When hot pepper god Allen Boatman and I became friends several years ago he by default influenced me into preferring hot pepper sauces that aren't vinegary. A couple of weeks ago I made maybe 1/2 gallon of a new sauce from approx. 1 lb. habanero peppers, a LOT of garlic, 1 whole fresh pineapple, some frozen strawberries, sea salt, kombucha tea, cider vinegar and some grape seed oil. This was all pureed, simmered, allowed to sit overnight, simmered again, cooled then bottled. The relatively high pH means it must be refrigerated. I gave a bottle Saturday to my neighborhood friend Joe at the grouper fry potluck as he too grows hot peppers, makes non-vinegary hot sauces, and can enjoy those with a sweet base. Yesterday I gave a jar to Ryan Iacovacci as he and his room mates also like hot food. I double-wrapped it with a frozen gel pack inside two used grocery bags to insure it stay cool until he got home. Joe tasted it at the potluck and loved it.....I look forward to hearing from Ryan and crew their verdict. Joe gave me seeds of Ghost and other hot peppers I look forward to growing, and gave him a potted plant of the perennial "Filipino Mexican Tree Pepper" I got seeds of in 2002 from my Filipino neighbor Joe. Allen's first visit here he went mental when he saw it when he INSTANTLY identified it as a form of Capsicum frutescens. It makes a woody trunk, gets about 6' X 6' , loves a hard spring cut back and feeding to regrow. Mine thrived for eight years until it succumbed to a hard freeze. Back then south Tampa was much better and it grew in the ground...my two new ones thrive in above ground 18 gallon Water Wise Container Gardens.

"Red Jaboticaba"

I bought one yesterday from Adam who gave a great talk on the Jaboticabas at the Tampa Rare Fruit Council meeting. I also learned why my eight year old one has always struggled.....pH way too high and soil too dry all this time!

http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/jaboticabas.html/

Cuban Mangosteen

Yesterday at the Tampa Rare Fruit Council meeting I was lucky enough to get 10 fat seeds of this, some already sprouting. Today I will plant them in 1 gallon pots.

http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/rheedia_aristata.htm

Whippoorwill Cow Pea

My new gardening friend Michael Spinelli tried this this summer and is getting rampant growth and production. His MAY have crossed with a long podded Vigna so I may splurge on fresh seeds. John

http://rareseeds.com/white-whippoorwill-cowpea.html

I am very happy....7 oz. ended up being $13 after shipping, roughly half of that the shipping. I'd thought maybe 6-8 mature bulbs...instead I got 26 bulblet clusters!! See the pic. After obsessing quite a bit on "Potato Onions" (a form of shallot that seems to come in white, yellow and reddish) I suspect they are like onions and garlic up north....the green tops are NOT year round....when they yellow and die back you dig up the bulbs to use and store some for replanting. I suspect that if left in the ground like the three other perennial onions I grow they'd rot in summer.

I am hopeful that my readers in varying regions will order from these folks plus other colored ones from other sources and keep me posted how they do for you, especially if you garden in Florida where alliums can be tricky due to day length and other issues.

www.jobegardens.com

John

"My sons are all adults and they've made decisions about their careers and they've chosen not to serve in the military and active duty and I respect their decision in that regard. One of the ways my sons are showing support for our nation is helping me get elected because they think I'd be a great president." - Mitt Romney

Ducks as Plows and Pest Control Aids....plus eggs and meat!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2CfRqGq0fo&feature=player_embedded#!