What the flock? How to treat Blossom End Rot in tomatoes.

I have some lovely hens that keep me in fresh eggs all year long.  So many eggs, in fact, that I had eggshells coming out my ears.  

Usually I toss them into the compost bin (the shells, not my ears...or the chickens) with the rest of the kitchen scraps, but lately I've been saving and drying them.  

Tomatoes, Peppers and Eggplants

Blossom end rot is a serious problem when growing tomatoes, peppers and eggplants and can decimate entire crops. Often caused by a lack of calcium, this condition results in dark, rotted sores on vegetables. 

A layer of crushed eggshells, placed in the planting hole for these vegetables, is a simple means of combating the disease. As they decompose, the eggshells naturally enrich the soil, providing a slow, steady source of calcium, preventing blossom end rot from occurring.

Powdered eggshells added around the base of plants acts as a slow-release fertilizer. This process will benefit plants all season, and you can add it throughout the growing season. 

Allow eggshells to dry, then grind until they become a fine powder.  If you have a blender, "pulse" the egg shells and you'll get the same end results.  Sprinkle around the base of each plant, or, place a mix of eggshells, Epsom salts, and coffee grounds in the hole before placing your plant.  

Worm Beds

Everything around my little "Instead" has a purpose.  The hens supply me with eggs, the shells from the eggs help create natural protection and fertilization for the garden, the garden feeds myself and my hens.  

Adding crushed eggs shells to a worm bed is a bonus.  Eggshells provide calcium, which reduces acidity in the worm bin and prevents high acid conditions that can harm worms. Crushed eggshells provide grit that aid the worms' digestion.  The worms become fat and healthy, and are fed to my hens.  Thus, the circle is complete.  

(Psssst...worm castings are also a wonderful fertilizer for the garden.  But more on that in another post!)

I Yam what I Yam, and that's all that I Yam

Speaking of yams... Often what you find in the supermarket labeled as a yam, is a sweet potato and not a yam at all.  True yams have a rough bark-like outer skin of brown or black. Native to Africa and Asia,  Africa grows the bulk of commercially sold yams.  The flesh can range from white to purple, or even red.  Unlike the sweet potato (which isn't even a distant cousin to the yam), yams aren't sweet. Rather, they are dry and starchy with a texture and flavor comparable to white russet potatoes.

 

In the United States, the words yam and sweet potato are used interchangeably but refer to what are sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes are readily available while the yam is harder to find. Specialty grocers or Asian food stores are more apt to carry them. I discovered the African yam at an Asian grocery an hour's drive from where I live.  Averaging $3.99 to $4.99 per pound, one small yam cost $10.  

I wasn't about to pay $10 for one small spud though, so I marched up to the checkout and paid for my other items.  Before I could leave, the owner and her sweet husband stopped me.  A gift.  A lovely little gift!  Tucked inside a ziplock bag was a newly sprouted yam.  Naturally such a gift inspired me to start my next mission.  Trying to grow a true yam right here in southwest Oklahoma.  Research says it can't be done.  I believe that creating the right microclimate, it can.  Game on.  

Yams require up to a year of frost-free weather before harvest.  My area has a freeze or two during winter, which might present a significant challenge.  To combat the ground freezing, I could grow the yam in large tubs and move indoors over winter, or, leave the yams in the garden bed and cover them in a  6" of wood chips.  Another alternative would be to build a cold frame over the yam bed.  A south-facing, reflective wall behind the yam bed could provide radiant heat when temperatures drop.  
Options... options.  

It will be interesting to see how this new specimen fares in this area.  Keep checking back for updates.