You would love shallots but if you grow them, grow the banana variety. They are a very strong tasting onion, borderline garlic taste. Fabulous.
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We grew Dutch shallots last year. Mild taste. Shallots are used as an integral part of Thai food ingredients. But I am not that good of a cook 
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Oh yes you are!
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Here’s what Johnny’s is offering:
With shallots, not keeping well is relative. I’m still using up the last of my previous year’s harvest! I’ve been replanting this stock for 8 years now and it always keeps well for me.
Great shallots are the exception and usually only keep a few months. They’re supposed to be worth it, though!
@Richard I’ve done the shallots from seed before, but I prefer these as you only have to buy the seed stock once and you can replant the bulbs. Flavor wise, I think these are better than Dutch shallots. Flavor-wise, I wouldn’t say they’re strong, exactly, but a little goes a long way, and it’s a unique spin on the allium family of flavors.
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JC, shallots are the French onion of choice for cooking. It is not a mild onion, it is sharp and piquant and extremely flavorful. Put a few finely chopped into your guacamole and you will not need hot sauce. It is also spicy when french. When baked they carmelize and are so sweet. I cook with them almost daily. The ‘Banana’ shallot is larger, not round and does not ‘clove’.
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I find the usual comparison to onions and garlic to be lacking, as it leaves out the whole range of flavors within that aren’t really found in onions or garlic.
I’ve grown the banana shallots; these are similar in overall flavor but less sharp and therefore better balanced to my tastes. But then again, I may be biased since I’m already bought in!
At $6.15 per 250 seeds I’m not sure what you’re saving - maybe labor of planting seeds?
Seed starting alliums at a small scale is more hassle than I find worth it. And I paid $12 once 8 years ago, which will cover me for life!
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That’s my observation too, except for Baby Crawford and June Pride. BC has an intense peach flavor not matched by others and JP has more acid than any peach and with enough brix it can be sprightly
Not my experience at all. I’d put them in categories of:
- flavorful and very sweet
- good acid/sugar balance plus strong flavor that says “put me in a pie”
- sweet but blah
- blah
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I would say all of the really good yellow peaches are fairly similar in taste. Baby Crawford, Clayton, Ernie’s Choice, Rio Oso Gem, Kaweah, etc. but I agree that there are many dud varieties out there. All of the yellow peaches I have grown have a similar acidity but that could just be the ones I grew.
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That makes sense. I’ve only tasted and grown highly recommended varieties, so haven’t really come across a dud yet. Of course, without proper management (like overwatering), even these peaches can be bad but at their peak they all taste the same (to me). I won’t be able to pick between PeachyKeen, Rio Oso Gem, Gold Dust, Cal Red, Kaweah or O’Henry in a blind taste test.
I guess with BC, it can be the specific growing conditions here where they really shine. Too bad we don’t get enough chill to crop them properly.
For my tastes, both Eva’s Pride and Mid Pride are excellent peaches but their flavors are different.
Hi Jay,
I was wondering if I could graft Hakuto onto a Red Haven and now I know! Thank you. Can’t find a lot of information on Hakuto online (i.e. hardiness, pest/disease resistance, if it needs to be sprayed more than other varieties, etc.). I was looking to get a tree somewhere or if it needs to be grafted to a rootstock in order to survive/thrive in our area. It looks like a delicious variety!
Marco, Z6b
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I actually don’t know much about Hakuto. A forum member included it in a trade as something I ought to try, so I grafted it onto Redhaven. Most peaches and nectarines are cross-compatible for grafting. They can be a little challenging to get takes, but grafting onto an existing tree is about the same as grafting onto a rootstock.
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Not too much going on here these days, but I’ve got a kiwano melon on the way. Hopefully it has enough time to ripen!
And I’m looking forward to trying these I-258 figs. I wasn’t sure if they would ripen this year, but they are sizing up rapidly! So there’s hope.
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Well, no doubt about it. Spring is marching on and starting early. I’m expecting precisely zero peaches and apricots this year!
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Great photo, sad forecast.
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