Peas

I harvested my first 2012 peas yesterday. There were only two, but I see more growing!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

More Seed Sowing

I just planted 5 rows of cool season greens this evening, each about 5 feet in length. I planted "Feldsalat" (more on this in a bit), Stardom Mix, Farmer's Market Sweet Greens and Reds, Monet's Garden Mesclun (these three are all from Renee's), and Rainbow Chard (from John Scheepers). Sprinkled among the rows, I planted Golden Beets and Jewel-Toned Beets (also from Renee's), along with Purple Plum Radishes and Red Meat Radishes (ordered recently from Trade Winds Fruit), and Carnival Blend Carrots (from Botanical Interests).

Back to the "Corn Salad"...I found this delicious little cold-loving green on my trip to Germany. They called it Feldsalat; it was served on almost every salad and I noticed it at the local farmers markets in Freiburg labeled with the same name. It had a mild, but refreshing flavor, somewhat sweet with a slight crispness in the stem without being overly crunchy. The leaves look similar to baby spinach, but with longer stems and a leaf texture more like mesclun. It appears to be harvested almost whole, as a very loose head of leaves. According to the packaging (I found it at a garden shop in England, brand name: Sutton's) it is also called Lamb's Lettuce, but my search of the internet suggests that we call it Mache here in the states, courtesy of the French. In any case, I shall be calling it Feldsalat. Also, according to my internet search, it should do well this winter. It seems to love the cold, and still grows right around freezing temperatures (albeit slowly). It supposedly grows slower than lettuce, but I've never been great at growing lettuce in a hurry, so we'll have to see how it goes.

It's been rather cold at night, which will likely slow down germination, but I expect to start seeing radish sprouts and perhaps some lettuce within a week.

I also planted maybe 20 parsnip seeds. I started them soaking yesterday afternoon, and put them out in between the cauliflower, broccoli, and cabbage plants. I'm not sure how well they'll do, since the seeds are a couple years old now and there's not going to be a ton of sun between all those larger plants...but many of those plants will be coming out in another month or two, so hopefully the parsnips will germinate and set out some roots in the meantime and then they can have all the sun they want.

Lastly, I set some fava beans up between wet paper towels yesterday afternoon. My plan is to get them out in the garden on Monday, filling in the gaps between the pea and sweet pea vines. I don't have room to plant a whole row of only favas, so the crop will likely be smaller this year, but any fava beans are worthwhile in my opinion.

The Hatching

My seedlings have started to pop up. The first seed was a Stevia plant on Tuesday, followed by the first tomatoes on Wednesday and Thursday.



two Stevia seedlings


1884 and Sun Gold seedlings


Not sure if the picture does it justice, but this last picture of some Bosque Blue seedlings have cute little purple stems! According to the seed seller, I should select the purplest stems to ensure the bluest tomatoes.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

More about seeds!

Tomato and pepper seeds are sown, along with leeks and a variety of spring herbs such as Parsley, Cilantro, Shiso, Chives and others.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Cauliflower and Cabbage

Today I harvested some cabbage leaves and sauteed them up with some salt and apple cider vinegaer, served on a La Brea demi baguette with chicken/apple sausage and onions for dinner. The cabbage plants look good, but it looks like it will be awhile yet before they form full heads...so I stole a few leaves from each plant and I hope they don't mind. It was fairly bitter, but it's been quite warm the last couple weeks, so hopefully the heads will be sweeter as we get into February and March, which are typically cooler.

The cauliflower in my garden desperately needs to be harvested and eaten. I think perhaps I'll make something tomorrow or Sunday. This vegan recipe caught my eye. I have no interest in going totally vegan, but Elliott and I could certainly do with less meat and more veg in our diet. I love mushrooms, rosemary, and sweet potatoes, so I don't see how this could be bad.

Over the last few days we've also had a second broccoli harvest and I harvested a few stalks of celery to throw into an oyster stew. The broccoli has been very good, and I was very glad to read that I can expect additional harvests from the plants I harvested from. The celery was full of flavor, even a bit over the top. I'm sure this is due to lack of watering and the heat. It was certainly edible though, and I look forward to making soup stock with it and throwing it into soups, stuffings, and other recipes. Unless it eases up a bit on the taste though, I don't think I'll be snacking on it again soon.


*Update: That recipe for sweet potato and cauliflower mash with mushroom gravy was seriously delicious and extremely filling. Most definitely a make again. I also suspect it freezes well. It was so filling that there are plenty of leftovers!



Cauliflower and sweet potato ready for roasting



Mushroom gravy in progress (if you have and immersion blender or mash by hand, this is only a two pan meal)



Finished product! Wish I'd had a little parsley or chives to garnish with something green, but otherwise it was perfect.

Seeds, seeds, seeds, seeds :)

All my new (mostly tomato) seeds came this week! I stuck mostly to tomato seeds, but bought a few extras that will hopefully feature in this blog over the coming months.

To start, I bought wintergreen seeds. I suspect this was a horrible idea, since I have heard it's hard to start from seed. OH WELL! The seeds need to "stratify" for 60 days...which I took to mean "put them in the fridge for two months." Some websites said I should put them in moist dirt in the fridge. Others said no, that may cause them to rot. I don't know. Anyways, I just put the seed packet in the fridge on Tuesday (January 10th) and in 60 days I will plant half of them and see what happens!

At this point, I'm just waiting to get some tape for my label maker and then I will get my pepper and tomato seeds started!

Broccoli What!

I grew broccoli!!


First harvest of the season weighed in at 272 grams. - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Tomato Seeds

Tomato seeds are ordered and on their way!!! I'm taking a chance this year and trying to start my own tomato plants. With any luck, I'll have my first seeds in starter mix by the end of the week!

J and L Gardens

Bosque Blue

"Here at the farm, we've crossed a selected strain of the rare blue stock to Amy's Sugar Gem, one of our favorite tomatoes to take to market in Los Alamos and Santa Fe. The result is a vigorous plant which bears wonderful salad tomatoes with the lustrous dark purple of the original and its important antioxidant properties. The skin of this tomato contains as much anthocyanin as a blueberry. The color is darkest when the temperatures are cooler and the fruit is not shaded. Because the color shows up in the young foliage, you can continue to improve the stock by selecting the darkest of your seedings to plant out. This is really an adventure in gardening and we would welcome hearing about your success. We will send 30 seeds per packet so you can share with your family and friends. The vines reach about 5 foot and need support. Ripe tomatoes can be picked at 65 days from transplant."

Yellow Submarine

 "If you think yellow pear tomatoes are pretty, and pretty bland, you need to try this import from Ireland.Yellow Submarine has a wonderful wild sweet flavor and the production off these big vines is astounding. Fruit is 1 1/2 inches in length, a vivid golden color and holds well on the vine. They ripen in about 65-70 days from transplant."

I tried these last year, and they didn't disappoint. The taste varied throughout the season, and sometimes was a bit lacking, but they're pretty good compared to the yellow pears I've had in the past and it's hard to beat the color, unique shape, and prolific harvest that comes with this tomato.

Trade Winds

Sun Gold

"Beautiful cherry tomato that ripens to a golden orange. The Sun Gold Cherry is possibly the sweetest cherry tomato around. Plants bear lots of fruit, and ripen early, continuing to produce throughout the season. A single large plant has produced over 1000 tomatoes. Hybrid. Indeterminate. 57 days."
These were one of my favorites last year. They just pop with flavor and it was difficult waiting to get them inside and on the scale before I had tasted a few. They are an appealing, sunny orange color and about the size of a cherry.

Berkeley Tie Dye

"A beautiful multi-colored tomato with red-gold-green striped fruits. The luscious fruits have a a wonderful juicy flavor with a hint of tartness. Good production, large fruits average from 8-14 ounces. Indeterminate. 75-80 days."
"Warning, high acid content may cause flashbacks. This tomato blows me and alot of my customers away. A favorite to many of my chefs. Mid-late to late, 75-90 days. indet. regular leaf plants. 8-16 oz. Green fruit with yellow and red stripes. Creamy green flesh infused with various shades of red and yellow. Each of these colors has a different flavor resulting in a spicey, sweet, tart tomato with good acid all in one. Originated from one plant 500 F-2 Beauty King."(From Wild Boar Farm - who developed the strain)

TomatoFest

Hawaiian Currant

"A sweet red, pea-sized currant that holds fruit on clusters until all are ripe. A very sweet and tasty treat. Hawaiian Currant tomatoes are a sure winner in children's gardens around the world.  All TomatoFest tomato seeds are certified organic.  Go ahead, give them a try!"

This was another of my favorites last year. Maya did her best to try to kill it, by snapping it off right at the base of the stem, but I managed to save it by putting the branches into my aquaponics garden until it grew some roots and I could replant it. This gave it a pretty late start, but it still ended up being one of my best plants. It also managed to fruit right through September and October, so I was able to serve a fresh tomato salad with Thanksgiving dinner. These tomatoes are seriously tiny, just slightly larger than a pea and they have a great red tomatoey flavor. 

Black Plum

(image from Laurel's Heirloom Tomato Plants)

"One of my favorite Russian varieties that produces a long and steady crop of 2-inch elongated plum-shaped fruits colored a beautiful deep-mahogany with dusky-green shoulders. Fruit resembles a small paste tomato but with thinner walls. Unique sweet tangy flavor."

I won't lie; this tomato was a major disappointment last year. The first year I grew them, they were my ultimate favorite. They were almost smokey in flavor and were prolific growers. Everyone else who tried them agreed they were the best. This last year, they were bland and watery. They didn't grow as plentiful either. MAJOR disappointment. But they were so amazing the previous year that I'm going to have to try them again. I'm crossing my fingers that I just had a bad plant last year.

Paul Robeson

 (image from Laurel's Heirloom Tomato Plants)

"Tomato seeds for this Russian heirloom were made available by Marina Danilenko, a Moscow seeds woman. This favorite heirloom tomato was named after the operatic artist who won acclaim as an advocate of equal rights for Blacks. His artistry was admired world-wide, especially in the Soviet Union. This "black" beefsteak tomato is slightly flattened, round, and grows to 4-inches. Its deep, rich colors stand it apart from others…a dusky, dark-red, with dark-green shoulders, and red flesh in its center. Very flavorful fruits with luscious,  earthy, exotic flavors and good acid/sweet balance. Paul Robeson (aka Pol Robeson) won "Best of Show" at Carmel TomatoFest. As this tomato variety originates from Siberia and sets fruits at lower temps, it is an excellent choice for cooler growing regions."

I've grown this one two years in a row now, since it seems to be a widespread favorite. The first year, I only got a couple tomatoes out of the plant (probably my fault, not its). Last year, I got a few more and was pretty pleased with the taste. It was milder than most of the other tomatoes, but it was fleshy and moderately sweet. I'll give it another try this year because I know it will be good on sandwiches and pizzas and because it is such a favorite among other heirloom growers.

1884

"Great old-time heirloom tomato said to have been discovered by James Lyde Williamson near Friendly W.Virginia in a pile of flood debris from the Ohio River in 1884. A personal favorite of Gary Ibsen, and a priority in his yearly tomato planting. These organic heirloom tomato seeds produce a vigorous, regular leaf, tomato plant that yields large (1-2 lb.) dark pink fruit with lots of tomato flavors.  Perfect tomato seeds to include in your garden!"

Opalka

An heirloom originally from Poland.  (aka Polish Torpedo)  Vigorous vines produce some of the best tasting paste tomatoes with 5-inch long fruit shaped like a banana pepper with a pronounced tip on the bottom. Fruit has very few seeds, is extremely meaty and loaded with rich sweet flavors lending to its sauce appeal.

Yellow Brandywine, Platfoot Strain

"Since 1991 Yellow Brandwine has become an American favorite heirloom tomato. The strain we carry is considered to be the original and best tasting strain, the Platfoot Strain from Gary Platfoot of Ohio. Our TomatoFest organic tomato seeds produce big, indeterminate, potato-leaf tomato plants that yield large amounts of 1 lb., 3 to 4-inch, yellow-orange (gold), round, flattened, slightly ribbed shouldered beefstaek tomato with delicious, intense sweet flavors balanced with a slight tartness."

Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red

"Named by Gary Ibsen, the seeds of this variety came to Gary from tomato breeder, Archie Millett, who crossed his favorite tomato varieties over many years to finally produce a disease resistant tomato with intense flavor. 'Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red,' is an open-pollinated tomato (78 days to maturity). The tall, indeterminate, plant produces lots of 2-inch (6-10 oz.), deep-red, round tomatoes with a subtle point on it's end. Fruit has robust, "not for sissies," bold, tomatoey flavors, with a firm, juicy flesh, that invites snacking in the garden, cooking, canning and seed-saving. Its fruity sweetness is perfectly balanced with plenty of acidity, earthy nuances and complexity."

Happy 2012

I've made it through the first week of 2012, and I'm excited about this year since it's the first year that I've started with things already growing in the garden. This year's resolution? Grow and eat more vegetables!...and also exercise more :) 

Despite a 3-week vacation I took for the holidays, with no one tending my plants, the cold season vegs seem to have survived. I'm sure they would have been much happier with some regular watering, but hey! they lived. The edible pea vines are climbing, up to about 3' or 4' and the broccoli and cauliflower look excellent. I'll be harvesting some of each this week, making it the first harvest of 2012. The purple broccoli plants look strong, but no sign of flowers yet, and the red cabbage plants also look great, though their leaves are still quite loose. I don't know how the cabbage heads form, or how long it takes them to do so, but I'm hopeful that it will happen. Between the big plants there are still radishes, carrots, and beets. The beets and carrots are suffering from lack of water, and have grown very little. The radishes also have hardly grown, though this is probably for the best. Strawberry starts from last year are finally taking off, and I hope to add a few more starts this month. The only thing that's looking really sad is the sweet pea vines. I'm hoping it's just lack of water that is stunting their growth, and hopefully a few weeks with regular watering and they'll be ready to bloom come spring time.

When I picked up the big pile of mail from the post-office, it was a pleasant surprise to find three seed catalogs! Let the seed ordering begin!