Nine feet of Okra

Well, to be perfectly precise, as of this afternoon, my okra plant is exactly 9′ 3″ tall – but check in later today for an update because this sucker continues to grow and tower over everything else in the garden.

I’ve had tall okra in the past but this has exceeded my expectations – by several feet. Okra is one of those plants that gets a slow start in the spring – it LOVES hot weather and warm soils. But, once it begins to grow, apparently nothing but frost will stop it. I’ll have to admit, there are days that I pray for frost.

It is definitely a conversation starter in our neighborhood. A lot of people stop and stare and ask what in the world is it? It’s way too tall now for normal people to see the very attractive bloom and the delicious pods. So people just see this tree-like structure growing in the corner of the yard and think what-the-heck? It doesn’t really look like a tree, it’s just the same size.

Needless to say, this has been a prolific plant. It has matched in fruit what it has attained in height. We have had a lot of okra this summer – roasted, in stews, fried with cornmeal, in little pancakes – we’ve had it all. Fortunately, my husband and I are both native Southerners (actually native Atlantans) who grew up eating Southern stapes such as grits and okra.

Okra is in the mallow family and the blossom look like hibiscus and cotton. All three plants are closely related. Okra probably came to the United States from Ethiopia where it has been cultivated since 2000 BC. Okra is muscilaginous (i.e. a little slimy) and makes a good thickening agent. For this reason, it was often used in stews. The Bantu word for “okra” is ochingombo. Stew with okra in it eventually came to be known as gumbo.

I’d love to stay and regale you with stories about okra but I have to go. Something is suddenly blocking out the sun. I think it might be my okra tree.