Greens, Eggplant, Peppers

mustard greens

Our greens are going off the charts and, although summer’s long gone, our faithful eggplants are still holding fruit and setting out a new set of blossoms. Amazing. These plants are actually perennials and can survive the winter if they don’t experience a hard freeze, which we almost never get here in our particular “banana belt” microclimate in San Luis Obispo. Eggplants tend to lose their leaves as they grow a new set during the rainy season, which lasts from now until maybe April. It’s pretty cool to watch the plants keep going in the spring, which really starts in February for a good portion of Central California.

several eggplants from our garden

Peppers can also overwinter in our particular Mediterranean microclimate. We’re storing fruit on the plants and in the crisper. With the rains, the peppers have also set out a new crop of flowers for more fruit here soon. They add a nice crunch to salads as do the radishes that also thrive in our cool nights/mornings during the rainy winter.

What are you harvesting from your garden? How does your harvest emerge from the kitchen?