Hey Fellow Floridians - Year 2

[Fiishergurl]

How can I tell when they are done?

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[Fiishergurl]

Originally Posted by Fiishergurl

How can I tell when they are done?

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I dont think my dehydrator is working right. It's been 20 hours and even the cherry tomatoes that i cut in half are still sticky.

[Lastfling]

Originally Posted by Fiishergurl

Thanks Lastfling. Is there a certain thickness or way of cutting the tomatoes that works best?

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Its been awhile since I've deyhydrated any, but I want to say around 1/4" or so thick. Also, with all the inherent moisture in a tomato, they would take a while to dehydrate.

Sorry for the delayed response to your question.

Warren

[Zone9b]

Originally Posted by ginger2778

My dehydrator is used on my patio on a table. No issues. I don't season mine either. Thinking about using the dehydrator for kale chips, I will season those with a light olive oil toss, kosher salt, fresh pepper, garlic powder and sesame seeds. I found that you have to hold light on the salt when drying due to concentration once the water is gone.
Ginny storing them in olive oil would work very well. I just put mine in a zip lock freezer bag, and on the pantry shelf.

Marsha,
I would like very much to know how making Kale Chips with your dehydrator works. I have a lot of Kale. Too much to eat and very hard to give away. If it works well for you, maybe I will give it try.
Thanks,
Larry

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by Zone9b

Marsha,
I would like very much to know how making Kale Chips with your dehydrator works. I have a lot of Kale. Too much to eat and very hard to give away. If it works well for you, maybe I will give it try.
Thanks,
Larry

Hi Larry, I just found this, that cashew recipe looks fabulous.
http://www.dehydratorreview.net/arti...ted-kale-chips

[efisakov]

Originally Posted by Fiishergurl

I dont think my dehydrator is working right. It's been 20 hours and even the cherry tomatoes that i cut in half are still sticky.

I do not dry my tomatoes to a crispy. I like them semi-dry (like plums or Marsha's mangoes). Ginny, just taste them at different stages and see if you like the way they are, or if you want to dry more. I freeze them in bags afterwards. Great for snacking.
Ginny, I have two dehydrators. Older one is about 10 years old with temperature setting, but not so strong fan and it is on the bottom. That one took more than 48 hours to dehydrate tomatoes to my liking.
The new dehydrator is an animal. Marsha has the same one: Excalibur 9 Tray, from Walmart. It has 600 Watts fan, located on the side. That makes the difference.

[Fiishergurl]

Hi Ella

Thanks for the info. I had wanted to store them in olive oil but cant do that unless they dry all the way. So ended up freezing what we didnt use. We did make some bruschetta for a get together and it was delicious and eaten up in a minute. So thanks to you and Marsha for the idea and advice. I am going to get the new one and dry some more. Already did two batches and am in love with the taste of them.

I cannot believe how much I have learned from everybody on here.

Ginny

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[JaxRmrJmr]

Originally Posted by efisakov

I am still hoping that someone may have a success story to share.
Or maybe find some details that can improve zucchini growing situation. Barb found way of growing cucumbers and shared it with all. Thanks, Barb.

No luck here. Tried tulle fabric at night which worked for the pickle worm moth, but then the squash vine borer wasp still flies during the day. It was too much to get up every morning and uncover them, hand pollinate them, then cover them back up. A pack of 3-4 squash (yellow or zucchini) are usually under $2 at Aldi, so I gave up growing them at home.

I may change my mind when the kids grow up and things slow down.

[efisakov]

Originally Posted by JaxRmrJmr

No luck here. Tried tulle fabric at night which worked for the pickle worm moth, but then the squash vine borer wasp still flies during the day. It was too much to get up every morning and uncover them, hand pollinate them, then cover them back up. A pack of 3-4 squash (yellow or zucchini) are usually under $2 at Aldi, so I gave up growing them at home.

I may change my mind when the kids grow up and things slow down.

Thanks, JaxRmrJmr and everyone that contributed. Climate in Florida is perfect for them. So sad.

[maxjohnson]

I've been harvesting tomatoes.

Last two are Jaune Flamme and Sungold. I might get tired of Jaune Flamme just from eating too much, it's the most productive plant I've grown. I wish I had put the Sungold near a trellis so I didn't have to top it off because it's fruiting like crazy. Mixing my own container mix and fertilizer has been quite successful.

[Barb_FL]

Really nice pictures Max.

Is anyone else having problems with bird pecking at the fruit? If the fruit is the least bit blushing, I have to pick it if it the bird didn't already peck at it. This has never happened before; for water we have a pool plus I'm leaving buckets of clean water

[ginger2778]

Great photos and a beautiful garden, Max.
Barb no birds. However, 3 possums and a rat.

[efisakov]

Originally Posted by Barb_FL

Really nice pictures Max.

Is anyone else having problems with bird pecking at the fruit? If the fruit is the least bit blushing, I have to pick it if it the bird didn't already peck at it. This has never happened before; for water we have a pool plus I'm leaving buckets of clean water

Birds (Sparrows) are problem here. They do pick on cucumber flowers. They do not eat cucumbers, just their flowers. That kills baby cucumbers. I watch them come in a group and take turns to attack cucumber plot. I could not believe it at first. And it was not a dry spell period. Had plenty of water around. Once they develop taste to it, forget it. Few of my neighbors feed squirrels, cats, birds. So, the food is not an issue. I hanged CD discs as recommended to spook them, it did not worked. I am sorry, Barb. They are relentless, they will come back and check if new flowers appearing over and over again. And as I mentioned before, there are cats around this area.

Max, what a great job you are doing. Beautiful diverse garden. Love your trellis.

[Fiishergurl]

Max awesome garden. Just beautiful... :-)

Ginny

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[Fiishergurl]

Originally Posted by ginger2778

My dehydrator is used on my patio on a table. No issues. I don't season mine either. Thinking about using the dehydrator for kale chips, I will season those with a light olive oil toss, kosher salt, fresh pepper, garlic powder and sesame seeds. I found that you have to hold light on the salt when drying due to concentration once the water is gone.

Ginny storing them in olive oil would work very well. I just put mine in a zip lock freezer bag, and on the pantry shelf.

Marsha /Ella

I cant find the post... what is the dehydrator you use?

I have so many tomatoes to dehydrate. Hubby is buying me a new dehydrator.

Can you post a link again? Thanks.
Ginny