Delica, both are Hybrid with sweet, dry taste and can be store for very longtime. I grow Kailiann(chinese broccoli)evry year and it grows well in my area and it is easy to take care of them.
Something that I am going to grow and I have absolutely no idea of is Egyptian spinach. Its seed looks like from Cole family. I have never seen the plant but I dare to try this year. I started the seed just few days ago and it is germinating.
I also planted Shiso(red)seeds about a month ago and haven't see any seen sign of life. Does anyone know Shiso seed needs sun light or not sun light to germinate? Or does it have low germination rate? Besides Shiso, I aslo grow Japanese green Mibuna and Mizuna.
I aslo grow silverline melon. I had tasted it before (It can be bought at Korean G. store), it taste pleasantly sweet.
I grow both green and purpule hycinth beans on a net. They grow vigorously in the hot temperature and the leaves and flowers are very ornimental. Many people don't eat hycineth bean in U.S, but I grow them and eat the pod.

eswar,

Can you please tell me from where I can get Tindora (ivy gourd)plant or seed.

Thanks in advance.

I purchased from this gentlemen some time back. He lives in Tampa florida. If you send a e-mailto me I can send his address.(e-mail and postal address)
(1 qrt Tindora $15.00 plus $5.00 packing plus $5.95 Priority Mail $25.95 )

This year -few days ago (I propagated them )and gave about 14 plants to other people.
If you can wait for 2 months may be I can send you some.( free , Pay shipping costs) But it may be late.Then -No choice you have to get it from him.

Thank You Eswar,
I found it at royalpatel.com while serching this site. I live in zone 6b I think. Do you know when I can plant in the garden? Do I need to bring in for the winter? Does this plant grow like Ivy?
Thanks again.

Hi eswar and violet,

Thanks for your advice before. I bought sqft gardening book and built two 9x4 sqft beds with cinder block. haven't planted any thing yet. it was freezing here last weekend(NC). i have lots of seeds. okra, bitter gourd, bottle gourd, snake gourd, ridge gourd, spinach, tomato, carrot, beetroot, cherry tomato, beans, goru chikkudu, brinjal, may be(dosa), cant recognize the seeds. I started some in tray two days back. but last year i didn't have any success. they were good inside. but i guess i planted during hot sun or something like that. all of them died. i planted some directly. they came out okay.

can you please tell me what should i plant when?
our temps are going to be highs around 70 and low 40's.

tomorrow i am going to sprinkle, carrot, spinach and beetroot. should i put cardboard as a cover for them until they germinate? will it help them to grow faster?

Thanks.

Growing Tindora (Ivy gourd)
Perhaps Chaman chip in and share his methods.
Tindora is not frost hardy. It needs to be brought inside except in deep down south.
This is what I have seen
(1) growing in large containers. Cedar containers from LoweÂs, Wal mart etc.
(2) Direct ground planting either in raised beds or on small hills (mounds).
(3) Dig it and plant in a container, bring it inside home
(4) Needs sun/ and trellis.
(5) This does not grow very tall, but needs support 5 feet trellis is adequate.

For raised beds I use MelÂs mix. Or compost to which I add Espoma garden tone or plant tone.
It takes about 65 days.

Thank you Eswar

Saija, for seeds going into the soil outdoors, soil temperature is more important than air temperatures. Most things will begin to germinate fairly quickly when the soil is above 50°F, even more quickly when it goes above 60°F - but you'll be getting a little late for your earliest cool-weather crops by then. You can probably use just about any thermometer, just dig down a couple of inches, bury the thermometer and then come back after 10 minutes to check.

If your soil surface dries out quickly, covering the seed bed with cardboard or something may help. I forget to look under things and the plants grow . . . out of sight, out of mind doesn't work very well for me. You can also press the soil down a little over the seeds. Misting the soil if it begins to dry works but you can soon build a crust that the seedlings will have a more difficult time breaking thru.

All this is more important with small, slow-germinating seeds (like carrots & beets) near the surface than larger seeds planted more deeply, or quickly germinating seeds (like cabbage-family, spinach, and lettuce).

Transplanting from indoors should only be done after a few days hardening-off the plants. A day that is overcast and rainy is a good choice for transplanting as long as your plants don't get beaten down. Early in the Spring, you need to keep your fingers crossed that you don't have frosts after weather like this but cool and wet is much preferable to blazing hot sun.

Just my 2 cents.

Steve

Thank you steve for the info.

I just chowed down on tatsoi and green stem pac choi. I know normally A-Choi is cooked, but it's lovely lime green leaves when small are delectable in a salad. It looks sort of like a romaine type?
I am very interested in finding out more about thai and indian greens. Anything green and leafy that I can grow in the heat and humidity of our summers is great. The Asian seed vendors don't seem to have much in the way of Thai veg. Just a few things.

Have started various eggplant, several types of peppers although they are more of the Italian type than thai(too hot for me!!). Tomorrow I am ready to start various colors of hyacinth bean (still not brave enough to cook), and yard long beans which are my absolute favorite. Love that beany taste!

GGG

girlgroupgirl,

Exactly what Thai vegetables are you referring to that you can not find?

Violet, those I do not know about, lol. I don't know very many. I just want to know what exists and where I can get 'em. Mainly greens. You just can't grow many greens here in Georgia in the middle of summer!

GGG

> ...can't grow many greens here in Georgia in ... summer!

If you browse through the online Evergreen catalog, look for phrases like "tropical", "subtropical", or "summer". For example, if you are looking for baby bok choy, "Tropic Wonder" or "Summer Boy" hybrid Ching Chiang may work.

"Taiwan" ("Formosa"), "Hong Kong" (& "Canton"), and "Southern China" would also be good search terms because all of these are south of Georgia. Taiwan gets hit by hurricanes. In contrast, cultivars from "Korea", "Japan", or "Northern China" may not do as well in summer.

Of course, Thailand is way south of Georgia, and Baker Creek Seeds carries many Thai cultivars.

Here is a link that might be useful: Baker Creek Seeds (oriental greens page)

girlgroupgirl,

There are plenty of greens you can grow in your area. It gets to 100 degree temps where I'm at and we still grow vegetables all summer.

What do you think you can't grow?

Here is a link that might be useful: Georgia Extension Service Vegetable Publications for Home Gardeners

Hi,
I am just getting back into gardening as I am finally in a place where I can have plants. This year we decided to go with containers due to critters, a silly dog and very bad and compacted soil. At this point everything looks wonderful much to my surprise. We are in a very hot and arid part of southern AZ--so my main concern is watering and keeping the plants healthy.

We have had a couple of plant murders by critters as yet-unseen--the blasted thing just cuts off the head of the plant. My deepest sorrow was for my first ever eggplant--believe it or not, the Eggplant has recovered. It made a new strong branch and already there are two tiny eggplants growing. So now I am using cayenne powder sprinkled everywhere close to the plants and that seems to be working.

I am wild for tatsoi and it has grown well here--I started it in Jan. I grew up in a very deep south part of Texas and I am used to eating strong greens like collards often. Tatsoi is nothing like collards yet the taste is strong--I have yet to get enough of the few tatsoi I have grown and keep eating it raw. yum !!!!

I also like yard long beans but I don't know anything about them--would they grow in a container and what about my extreme heat and dry climate? I do have a fence so I plan to send up some cucumbers and gourds later.

Thanks for this help,
Bee

I also like yard long beans but I don't know anything about them--would they grow in a container and what about my extreme heat and dry climate?

Bee,

Absolutely! They kick in when normal beans have long since puttered off and keep going until it get's cold. Get's into the 90F and 100F degree area for me and I still get beans. As with most vegetables, they'll go dormant if it gets too hot, usually 96 or above but will start up again when it cools down. You can plant in an area on the east side of the house or other shading structure to provide relief from the afternoon heat of the summer.

I am a new gardener this year. I've dabbled with flowers but this year i started a vegetable garden. I have pak choi, spinach, habanero peppers, and eggplant. Two questions:

Some of the pak choi bolted (that is, sprouted yellow flowers that bloomed) already. The stalks (?) appear very crisp and juicy but they are thin. I see the beginnings of flower stalks growing in the center of the remaining plants. I planted them as small plants in late april. Is there a way to postpone the bolting so that the stalks get larger?

My eggplants and peppers appear healthy but stagnant. I am in zone six. Just last week it got into the 80s for the first time. Is this normal or should they be growing mopre rapidly?

Thanks for your help.

I guess I'm a little late in getting into this thread. Some of my 07 crop has come and gone. Of that I had good luck:

Komatsuna(602hybrid kojisan, Evergreen) Lush healthy pest free. Alas, bland and and uninteresting. A real shame since it held until April before bolting.

Hon-Tsai Tai (Brassica chinensis L, var purpura Makino, Evergreen) Much like the above in growth and slow bolting. Younger leaves good fresh in salads, soups. Not as good as bok choy in stir frys.

Chinese mustard (Brassica juncea, 431,Big Stem, Evergreen) Finicky in my garden like Dai Gai Choy has always been. Short harvest window for optimal juicy stems for such a long maturity. Same note to self as always, sow for a couple of plants every two weeks.

Chinese mustard (Brassica juncea, 105, Bau-Sin, Evergreen)
I had better luck with this one than any other Dai Gai Choy. Very tasty leaves and stems, perfect with steamed lop cheung and spicy curries with coconut cream. Same note to self as above.

Snow peas did well until Feb. Broccoli continues but took out some two year old plants for rotation.

My rototiller broke in April so I have been slow to plant warm season veggies. After manual double digging last month I've finally got some tomatoes up and forming fruit. Anaheim, Fresno, Jalapeno and yolo wonder sweet peppers in. Japanese long eggplants ready to transplant. And bush beans popping up thru the soil. Going to dig some more today and will plant some more baby bok choy (348 Hybrid Mei-Qing-Choi Evergreen) Actually am presently growing and harvesting the same, planted some with the tomatoes knowing they will be gone before the tomatoes really need space. I try to keep a constant supply of bok choy going year round but have trouble from late July thru the end of Sept. Other incidentals growing, chard, chive (chinese flat and reg.) basil, fennel, onions(granex and Stockton red), cilantro.

I have plans for red kuri squash, and Hawaiian papaya.

Jim/San Diego

I haven't checked back in awhile. It gets hot and HUMID here which is the biggest issue. Now hot, humid and dry. Because we do not get cool nights, many things fizzle out. You gotta have grown in the South to understand how relentless it is in zone 8 downtown (we get refractory heat and light) in July and August. It just doesn't get to 100 for a day, but it would be weeks on end at high temps.
For example, it is very difficult to grow lettuce all summer. With more rains, yes - in the shade a few varieties will do OK. This year it is dry and they struggle now.
I am trying stem lettuce to see if that does better.
Thanks for the link to the Georgia Extension office. You will notice that most greens are mentioned to grow specific times of the year which does not include July/August as major growing season.
This year I've had more luck with amaranth due to our actual lack of humidity and dry weather. Normally it doesn't do well here.
I did grow almost all the Asian veg for "warm" temps in the spring that you list as offered. They really struggled as soon as the temps got really warm - and it hasn't been that warm yet!
So I am wondering about things that are not offered by seed companies. Oh, heck. I don't even know if they exist because I really don't know much about food sources in these countries.

GGG

Unusual varieties for my garden this year are
Korean cucumbers,eggplant and peppers. The Mrs is Korean. From Turkey I have planted Adapazari Squash and cucumbers. As a curiosity and conversation topic I've started seeds for the Hmong Red Cucumber from seeds I got from Hirts seeds.It turns bright red when ready to Harvest.

girlgroupgirl,

If you're wanting to grow greens like lettuces and anything in the cole crop family, you can grow them for two seasons out of the year. Plan for a spring crop and a fall crop. Lettuce is a cool season crop and should be grown at the same time as cabbage, broccoli, etc. It is not just your own location. Lettuce prefers average daily temperatures are between 55F and 70F degrees. So just plan on two crops, one in spring, and one in fall. If you grow the fall crop in a cold frame, you can harvest lettuce well into winter.

If you are looking for warm season Asian Vegetables, try winter melon, bitter melon, (any Asian melon), yard long beans, hundreds of varieties of eggplant, herbs, gourds, soybeans, peppers, etc.

Not too late reefisher, all participation is welcome! Also, there are plenty of methods by which to plant without tilling. You can look into Lasagna Gardening and it is discussed throughout the GW forums. Or you can create raised beds.

jwr6404,

Intriguing! Would love to see pics of your red cukes when they're ready!

violet
If I get a computer upgrade I will send some pictures when ripe. in the meantime you can visit hirts.com and there is a picture of the red cucumber on their homepage.

I do grow all sorts of vegetables during the summer, but it is lettuces that we want to be sweet and delicate and not bolt. I refuse to put the oven on during the summer, and we live on salad almost all year round from the garden anyway, except for a very few months.
I found out that the very heat tollerant lettuce in Malaysia is called "mukchow" in New Zeland. Bakers sells the seed but they are now out of it. I can't find another name for it that it might be found under. It appears to be different than some stem lettuce. I KNOW some of these countries grow hot weather lettuces, it is just very hard to find seed, or seed names (or vegetable names for some things, for that matter!).

GGG

Red Cucumber, intriguing!

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girlgroupgirl,

The "mukchow" you're inquiring about, is also known as Stem Lettuce, Asparagus Lettuce, Celery Lettuce and Chinese Lettuce. It is a member of the Asteraceae (sunflower) family. It is also known as "Yu Mai Tsai" in Chinese.

Latin Names:
Lactuca sativa var. augustana
Lactuca sativa var. asparagina

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"Though it has a common name of Celtuce, it is not a cross between Lettuce and Celery. It is just a variety of Lettuce grown for its romaine-like foliage and mainly for its thick, edible stem. The stem grows 6 to 8 inches long and about 1½ inches in diameter. They can be cooked like broccoli and tastes like a cross between a mild summer squash and an artichoke." The leaves are usually not considered edible due to the bitter tasting milky sap that forms soon after it matures. But, as with most produce, the key is in knowing when to harvest.

This Asian vegetable is also known as...
China: gie chia wo tsai, wo tsai, a choy, a tsai, youmaicai, yu mai tsai
India: salad
Indonesia: selada
Japan: chisa, retasu
Malaysia: daun selada
Philippines: letsugas
Sri Lanka: salada
Thailand: phak gadhom, phak salat

If you're interested in Asian Vegetables, browse the Evergreen Seeds Catalog.

So how about an update folks? You all have created such a fantastic thread! I'm wondering what you have been/are eating and what you're planning on for a fall planting!

What did well for you? What will you not grow again and why? Such a pleasure reading this thread!

Thanks eswar for remembering me.You have correctly described about growing Tindora or Ivy Gourd.
I usualy plant the Tindora roots in mounds after mother's day.Fertilize with 10-10-10 every three to four weeks.Make circular trench around the mound to fill with water.If you plant on the mound you can water the plants every other day.I fix stakes every 5 feet on either side of the plant.Connect the stakes with horizontal stake midway and at the tops of stakes.Let vines climb all over the stakes.
Dig out the roots before the first warning of frost and plant in the pots to take indoor.Frost will kill the roots mercylessly.Keep the plants at warm place in the house.
Water only slightly to keep the soil barely wet when inside.
Do not waste your time growing from seeds.Male and female plants are required to produce seeds.It is hard to find male Tindora plant.The fruits we get are from female plant which are not good for seed production.Ofcource the seed will ripen and change to red color and will have useless seeds in absence of male plant.
It is very interesting to note that all the flowers are with baby embriyo fruit and there won't be any male flower on fruit bearing Tindora plant.Tindora plant bears the fruit without the help of male flower.
Even if you get the seeds properly pollinated it may take more than three years to produce enough fruits for use.It is preferable to grow plant from the root.

{{gwi:97363}}

What did well for me?
Evary thing I planted.
Namely:
Okra
Sweet potatoe
Cluster beans
Cow peas
Tomatoes
Peanuts
Peppers
Bitter melons
Corn
Cantaloupe
Honeydew
Water melons
Red potatoes
Shelly beans
Tindora (Ivy gourd)
Moringa (Dwarf Kind)
Egg plants
I am out of stock now.

How do you like to prepare your cluster beans (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba) chaman? Can you post a photo?

Photo of Cluster bean

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Wash the cluster beans and cook by boiling in water.Do not over cook.Drain the water and saute cooked beans in oil of your choice, some mustard seeds, oregano seeds and garlic.Add salt,pepper and little bit of yougart.Cool it and enjoy eating.Oregano seeds are optional, instead you may add some dry oregano leaves along with salt and pepper.
You may try it with curry powder.

I think yours look different than the ones I am familiar with... Do yours have lengthwise ridges? Are they a specific variety?

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{{gwi:384609}}

Sounds like good eating!

Just started vegetable gardening this year. Many Asian varieties are selected, including some tropic vegetables that may not grow well in Zone 5. I have sanke gourd, japnaness and koren cucumbers; sweetsour cucumbers; japanese scarlet carots and chinese carots; chinese, japanese, indian, and thai eggplants; lots of peppers and tomatoes that I cannot name the type now; korean, chinese and japanese sweet melon, winter melon, chinese leek; japanese and chinese turnip and beats, cilantro, chive, and other herbs; tiger ear, tai cai and many other kinds of greens; beans; edible green and red Amaranth. 50% vegetables grow in containers and combined with different varieties and flowers for colors and decoration. Here is the video of my garden:

Here is a link that might be useful: My Vegetable Garden

I have another video:

Here is a link that might be useful: My Vegetable Garden (2)

violet,all cluster beans look like ones in your pic. as soon as the beans start getting filled with seeds.Pods in my pic. are younger than yours not yet ready for seeding and all pods at this age will look like mines..In my experience and observations all the cluster beans form ridges on the opposite side as they start getting filled with seeds.When beans fully ripen they take the shape of a tetragone as the word tetragon in tetragonolobia will sauggest. This is my guess for which I do not have any authentic explanation.
There are few different varieties of cluster beans.

This is an update on the Senposai I mentioned in earlier posts.

I grew two containers of it. One container bolted fairly quickly (honeybees love the flowers) and the other is still putting out leaves. It didn't stop growing all summer, although the bugs and snails ate it faster than I could. (Dusting it or spraying it with anything wasn't really practical, as watering the plants twice a day or the frequent rain ended up washing off anything I applied.) I will plant a few more seeds soon to see how it does as a cool weather crop.

Thank you, Flip!

A ho-hum update on my efforts to get Senposai seed from Fedco. Didn't work! The seed was out of stock so I'll try an order a little earlier next season.

Maruba Santoh was also ordered too late to plant in the Spring. Instead, I waited until just a few weeks ago and got some seed in the ground - - too late!

We've harvested a few messes of Mei Qing Choi that was planted at the same time. The Santoh grows more slowly . . . sheesh! We've had 3 light frosts and now chilly, rainy weather. I guess I may need to be happy with something like a dozen greens I DID get planted in the Spring! But, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for the Santoh to prove itself as really hardy and grow just a little more. I really did think that it was the best tasting (certainly mildest) of the greens I grew in 2006. Can't believe it will make it thru to Spring what with our subzero Winter temperatures but I guess I'll know by March!

digital Steve

Steve, let me know if they're still out of stock when you try to order next. My offer still stands to send you some seeds!

Wow you've had frosts already? It's still like a steamy jungle in Houston, although we had a "cold" front that made it "only" 89 degrees.

Thank you!

I've only visited Houston twice. Once was at this time of year - it was a steamy jungle, alright! Didn't much mind, quite a city! The other time I was there, it was February - chchchilllly! Dallas/Fort Worth was down-right, frigid.

I have gardens in 3 locations on the Washington/Idaho line not far from the Canadian border. Tends to be arid, which makes for rather broad differences between day & night temperatures - 30 degree drop overnight is common.

I feel that we got about 7 to 10 days extra to the growing season this Fall. Very pleased.

I often order from Evergreen Seeds and discovered Fedco Seeds a couple of years ago and like them a lot. If I don't slip up, I should be able to get the Senposai order in to one/both next year. If they are out, Flip - I will take you up on your kind offer.

Steve

Steve -- yeah, combine our humidity with a cold front in January or February and it's pretty darn chilly. By the end of February, though, we're usually setting out our tomato plants!

Has anyone grown "EvenÂStar Land-Race" Tatsoi before? It's another Fedco purchase. I remember buying it because the description said it wasn't the familiar basal rosette growth habit and since I'm so pressed for space, I thought if it's more upright I might be able to squeeze in a few more plants.