Happy Thankgiving!

I'm so happy that my rowcovers seem to be working so far. Just look how lush and green the plants are underneath! Granted, it hasn't been that cold yet - after that one period of frost that killed the peppers, squash and tomatoes, it has been pretty warm since. Still, I think it is helping, and I can't wait to see how long they will stay green. Above you can see the bed with carrots, turnips & a little bit of chard along the sides.
Here is the leafy green bed, with mustard greens, arugula, red romaine & buttercrunch lettuce, and mache. I'm really excited about the mache, since it is supposed to be the one green that will last through winter. It looks really healthy under the rowcover. I can't wait to eat it, but I'm trying to hold out until it gets really cold. Here's a closeup of the mache, which is growing all along the front of the bed:

I harvested a variety of goodies from these beds for today's Thanksgiving feast. The pictures aren't great because by the time I got home from work, it quickly got dark, and on top of that it was raining. But I still had fun out there picking the veggies. The Frech innovation described in Coleman's book - using the ropes - really does make it super easy to get in and out. All I had to do was push the cover back - I didn't even need to untie it. Then just slid it back down when I was done. Here's what I got:
This was maybe about 1/3 of the carrots growing under the rowcover. They're still a bit small, but not too dissapointing. I figure this harvest was about equivalent to a bag of baby carrots, just a lot better tasting and no chlorine involved. :-)
Unfortunately, most of the turnips were still too small to harvest, so this was all I got. The rest of them looked like these four on the left in the picture below.I think it may be because I did a crappy job of planting them back in August, since it was a miserably hot day. I hope what's left under the rowcover grows more (there is still a lot). Worst comes to worst, at least I can eat the greens.
I also picked a ton of arugula. I only have a picture of it packed up and ready to transport to my mom's house. Here is everything ready to go. Starting from the top left, moving clockwise I've got :





-Arugula
-Turnip Greens
-Green Pepper
-Kung Pao & Jalapeno Chili Powder
-Turnips & Baby Carrots
-Nasturtium Lemon Butter
-Thyme, Rosemary & Edible Marigolds







I'll update the blog with everything I made from it later.

Hope everyone enjoys their thanksgiving and has a wonderful day!

Frost Warning!!

Oh no. I knew this day would come. There is still soooo much stuff left in the garden, it will take me a day to harvest it all!! Green tomatoes, hot peppers, lots more bell peppers, flowers...dang. And there is no way I can take another day off.

This is why I really hate winter - getting home after dark. I can't pick anything if I can't see it. We really need to get some proper lighting for the backyard. It is at the top of a very long list of things this house needs. (homeownership is no joke, that's for sure!)

I guess I can try to get up early and at least get some in the morning, but this is even more complicated tomorrow since I have to go vote. (still don't know who I'm voting for - I don't like Corzine or Christie)

Oh well, at least I already have the row covers up. I guess I'll just have to pick as much as I can. We'll see what I get tomorrow.

Do I love my garden or what?! Took the day off edition

You might remember this "Do I love my garden or what?!" post from last year's veganmofo. Well, it is kind of interesting to reflect on - things are looking better this year, what with my Agribon rowcovers instead of sheets.

Still, I took today off from work (it was a slow week, so my boss was fine with it) just to work in my garden haha! It is bright and sunny, about as good as a fall day could be. Although we haven't had a frost yet (very unusual) we've had extended cool temperatures so things are starting to show signs of dying. The leaves on the herbs are turning brown, which I definitely don't want since I am trying to dry and preserve them for winter. I have a number of things I want to get done:

1. harvest and dry the hot peppers (habanero & kung pao, mainly. The jalapenos still haven't turned red)
   
2. harvest and dry herbs (shiso, oregano, marjoram, eucalyptus, sage, mint, chives & lavender)
3. harvest and dry the edible marigolds
4. harvest the nasturtiums and make something with them for dinner
5. pull down the malabar spinach. It has spots all over it now, since it is a tropical plant I think it is hating the cool weather
6. sew the extension onto the agribon covering the lettuce bed

Jeesh! It is a lot for one day. I've also got to clean my house since I'll probably have people over for a Halloween party this weekend, and I need to put another coat of plaster/joint compound on a drywall project in the upstairs bathroom. I'm sure I won't get everything done, but, I'll try my best.

Four Season Harvest "Chenilles" Low Tunnels Completed

Just finished building two low row covers for my winter crops. I did it as described on page 89 of Eliot Coleman's book, "Four Season Harvest". Apparently this is a French innovation - to have little loops on each hoop so you can tie a rope to hold it down, rather than burying it with dirt. This makes it easier to harvest and vent.

I used #9 wire, and bent it into a semi-circle shape a little longer than he said, actually 8' long instead of 6.5' since my beds are wider. (approx. 40 - 42" rather than 30 - 36" he calls for) I used needle-nose pliers to put a loop about 1.5' from each end, again a bit longer than he called for (1'). It needed to be longer to accomodate the cinder blocks. I pushed them about a foot into the ground on either end.
Then I laid the #30 Agribon over it. (actually this was better as a two person job, and Mr. Aubade helped a lot - both with cutting and shaping the hoops, then with laying down the fabric) I finished it by tying poly outdoor rope like a shoelace through each loop.

The first one came out too short, so I've got to staple on about 2 feet more. It had lettuce, arugula, mache and mustard greens in that bed (not pictured).

But the second try, as seen here in the pictures, seemed to work pretty well. This bed has carrots, chard and turnips in it. It didn't come out quite like I had hoped, as it seems a little wobbly - but I think it will be ok since my backyard isn't too windy. Guess we'll see how it goes. This is definitely an experiment. I just want to see how long the plants will live.

Gardening Binge 2009 #2: Check!

I knew after my last seed order a few weeks ago, there were still a few things I forgot. I definitely wanted to order the Agribon row covers. I also want to make the existing wild violet area (as described in this post last year) on the other side of the yard into an edible flower bed, but didn't get anything for that when I ordered my veggies. So, today I had some time to spare and of course my thoughts immediately went to my garden, and the little violets that should be sprouting any week now. One thing led to another, and bye bye hard earned $$$! Haha. At least I don't feel too bad since they are all edible and most perennial. Here's the haul, all organic, from Peaceful Valley:

• Anise Hyssop (Mint Licorice) Agastache foeniculum
• White Yarrow Achillea millefolium*
• Bergamot Lavender Monarda fistulosa*
• Calendula Flashback Calendula officinalis
• Nasturtium Rainbow Whirlybird Mix Tropaeoleum majus
• Nasturtium Climbing Amazon Mix Tropaeolum majus
• Garlic Chives Allium tuberosum
• Catalogna (Italian) Dandelion Greens Cichorium intybus (these were Free!)
• Tendergreen Mustard (also Free!)
  
• Mache Gala (a.k.a. lamb's lettuce or corn salad)
• The lightest Agribon (19) to keep the worms off my Kale
• The next heavier Agribon (30) to protect crops from frost

*Native to New Jersey!

Wuhoo! I'm so excited I don't even know what to do with myself. Well, actually I do- make lots and lots of origami boxes to use as pots for indoor seedlings! I better get to it- hopefully it will work and you'll see the results in my next post.

Now I need to put some more details here on a couple of these new plants that I've never grown before.
-Anise Hyssop= Height: 2-4'; Spacing:18-24 in. (45-60 cm); Sun to Light Shade; Propagation: From seed; sow indoors before last frost (cold, moist stratification dramatically improves germination); blooms mid to late summer

-White Yarrow= Height: 6" - 4'; Spacing: 1 - 2'; Full Sun; Drought resistant; Propagation: Divide in the spring. The seed germinates in 2 weeks at temperatures between 65 and 75 degrees. Light is necessary for seed germination (so plant no deeper than 1/4 inch). Germination time indoors may be as little as 5 to 7 days.; bloom in June, but will bloom again in September if the dead clusters are removed

-Bergamot Lavender = Height: 3' - 5' (mowing may keep it shorter & water/fertilizer will make it grow huge); Spacing: 12 - 24" (good air circulation keeps away powdery mildew); Full sun to light shade; Somewhat drought resistant (moreso than monarda didyma) but may like moist feet - seems to depend; Propagation: Direct seed 2 seeds/in or start indoors 4-6 wks before last frost and transplant when frost danger has passed. Planting Depth: 1/8"-1/4"Soil Temp. for Germ.: 60-70°FDays to Germ.: 10-21; Blooms in June/July, may continue through Sep. if deadheaded

Other Possibilities:

• Tagetes tenuifolia (lemon or tangerine signet marigold)
• Malva sylrestris (common mallow, french hollyhock)
• and/or Alcea rosea (Hollyhock) probably doesn't taste as good as mallow but it sure is cute! Also has upward, tall habit
• Bellis perennis (English Daisy, Lawn Daisy) small, adorable and I NEED it haha
• Centaurea cynaus (Bachelor's Button, Cornflower) pretty, blue, many colors but also large: 2 - 3 feet tall
• Platycodon grandiflorum (Balloon Flower) Another purple 2 - 3 foot tall totally gorgeous edible flower
  

Do I love my garden or what?!?

Here it is, all covered up for protection from the possible frost. We worked on it all day. I hope this helps. Of course, knowing Murphy's law, we probably did all of this for nothing. But better safe than sorry I figure.

We really need to get a thermometer for the backyard so I can tell the difference between the local forecast and what's going on in the microclimate of my garden. The Master Gardener's hotline told me it can vary widely, depending on fencing, whether or not you are on a hill, etc. At this point I really don't know how it is here. Although I can tell you I am sitting outside right now next to a blazing chiminea and it is cooooold! (Yeah, my husband is a computer geek and he set us up with super high speed wireless internet out back. Pretty cool huh!)

We also harvested everything we could. Well not quite everything, we purposely left some green tomatoes, basil, peppers, etc. to see if they would survive as an experiment. I didn't harvest any thyme or oregano either, I figured they'd weather the frost and give me a little more time to do it next weekend. There still sure was a lot to process though! We froze the parsley, will puree the basil with a little oil and freeze (hubby is working on that right now), diced the chives and tarragon for butter (earth balance vegan butter of course), put the rosemary in red vinegar, set the lavender, sage, calendula and marigolds on screens to dry, and saved the peppers/green tomatoes for salsa and roasting tomorrow. PHEW!

As for the habaneros, we picked the plant that had the most pods closest to being ripe and pulled the whole thing out of the ground. Then put it in a bucket filled with water and placed that in the basement. As mentioned in the last post, from what I read this should make them turn ripe quickly. I hope it works! We left several other plants in the ground and covered them so hopefully they will survive too. Here's the habanero in the bucket, and my dog JJ. Don't worry, we didn't let him eat any. :-)

Possible Frost Tonight!

Oh no!! The little weather gadget I just added to my blog says areas of possible frost tonight. What am I going to do?? What am I going to do?? **runs around in circles waving hands over head**

Wish I already had that Agribon, which has around 4 degrees of frost protection. At least I do have some garden burlap and sheets. I think I'll definitely cover the lettuce and and peas. Guess I might as well try to throw something over the tomatoes and peppers too.

Luckily we worked on the garden for a few hours yesterday to harvest all we could just in case this happened, so there isn't much left on the vines. But there are still quite a few green tomatoes and lots of lettuce. We had so much lettuce we cut enough for several huge salads for us and a big bag for the neighbors, and there is still lots left. I hope they survive!!! I better harvest my herbs too, didn't have time to do that yesterday. I'm going to use them for potpourri, flavored oils and vinegars, and herb butter.

I guess we'll see what happens!

update: I just went outside and there really are a lot of green tomatoes and habaneros. A lot more than I thought. I wonder if I should pick them all? Man, I really don't have the time for this today...sigh.

I did a little research and it seems I probably should pick most of the green tomatoes. The habaneros may survive with covering. http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/pepper/msg101812265303.html I think I'll try picking some and leaving others as an experiment (and time saver).

Poooor Kale

I was so excited to have fresh heirloom lacinato kale growing into November. Sigh. Unfortunately this is what they looked like on September 3rd.


I have about 6 plants now, and although they are a little bigger they still are all eaten up just like in the picture. It is the darn imported cabbage worms. I guess they like kale as much as I do. I've been pulling them off the kale at a rate of around 6 or more every other day.

As mentioned in my last post about these evil catepillars, I went out and bought BT- the organic pesticide that is supposed to stop them. But after buying it I read some stuff that really made me worry about using pesticides, even if they are organic. So I'm just chalking it up to experience this year, and trying to pick off as many as I can by hand.

Next year I'm going to using row covers. I found this great site with lots of information on it's products: http://groworganic.com/default.html?welcome=T&theses=3550316 From what I have read, it seems the Agribon is the way to go. It is expensive, but since my garden is small I can get the smallest quantity they have which will be about $50 and last for hopefully at least 3 seasons. In that case, it seems pretty cost effective if it keeps these darn worms off my whole crop.