Henfield Homestead

Crocus!

2012-03-01T15:57:00.000-05:00

Seeds

2012-03-01T09:48:00.000-05:00

Napa cabbage, broccoli, broccoli raab, black seeded Simpson lettuce, rommaine lettuce, pirat butter head lettuce Started Sunday, February 26, up on Thursday, March 1.

Compost

2012-02-23T14:33:00.001-05:00

Highs in the mid-forties and sun in the forecast I decided to put the first batch of the season in the tumbler. It'll be awhile, but at least it won't freeze into a chunk in there.

Forking the compost out of the bin, we heard a loud urgent squeaking. I had uncovered a mouse nest. The little one's eyes were still closed. Mama was there too, so hopefully they will all be fine. Stirring the compost up might have warmed things up in there for them too.

Yup, garlic

2012-02-17T13:30:00.001-05:00

Last year I took essentially the same photograph on March 12. Tulips are also at least a month ahead.

Tulips.

2012-02-06T13:09:00.001-05:00

Really. It's February 6th.

February 1st

2012-02-01T15:29:00.001-05:00

Yes, this is a forsythia. Just a handful of blooms and only on one street in town but still...

Snowprints.

2012-01-30T20:02:00.000-05:00

Planting calendars

2012-01-28T11:43:00.001-05:00

Starting to think about the new season... sort of...

My garden is in zone 6b. This calendar gives a nice graphic to help "picture" the flow of crops:

http://www.veggieharvest.com/Vegetable-Planting-Calendar/Zone-6-Vegetable-Planting-Calendar/

Hoop house

2012-01-06T14:51:00.000-05:00

Well, I had to give up on the hoop house. I don't know if it would have provided adequate protection against the cold if I had had a better bottom seal. I'm pretty optimistic about it though.

Without the bottom seal the temperature protection wasn't maximized, and wind kept getting under the plastic and lifting it up and off the arches. I couldn't keep up with recovering it.

So it was a good experiment and proved that, at least this year, we could have had decent greens and roots through December, at least. Stay tuned for the next experiment.

Summer blueberries.

2012-01-06T09:36:00.000-05:00

Reaping the bounty still. This morning I made a blueberry popover following the recipe in the Tassajara bread book.

Easier than pancakes if you can believe it.

Still alive in a December garden

2011-12-08T16:40:00.001-05:00

Walking around the yard today I'm impressed and surprised at what is still edible. Parsley, rosemary, thyme, and sage would still be useable, if I hadn't used it all already. Lettuce, chard, celery, carrots, and beets are all doing just fine inside a hoop house. Cabbage and brussels would be too if I had found the time and space for them in July or August. Thus is just a note to myself that it would be worth it next year. All this despite several 25 degree nights.

25 degrees

2011-12-03T12:57:00.000-05:00

It's our hardest frost yet and everything, including the lettuce, is still looking good in the hoops. Even the kale (unprotected) is still fine.

The endive and cabbage left out of hoops, might have survived the frost if it had not gotten completely chomped, probably by rabbits, right down to the stalk.

Strawberry sorbet

2011-11-11T21:59:00.001-05:00

Note to self: make more next year! I can't remember exactly how, but I think it was just mashed strawberries, some sugar, maybe some lime juice, and here's the kicker: mint. Ohhhhhhhh... It's so divine. It's been in the freezer for 4 months and it's like summer is back.

Apple butter

2011-11-09T22:08:00.001-05:00

I am so ready for bed, but I know I'll be happy I did this.

Applesauce

2011-11-09T21:26:00.002-05:00

So, like I said, I think I'm writing a food blog now. My friend Karl and I planned a big saucing day and he brought at least 2 bushels from a local farm. I think he also became addicted to the peeler/corer/spiral cutter my friend Emma lent us. Ignoring whether or not I could keep up, or even whether or not we had enough pots to hold the apples, he plowed through the entire collection. The majority were winesaps, but we also had ginger gold, yellow delicious, and jonagold. I think winesap and jonagold are our leading apple varieties at this point.

Two crock pots and two of our largest pots on the stove, and this is probably only half the apples.

Here's one half, of my half, canned and ready for storage. I made a batch with some of my frozen raspberries. (I LOVE this stuff.) But I also canned some plain. Some of these jars were canned with the new Tattler lids. These are BPA-free plastic canning lids that are reuseable - two awesome points in their favor. It was my first try and they worked great. Now I'm going down to finish canning all the apple butter. I'm ready to be done.

Apple dumplings

2011-11-05T22:05:00.000-04:00

I fear this garden blog is going to turn into a cooking blog. It's apple season and my husband is really into apple dumplings. Had to share.

Herbed salt

2011-11-05T21:12:00.001-04:00

My latest favorite way to store summer flavor...herbed salt. This batch has thyme and sage, the last was rosemary and sage. Think veggies tossed with olive oil and herbed salt and roasted, or patting a chicken with the tasty salt, or on scrambled eggs, or, popcorn?

I followed a recipe from the Splendid Kitchen: http://www.publicradio.org/columns/splendid-table/recipes/homemade_tuscan_or_other_herb_salt.html

You wish you could put your nose over this bowl right now. And I wish I'd thought of this before my herbs' last days.

2011-10-30T19:05:00.002-04:00

Here's the hoop house. Karl came over and helped me throw it together while Doug was working on our addition. The hoop house consists of 6 10 ft lengths of 3/4 inch PVC. The two end arches were cut in half and a T-connector was cemented between the two halves. The ridgepole was cut to length, and inserted into the two T-connectors. (Not cemented so that it's easier to take it down later. We'll see if that's a problem.) 5 4 ft long rebars were cut in half to make 10 2ft pegs. Pounded into the ground with 4 inches above, these rebars are the posts that anchor the ends of the PVC arches. An old paint tarp was laid over the top. (I still haven't gotten around to sizing it correctly.) Rocks and wood anchor it around the sides and right now snow does too. An old hose was cut in foot long lengths and slit on the inside of the curve to clamp the plastic to the PVC arches. These work OK, but the weight of the snow on top, and sometimes the wind can cause the hose to pop off.

Inside, everything is doing well except the zucchini. The 29 degree temps seem to have caused some of the leaves to droop. I pulled the plant today, because without pollinators nothing else will come on it anyway and as you'll see below, the last zuchini was ready for harvest.

And check out the daikon!!! It really didn't need to be in the hoop house. It was started August 11th, and just now, when the frosts could start to top kill it, it is supremely ready for harvest. So maybe next year, I'll do some later plantings in the hoop house and earlier out and around the garden.

Scarlet Runner Beans

2011-10-30T12:17:00.000-04:00

This is what I got off the 5 ft row of scarlet runner beans I planted.

I just read a little more about them and found out that I could have eaten them as fresh string beans if I picked them young enough. Also that the gorgeous red flowers are edible and so is the root! The beans can be eaten fresh like lima beans, or dried as I was planning. But they are HUGE so I'm thinking it'll take forever for them to dry and even longer to rehydrate for soup, so this was probably not the best idea I ever had. Maybe I'll freeze them.

Furthermore, this bean is PERENNIAL!!! It can live and regrow for 7 YEARS! The Indians called it a magic bean.

Anyway. I'm completely sold and will probably grow more of this next year and maybe less bush bean - or maybe both. Who knows.

Lessons Learned: Roots

2011-10-28T23:06:00.000-04:00

I was pleased and surprised with the success of beet and carrot crops this year. It's all I attempted. I haven't exactly run the numbers, but I suspect these crops are the highest $/square foot crop I grew.

I'd like to try rutabega next year. (Friends recommend it.) I'd also like to do a greater variety of beets, and a lot more carrots. I'd also like to try celeriac next fall.

Carrots were impressive in the spring, but taste better in the fall, so I really want to plant more next fall.

I should also plant these fall seeds a little earlier than I did. But I planted them July 31! How much earlier can I go? Maybe this year was just so gray and rainy that they didn't grow well.

Lessons Learned: Beans and Peas

2011-10-28T20:31:00.000-04:00

Bunny problems cut the pea harvest way back this year. I also had some trouble with germination. Next year, I'll plant fresh seed a little later. Peas came up this year on April 17th, Growing Degree Day 38. I figure I'll wait until this point next year - whenever that is - and then put the peas in the ground, pre-soaked.

I want the shelling peas for the sake of the sweet surprise inside, but the truth is, you have to grow a lot to get a dinner's worth. So we'll plant more snow peas and sugar snaps.

As far as string beans go, I'm pretty happy with a row of about 10 ft total. I'd like to try limas again, but they have to be planted as early as you can. I only got a handful this year.

I might try more pole beans next year. I had a good run with the scarlet runner beans, but they weren't good fresh, and I only had 5 ft. Maybe I'll try another variety in addition to the scarlet runner beans, one that would be good as fresh string beans or just fresh beans.

Getting ready for snow

2011-10-28T19:32:00.002-04:00

My garden is SO not ready for snow. But I was just out shoring up the hoop house and I ducked under and thought this carrot might be respectable, so I pulled it! It's short, but respectable breadth. Wish I'd planted more. There are only 15 or so.

Stephen Hopp (of Animal Vegetable Miracle authorship) told us that carrots were better after the first frost. The cool weather convinces them to convert something to sugar... or something. I don't know, but this one was AMAZINGLY sweet. Much sweeter than the ones I grew in the spring.

Lima beans

2011-10-27T19:50:00.001-04:00

Total production of Lima beans from one short row, planted too late. Less than a handful. Hmmmmmm...

Elizabeth Crisfield

814 777 3395

www.elizabethcrisfield.com

Garlic

2011-10-27T12:11:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I planted the garlic bed. First frost is expected tonight.

I bought about 15 heads of German Red (hardneck) at the farmers market for $10. There were about 10 cloves per head, so that was a lot of garlic. I also planted the saved cloves of 10 heads of my unknown variety which has 4-5 enormous cloves per head.

I found the best garlic growing advice at this page: http://www.garlicfarm.ca/growing-garlic.htm. They point out that if you leave a few scapes uncut, you can both multiply the cultivar by planting the bulbils and know when to stop watering in the summer (when the scapes straighten up, stop watering.)

I used a slightly wider spacing this year, probably about 6 inches. They say this will allow larger heads. I fear they may not all be deep enough, but I'll mulch it and hope that will compensate.

Raspberry applesauce

2011-10-21T15:33:00.002-04:00

I can't get enough of this stuff. 10 jonagold apples, 10 golden delicious, 2 c frozen raspberries. I cook the apples down, then mash the raspberries and mix them in just before filling the jars. 1/2 inch headspace, 20 minutes in the water bath canner.

Scarlet runner beans

2011-10-19T11:05:00.001-04:00

We didn't eat any of these fresh, so they are all dry for soup!

Zucchini

2011-10-10T19:35:00.000-04:00

Apparently the time to grow zucchini in my garden is late summer. I planted seed, in the ground, on August 2, and so far I've gotten 2 beautiful fruits. Maybe I could even start a week or two earlier next year.

Lessons Learned: Tomatoes

2011-10-03T13:06:00.000-04:00

Well, this was a decent crop despite the fact that it rained every day starting August 1 and by mid-September all the leaves had fallen off these plants due to some kind of fungus. I don't think there is a living thing or surface outside right now that hasn't been colonized by some kind of fungus.

I would definitely plant the supersonic and cherokee purple varieties again. Supersonic was a good slicer and it ripened early. Cherokee purple is a big, fleshy beefstake style tomato that really gives you a hunk of fruit. Both are tasty.

Amish paste was OK, but I think I could have hoped for more fruits per plant. But it could have been the soil or some other factor.

Mr. Stripey gets these ugly scars all around the top (possibly in part because of all the rain cracking the skins) and then they rot there. Plus it's hard to tell when they are ripe. I'm not doing this one next year.

Doug's grandmother's tomatoes' descendants did quite well. Small slicing tomatoes with good flavor.

The need to rotate is a problem. I don't have enough space to rotate properly, and I really don't want to reduce the number of tomato plants I plant. Tomatoes are not THAT cheap, and I've been freezing them as diced or sauced tomatoes. I think next year I will plant them inside the rabbit fence. There haven't been tomatoes in there for years, and that will give the rest of the garden a break. Plus, I can start them early because I'm planning to put a hoop house over that part of the garden in a couple weeks. Also, I can still put the early spring crops in there because they'll grow between the tomatoes until the weather gets too warm for them and the tomatoes crowd them out.

As far as a mix of varieties, I'll plant at least 4 slicing tomatoes, 1 cherry tomato, and at least 4 paste tomatoes. I'd like to plant something that is good for drying as well.

Lessons Learned: Herbs

2011-10-03T12:51:00.000-04:00

I've been meaning to write good notes on what I learned this year and what I hope to do differently next year. I'm starting with herbs.

First, I didn't plant as much variety as I'd like to next year. Part of the problem is finding a good spot for perennials. I'll start with the herbs I did plant and then note the ones I want to add.

1. Mint. There is a big stand of mint that escaped pots near our fence line. It's an unknown variety, but well-established. I used it all summer in lemonade. In pots in the vegetable garden I also planted apple mint, spearmint, and your basic mint mint. The apple mint had impressive, large, lush leaves, but it never grew too many stems so I don't think I harvested it for anything. Maybe it will grow better next year. The spearmint got kind of overwhelmed by a nearby marigold and a dock, so it's not as strong as it might have been. But the mint mine is outrageous! It must be 3 feet in diameter spilling out of it's pot. And that's AFTER I whacked it way back to dry it's leaves.

Keeping the mint in terra cotta in the garden seemed to work well. It got watered whenever everything else did. One great thing about the mint is that it dried so well. Hung by the handful in a paper bag for about 2 weeks, it smelled amazing as I pinched the leaves off.

2. Basil. This is one crop that must be started indoors as early as possible and maybe planted out in a cold frame. And buying a few starts from the greenhouse is a good bet too. It took 'til June 30 before I could harvest any decent amount.

I planted 4 lettuce leaf basil and at least 12 regular plants. I ended up with about 8 large ones, with the ones out in the vegetable bed growing strongest. The lettuce leaf basil looked cool, but didn't have a great taste.

A friend, Gene, recommended a method of harvest that should maximize yield. I'd like to try this next year.

1) Basil growing tip from Ecology Action, Nov. 2010, p. 3.

a) Once basil reaches 4-6 growth nodes and is at the point of flowering, cut back to 2 growth nodes (starting from the ground up), as long as there are enough leaves for photosynthesis.

b) Water well after each cutting.

c) After 7-10 days, it should be ready for second cutting (again, just at the point of flowering).

d) Cut back to 1 growth node (counting from the main stem).

e) Repeat every 7-10 days until plant starts to get leggy, around the third cutting. Then cut back to 6-8” and wait until it re-grows. ( 2 weeks).

f) Repeat the entire process – taking 3 or more cuttings.

g) Cut back to 8” and repeat process.

h) Of course, let some go to seed to save seed.

I converted most of the basil to pesto, especially when pulling the plants toward the end of the season, and froze it in 1/2-1 c portions. I definitely could have used more. I feel sure we'll eat everything I've frozen over the winter months.

I also planted a few starts in between plants I expected to get large, like tomatoes. The problem is, the basil is pretty slow growing and by the time the basil was ready to grow it was already shaded by the larger plants. So basil needs dedicated garden space, at least a square foot per plant. I would, ideally, have 16 square feet of basil.

3. Cilantro. I have got to get serious about succession planting. This is one of my favorite herbs, so despite the fact that it bolts about a week after it reaches harvestable size, I'm going to try to grow it. It might make sense to grow it in a fertile soil flat, where the seeds can be sewn densely every 2 weeks. Maybe the shortage of soil would even stunt it a little - either that or make it bolt even faster!

4. Parsley. This was a starting year for parsley. I now have 3 strong italian flat leaf, but need to put in a curly leaf plant. I'm hopeful these will come back next year.

5. Sage. We discovered sage butter. Man, oh man. Finely chop 2 T of sage leaves and simmer in 1/2 c butter and then sprinkle in nutmeg. My smallish sage plant from a local greenhouse thrived next to the garden fence. If it comes back next year I'd be very happy, but I'm not sure I can expect that.

6. Thyme. Eh. It's growing, but not stunningly. I think I should research varieties too. There seem to be a million and I have no idea which I'd like best.

7. Tarragon. I planted a very tasty tarragon, but allowed it to get crowded out, and I don't know if the weak plant remaining could possibly survive winter to come back next year. We have a very strong, but tasteless variety that does come back voraciously every year, so I guess I can be hopeful, but I should move it.

8. Rosemary. I had a 3 year old shrub in a pot that had moved in and out of the house with the seasons. We put it in the ground this spring. I'll bring two new starts in the house this winter, so we'll have those come spring if the shrub doesn't survive. My mom taught me to slip some sprigs up under the skin of a chicken before roasting it and we just love that. I'd like to find more uses. I'm betting rosemary butter is good.

9. Lavender. I have a small but strong lavender plant. They survive in the backyard of a neighbor, so I hope this one will revive next spring and get even larger.

10. Oregano. This plant was a runt 2 years ago, harvestable this year, and I'm hoping for stunning next year. Flavor is good, but boy does it disappoint when dry. There must be some trick to that.

11. Lemongrass. This was a fun experiment worth repeating. I'm told if I bring the clump in over winter, and set it back out next spring it will be much stronger next year. The stalks and leaves can be dried or frozen for soup or tea. It's the kind of thing you can't bring yourself to pay for, so it seems worth the small garden space.

12. Chives. I have a massive clump of chives. Garlic chives are taking over. I can barely see the regular chives any more. Perhaps next spring I can tidy this up, or maybe just start a fresh patch. They are really a crop that just keeps giving.

For next year:

1. Dill. Need to plant dill somewhere where it can reseed it self permanently.

2. Plants good for tea. I had calendula this year, but never harvested any to dry. Camomile? Lemon Balm?

3. Marjoram.

4. Savory.

5. Up for suggestions. Just leave a comment.

Cool nights

2011-09-18T22:52:00.001-04:00

Time to wind the garden down. I can't believe I'm going to dry this beautiful parsley.

Ravioli

2011-09-17T15:57:00.000-04:00

Last night we made the most divine dinner we've had in years.

Butternut Ravioli, and Spinach Ricotta Ravioli (made with swiss chard) with sage butter on top.

Holy Moly.

Here's the recipe for Butternut Squash Ravioli:
http://iowagirleats.com/2009/11/06/how-to-bake-butternut-squash-butternut-squash-ravioli-recipe-2/
and
http://iowagirleats.com/2009/11/05/pan-fried-butternut-squash-ravioli-with-walnut-butter-sauce-and-bacon/

Here's the recipe for Spinach Ricotta Ravioli:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/keith-famies-adventures/spinach-and-ricotta-ravioli-recipe/index.html

We followed these recipes pretty much exactly for the fillings. We followed the Butternut recipe to construct and cook the ravioli. We made the sage butter sauce in the Spinach recipe.

Let me just say, if you've never made sage butter - at least do that before your sage keels over in the garden. Oh my...

Elizabeth

PS. I made a date-nut bundt cake with Rum Glaze for desert. It was nothing compared to the raviolis, but...

Scarlet emporer pole bean

2011-09-14T19:17:00.001-04:00

I'm leaving these on the vine to save for dry soup beans.

Lemongrass

2011-09-14T00:21:00.000-04:00

Tonight (11 PM - gotta do it when you can) I harvested some of the strongest lemongrass stalks. You are supposed to cut the stalks that are at least 1/2 inch wide. Then I peeled off the outer leaves, but found it was a little difficult to tell when I'd pulled off enough. The options for the heart include freezing and drying. A couple things I read said you could put these hearts in a blender and then freeze the juice in ice cube trays for later use. I may try this but for now I'm going with the drying method. Although nothing I read recommended it, I think I'm going to cut the grass into 1 inch pieces and dry it like that. Then, when it's time for soup I can just take out the pieces I need.

End of summer.

2011-09-07T16:13:00.001-04:00

Scarlet runner beans

2011-08-26T09:33:00.001-04:00

I don't know what changed but these vines are finally making beans.

First tomatillos.

2011-08-16T11:24:00.001-04:00

Pass the chips. I mashed up a couple recipes I found online to make salsa verde from my first tomatillos.

1 lb tomatillos, husked, and stuck under the broiler 'til the skins started to blacken
1/2 c diced onion
1 t mashed garlic
1/2 c chopped cilantro
1 T fresh oregano
1/2 t ground cumin
1 1/2 t salt
1 T lime juice
1/2 t sugar

Pulse in blender, leave it a little chunky. Black flecks are the charred skins from the roasting process.

My oh my

2011-08-14T17:52:00.001-04:00

The Cherokee purples are to die for just plain sliced, and the rest of these are looking pretty in the pot.

Tomato season

2011-08-14T17:05:00.001-04:00

Is here.

August 13

2011-08-14T14:46:00.001-04:00

The height of summer, at least judging from the pole beans which must be going on 10 feet tall.

The second crop of raspberries is starting to come on strong, more than you can eat just walking down the row - except if you are carrying Ames. One of these berries about fills his mouth, but it goes down so easy he can just keep popping one after another. This is the 1-year-old summer of antioxidents. He's a berry monster.

Asparagus is still sending up new spears. Each stalk is thicker and stronger than the last. I think it's enjoying wetter weeks and the layer of compost I top-dressed with.

Here's a view from the east end. Just looks like a mass of green, you have to look under everything to find the jewels.

Like a spaghetti squash. This one started very early, and it looks as if the vine might survive just long enough for it to mature. It's probably the last remaining squash vine in the garden, all other succumbed to squash vine borer. Really hoping to find an organic solution to that problem.

Beans planted a couple weeks ago, aiming for a late summer string bean crop.

This is the remains of the potato patch. Yukon Golds are ready to come out, but the all blues are actually still green!?!

A few straggling beets leftover from the spring planting, but still growing, a nice basil crop and a few more beans where the carrots came out. If I were better at keeping my mind on food production I'd kick those beats out of their turf and plant something more productive, like beans, or maybe daikon radish?

Cherokee Purples - haven't eaten one yet, but I think these are the first to ripen and they look ready!

Supersonics - these were the first slicers to ripen and have been delivering for quite awhile now.

Hungarian Yellow Wax peppers, on their way to red - these guys are stinkin' hot!

These are a very small slicer type that volunteered. Very prolific. I like them.

Amish Paste tomatoes. Prolific, but susceptible to blossom end rot during a drought.

Um, so, this was supposed to be the path, until two enormous kales self-seeded and I didn't have the heart to pull them. It's a theme with me.

I thought I planted a sunflower that would flower at every leaf-stalk. In fact, I know I did. But nevermind, now I have big beautiful sunflower heads to enjoy - and maybe seeds? Unfortunately, they point toward the rising sun, away from the house, so in their current locations there is no enjoyment to be had. I'd have to plant in the front yard if I wanted that.

Fall seeds for beets, leeks, carrots, and daikon radishes are in the ground, and mostly sprouted and emerged.

Chard seedlings were started in pots and then transplanted into the ground a couple weeks ago. All doing well.

These Scarlet Emporer Pole Beans from victory seeds are gorgeous - but no beans! Not cool. I knew there was an ornamental variety, but I definitely thought I was buying a bean producing pole bean - nevermind... next year.

THIS is the squash vine borer moth.

2011-08-07T07:50:00.002-04:00

Great. I guess they aren't done for the year.

Dinner.

2011-08-05T21:26:00.001-04:00

Hail followup

2011-08-04T11:18:00.000-04:00

Some tomatoes show the pelts, and of course there were some torn leaves, but we really came through fine. The drought in July caused as much damage - lots of blossom end rot on the Amish paste tomatoes.

Fall seedlings coming up

2011-08-04T10:57:00.000-04:00

Pirat bitterness lettuce, Copenhagen market cabbage (green), red acre cabbage, long island improved Brussels sprouts are all up! This time I started them in larger pots filled with compost and just a little potting soil on top. Better for water-holding and staying cool I hope, not to mention nutrition.

Compost temperature

2011-08-03T11:15:00.001-04:00

The outdoor temperature on this grey rainy day is 70. (ahhhhhh...) But the compost is heated up to at least 90! Those little microbes have quite a metabolism.

Elizabeth Crisfield
814 777 3395
www.elizabethcrisfield.com

Hail!

2011-08-01T18:11:00.000-04:00

Taking a page out of my sister's book... We just had a hail storm. Slightly bigger than pea-sized I'd say. Haven't been out to harden yet - crossing fingers!

Compost

2011-07-31T13:03:00.000-04:00

I unloaded the tumbler this morning, just 2 weeks after I filled it. Hot summer days work wonders. I reloaded with whatever had built up in the wooden bin on the side, but it wasn't much. I chopped up some weeds, and pulled the shell pea vines, and here's what the fresh load looks like. I wonder how long this one will take?

Squash update

2011-07-23T16:17:00.001-04:00

I have a MAJOR cucumber beetle problem. They are on every squash I have (canteloupe, green and lemon cucumbers, zucchini, kabocha, spaghetti, and red kuri.) I have a couple plants' stems wrapped in nylons. I have a couple plants protected underneath by a sheet of aluminum foil. I suspect these protection devices are a complete joke, but we'll see. I pick and kill them in the morning and at night, but there's just no way I've got them all.

Despite the dry heat we've been having (temperatures breaking 100 degrees) they all look good except the red kuri. It gets a blast of late day sun, so maybe that's why it's doing worse than the others. Fruit is setting on the red kuri, kabocha, zucchini, and spaghetti squashes so far.

*****************************

OK - Correction - cucumber beetles do not lay the eggs that turn into the squash vine borer. That's a different bug - a red moth. My friend Karl did a ton of exhaustive research on squash pests and as soon as he posts it I'll add a link. I have so many squash vine borers at this point it'll be a miracle if I get any. I've found them in all the varieties I've planted.

I'm going to try another round of zucchini plantings. Who ever struggles to get zucchini out of a garden?

Red Norland potato harvest

2011-07-23T16:03:00.002-04:00

The "All Blue" and "Yukon Gold" are still green and vibrant, but the "Red Norland" were yellowing and browning. I dug the row this morning, and I can't promise this is all of them, but if it is we got 4 big ones, 10 fist sized, and 8 little ones. This is a RoI of 7 ( I planted 3 and ended up with 24.)

Here's the post back when I planted these: http://henfieldhomestead.blogspot.com/2011/04/potato-planting-time.html

I had intended to plant beans in between the rows, but the potato beetles were already here (June 11) when I planted the beans (June 18th), so if they repelled them I'd be surprised. Fortunately, I really didn't have any problem with the potato beetles (unlike friends across town that got inundated). And, the potato stalks fell over in a strong rainstorm and suppressed the newly emerged bean stalks. So I wouldn't say that approach was worth much.

First zucchini!

2011-07-20T07:47:00.000-04:00

The onion crop

2011-07-19T11:27:00.000-04:00

4 sq feet each, planted from sets.

Harvest.

2011-07-19T08:38:00.001-04:00

Ames was up early this morning and rather than fight him back to sleep I figured we'd hit the garden before the sun did.

We started with the last of the garlic harvest. 25 heads. These are bigger than the others. It's a variety I've grown for a few years, but I don't remember the name.

Then we moved on to the onions. The leaves had fallen over but were still green. They might have grown longer, but I was worried the bulbs might not keep due to leaf damage from falling over. Also, we are in a major dry spell, which is a good time to harvest onions. I need to water the crops next to the onions, but didn't want to get the onions wet. Anyway, we had 36 yellow and 21 red onions of respectable size. These were growing with less competition than the other patch and were much bigger.

We also pulled the last of the carrots, which were splitting. Next year I need to plant carrots in succession.

And then there were the first string beans and potatoes. Awesome!

First Red Norland potatoes!

2011-07-19T07:32:00.000-04:00

First string beans!

2011-07-19T07:31:00.000-04:00

A tomato

2011-07-16T16:08:00.001-04:00

In three weeks we'll be out of ways to eat it. But right now - wow.

Garlic, beets and carrots

2011-07-15T10:52:00.001-04:00

For some reason, maybe depression-era food hoarding instinct, I sometimes have a hard time harvesting, thinking if I wait there will be more food there. But I conquered that today, deciding that two varieties of garlic (svelisi polish red and German red) had enough brown leaves, and one row of carrots could be replaced by some new production, not sure what yet. The beets are still coming out as they reach size, at the perfect pace for our dinners.

Cucumber Beetles

2011-07-14T14:02:00.000-04:00

They were here yesterday, if not before. I found more this morning. Time to implement all manor of stem protection against the worms. Please comment if you have any opinions on the matter.

Cut flower bed

2011-07-13T09:35:00.000-04:00

Finally, it doesn't look like an unweeded swath.

July 9th

2011-07-12T11:34:00.001-04:00

The first raspberry crop is in full swing. I get at least half a yogurt tub every other day. Ames loves that he can just walk up to the canes and grab a red one and eat it.

The cover crop has started to flower. I definitely think I could start cutting it and using it as mulch in the rest of the beds, but I haven't found time to do that yet.

The squashes and cukes are all doing well except a runt acorn squash that is barely hanging in there. The spaghetti squash is the clear leader so far. We are racing to get supports up to train them up the fence. It'll be my first attempt at that approach, but it does save so much space...

There were 4 plots of onions, 2 red, 2 yellow. I let kale grow up between onions in one of the sets of plots, and those onions were MUCH smaller than the plots without competition.

Of the three tomatillo plants, only one is actually fruiting, though all three are flowering. And the one that is fruiting is the smallest of them all. Weird.

Basil is starting to kick into gear.

Carrot harvests have been a wonderful surprise. I wish I'd planted more. They were planted between the tomatoes and basil, assuming that both would require more space later in the season. I think this plan was a pretty good one. The carrots haven't been crowded yet, and by the time they are out I think their real estate will be squeezed.

Beets too are coming out. They are perfect. Also wish there were more of them. It might be possible to put a couple rows of beans in when the beets and next-door onions are out in a week or two.

The sugar snap peas need more climbing room desperately. They are starting to flower.

Garlic is starting to brown in the leaves, but the heads are still rather small. I've grown bigger heads in the past, and am not sure what happened this year. Maybe a lack of water? Maybe the bed is worn out for onions? This is also the place the onion plots did poorly.

The Amish paste tomatoes will be the first to ripen. One (not pictured) is already blushing orange.

Here the garden from the west end. You can't see the cut flower bed in this picture very well.

But here's a sample of the blooms coming out of that Victory seeds mix.

Garlic and onions.

2011-07-09T14:00:00.000-04:00

The garlic isn't really ready yet, but I needed some and I was curious. These red onions are among the biggest out there. They are all going in with beets and carrots for roasting.

Carrots

2011-07-09T12:19:00.001-04:00

Onions, carrots, and beets are coming out now. I wish I had planted more of all of them.

Beets and peas

2011-07-08T10:49:00.001-04:00

Well, the first week of July is a great time for growing. Weeds too. Here's part of today's harvest.

June 19th report

2011-06-19T14:43:00.001-04:00

Moonflower seedlings, hanging on under dryish conditions

Morning glory. All but two seedlings have been chomped. Rabbits.

Raspberries are still a little way off I think, but blackberries further down the alley are starting to turn.

Cover crop is still lush! Maybe almost time to steal some of it?

Here's the view from the east end.
Potatoes are doing well. I've picked about 8 potato beetles off, but never more than 2 at a time, and I don't see any orange egg masses.
On the right, the squashes and cucumbers are doing well - at least those that came up. I'm having a hard time getting my lemon cucumber and acorn squash seeds to germinate. I've interplanted basil, and plan to start some lettuce seeds around these squashes.

Sugar snaps were planted late, but they are doing OK. Also in this narrow bed are purple royalty string beans.

Here's the view of the main veggie beds. The Tomatillos have really taken off, probably 2 feet tall now. Onions are starting to bulb. Beets are ready for greens harvest. Carrots are about 5 inches long, and super skinny. Tomatoes are flowering and even have a few fruits on them. Peppers haven't grown much yet, but they are flowering and I hope the coming heat will help them along.

The cut flower bed looks so much like weeds that even I wonder if I actually planted seed here.

The greens bed is about to go through a conversion. Lettuce is being pulled for harvest rather than just picking leaves off the sides. The chinese greens are bolting and need to have their final harvest. The garlic leaves are starting to yellow. This may mean it's time for harvest, although I think I should wait a little longer. I just read a very detailed article on garlic that said it could just be drought stress, and I think I should have watered them more through some of these dryer weeks. Peas are still producing well in this bed, but I wish I'd planted longer rows.
Sweet potatoes are going in this bed. Maybe some more beans. And hopefully some cabbages for the fall.

The scarlet emperor beans are just shooting skyward. I also put provider string beans in here, but despite a pre-soak, they didn't come up very well.

Amish paste tomatoes are the tallest and earliest fruiting of my tomato varieties this year. So far, so good with the squash on the left of this photo, but I'm dreading the squash vine borer's arrival, and keep meaning to wrap the stems in nylons which might protect them.

Here's the lettuce leaf basil. All my basil is frustratingly small. I'd love to be making pesto with the garlic scapes right now, but can't pick any decent amount. I guess this is typical. This is one crop I really hope to accelerate somehow next year.

Sunflowers are just 5 inches high. I expect them to start pouring on the growth any day now.

First pesto

2011-06-17T14:06:00.001-04:00

Garlic scapes and basil, olive oil and a hint of farmers market cheese. Wow. I used lettuce leaf basil, which is lighter green, and with the green of the scapes, it makes a beautiful pesto.

Next year basil starts will be on the shopping list for an earlier basil harvest.

Lettuce harvest

2011-06-16T10:35:00.001-04:00

Three heads. The lettuce is starting to be a little bitter, but there's still so much to eat. I'm trying the morning harvest, cold water soak, bitterness mitigation strategy.

Potato Beetle

2011-06-14T15:57:00.003-04:00

Also found on the Red Norland Potato plants on Monday.

The ones on the potato plant are a lot larger than the ones on the tomatillo. They still have the black and yellow striped back, but they might not be the same bug.

Potato beetle

2011-06-11T16:04:00.000-04:00

Awesome. Let's make more!

Strawberries

2011-06-11T12:42:00.000-04:00

At $4.50 a quart it really hurts when the birds eat them as soon as they blush red on top. I'm going to have to get some floating row covers, or tighter wire mesh for next year.

Potato beetle

2011-06-11T12:26:00.001-04:00

Just found the first one, well, three actually. Two mating and one solo. Bright orange egg masses on the bottom of the leaves. But... they weren't on the potatoes, they were on the tomatillos.

Start seeds in compost?

2011-06-10T12:08:00.001-04:00

The basil in the flat was started at least a month after the basil in the ground. The soil in the flat was from the compost bin. Could be the flat had better care (warmth and water) but I don't think so. I think it's the nutrients.

Usually you start seeds in sterile seed starting mix, but I'm tempted to give that up and just use compost.

First snow peas!

2011-06-10T11:38:00.001-04:00

Despite rabbits ransacking the pea crop, they seem to have preferred the shell peas over the snow peas and so unless it gets too hot too soon we should get a few snow pea meals off our short row. On the other hand, we've been hitting over 90 pretty often, so I better just enjoy the ones we've got.

June 8 Update

2011-06-08T15:04:00.004-04:00

I planted moonflower and morning glory along the alley side of this fence. On this side is some kind of not-very-tasty but very strong tarragon and some mint.

Here's the asparagus patch. Something (rabbits, always rabbits) ate one of the five, and it still hasn't shot up new spears, but I'm still watering it hoping there's life down there.

Here's a closeup of raspberries. Last year I know we were harvesting by June 25th when my son was born because my mom made me divine raspberry sorbet with them. It can't come soon enough.

Pretty scrappy looking rhubarb at this point. There's a rabbit nest in the raspberries on the other side of the fence and Masha has been stomping around this poor rhubarb sniffing the wind. This is the plant's second year. By year 3 you should be able to harvest, but I think I'll have to go easy on this one for another year. I'll try to dress it with compost later this season.

Here's the front of the garden. Not much to see right now but this face should look considerably different in a month or two.

Here's the cover crop patch from Territorial Seed via my sister. It's growing well, although it's supposed to be a winter mix. I'm really, really glad I planted it because I am going to be short on green stuff for the compost or for mulching the beds.

Here's view from the east end of the garden. Canteloupe and squashes and then sugar snaps are along the fence, the cover crop on the left, and the potato bed beyond that. I'll put the lima beans and wax beans in the space between the potato rows later this week.

Here are the two main veggie beds. Both beds start with tomatoes on the far left, then a row of carrots, then space for basil and cilantro, then onions, then peppers and tomatillos. The black landscape cloth is part of a war with weeds. It only makes sense to use it under plants that are well spaced, and it has been helping some, although the grass clipping mulch does as well and is probably better for the soil.

Here's the cut flower garden, still looking like a border of weeds. Although Alyssum has started blooming.

Here's the greens garden. Note the extra foot of added protection on top of the original picket fence. A rabbit actually nested in this garden at which point I nearly lost it. My peas will never recover, and perhaps I now know for sure why I did not succeed with chard or spinach here. But they didn't touch the lettuce. (?!?) And the carrots, outside the fence, haven't been nibbled at all. I have one sweet potato plant waiting for a space in the garden and I think it's going in here. I think the new fortification is holding, and I've heard rabbits like sweet potatoes, so this seems like the best place.

The lettuce patch. Next year I vow to plant in 2 week intervals. This is a ridiculous wealth of lettuce that is divine, but can not be eaten quite fast enough. The garlic is just starting to shoot scapes up, which seems to be in time with everyone else around here, the farmers at the market are selling them. Speaking of which, surprisingly the farmers at the market are only selling spinach, lettuce, spring onions, and garlic scapes right now, which means their gardens aren't really ahead of ours. Cool. But I'm still going to try cold frames next spring.

Scarlet runner beans went in last week. They have the most encouraging and impressive cotyledon stage ever. I love them.

Here are the Amish Paste tomato plants. Already bearing fruit!

Snow peas. Enjoying solid rabbit protection for the first time in their lives.

And producing a few, very few, beautiful pods.

My friend Libby donated two of her favorite saved squash varieties to our garden cause, red kuri and kabocha. They sprung up yesterday.

Beets.

Carrots. My friend Emma planted hers in a sand trench. I believe I'll be trying that approach next year. Our soil isn't terrible, but it's stony and gets pretty dense over time.

Here's the view from the west end.

Foxglove near the shed.

The first garlic scapes!

2011-06-02T11:33:00.001-04:00

Frog/toad ID?

2011-06-01T20:29:00.001-04:00

Anybody recognize this guy? It was hiding in the weeds under the deck. Not bad for an iPhone photo, eh?

Lettuce wealth

2011-05-30T08:53:00.000-04:00

The first strawberry!

2011-05-29T19:49:00.002-04:00

Look what turned red today!
Memorial day will be the very beginning of the strawberry season.

Kill turf with newspaper

2011-05-29T19:46:00.001-04:00

I so wish I'd taken the time to lay newspaper down the whole length of fence. The foreground has been under paper for about a month and a half. The prospect of turning it over to plant is joyous compared to the next section down the fence.

Chives, Rosemary, and Iris

2011-05-29T15:53:00.001-04:00

This is definitely a lovely late May combo.

Asparagus

2011-05-27T10:43:00.001-04:00

The first spindly shoots have appeared.

Up close and personal

2011-05-25T19:39:00.000-04:00

I started the carrots ages ago, and they finally look like carrots. I'm just lucky they're still standing considering the state of my pea crop.

Got this cool -looking lettuce-leaf basil at the greenhouse on Monday.

And here are my beets, standing a full 3" tall.

And just for kicks - the oregano looking so much happier than last year.

Garden Art

2011-05-25T15:19:00.001-04:00

We always thought a statue would look good in this garden, but anything we could afford was too close to a cheesy lawn ornament - not what we were after.

It took me 15 minutes to scavange and balance this pile of rocks. I half-hope the wind or rain will blow it down so I can do it again. California poppies are planted around the base.

(Note, 2 days later the smallest 2 top rocks rolled off in a thunderstorm. tee hee.)

Lettuce lessons

2011-05-24T12:32:00.000-04:00

A couple weeks ago I bought lettuce starts from a nursery because they were just SO much bigger than my starts out in the garden. I felt defeated when I put these beautiful greenhouse plants in next to my tiny seedlings. But regard the lettuce patch today. Who started in the greenhouse?

Hint - it's the ones with the generous spacing, not the ones that are already mashed up against each other.

I let kale go to seed in this garden two years ago, and thus I will probably never have to plant kale again.

Seed starting failures

2011-05-24T12:27:00.000-04:00

For future reference - I had no luck starting chard or spinach in the garden from seed. I bought a new packet of chard seeds yesterday, 'cause I just can't believe the trouble I'm having with them.

I could barely get celery to start from seed, it would germinate, but was just SO weak. Yesterday I bought 6 strong starts for $1.

Next year it's lights or a greenhouse/coldframe or both.

The tomato report

2011-05-24T12:24:00.000-04:00

Doug and I have intentions to save tomatoes this year. I had planned space for 3 romas, and 4 slicing tomato plants, but then we started to wonder if there should be more, so we made space for two more in the flower bed along the back walk.

So the tomato inventory will be:

3 Amish Paste Tomatos (Romas, indeterminate, heirloom)
From the seed savers exchange:
(Solanum lycopersicum) First listed in the 1987 SSE Yearbook by Thane Earl of Whitewater, Wisconsin. Commercialized by Tom Hauch of Heirloom Seeds, who acquired it from the Amish near Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Bright red 8-12 ounce fruits vary in shape from oxheart to rounded plum. Delicious flesh is juicy and meaty, excellent for sauce or fresh eating. One of Slow Food USA’s Ark of Taste varieties. Indeterminate, 85 days from transplant.

2 Mr. Stripey (beefstake, indeterminate, heirloom)
From Gurneys':

Mr. Stripey Tomato

Mild-Flavored English Heirloom

Slice up a few of these beautiful tomatoes for your next family picnic! Mild, low-acid flavor and intriguing color are sure to win praise. Plum-sized, bicolor fruits have yellow flesh and a pink center. Indeterminate. 80 DAYS.

1 Cherokee Purple (beefsteak, indeterminate, heirloom)
From wikipedia:

Cherokee purple is the name of a cultivar of tomato, unusual for the deep purple/red hue of its fruit. It was one of the first of the "black" color group of tomatoes. It is also unusual in being extremely popular for the sake of its flavor, instead of only its unusual color. Cherokee Purple tomatoes are beefsteak in style, with green "shoulders" across the top. They are also notable for having a dense, juicy texture, with small seed locules irregularly scattered throughout the flesh. The comparatively dark interior color is enhanced by the tendency of the seeds to be surrounded by green gel.

This cultivar originated with Craig LeHoullier, who claimed it was a century-old cultivar originating with the Cherokee people. In 1990, while living in West Chester, Pennsylvania, Craig received unsolicited in the mail, from John Green of Sevierville, Tennessee, a brief note and a small packet of seeds. The note indicated that John wanted to share this unnamed tomato with Craig, and that it was a purple tomato that the Cherokee Indians gave to his neighbors 100 years ago. Upon growing the seeds and observing the fruit, Craig was surprised and delighted to find that the fruit was remarkably close to being a true purple in color (pink tomatoes were often referred to as purple in horticultural literature, so the color of the tomato was quite a surprise). The tomato was named in line with the note that accompanied the seeds, and a sample of seeds sent that winter to Jeff McCormack, founder of Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, as well as listed in the Seed Savers Exchange (SSE) Yearbook 1991 edition. A few years later, Craig also sent it to Rob Johnston, founder of Johnny's Selected Seeds. Both seed companies elected to multiply the seed and carry the variety in their seed catalogs. Craig sent out many seed samples to SSE members over the next few years. Through these transactions, as well as the availability via the two seed companies, Cherokee Purple has become a very popular, widely grown and well regarded variety. Craig now lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Cherokee Purple remains one of his favorite varieties in a tomato collection that numbers well over 1500 varieties.

1 Supersonic Red Tomato (slicer, indeterminate, hybrid)
From Reimer seeds:
79 days. Lycopersicon esculentum. (F1) Plant produces heavy yields of 8 to 12 oz red tomatoes. The tomato is flavorful and crack resistant. Especially popular in the Northeast. Excellent for salads, sandwiches, and canning. Disease Resistant: VF. Indeterminate.

2 from Doug's grandmother, unknown variety (slicers)

The two raised from seed Doug saved from his grandmother's tomatoes are starting to make progress. I set them out way too early because they needed the outdoor light. Yesterday I bought 3 wall o' waters at the greenhouse. I was too stingy back in April to buy them, and I sure wish I had. These plants would surely be three times bigger. Well, better late than never? I put one around one of the Amish paste tomato plants too, to see if it sees any advantage over its neighbors - but they are all pretty big having enjoyed greenhouse conditions up 'til now.

Status Report

2011-05-13T22:23:00.004-04:00

This is a beautiful old lilac in our backyard. Anybody know the variety?

Here's the garden, in disarray, today, May 13th.

This doesn't look like much, but it will hopefully be a cut flower strip planted from Victory Seeds cut flower mix.
"Our mix includes the following 23 annual and perennial varieties: Calendula (Fancy Mix), Aster (Single Rainbow), Batchelor Button (Polka Dot Mix), Ox-eye Daisy, Godetia (Semi Dwarf Mix), Lance-leafed Coreopsis, Plains Coreopsis, Cosmos(Sensation Mix), Chinese Forget-Me-Nots, Larkspur (Giant Imperial Mix), Purple Coneflower, Perennial Gaillardia, Baby's Breath, Strawflower, Spurred Snapdragon,Scarlet Flax, Blue Flax, Poppy (Shirley Double Mix), Black-eyed Susan, Sweet William Catchfly, Crackerjack, Crimson Clover, and Pumila (Semi Dwarf Mix)."

Here's the "fortified" greens garden. I think the rabbits got in behind the garlic. I tried to stop them with rocks, but I guess I'll find out tomorrow morning. There better still be lettuce and peas in there. So far the carrots, which are outside the fence have gone unnoticed.

The strawberry bed is flowering, but no signs of fruit yet.

Weeds are still the greenest thing in the garden.

But these tomatoes have finally set their first new leaves. It's been too cold for them, but they weren't doing well inside in the flats so I jumped the gun and moved them out. They are surviving and hopefully the warm weather will kick them into gear. They are planted from seed saved from my husband's grandmother's tomatoes, so they are worth growing out even if they never become very strong. Our other plants will be purchased from a nursery.

The Chinese greens are finally looking good.

The garlic is still the most successful crop in the garden.

Here's the High Mowing Mesclun mix. I need to put another planting in of this.

And these starts are much further along, purchased for $0.25/each at Sammis greenhouse. Next year I am going to get serious about a cold frame or a greenhouse.

Beets. I cultivated and mulched them with grass clippings today.

Yea! The first potatoes. Red Norland.

Yesterday I cut all the flower stalks off the rhubarb plant, hoping for stronger leaves.

For some reason the raspberries are only sprouting leaves on the lower 1/3 of the stems. I don't remember this happening last year. There are buds higher, just not sprouting leaves. Maybe they'll come as the weather gets warmer.

Earlier this spring I contemplated asparagus, and decided I had already taken on too much and it would have to wait until next year. Then I was standing at the checkout at Sammis Greenhouse and they had crowns for $1 each. And I know it takes 4 years before you can really harvest, and waiting until next year makes that 5 years, so we went for it. We dug a trench and put the first load of compost in the bottom and then the crowns and 4 inches of soil. The shoots will come up and then we'll add more soil. Hopefully the asparagus will like this spot - for the next 15 years. Ames will be in high school when this crop stops producing.

Chive flowers are about to pop.

This is the meager state of last years' oregano start.

Spearmint and apple mint from Sammis.

Rabbits!

2011-05-13T09:55:00.000-04:00

My fortification is compromised!

How many potatoes?

2011-05-01T23:59:00.000-04:00

OK, I just reread the part in Animal Vegetable Miracle where Kingsolver says they planted three 70-ft rows of potatoes. I have three 4-ft rows.

Forget sustenance, I'm not even sure my garden classifies as a hobby.

Peas...

2011-04-30T19:29:00.001-04:00

Peas! Yea! I had weak germination out in the garden. Maybe because I didn't soak them first? Maybe because I started too early? Maybe because the seeds were two years old? I soaked more pioneer peas yesterday and put the swollen peas in today.

Update

2011-04-28T19:41:00.000-04:00

Today was a day that begged for outdoor time, but it also rained 2 inches last night. So rather than finishing preparations on the cover crop area which would involve lifting heavy shovelfuls of soil, I focused on surface chores. This garden has a major weed seed problem, so even though landscaping cloth does all kinds of bad things to soil, I've decided to use it this year. It's only practical to put it down under crops that need a lot of space, so today I installed strips of cloth where I plan to plant tomatoes, peppers, and tomatillos.

Even though we are still a couple weeks away from our 90% chance of last frost, I went ahead and put the tomatoes and tomatillo plants in. The starts I had been keeping in the house were starting to get really weak looking. They all have one or two true leaves, but they were starting to yellow, and a month of solid grey days left them pretty leggy. I know it's colder than they like, but the landscape cloth should help warm the soil, and we'll protect them if we get frosty temperatures.

Also, and this brings up a bit of a controversial subject, I used miracle grow on them. Up until this year, I was pretty much anti-synthetic anything. Very strictly organic. But over the years I've learned to get a little pickier about my convictions. There are very good reasons to be strictly organic, and I am striving to be so, but I also want a very productive garden this year. I'm putting my all into composting, and I know that in a few years this soil will be really great. For this year, we tried to find a cost-effective and logistically feasible way to import some compost or manure, but failed. Insecticides and herbicides won't touch this garden, but N, P, and K, from both organic and synthetic sources will help give it a jump-start.

Yesterday I scored a huge load of grass clippings from a neighbor. Those went on the strawberry patch. I hope they don't give me a major slug problem. I've used grass clippings in this way before and had GREAT results. Great weed control, great soil moisture retention, good nitrogen source. We'll see how the berries like it.

And just for documentation's sake, here's the greens garden. The garlic is still the most exciting thing here. The peas are about an inch high, but I had really bad germination on a couple older seed packets. I'll try to infill. The spinach, lettuce, and chinese greens are up, but barely. I hope it's just the cold, grey days we've had. There are a couple kale plants that sprung up from stray roots.

Shiitake (first harvest)

2011-04-28T19:20:00.003-04:00

OK, I do believe this counts as the first of the garden produce, unless I can count chives. These shiitakes were about 4 inches in diameter - and smooth as butter. mmmmmmmm.

Fascinating food timeline...

2011-04-22T16:24:00.000-04:00

A friend of mine turned me on to a food timeline (Thanks Seth) researched and compiled by Lynne Olver.

I thought I'd look up the origins of the food I'm planning to grow this year and come up with my own garden timeline:

7000 BC. The oldest food crop I am growing is beans.
6000 BC. broccoli
5500 BC. lettuce
5000 BC. cucumbers and squash, potatoes
3000 BC. peas, carrots, onions, and garlic
2700 BC. rhubarb
2400 BC. canteloupe
900 BC. tomatoes and tomatillos
850 BC. celery
300 BC. beets
1st century. strawberries and raspberries
7th century. spinach

Shiitake

2011-04-21T14:06:00.002-04:00

A friend and colleague of mine, Luke McCormack, and his wife Carla, host a mushroom plugging party every year and thus introduce bunches of folks in State College to the possibility of home mushroom growing. And this is how I come to have this beautiful log starting to sprout this year's crop from a log I plugged in the spring of 2009.

Luke gets a whole bunch of oak logs and orders the mushroom spawn from www.fungi.com. Everyone grabs a log, drills holes all over the log, jams spawn in the holes, and then puts a wax coating over each plug. Fast forward a couple years, and shitakes start blooming all over the log - and all over town thanks to Luke and Carla.

And on the fungal thread, next time you have 20 minutes, watch Paul Stamets' TED talk on the possibilities of mycelium.

Potato planting time

2011-04-20T22:27:00.001-04:00

Potatoes came today from High Mowing Seeds. Four friends and I shared an order of 3 bags of potatoes, Yukon Gold, Red Norland, and All Blue. That gives us about 6 potatoes each, enough for a 12 foot row - or in my case three 4-foot rows. I think we might have wished for a little more, but maybe a 12 ft row is all any of us can really dedicate to potatoes. Regardless, the split did allow us to each have 3 potato varieties, which we wouldn't have done on our own.

As recommended, mine are cut and drying in preparation for planting. I'll probably try for tomorrow, because we have rain in the forecast again starting Friday - another 4 day stretch.

I'm planning to cover these seed potatoes about 4 inches, then add more soil as the shoots grow, hoping for a deep bed of potatoes. I also plan to interplant lima beans between the potato rows. This companion planting idea might repel potato beetles. We'll see.

Impatient gardeners love garlic

2011-04-18T11:25:00.001-04:00

Nothing gives me more hope than my garlic patch right now.

The wire mesh suspended over top of the patch is meant to help hold the leaves up. I thought I remembered someone saying this helped prevent damage in the head that could cause rot during storage, but now I think they were talking about onions. Anyway, it's there now, and I think I'll leave it as an experiment. Maybe I'll use it on onions next year.

Nobody walked through this patch. There are a couple rows of a variety I got at the Boalsburg Farmers Market whose leaves grow along the soil surface instead of straight up. At least at first. If I ever remember what it is I'll edit the post.

Gardening is not instant gratification

2011-04-18T00:15:00.002-04:00

There is such a thing as starting too soon. Not that I did, I'm just sayin'...

Seeds in cold ground can take a long time to germinate. I know, 'cause I've been watching my pea row everyday for 2 weeks since I planted them April 3rd. Could'a soaked them ahead of time, should'a innoculated them... but no, I wanted them in the ground.

They went in the same day as the Spinach, Komatsuna, China Choy, and Bok Choy. And then it proceeded to rain everyday for two weeks, and stay in the 40s and 50s. Lettuce, chard, and onions went in a week later (April 10).

But even with the maples, forsythia, daffodils and hyacinths blooming, lilac and raspberry leaves budding, rhubarb exploding from its nubs, these seeds are really making me search for green in a sea of raked soil.

In a great show of optimism I put in my second planting of these winter greens this evening, and searched, and searched for signs that something might be coming up. And once I was able to ignore the blown off lime green norway maple flowers littering the bed, I think I saw a couple cotyledons. The hairy fringe of the tips of a pea vine might have made it to the surface. No promises though, it might have been a halucination.

Here's the garden today, April 17th.

The 2-sided fence will support vining plants this year, but we don't plan to go the rest of the way around or add the wire bunny protection until next year.

1cubic foot greenhouse

2011-03-22T21:15:00.001-04:00

I'm in a little friendly competition with my seed co-op for earliest produce. (Actually, only one person accepted the challenge so far, but I have a long-standing tendency to compete hard against myself, so it doesn't really matter.)

In the spirit of early greens, I built a few little greenhouses. I cut a strip of chicken wire, 1 ft wide by 4 ft long. I folded it in four and then hooked the ends together. Then I cut a piece of plastic drop cloth and wrapped the wire "box" like a Christmas present without a bottom.

We have forecasted temperatures in the 20s for several nights this week, but maybe when this string breaks I'll give these a try. For the cost of a few seeds I can't really lose.

Tulips are up!

2011-03-21T09:51:00.000-04:00

They are the only spring bulbs we have so far, and I'm so glad I slipped them in last fall.

A compost tumbler!

2011-03-19T11:23:00.002-04:00

Last year my sister, Susan, and I had a long phone conversation on the pros and cons of purchasing composting containment.

We grew up with a system that seemed to work well with not too much effort. Two 3 ft diameter cylinders of fence wire, sitting on bare dirt. We'd fill one up one year, turn it over into the other one where it would sit for the next year, and then turn it onto the garden. (I'm using the term "we" very loosely, this was my dad's realm.) My dad was good about layering grass clippings, fall leaves, kitchen scraps, and ash from the fireplace. One year the compost pile even ignited itself it got so hot!

Doug had a wooden slat compost bin built in along the back fence that has been collecting everything from the kitchen for years. But turning it is a pain, and there's no place to turn it to, and thus, the bottom is beautiful compost, and the top never gets wet enough or warm enough to turn into anything.

So I was too tempted by the promise of easy turning, and I bought a compost tumbler. My plan will be to continue to stockpile materials in the wooden bin and keep some open piles of grass clippings or leaves as we have them, and then put a good mix together in the tumbler which will get turned every couple days. This way we won't end up with mostly finished compost that still has last night's potato peels raw.

After some research (especially this excellent article in Mother Earth News), we settled on the Lifetime 80 gallon barrel composter. ($165 on Amazon and eligible for prime shipping.)

So we'll see. It's still cold, so I don't expect miracles, but I'll load it today and post pictures of the compost when it's ready.

Say, that's some cute compost already!

Plant tags

2011-03-17T07:58:00.002-04:00

Cut straight down the sides of a 32 oz yogurt cup, then cut around the bottom, then angle off the ends.

Garlic

2011-03-17T07:44:00.001-04:00

As of Saturday, March 12, the garlic was up! Chives too, in about the same state.

The ambitious beginnings

2011-03-16T22:30:00.001-04:00

Doug and I generate some kind of positive feedback wherein dreams and aspirations spiral out of control.

As evidence, we are attempting, in one season, to farm a 600 square foot area. In the past 3 years no more than 150 square feet were tended. Should be interesting!

We have a variety of motivations for this project:
1. We kind of just think it's a good idea to grow your own food, to some extent. It's a skill we want to cultivate.
2. Solidly good, locally grown food, is a chunk of change every week. Ours might turn out more expensive yet, considering the time, but we want to see how a garden balances our grocery budget.
3. I have grown vegetable gardens in every yard of every rental house I've inhabited since 1995. Having a garden to invest in year after year is a dream come true.

My sister keeps a garden blog, which is a great read. She is a much better writer than I am, but she long ago pointed out the value of a photo journal for year-to-year documentation so I'm going to try to copy her. This too is overly-ambitious.

Here's our garden on Saturday, March 12.

The soil was barely thawed. There were a couple clods of ice crystals left in the southeast corner under the spruce tree. Artesian springs popped up all over Boalsburg on Saturday, including 2 inches in our basement (whoops) so the ground is WET. It has never been easier to work it with a shovel.

Doug is working on post holes so we can build a base for the sink (foreground) which has been an uncharacteristic piece of lawn art for three years since he took possession of it from a friend, unwilling to let such a nice piece of countertop go to waste. It will be a great place to rinse dirt off veggies, and a hose splitter mounted on the base will be the irrigation hub.

The little picket fence is our only rabbit protection right now, so it needs to be reinforced. Rabbits are our primary pest. Masha does her best but she's really only a deterrent for groundhogs, which she can mostly keep under control.

At this point the garden has a strawberry patch (~20 plants thanks to my friend Emma) and a garlic patch (~100 heads thanks to my parents help last fall) and that's about it.