Spring Stuff

Last night we celebrated the new Spring growing season with a few small fires in the newly expanded garden beds. March had been freakishly warm and lovely, but now early April is back to normal temps, including snow flurries. The past few years, once the soil warmed and things started growing, it seemed like all we did was turn our backs for a moment and the weeds would crowd in. By mid-August, we'd be so frustrated with what seemed like futile efforts, the whole garden would become pretty weed ridden. This year, we are expanding the bed to twice the size, with the aim of creating a more manageable garden. One Shermen can ride the mower through, and one we can (occasionally) spray a bit of Round Up on the paths when necessary. We'd tried to "totally organic" thing, and it was just too much work. We cannot afford all the organic sprays and oils, and the home made remedies just weren't effective enough for us. Apparently Round Up is a pretty non-deadly alternative....safe for animals, and gone from the garden in a few days. I guess the University Extension gardens use Round Up...so if it's good for them, it's good for us. All I know is it makes life much easier.

We've transplanted our strawberries into raised beds, much narrower, to reduce the space for weeds to move in. I had been letting the runners go and take root, thinking "hey, more free plants" but read somewhere that allowing runners reduces "crowning" so this year I'm cutting them back to see what happens. Red Pontiac, Yukon Gold, and Norland Red seed potatoes have been cut and are curing in the solarium. I cut, cured and planted some of the Kenneboc potatoes we had left over and sprouting from last year. Last weekend I direct sowed a few varieties of lettuce, wishing I'd started a little sooner. Now I have to wait over a month to harvest one of those mind blowing home grown salads. If Shermen doesn't make me work in the bathroom grouting all day, (see http://www.ferndellfarm.com/ferndellfarm2010.html for renovation pictures) I plan to direct sow some sugar snap peas today. I got my Rouge Vif d'Etampes and Sweet Lightning pumpkin seeds from Jung Seed Co. and would like to get those started inside this weekend. I am excited about expanding the varieties in our pumpkin bed from the oranges, blues and whites we had last year. Pumpkins are so low maintenance, and such a fun way to end the growing season since you can use them for both decoration and yummy seeds and pies. I'd like to try a few different pumpkin recipes this year, since they are supposed to be so good for you, high in Vitamin A and beta carotine.
I ordered some fertilized Norwegian Jaerhon chicken eggs. These are lovely and unusual birds, and very appropriate for a couple of Norse hobby farmers. It will be my first experience with attempting to hatch eggs, and I will post how it goes. I plan to use my hens for sitting, rather than purchase an incubator. I (plan to) also try a homemade incubator, found some plans on Mother Earth News, and will post how that goes as well. Wish me luck!!

The 2010 Growing Season Begins!

Little purple crocuses are popping up around the yard, as well as tips of daffodils and tulips. Signs that my bulb planting frenzy last fall was not in vain. My hands are covered in blisters from raking, but the yard is looking tidier. We've got the seed catalogs out, I've already picked up a few packets of the cold weather crops.....snap peas, gourmet lettuces, beets. I'm trying seed tape for the beets this year. I never have the patience to strategically plant those tiny, tiny seeds, I just sprinkle 'em over the soil. Nor do I have the patience or the heart to thin the seedlings, I want them all to live and grow and be yummy. What they wind up doing is elbowing each other right out of the soil where the chickens can peck at them. So anyways, this year I'm trying the tape which should eliminate the need to thin. I also purchased one of those little tools that you put the tiny seeds in so you may sow them one at a time.
My last minute garlic from last year, (cloves thrown into chunks of frozen ground then immediately covered in snow,) seems to have actually produced a few sprouts. The chickens scratched up a few, but I pushed them back into the earth and then topped the area w/wire. The chickens are happy and free, already the egg yolks are turning a rich golden orange, far more nutritious than the weak yellow of winter when they are living on mostly feed. Of course, now the hens are also back at the egg hiding game. Daisy's coat is gorgeously shiny from her renewed diet of stolen eggs. I'll probably have to start keeping them in the coop for the first half of the day if I want to collect any eggs. We lost our last bantam, the beautiful Beloved, a couple weeks ago. Those tiny birds are so lovable and sweet, but they just cannot defend themselves against the various predators around here. We are sticking with the large breed birds from here on out. I've ordered a few silvers and need to get the chick rearing area ready for their arrival, sometime in early April.
We are making quite a bit of progress inside the house. Shermen built a really lovely wall / shelf area in the downstairs bathroom, and I am (supposed to be) tackling my storage insanity up in the attic so we can start tearing down walls and putting in the 2nd bathroom and (!!) baby room.
We are sending in the completed application to Pauquette Adoption Agency this week. Wonderfully exciting and busy times!
A great resource I've found for what to do with all that produce we'll soon be finding in our gardens or at farmer's markets, Clean Eating magazine. Recipe ideas, as well as good articles on healthy living. I'm trying to move more and more in the direction of avoiding processed foods, eating as "clean" as possible. They also have a facebook group.

Winter is Here

Winter really snuck up on me this year. The beets (and extra beds of beets) I'd put in due to our mad love for pickled beets froze into the ground and were covered with snow. The lovely braided chains of about 10 varieties of fat garlic bulbs needed sorting and planting, and kept getting put off to the "next weekend." A couple dozen cloves made it into the ground....I managed to hack into the frozen earth and haphazardly put in about a quarter of the bulbs I'd planted last year. Within days of planting they too were blanketed with snow. No time to add a layer of hay for extra insulation, the garlic now carries the same "wish and prayer" of protection as my lovely roses and strawberry beds. I guess we'll be growing that "Darwin-ian" garden Shermen had been promoting, (and I'd been scoffing as laziness) survival of the fittest.
Now it is time to do the "indoor stuff." Paint and drill the dried gourds from two seasons ago. Peruse seed catalogs and plan for the next season. Fantasize about building greenhouses and cold frames. Rue the waste from the recent season, "I could be eating beets from our garden right now, if I'd only....." then quickly smack those thoughts right out of my head.
This year I've decided the garden is for PLEASURE. Big ideas about total self-sustainability, feeding our family and more, participating in farmer's markets and starting CPA's of our own....gone. (for now.) I get enough stress from the work week, our untidy house and unfinished business of a million varieties. Freaking out because the tomatoes and berries are (literally) hen-pecked, the cukes aren't pickled and the basil isn't pesto'd.....over. This year I'm growing more flowers and things we can eat as we stroll through the beds. Snap peas and strawberries. Things that give pleasure right where they are.

Garlic Scapes

Our garlic has started shooting out these lovely garlic scapes. Apparently they are quite delicious, and must be cut so the plant puts it's energy into producing bulbs. I've been putting it off because they are so graceful and lovely to look at. I think some of the kidney shaped swirls echo the organic shapes in a Joan Miro painting. Today is the day.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/2005-10-01/Garlic-Scapes.aspx

Things Looking Brighter, Inside & Out

Last nite my very ambitious husband worked literally all thru the nite hanging drywall; finally passing out about 7 this morning. What a wonderful change to wake up to- walls! It's actually sunny out this morning, so our big new windows filled the room with light and I was able to truly visualize what a pleasant room this will soon be. We are almost to the point of "cosmetic" work in this

room...(tape, trim, and paint) the point where we can glimpse

some light at end of this renovation tunnel.

I expect he will now sleep the rest of the day, so it's my day to putter about (quietly) and maybe prepare the other half of room for drywall. We debated the financial / quality of life pro's and con's of hiring out the drywall / trim vs Sherm buying tools necessary to do the job himself. We went with #2, and I am now very excited to learn how to use all these exciting tools so I can work on some creations of my own.

I have big dreams for the old chicken coop under the huge maple tree becoming a greenhouse, a cool new trellis & support for the grape vine, picture frames, on and on.

We actually started some seeds early this year, and now it's looking like maybe too early. We have decorative blue corn thats almost a foot high after only a couple weeks. The grow light definitely needs to be put on a timer rather than 24/7.

I'm interested in trying a style of planting called "Three Sisters" which involves corn, beans and squash.

http://www.reneesgarden.com/articles/3sisters.html

http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/teach/2003045238014436.html

I have also been researching white / scented plants, flowers and shrubs for the patio area. I want to create a glowy and fragrant "night" garden area where we can sit and enjoy the sound of the waterfall.

Anticipation & Fighting Blight

The first seed catalogue for the 2009 growing season has arrived! Now it's time to start a file, compare prices and options, and create the wish list.

We have a few somewhat "theme" oriented garden beds scattered around the property. The original garden was a rectangular shaped combination of a flower and herb garden laid out in a fleur-de-lys design in front; and parallel rows or raised vegetable beds in back. This year, the original- or Fleur- garden is to be devoted almost entirely to flowers, herbs, garlic and strawberries. It will be expanded to wrap around our old, unused silo, which will be a great place for storing the tools I use every day in the garden. The silo will also make a great trellis for climbing beans and flowers.

At the end of fall, I rebuilt the raised beds, and broke down one row in the center, leaving it an open space. On summer mornings we like to host little breakfast parties outside. For a couple years, we would set up a table next to the garden; last year Shermen built the wonderful paved, patio area where we can sit and enjoy a great view of the gardens, waterfall, fields of blowing grasses and the hills in the distance. However, we always think it would be nice to be able to sit and relax right in the garden, that's what I will be creating in the empty space next year. On a more practical note, last year's attack of insects, blight, rust, and powdery mildew made me think maybe my rows were a little too cramped. Some www research informed me that the too-close-rows probably didn't allow the plants to shed moisture quickly enough after rains, which can lead to disease. I have visions of a little bistro table and chairs, maybe a small couple of shelves, an area to sit and enjoy a break while working in the beds. The herbs and flowers seemed the least susceptible to disease; they will be taking over those beds, creating a lovely, hopefully healthy and fragrant environment to relax in.

Last year was an extremely wet season. We "lost" the front flower beds full of seedlings twice to dammed up water that submerged and drowned the seedlings. This fall I built a mulch dam at the rear of the garden to stop the water from pouring in, we also tore down the earth a bit at the front to allow any excess water to be released more quickly. We are also thinking of lining the paths with stones this year, rather than bark mulch, which floats.

Veggies such as tomatoes, eggplant and cucumbers will be moving to areas where they can have more room, and easier access to water. The other thing I learned from the web is that those wonderful "freebie" tomato plants sometimes called "volunteer" tomatoes….the ones that just pop up from last year's fallen seeds….they are bad, vulnerable to disease such as blight, which then spreads like crazy. We have a couple of those big old metal livestock watering troughs with holes rusted in the bottom- lousy for holding water- but great for drainage. I'm thinking those will be our tomato planters, kind of cool looking, easier to maintain and control. The tomatoes were my biggest problem last year due to blight. Next were the cucumbers. Two years in a row now of failed cukes. Year one, they were awesome, tasty and sweet, we'd slice them and salt them and people would just rave. The next year, some sort of chemical disease inside so they looked just lovely, but were too bitter to eat. This year, bugs, nasty endless bugs and weird bulb shaped fruits. Not enough regular water was part of the problem….so they cukes will be closer to the water supply this year. We already have a nice little wooden structure next to one of the water pumps; we will probably just expand upon that. My eggplant did okay, we did have some aphids or something that were pretty aggressive, but all the plants still produced fruit. Only problem was not enough. I also discovered that those Thai eggplants, the long tubular ones, are really great for sautéing because you don't have to dice just slice. Found a great tip on cooking eggplant in one of my favorite cooking magazines "Cooks Illustrated," which suggested you dice, salt and sweat the cubes for about 10-15 minutes in the microwave prior to cooking with them to avoid excessive oil absorption. Worked great!

Garlic & Log Cabin

Planted about 10 different varieties of garlic this weekend. Sherm tore the entire front face off the house to prepare for the 4-Seasons room installation. We are now living in a real log cabin. The new roof is tight and dry, lovely, lovely, lovely. Our duct work in the cellar hasn't been reinstalled yet, and we haven't tested the corn furnace to see if the replacement parts have brought it back to life after the flood; but we are still toasty warm inside with the wood burner and new little corn burner. First hard frost was a couple weeks ago now, oct 2^nd and 3^rd I believe. All the tom's are off the plants, either stewed up in a jar in the cellar, or rotting on the compost pile. The only produce I managed to save/process this year were beets and toms and a few eggplants. My cuke's had some horrid disease, all the squash were planted too late, and had squash beetle infestation.

Planning already for next year….for sure we'll find a spot for some pumpkins, and other "Autumnal" themed plants….decorative corn, straw flowers for drying, decorative gourds. Beans for drying, mid-season crop of onions. Etc.

Garlic

I am adding a variety of garlic bulbs to my fall planting repertoire. I've noticed the local grocery store garlic, while inexpensive, seems to be losing it's "oomph," growing more and more bland. I like the idea of braided garlic hanging next to the onions in the cellar.

My research sources have primarily been www.gardenweb.com and the Sept 2008 issue of Herb Companion.

Here's my pre-planting info…

The braiding kind is the soft-neck, what you usually find at the store….not ideal for super cold winters. Hard-neck has a flower stalk which needs to be removed or the bulbs get smaller.

Plant in fall, pointy end up, 2-3 inches deep, 6 in apart in rows 10 in apart, in loose "loamy" soil w/near neutral PH. Cold winters need a loose mulch, but remove in spring to prevent slugs/mold.

Water well but let dry out about a week before harvest. On the hard-necks, cut off the "scapes" (flower stalks) after they curl down and before they uncurl. You can eat these in soups, salads etc.

Harvest when about 5-6 leaves remain green, cure in well-ventilated area out of the sun in bundles of 6-12 for several weeks. Store in netted bags.

Severe winter tolerant garlic = Purple Stripe, Porcelain, Marbled Purple Stripe, Rocambole.

Creole varieties have good flavor and store well.

Silverskin is best for long storing. Long storing varieties do not have the flavor complexities you find in other garlics.

Sources for info/ordering

www.GarlicFarm.com
www.FilareeFarm.com
www.TheGarlicStore.com
www.HoodRiverGarlic.com

Bulbs Ordered

2.18.2008 Today I ordered bulbs from the Michigan Bulb company. Even though I am going to try to switch our "format" over to 100% Heirloom eventually, they have some nice stuff at a really good price. (Got 20$ off order of 40$ or more.)I ordered: Ghost Fern, 10$, Candy Stripe Rose, 13$ + 1 free, Irish Moss, 6 for 10$, and Climbing Peace Rose, 10$.
Stuff wont ship until April, should arrive April-May.
The rest of the plants I order this year should be from Heirloom catalogs. I bought about 50$ worth of seeds at Wal-Mart earlier this year. I may try to return those.

Bulbs Eaten

Fall 2007 All the bulbs I did such a good job of digging up are gone because Daisy ate them. Find a better storage place. We have the lovely cellar...duh use it.

Sunflower Bummer

August 2007 All the lovely lovely sunflowers were ready to shine...then the rains came and wiped them all out. Plant away from direct water flow from eaves, and provide support.

2006 Garden Notes

2006 Garden Notes need good staking system for Tom's...rain and wind knock them over when heavy with fruit. Prune the crazy beautiful foliage off tom's so the energy goes into fruit. Stagger plant so you don't get entire harvest at same time = a lot of waste. Plant snow peas and onions earlier. Add sand to soil for root veg. Turnip greens and spinach attract flea beetles like crazy. Even pretty weeds are still weeds, they take over the beds.