Years ago, those darlings girdled the two honeycrisp trees I was growing, even with barrier tape. Those were expensive trees to start with. When our snow melts on our lawn (a large green area, definitely not manicured) the evidence of the network of their tunnels is startling. Our 15#+ black cat does a fair job catching the elders.
Love to eat them mousies ( but they are voles, not mice)
Of course you are right; I try to grow some of these every year!! I’m trying “Red Thumb” this year because they are early. I imagine early potatoes are less flavorful.
And thank you! I’ll be sure to think about resistant starches if I get to harvest some. There have been a few other posts about that.
Any opinions about plantain?
We call them field mice sometimes, even though they’re voles.
Re: flavourful potatoes
Not sure about early vs late, but watering them as little as possible, and not at all in my climate (Zone 5) once they flower, seems to be the way to get better tasting potatoes.
My aunt used to say “there’s nothing better than a dry land potato”. Meaning Prairie potatoes, which get dry heat, tasted better than PEI/ NB potatoes, where many of the store- bought potatoes in Canada are grown, where the climate is more cool and damp. New Brunswick is where McCain is based.
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Kinda jealous, I have a few of these (the original and several offshoots), and they’ve never even hinted at blooming, never mind setting fruit.
There doesn’t seem to be the same diversity as in their related bananas, but there are some very different kinds I’ve enjoyed. A local restaurant serves a more fruity-flavored, soft-fried plantain, which is less sweet than banana and a bit denser.
At a biological station in the Peruvian jungle, we pretty much had fried plantains daily. These were very similar to thick-cut potato chips, crisp with a pleasant toasty flavor. The fruits were much larger than any banana I’ve seen, dark green and with an angled cross-section. They were not fruity or sweet at all, very much like a potato.
The final harvest of sweet potatoes is curing. Crates are filled to the max.
The heat mat and controller keep the tubers warm. Large bags get added last to increase humidity and hold in some heat.
Some ventilation is provided. The goal is to keep the tubers warm, 84-90°F (29-32°C) and around 90% humidity for 7-10 days. This makes the tubers sweeter and toughens the skins for better storage.
Soon, it’ll be time for some taste testing! There are four types and the total yield was a bit over 200 pounds. The dreaded voles didn’t bother two types, but that was luck; their party was elsewhere.
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Gorgeous! I’m envious. Sweet potatoes don’t grow around here. Enjoy!
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Yeah, dragon fruit is weird. It’s either sweet and fragrant, or it tastes like someone decided to boil the life out of kiwi, and give you what’s leftover (and add a million seeds to boot). This is not just the US market - I’ve had this experience in HK and buying it from fruit vendors. The smaller, pink flesh ones I find here are usually better and more likely sweet. I’m not too fond of the yellow variety, but the big white ones are definitely hit or miss with me.
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I can only wish for my little tiny lemon tree. This year, not sure I’m going to get any fruit. Most of the ones maturing nicely were victims to aggressive critters. 
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Most people don’t want to go to the trouble to press the oil or go through the steps needed to make olives edible. The repeated soakings in lye and the brining, plus exposure to air (for dark olives) create a daunting project! Plus, for olives, the “pickling” needs to be done with firm fruits.
One of my pickling books covers olives and I was amazed that anyone figured the processing out. It takes a lot of salt and lye, precious commodities in ancient times.
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They must have been truly inspired.
Or desperate!
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I hope they turn out to be good!
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Nice @ipsedixit + I especially like the colors! Pink and green!
Also
Last of the ripe tomatoes as the weather changes. “Beauty King”.
And first of the stone fruit jam! Pluot, nectarine, and peach.
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They are generally reserved for Ms. ipse dixit.
I prefer my fruit with crunch and texture.
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