July 22, 2008

Tomatillos In My Garden...

If you love green salsa, then this is the plant for you! However, there are some things to beware of if you grow these!  Primarily, know that they re-seed very easily.  Two summers ago, I planted a packet of tomatillo seeds, and was thrilled with how well they grew.  I had loads of tomatillos, and was able to make lots of salsa, and share with friends.  DH was able to share with co-workers.  Fantastic.  Last summer, I wasn't positive what the little plants were that sprang up all over my garden.  I wondered if they were sunflowers, but suspected tomatillos.  I let them grow, and was thrilled when I was sure that they were tomatillos.  Unfortunately, I envisioned so many tomatillos, that I allowed way too many plants to grow.  I should have thinned them out, and though I did make some efforts at doing so, I still allowed too many.  In one area, they choked each other, and there was little useful fruit.  Other areas were better, but those that were more isolated had the most room to produce and thrive.  Worse, the cramped sections squeezed out other desired plants, and as a result, lettuce, peas, and beans were not great producers.  Worse still, the areas under the cover of so many tomatillo vines were a wonderful habitat for my worst garden enemy, the snake.  More than once, I found myself carefully picking tomatillos only to notice the tail of a hated reptile in the shade of the plant.  Red racers and king snakes plagued the area.  Valiant youngsters made many efforts at fighting the horrid beasts for me, but most of the time, the kids did not prevail, and the snakes slithered away to frighten the timid gardener another day.  A good thing is not always as good as it seems.  There was still a decent harvest...but unfortunately, tomatillos were the biggest.  And they re-seeded well for another season's growth.  However, I am weeding them out more extremely this season.  I have no desire to repeat the snake shelter of last year.  I still have snake issues, as there is a red racer who seems to like the shade of my tomatoes.  I'm trying to keep things a little neater, though.  DD has transplanted a number of the plants.  If they survive in containers, we'll think about taking them to the farmer's market.  I've pulled some very large plants because they were creating a perceived snake refuge.  I have about 13 good plants going, spaced out on the perimeters of various sections of the garden.  We'll see how they do.  I have a number of them growing unchecked in the corn, another snake habitat, but we'll deal with that when we get closer to a corn harvest.  Uggh. Stay tuned for further reports as the season continues.  Stay tuned, also, for some educational and spiritual application, lessons learned and thoughts thought as I tend the area!  Lots to ponder! Blessings from the ranch!

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