Vegetable Varieties for Gardeners

Reviewed on 10/06/2016 by Freebird - An intermediate gardener
Overall Taste Yield Ease	Oneida, New York, United States Frost Free Season: 123 - 143 days Soil Texture: Not Sure Garden Size: Small - Less than 400 square feet (20' x 20') Sun Exposure: More than 8 hours per day
Baby Bubba Okra was a perfect choice for my container garden. Yes I live in upstate NY where frost can surprise us even in the first week of June. I invested in some heavy duty large plastic bell cloches with sliding vents, available for sale on Amazon (Garden Buckets or similar name). I started my seeds indoors after a 24 hour seed soak. I have an unheated enclosed porch with Plexiglas panels for hardening off seedlings. I planted 4 okras in a half barrel container, 1 okra in a 5 gallon container, and saved a few seedlings safely indoors just in case. I put the plants in the porch in mid-May, then out on the open deck in late May. I covered them with the bell cloches at night, vents closed. I opened the vents at sunrise. If the next day was cool or breezy, I kept the plants under the cloches. If warm, I pulled them off. Rinse and repeat. A few weeks of doing this produced some very healthy okra plants. Fertilizer was diluted Neptunes Harvest for the first month, then diluted Texas Tomato Food once I saw the buds beginning. I was rewarded with some downright tender and tasty okra pods, picked when less than 4 inches long. Perfect variety for my area. I have since moved the plants indoors (end of September) under T5 grow lights. They continue to produce flowers, and no intervention has been necessary for pollination (self pollinators). I have 2 new fruits formed from flowers that opened after I brought everyone indoors. I am hoping for continued production all winter long. I will add some more Texas Tomato Food fertilizer as needed. The map shows me in the Atlantic Ocean near the Equator, but trust me, I live in New York. LOL

Reviewed on 01/17/2010 by RBGardener - An intermediate gardener
Overall Taste Yield Ease	Gloucester, Virginia, United States Frost Free Season: 163 - 183 days Soil Texture: Loam Garden Size: Small - Less than 400 square feet (20' x 20') Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day
Actually this is Babby Bubba Okra. I grew this in my raised bed with great success. I choose it because it was a dwarf variety. I found that it produced well, branched a fair amount (which increased it's yields) When picked daily at the height of summer, this okra was great steamed, but I found that it toughened once the high heat of summer passed and was only good for soups and frying at that point. I liked the variety, but will be trying one this year that will not toughen up on me once the heat of the summer passes.