[DonDuck]

My first attempt at growing okra turned out very well. I grew ten plants each of Choppee and Bush Cowhorn. I liked both for different reasons. The Bush plants produced giant plants which I like as a tall hedge in our front yard. The Choppee was more productive requiring harvest daily or they would become too large to eat in many cases in two days. The Bush pods were slightly better tasting but became tough quickly. The choppee plants almost required long sleeve shirts to harvest. They made my arms and hands burn, and sting after harvesting. If I washed well after harvesting the Choppee, the burning and stinging stopped. Each Choppee plant was almost twice as productive as each Bush plant and three Choppee plants could occupy the same space as a single Bush plant. The Choppee plants are tall, while the Bush plants are tall and very wide. Twenty total plants kept us well fed most of the summer and filled a dedicated space in our freezer. They also kept many friends and family members supplied with okra. I don't know if okra keeps producing until the first freeze, but my plants are still producing a lot of okra and the Bush branches appear ready to start producing in a big way. Plants in full sun produced much better than plants in partial shade while the shaded plants grew much larger. My plants received no fertilizer after the early spring application right after plant out. They were kept well watered and would droop quickly in the hot sun and high temps if not watered.

I had a lot of insects like grasshoppers eating in my garden this year, but they didn't seem interested in eating my okra plants. I did see some two inch long grass hoppers on my okra plants, but they seemed more interested in the sap oozing from the branches than eating the leaves. I had no insect damage on my okra pods.

I think next spring, I will plant the seeds in the soil in the hope of getting strong tap roots so I won't have to prop the large Bush plants up to prevent them falling over.

I've discovered a lot of ways to eat and enjoy okra this summer, but simply boiled or fried are still my favorite ways. Baked was pretty good while grilled was also very good.