Sunlight, like tides, wait for no man.Yesterday I watched as the morning sunlight set fire to the jewel toned Lollo De Vino lettuce and determined to do a spring garden update. By the time I took the update photo the light had moved on and the deep, rich hue of the lettuce was on display, but not the fiery light that inspired me to call this the most beautiful lettuce I have grown so far.This morning I was determined to not let the light pass me by again.
#LettucePorn #Food(Growing)Porn #NoFilters
Finally Spring - Garden Update
The average last frost date for this area has come and gone and the lowest nighttime temp forecast through the end of the month is 41. I think spring is finally here to stay!The French Breakfast Radishes are speeding toward their 25 days to maturity and the Lollo De Vino Lettuce is by far, the prettiest lettuce I have ever grown.
The strawberries are already thickly covered in blooms and green berries.
And speaking of "thick", the June-bearing variety I have put out an outrageous number of runners. I tried to stay on top of it last year, giving away dozens of rooted starts and adding many more to the compost bin, but they still managed to do a little guerrilla gardening of their own, sneaking out some late season runners to plant offspring around the designated 4'x8' beds.
The blueberry bushes are also covered in unripe berries and continuing to bloom. This is their second summer in place and I am hoping the January pruning results in even larger, more plentiful berries than last year.
I am growing 2 varieties of Sugar Snap Peas this year, finishing out the last of my Sugar Anns and also growing a variety call simply Sugar Snap.
The collards and lettuces in the garden are off to a slow start which I attribute to the mostly cooler weather we have had this spring. With daytime highs starting to reach into the high 70s and low to mid 80s, I think their growth rate will pick up quickly in the next few weeks.And last, but never least, the tomatoes.
Of the 38 tomatoes that were emancipated at the end of March, I have 37 that are doing very well. The septoria leaf spot has dramatically slowed in it's progression since they were moved outside and the one Rebekah Allen tomato plant that was lost to a nighttime nibbler, has been reseeded indoors and will be replaced outdoors in a month or so.This weekend I will be sowing more herbs in the front and reseeding some of the spinach that has had less than stellar germination rates this year."In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt." ~ Margaret Atwood
Last Frost Date
Last night was a low of 28 so the tomatoes were covered (again) and I am optimistic that it was the last night of freezing temps (again). This time, at least, I have the Average Last Frost Date in my corner...though average and last possible vary by over a month.I the meantime, the container garden on my deck planted with cold weather crops is just fine with or without a light frost. The beautiful colors and daily growth of of these varietals make warmer weather feel not so far away.This is my first year growing Lollo De Vino Lettuce. I had run out of room in the garden for another lettuce but it was just to pretty to resist when I ran across it so I am growing it in a container along with a volunteer cilantro. Another first year variety, the French Breakfast Radishes have sprouted.
I planted Snow Peas in the container garden this year to add some height contrast to the low growing lettuce and radishes. The easy access to peas and shoots is a total bonus.Today's cold weather task is to give some overdue attention to the indoor basil garden which needs some pruning and thinning.Happy Average Last Frost Date (for Raleigh NC)!
Growing Smiles - Early April Planting
Avant Garden
The single, yellowed leaf I found on one of my paste tomatoes at the end of February was actually the opening shot of a fungal tug-of-war that will likely continue for the whole of 2016's growing season. The Septoria Leaf Spot fungus which can cause damage to tomatoes by defoliation leading to sunburned fruit has been mostly contained by removal of affected leaves and regular use of a homemade organic fungicide (1 gallon of water, 2 TBS vegetable oil and 2 TBS baking soda) but the close proximity of the plants to each other while they are stuck in my indoor grow room was almost certainly encouraging the spread of the fungus.With about a week to go before the last frost date for my area, I have been obsessively checking the 15 day weather forecast for the past few days to determine whether I could risk putting the tomatoes out a little early to give them some much needed space, fresh breezes and sanitizing sunshine to inhibit the fungus from spreading. Today I rolled the dice and moved them to the great outdoors!The PVC tubes that my bamboo tomato supports fit into are already in place so the plant roots will not be disturbed later in the season when they are necessary and the tomatoes have been hardened off.Last year I had a handful of tomatoes that had blossom end rot so I saved eggshells all winter and crushed them into a powder to provide more calcium to the plants. Tomatoes are a vine plant that will root along their stem, so mine were laid down in the channel I dug rather than placed upright. Eggshells were spread beneath and on top of the root area.
The stem is gently bent at a 90 degree angle several inches up from the top of the soil line from the starter cup. Roots will develop along this stem and according to Charles H. Wilbur, more roots will result in more tomatoes.
Soil is patted down over the tomato root and around the bent stem and any leaves touching or near ground level are removed to avoid splash up from the soil leading to new and exciting fungal infections.
Repeat 37 more times then relax and start compiling fabulous tomato recipes like this one while you wait for the fruits of summer to appear!
Every Family Has One...
...that one, oddball character who just doesn't quite fit in.
Farmin' the Front
For years I have been sporting an agricultural mullet - suburban-nice in the front and a garden-party in the back, but no more.Yesterday I ripped out the low growing juniper bush that was taking up half of the space between my sidewalk and front porch to make room for my 2016 herb garden.
Soon this space will be growing french tarragon, rosemary, parsley, oregano, thyme, sage and if I am lucky, chives*. I will also be sprinkling in some Mother of Pearl Poppy flowers between my herb plantings to maximize the planting space for me and add visual interest for my suburban neighbors.I left the viburnum and nandina landscaping bushes in the back 1/2 of the space alone for now...* Does every gardener have a plant nemesis? Some varietal that stubbornly refuses to thrive despite trying year after year in different conditions? Mine is chives.
Flavor Bases From Around The World In Less Than 2 Minutes!
Making Lemonade
Unless I take the time to carefully pluck them out, one by one, before taking a garden pic, you have probably noticed the indecent number of pine needles lurking in the background of EVERY PHOTO I TAKE!Once upon a time I had big dreams of chicken wire leaf bins in my backyard to effortlessly convert the sweet gumball and maple leaves raked up each fall into garden gold over the course of a year. In these fantasies I would empty the bins the following fall and add the compost to my garden before starting the cycle over again.Instead, the home I purchased has pine trees. Loblolly Pine trees (Pinus taeda) to be exact and the leaves they shed do not turn into lovely compost over the course of a year but instead, remain defiantly pine needle-like for much, much longer.After a bit of debate and confirming that pine needles making soil acidic is actually an old wives tale, I decided to compost them anyway (note: this was my idea, not the pine needles').Then, magically, after two years of composting, I have...pine needles!
Pine needles don't turn into compost very quickly, but one of my goals this year is to mulch and I have been casting around for a sustainable, organic mulch that would work well in my garden beds. After two years of composting, I did get somewhat broken down needles that would work very well as a mulch.
I started mulching around my transplanted collards while I wait for my direct sown spinach and sugar snap peas to fully sprout and I have to admit the result is quite nice.
Because I have been turning the needles in their bin throughout the year, I know they hold moisture and attract earthworms so should work well as a mulch.
Okay, that was a completely gratuitous pic just because they looked so pretty.So now, I have made lemonade from my lemons and looking over my garden plan now I find myself in the position I could not have conceived of a year ago, I am not sure I have enough pine needles!
Paradigm Shift
I sometimes forget the prevailing notions people have related to growing food. The most common mental images seem to center around long hours of back breaking labor spent tilling, planting, hoeing and weeding.I am quickly reminded of the current thinking when I breezily say things like, "I planted 288 spinach plants today and need to do the same for lettuce tomorrow." and the person I am speaking with gapes in horror at the perceived amount of time and effort that goes into it. But the chasm between what they are thinking and what I actually did is as big as the Grand Canyon. We are operating under two VERY different paradigms when it comes to growing food...Depending on the agricultural model used, growing food can be relatively low-labor and the little time and money spent in the garden is subtracted directly from the time and money that would otherwise be spent driving to the grocery store, finding produce that is less nutritious and fresh, waiting in the checkout line to pay and then driving home on a daily or weekly basis.This morning I planted 36 Red Romaine lettuces and the whole process took about 20 minutes. I started with a homemade plant spacing tool made from plywood, cheap cabinet handles and recycled wine corks:
Lettuce can be planted 9 to a square foot so I pressed the spacer into 4 of my 1'x1' squares to leave divots where the seeds should be planted.Next I shook out some seed into my palm and placed 2 per divot. I normally have really good germination rates with the Baker Creek lettuce seeds, but these are last year's seeds so I did 2 to be safe. This was the most time intensive part of the whole operation but not what I would call laborious.
When I was done I patted the soil over the seeds, lightly covering them and creating good dirt to seed contact then watered.
Voila!Yes there will be some watering throughout the season and yes, I do get an occasional volunteer plant that needs to be plucked out of my garden beds, but those are minor things, easily taken care of when I head out to my backyard grocery store each night and look around to see what's for dinner.
Springing Ahead
After a week of travel, timezone jet lag and leaping ahead an hour, I returned home to find my spring garden well underway.
The blueberries and strawberries are already in bloom and hoping the 33 degree overnight currently forecast for Monday night doesn't damage them.
The collards, cabbage and kale have been hardened off and were transplanted yesterday near the sprouting spinach, pak choy, lettuce and sugar snap peas.
The 8 spears of asparagus that have been harvested so far have been well worth the 1 year wait and I hope some crowns that have not yet produced will begin to send up spears soon. In the meantime, I am becoming an expert on making a little asparagus go a long way in dishes.
Batting 500
I have two spring perennials that required a 2 year latency before the first harvest:
Last night I harvested my first two spears of asparagus, one each of Jersey Knight and Purple Passion.But my morel boxes...
only contain mulch and hope so far. Fingers still crossed...
Then There Was One
This morning I did my final pass thinning the tomatoes, peppers, collards, cabbage and kale down to a single plant in each starter cup and then I crossed my fingers that no fungi or pests find my singletons between now and when they move outside.For now the 38 tomato plants are vigorous and hale and I am excited that fully half of them are from my own saved seed.
I added a few new varieties this year of both slicing and cherry tomatoes and plan to save seed from all I want to grow again next year.The cabbage and collards are nearly ready to be hardened off and will join the lettuce, spinach and leeks I will be direct sowing this weekend.
Now that the 2 week forecast has no nighttime temps below freezing it is time to get the spring garden into full swing!
Favorite Quotes
I have amassed a little collection of gardening quotes over the years and love to place them strategically around my house for inspiration, contemplation or humor. Here are a few of my favorites:There can be no other occupation like gardening in which, if you were to creep up behind someone at their work, you would find them smiling. ~Mirabel OslerGardening is a matter of your enthusiasm holding up until your back gets used to it. ~Author UnknownGod made rainy days so gardeners could get the housework done. ~Author UnknownYou can bury a lot of troubles digging in the dirt. ~Author UnknownThe greatest fine art of the future will be the making of a comfortable living from a small piece of land. ~Abraham LincolnThe garden is the poor man's apothecary. ~German ProverbIt pleases me to take amateur photographs of my garden, and it pleases my garden to make my photographs look professional. ~Robert BraultAnybody who wants to rule the world should try to rule a garden first. ~Author UnknownIn almost every garden, the land is made better and so is the gardener. ~Robert RodaleLife begins the day you start a garden. ~Chinese ProverbWhy try to explain miracles to your kids when you can just have them plant a garden. ~Robert BraultMy rule of green thumb for mulch is to double my initial estimate of bags needed, and add three. Then I'll only be two bags short. ~Author Unknown
Getting Back On The Grid
With the spring starts happily growing indoors and awaiting the last frost date in April, today's sunny, spring-like* weather meant getting down to the business of putting the square back in square foot gardening.I have tried a few different materials to mark off my grids over the years with all surviving only a single year's exposure. This year I am trying a nylon string made for outdoor use and so I spent a good part of the day tying the string (and myself) into little knots.
The square foot grids serve the useful purpose of being guides for plant spacing throughout the year when individual squares are turned over for different seasonal plantings, but they also serve as something of a study in contrast with their clean, angular lines soon to be mostly obscured by nature's riot of a summer garden.*A note on the continuing deception of Punxsutawney Phil - as I was preparing garden beds today I saw that the beautiful weather had tricked some of the Jersey Knight asparagus into putting up tender shoots despite two nights of freezing temps headed my way later in the week.
2015 was the first year in the ground for my 2 year old crowns so they were left in peace all year without a single spear being harvested. I am determined to get to sample a few spears this year and will be covering them with cloches on the coldest nights to protect the bounty that must be split between the crowns and me this year.
Urban Growing - By The Numbers
- 200% - the increase in households participating in community gardens from 2008 to 2013
- 35% - the number of households growing food at home or in a community garden
- 88% - the number of people that do not garden but still want to see gardens in their neighborhood
This data was excerpted from the excellent article "Urban Growing" by Christine Jordan Sexton, published on Realtor.org. There are many other interesting numbers in the article such as $1.2 billion being the amount millennials spent on food gardening in 2013 if you happen to be looking for a business opportunity or 750 being the number of mostly poor families helped by Southside Community Land Trust in Providence, RI to grow their own food if you happen to be looking for a way to give a hand up to those in need.But for me, it was the 88% of people wanting to see gardens in their neighborhood that do not garden themselves number that was most interesting. It's no surprise at all that gardeners like to see other gardens in their neighborhood, but it is news to me that people that do not garden also take pleasure in the sight of food growing in a neighborhood. Kudos to you 88%! C'mon over, I'll have some extra tomatoes in August :)
Don't Blink
During the past week of business travel my indoor plant starts have grown with the vigor of youth into a verdant and slightly unruly bunch of tweens.
The tomatoes from my saved seed are particularly in need of thinning. I seeded them a little more thickly since I did not know what my germination rate would be. While they initially lagged about week behind fermented seeds I purchased this year, the germination rate for my saved seed looks to be close to 100%.
Pro Tip - always use scissors to snip off the plants you are thinning to avoid disturbing the roots of chosen specimen.
Fired Up For Summer
I know it's a bit early to be thinking about summer and fresh from the garden salsa, but the recipe below for Fire-Roasted (Cherry) Tomato Salsa from the very entertaining Chef John Mitzewich (Food Wishes) sent me back to my garden plan to make sure I plenty of cherry tomatoes started to enjoy this salsa all summer!My favorite recipes to make have at least some portion of the ingredients coming from my own garden and this one definitely fits the bill for being NearlyHomeGrown with cherry tomatoes, cilantro, oregano and serranos substituting for jalapenos as key ingredients.
Tender Beginnings
While winter is having it's (hopefully) last hurrah outside, I am prepping my indoor garden to be without me for a week while I travel for work.
After trying first newspaper pots then peat pots for last year's starts and having them disintegrate before I was ready to transplant to the garden, this year I am using Siloé Oliveira's technique of drilling holes in smooth plastic cups that can be reused year after year.All of my starts are doing well but the ones I am happiest about are my saved seed from the Paste and Amana tomatoes I grew last year. They sprouted a few days behind the new varieties I purchased seed for this year, but since I did not ferment the saved seed I knew they would lag a bit.
And gratuitous pics of some of the collards and other tomato varieties starts just because they are so pretty...
This Ain't Your Grandma's Pressure Cooker
A couple of weeks ago I was interested in understanding how pressure cookers work and I ran across this aptly titled video by America's Test Kitchen "Why Chefs Love Pressure Cookers".I was intrigued with the chefs describing how pressure cookers can cook sometimes tricky dishes to perfection and how the steam within the pressurized chamber infuses the dishes with deep flavor, but it was Tony Maws using a counter-top electric pressure cooker that completely captured my attention and sent me searching in a whole new direction.Electric pressure cookers eliminate a lot of the fear inducing factors novice pressure cooker users have about the stove top kind as well as a lot of handy features cooks of any level will love. They have a sear setting to brown meats and/or veggies before adding in liquid to finish the meal, they have food-type settings (i.e. meat, vegetables, rice, beans) to take a lot of the guesswork out of the length of time and pressure to cook with, and have redundant safety features to avoid the exploding pots some of us remember seeing in the 70s and 80s when an inattentive cook allowed the pressure to get a little too high.Fast forward a couple of weeks and dozens of viewings of pressure cooker meal recipes later and my Breville Fast Slow Pro was here and ready to be tested. I started with this simple Pot Roast recipe from Flo Lum (more on her in a minute). The meat was seared then removed from the pan to sear the carrots and onions while the pan was gently deglazed.
The veggies were then removed, the meat added back in and the veggies placed around it. A little thyme, salt and pepper and it was ready to cook.
In just 50 minutes I had a delicious one-pot meal that was tender, flavorful and so easy!
I had been accumulating recipes I wanted to try once my cooker arrived and will share some of the variety below. A disproportionate number are from Flo Lum's pressure cooker playlist because she does a great job of displaying the versatility of these counter top appliances and she has a companion blog for printable versions of her recipes.Zuppa Toscana - Risotto - Mashed Potatoes - Low Country Boil - Applesauce - Holiday Ham - Baby Back RibsAfter seeing the Zuppa Toscana recipe I had to reconsider my decision to not grow kale this year and now have some Nero Di Toscana seeds started to add some fresh, homegrown flavor to this dish when I make it later this year.