Starting My Garden Early
While Punxsutawney Phil and the meteorologists work out their differing predictions for the end of winter, growers are already hard at work preparing for spring, summer and fall.January plant starts included cabbage,
chili peppers, bell peppers and rosemary.
Now that February has begun, the seed starting kicks into high gear with oregano, collards and lots and lots of tomatoes with 8 varieties and a total of 38 plants this year!
The new starts will welcome roommates in my growing nook for the cilantro and basil I grow indoors each winter. I purchased inexpensive shop lights, metal wire shelving units and florescent tubes 5 years ago so I never have to go a grey winter day without their bright colors and fresh flavors complimenting meals.
The minimal, initial investment for the equipment has more than paid for itself already and now as my garden diversifies and the number of indoor starts continue to expand each year with no additional infrastructure costs to date, I consider this money extremely well spent.Happy Spring, whenever it comes :)
Variations On A Theme - Potato Leek Soup
My favorite recipes are the ones that resemble a good canvas - a delicious backdrop that can be accentuated and modified by what is in season and/or on hand. Having just finished a post about an overabundance of serrano peppers, I wanted to do a variation on a fall favorite - potato leek soup.This year's leeks are on the thin side which I attribute to my north facing backyard garden, so I harvested roughly 3x the number I would normally use for this recipe.
I decided to add some kick to the background canvas and finely chopped 4 roasted red serranos from my freezer and fresh oregano.
On it's own, this soup is mild but hearty making it a perfect backdrop for any number of flavor profiles.
The genius of this soup is the mandolin sliced potatoes.
Once cooked through and gently mashed, they thicken the stock and the mashing breaks the potatoes into bite-sized pieces.
Add a little cream and cook on low for a few more minutes and voila!
A delicious meal that varies depending on preferences and additions!
Fall Garden 2015
As I plan and finish planting my fall garden this weekend I have to give a shout out to the tomatoes, red bell peppers and serrano peppers that don't seem to care that it is the middle of September and are continuing to bloom and set fruit in earnest.Working around these summer hold-overs is a little easier with the addition this weekend of the last two 4-x-4 beds I had planned to add. I have also added 8 1-x-1 boxes that will be used for summer squash next year but are mostly available for planting now.I am trying a non-dwarf variety of collards this fall and trying parsnips for the first time.
I have added permanent supports along the back portions of beds (blue lines on garden plan) by way of 6' metal fence stakes hung with rungs of coated wire to act as a ladder for climbing plants. It also works well as support for triangle shaped row covers.
If all goes well I will be serving spinach at Christmas and collards on New Years all fresh from the garden!