Peaceful oasis

This week has been busy, but it all seems manageable. What used to take me several hours at the Farm, now takes just a few minutes. I am no longer overwhelmed by putting up 7 beds of pea trellises or fertilizing dozens of  garlic plants, or planting thousands of  arugula seeds.  I love that I can walk outside my kitchen door to check on my plants which all seem to be thriving. This week I weeded the herb bed, transplanted the onions, seeded 4 trays of tomatoes, and direct seeded the Swisss chard.  I had the irrigation lines repaired and the heads raised. With a few minor adjustments, the existing irrigation system now covers the entire garden area. I made a salad from the bag of baby greens that I harvested last week. I could feel the texture of the individual greens in my mouth and I could actually taste the difference in the varieties that went into the mix. It left me wanting more. So this morning I planted 16 more trays of greens that should be ready to cut in about 2 weeks. I will be on the lookout for trays and will try to keep up with the planting. Being out in the garden in the early mornings is peaceful and meditative. I have seen cardinals and blue jays in the magnolia tree. I can watch the robins pecking for worms in the garden. There is a swan that takes off like a plane on a runway on the lake behind the house searching for food for the female who has not left her nest in weeks. I realize how lucky I am to live with this beautiful garden that nourishes my body and soul.  It is an oasis and I am grateful to be here. At the same time I know that there are many people who are not as fortunate as I. They live in food deserts and  have no access to healthy food at all. There are entire city neighborhoods of fast food outlets and convenience stores where the residents have to take two or more bus rides just to be able to buy a head of lettuce or a bag of carrots. I can't imagine how awful that would be, but it is a reality for so many people. My neice Julia just did some research on these food deserts. I am curious what you discovered Jules? I would be especially interested in learning your thoughts on possible solutions......By the way, congratulations on your summer internship!

The peas are up

Ready for prime time

After germinating in the poly house and hardening off in the cold frame, many of our seedlings were ready to hit the big time out in the garden. Colleen transplanted Napa cabbage and bok choy, Dona planted the scallions, Marilyn and Nancy worked with the beets and onions and I put in the red and green leaf lettuce. The garden is beginning to look like a patchwork quilt. I am planting from the outside in, with with a general plan in mind, but nothing definite. Because it is new ground I can plant anywhere and not worry about what was planted the previous year. I will map out the location of the vegetables this year and rotate them to different spaces next season in order to maximize specific nutrients and to stay one step ahead of predatory bugs and harmful soil born diseases.

I fertilized the garlic with fish emulsion for the second time this season. The plants are about 15 inches tall and look healthy and strong.

The best part of the week is that I harvested my first baby greens from the trays. As I suspected, I will need to plant many more trays as I was able to put together 4 nice bags of baby greens mix from about 7 trays. It is certainly time consuming to plant the trays, cut, rinse, spin, dry, and bag the greens, but it was worth the effort because for the first time in months my salad tasted fresh and crisp and it was great to finally eat something fresh picked from the garden.

To do this week: Transplant more onions and beets, add sulphur and boron to new growing area.
Greenhouse:  tomatoes, fennel, lots more baby greens mix
Direct seed: radish, swiss chard
Jen's garden schedule: tues, wed, thurs morning, friday afternoon, sunday
My garden schedule is subject to change

Staying grounded on tax day

The tulips are blooming

Author Leda Meredith reminds us of what really matters when she says "I find it comforting to remember my true security, my survival, my ability to thrive, doesn't come from my jobs, my paychecks, or my government, but from the ground I am standing on. The plants that grow in the earth under my feet- and I try to remember that even under the pavement there is fertile soil- those plants harness sunlight through photosynthesis so that I can enjoy it as ....dinner. Because that's what food is: edible sunlight, given to us by plants. Even the animals we consume, if we eat meat, ate plants. This is what really keeps all of us alive. Without fertile soil, sunlight, water, and the plants that make use of those forces, there is no life as we know it on this planet." (exerpted from Leda's Urban Homestead)

Busy week ahead

I've begun moving trays out to the cold frame to harden off the seedlings. The unheated cold frame is where the plants gradually get used to being outside in more direct sunlight, wind, and a wider range of temperatures. This gradual hardening off readies the plants for life in the outdoors, provides for a smooth transition to the garden and decreases the likelihood of transplant shock. So far I've moved lettuce, Napa cabbage, bok choy, onions, beets, scallions, and kale to the cold frame and will transplant them to the garden later this week. These are all early season crops, in fact they prefer the cool temperatures, and can withstand light frosts in the garden.

My friend Charlie removed another section of sod to make room for the dahlias and zinnias. Next will come the compost and the addition of rock powders to make this new area suitable for growing. The good news is that I have finished dividing and pre planting the dahlias. There are boxes of them covering the floor of the poly house, but they are 'eyeing up' nicely and will be fairly well established by the time I move them to the garden in May. Dahlias are not frost hardy and so I must wait until after the frost free date, May 15th in our area, before I can plant them. They too will spend a week or so in the cold frame acclimating to the outside before their final garden destination.

I direct seeded (planted the seeds directly into the garden) broccoli raab, another early season crop that prefers the cool nightime temperatures. This week I will also plant seeds of Swiss chard and radishes. Somehow I will find some more room in the poly house because it is time to plant the tomatoes. I could not resist and bought more tomato varieties than I can possibly grow, but how can you say no to Brandywine, San Marzano, and Sun Gold? How could I forget Moskvich, Sweet Juliet, and Gold Medal? And the irresistable Speckled Roman, Moonglow, and Amish Paste? Well, you'll see what I mean when you taste them in August. My mouth is already watering..... It is also time to seed a tray each of basil and fennel.

The freezer and refrigerator have been moved to the garage. The garage is open every day. Help yourself to Colleen's soups and bread, daffodil bunches and chives. The prices are posted.

My gardening schedule this week:

Tues and thursday mornings until 11:00

Friday afternoon

Saturday

(My gardening schedule is subject to change, but I will try to post chores on the garage doors.)

Spuds

The weather outside continues to be sunny and warm which means I can continue planting directly out in the garden. Dona helped me to plant red Norland and banana fingerling potatoes over the weekend. Potatoes are similar to dahlias in that they are tubers that sprout eyes. Before planting, I cut the potatoes into pieces making sure each piece has one or two eyes. The eyes should be just beginning to sprout, but not so much that a stem has formed. Each piece will develop into a full grown plant that will produce 6 to 8 potatoes. I was asked whether or not you can plant supermarket potatoes  which seemed like a reasonable question as there is very little difference in appearance between market and the "seed potatoes" that are grown specifically for planting. Apparently not so easily as supermarket potatoes are often treated with a chemical to inhibit sprouting so chances are those potatoes will not thrive in the garden.

When the potato plants are about a foot tall, I will need to "hill" them with compost or mulch to prevent the new potatoes from turning green. My potatoes will be ready in August when I'll be able to go out into the garden and hunt for them like buried treasure.

Using containers

I potted up two plants this week that I've never grown before, but  if all goes according to plan, should provide a showy display on my deck this summer.  Both colocasia (or elephant ears) and rhubarb are grown for their huge leaves and rhubarb for its long red stems that can be cooked and eaten. Conveniently, these plants will adjust to varying light conditions and I will be able to move the pots around to different locations throughout the summer.

Both elephant ears and rhubarb need room to grow and should be planted in containers that are at least 18 inches wide and of equal depth. The pots I used were slightly smaller which may eventually crowd the plants and could result in smaller leaves. I may have to transplant them to bigger pots later in the season. I made sure there were adaquate drainage holes at the bottom of each pot and then I filled the containers with a combination of compost, peat moss, and organic potting mix. 

I planted Colocasia's large oval bulbs about 8 inches deep, root side down and watered them in. I should expect to see top growth beginning to form in 3- 8 weeks depending on the temperature. Rhubarb arrived as a root cutting. I buried the root and left about 2 inches of soil above the bud. Like colocasia, I will look for new growth in a few weeks. Because of their tremendous seasonal growth, both these plants are heavy feeders and will need regular applications of a balanced organic fertilizer such as fish emulsion.

I am hoping that by mid summer these pots will be filled with an attractive display of red, purple and green foliage that will add drama and flair to my back deck.

Needed: large, 24 inch pots

Spring is here

 

The magnolia and cherry trees are blooming and the pale yellow daffodils are up. The temperatures have been in the 70's and everywhere you look people are outside. Every day feels like a bonus as if somehow we don't deserve it so early in April. We seeded a tray of peppers and direct seeded Hakurei salad turnips into the garden. The poly house is filled and everything seems to be thriving. There are 6 more boxes of dahlias to divide, but we should finish that chore over the weekend. It will certainly be a lot easier using the brand new clippers that Dona dropped off earlier in the week. Dividing dahlia tubers with a dull knife is torture and I came very close to severing my index finger last week.  Charlie, my landscaper friend has promised to have the sod removed from the east side of the garden within the next couple of days. I'm expanding the garden by another 750 square feet to accomodate the dahlias and zinnias.  Of course, I'm secretly cursing myself for not making the garden big enough in the fall now that I'm renting the sod cutter and paying for another compost delivery and workers again. See what I mean about the dahlias? Only the very best for them. 

Chores: plant potatoes, seed basil and lettuce, divide dahlias

Schedule: Friday 11-2, saturday and sunday afternoon.

Among friends

I am planning to move the freezer to the garage this week. In it, you will find delicious soups made by Colleen that you will be able to take home with you. Some of the choices include chicken barley with spinach, white bean and escarole, butternut squash and curry, sweet potato leek, 7 bean barley and tomato, and chicken vegetable. Each container is labeled and there will be an envelope where you can put your 'donation.' I will keep the garage open during the day so you can come and help yourselves. There are also loaves of zucchini bread and soon there will be fresh eggs. This is an informal arrangement among friends. I am providing the freezer only. Enjoy!

Dahlias: a complicated affair

Dahlias in bloom

Larry expanding the garden to accomodate the dahlias

Every year I ask myself "how did I get into this crazy dahlia thing?" It all started when my friend Bill walked over to the Farm and asked me why I wasn't growing any flowers. "Well, Bill, we're kind of all about vegetables here." Bill has difficulty hearing sometimes, but I'm pretty sure he ignored me on purpose. Somehow he convinced me to let him grow dahlias on a dry, dusty patch of ground off to the side of our main growing area. At the time, I wasn't quite sure what a dahlia even looked like. But that year, Bill grew some pretty spectacular flowers on that once barren piece of earth and the rest, as they say, is history. Naturally, I became smitten with Bill's special flower. A dahlia in full bloom is quite irresistable. He is a good looking and well mannered fellow and I was charmed by his brilliant colors and sunny personality. Against my better judgement, I let myself be taken by his alluring nature. In fact, I fell head over heels in love. But my dahlia paramour is demanding. He wants to be staked and disbudded and dead headed. He prefers to be fertilized regularly, lifted out of the ground in the fall and stored inside for the winter. In spring he wants to be divided and labeled and preplanted and then planted in excellent well drained soil in a sunny spot in the garden. And this is where my  strategy of 'too much is better than too little' got me into my current predicament. You see, you can never have just one dahlia. At last count, there were more than 23 boxes of them up in the attic of my house. Sometimes I think that carrying on this love affair can't be good for me. I get irritable and impatient and tire of being pulled away from other interests and responsibilities. But I know that in July, when I look out the window waiting for the first flowers to bloom, I will be giddy with excitement and will fall in love all over again. It seems I can't resist.
Cost: more fencing $68.00
Needed: 11 and 12 foot rails for the fence. A lot of fences fell over during the last storm. Please keep your eyes open for discarded rails
Also needed: bamboo poles to make teepee trellises.

Seeding like crazy

I am trying to think smaller, but I'm still seeding trays like I'm back on the one acre Farm. The poly house is filling up fast and I'm having to think of clever ways to squeeze more trays inside its 10 x 10 frame. If the warmer temperatures continue, I'll be able to move some trays out to the cold frame. I seeded 8 more trays of lettuce varieties and assorted greens like pizzo and mizuna for my experiment in baby greens mix. These greens grow quickly and I will be ready to cut in a couple of weeks. However, I'm still unsure just how many bags of baby greens mix I'll actually get out of 8 trays. It will be interesting to see. In the meantime, I just keep seeding and seeding. Seeding for the mix takes patience as I count out every indvidual seed. I divide the tray into three sections and seed approximately 120 seeds per section for a total of 360 seeds per tray. This ensures an even distribution throughout the entire tray, but it is tedious and challenging for me who has a limited attention span. I also seeded zinnias, collards, and pots of dill, cilantro, and stevia.

Out in the garden Nancy and Dona planted a bed of carrots and later in the day I planted spinach and arugula. The next day I planted more spinach and arugula and later this week, I may do it again. I can plant a lot of these two early crops and not worry about taking up too much space in the garden because by mid May, they will be harvested and I'll be able to plant something else in its place. My garden strategy has always been that too much is better than too little, but necessity may dictate a new plan of less is more.

The magic of peas

What an incredible weekend to be outside! I spent the better part of the last three days planting in the garden, seeding trays in the poly house, layering compost, and soaking up the warm rays of the sun. The forsythia is blooming, the buds have swelled on the weeping cherry, and the magnolia is getting ready to take my breath away in all its pink petalled splendor.

This is also the time of year that I think about the magic of peas. I am amazed at how a crinkly dry seed can burst into a beautiful leafy vine that climbs to over five feet tall and becomes covered with delicate flowers and edible pods. Now that the peas are in, I will check the bed every day for signs of pale green breaking through the surface of the soil. Once the peas have germinated and begun their long climb up the trellises, I can breath a sigh of relief knowing that in a few short months I will be enjoying the sweet, juicy, crisp peas, pods and all, picked right off the vine. I planted sugar snaps, an inch deep, about an inch apart all along the base of the trellis. First, I coated the seeds in garden innoculant, an powder that gives the peas the ability to convert nitrogen from the air into a usable form for the plant. This organically approved substance will help the peas provide their own fertilizer and may result in a more bountiful yield. Peas and beans are legumes, or nitrogen fixers, and generally benefit from the use of innoculant, but I believe they will be high yielding more because the soil is balanced and healthy than because they were planted with innoculant. I use it more out of habit than anything else and may not even bother next year.   

The outside temperatures are unusually warm which will help the peas to germinate quickly, but peas are cool season crops and will be happier growing in more seasonable weather. 

Garden chores this week:

Poly house seeding:- peppers, basil

Direct seed: hakurei salad turnips, b raab

Schedule:  wed a.m. til 11:00, friday