Yesterday, central Ohio got its first frost. I woke up to 31-degrees F. "F" stands for the expletive that escaped my mouth when I got out of bed. Fortunately I rigged up a pretty ghetto system of towels, wood scraps, and an old glass picture frame to protect my lettuce and spinach seedlings. The butternut squash was killed. The basil started to turn purplish by the end of the day. Not sure if or how the tomatoes will respond, or if the young swiss chard will be affected.
I ripped out one tomato plant that was bent over and nearly horizontal. I think the other three will come out this weekend.
My hope is to build an appropriate cold frame around the area where I plan to keep lettuces growing to see how far into the year I can be producing food... More to come...
What needs to happen before too long is I need to mix up the compost pile and increase the aeration in the bottom of it by laying down sticks and twigs.
Also, I need to consider putting down a "winter crop"--perhaps a legume like hairy vetch to add nitrogen into the soil--before winter is officially here.
Showing posts with label spinach. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spinach. Show all posts
October 2, 2009
September 7, 2009
Late summer planting, transplanting
Yesterday I planted two rows of lettuce and a row of spinach. Honestly, I haven't put any thought into harvest times and frost threats but figure there might be some edibles out of it. To be even more honest, I planted the seeds mostly because I had an empty spot in the garden and wanted to fill it in.
My sole surviving kale seedling is pulling through and struggling to live. I'm giving it extra special attention and hope to let it get pretty big before planting it outside. Maybe a few more weeks.
I also severely pruned back one of our 3 thyme plants as they have all been getting super lankey. It was apparent that the low and thick woody stuff had some green leaves poking out, so I figured those would just become new branches.
In my front yard I bit the bullet and moved my small (~3 ft) redbud treelet this morning. Last night I dumped about 4 gallons of water on it to get the roots saturated. Plus we got some rain after sunrise. A lot of the roots were pretty exposed but I gave it about 4 more gallons of water and tamped the dirt down pretty well. I also added some composted cow manure for extra "umph", and mulch on the top to keep the soil moist. We'll see how it lives. I had to move it because I planted it too close to our walkway.
My sole surviving kale seedling is pulling through and struggling to live. I'm giving it extra special attention and hope to let it get pretty big before planting it outside. Maybe a few more weeks.
I also severely pruned back one of our 3 thyme plants as they have all been getting super lankey. It was apparent that the low and thick woody stuff had some green leaves poking out, so I figured those would just become new branches.
In my front yard I bit the bullet and moved my small (~3 ft) redbud treelet this morning. Last night I dumped about 4 gallons of water on it to get the roots saturated. Plus we got some rain after sunrise. A lot of the roots were pretty exposed but I gave it about 4 more gallons of water and tamped the dirt down pretty well. I also added some composted cow manure for extra "umph", and mulch on the top to keep the soil moist. We'll see how it lives. I had to move it because I planted it too close to our walkway.
July 26, 2009
Summer Planting: Kale, Chard, Spinach; Mint
One thing I need to get better about is the realization that planting in a vegetable garden doesn't happen just once, in the spring. It can and should be a season-long activity, just like weeding, but better.
Today, in the place of the previous sugar snap pea stand, I "directly sowed" in four kale "pits" ~2 ft apart in a zig-zag formating. In the spaces between, I planted 2 rows of spinach and 2 rows of swiss chard. I confirmed that at least one other Midwest gardener plants kale in July--the reason being that kale likes to be alive in Spring and Fall, it can survive temperatures down to 10-below (supposedly), and frost makes the leaves taste sweeter. Sounds pretty perfect for Ohio. My friend Allison also lovingly describes kale as the "toothbrush of the colon." What can be better?
--
Also, I've been regretting not planting any mint early this year. It's got a ba-jillion uses. Long story short, I was at the grocery store and found a small mint plant in soil in a 4" tall plastic container. The grocery store sells a few select planted herbs (basil, cilantro, parsley, mint). They are pretty small plants with up to maybe a dozen leaves. I'm not sure if the intention is to provide fresh herbs for a single meal, such that the container and stem are disposed after the single use; or if the plants are to be kept in a kitchen window to grow and be used as many times as possible... Anyways, I bought the plant for $2.99 and planted it in a bigger container using soil, potting soil, and a little bit of "plant-food" fertilizer pellets. I pinched a couple of the stems just above pairs of leaves, hoping to spur new growth in both the shoots (stems) and roots. Hopefully I'll be able to use mint in the next few weeks.
--
I'm considering adding a few elements to the garden to extend our growing season. I've been reading about people using "hoops" (think metal hula-hoop halves placed in the garden) over which they can put shade cloth to keep things like lettuce cool in the summer, or clear plastic to keep things warm in the cold and frosty months. Another useful resource might be a cold frame, basically a box made of wood and glass which similarly protects plants from frost in cold months. I've got a couple months to consider these things...
Today, in the place of the previous sugar snap pea stand, I "directly sowed" in four kale "pits" ~2 ft apart in a zig-zag formating. In the spaces between, I planted 2 rows of spinach and 2 rows of swiss chard. I confirmed that at least one other Midwest gardener plants kale in July--the reason being that kale likes to be alive in Spring and Fall, it can survive temperatures down to 10-below (supposedly), and frost makes the leaves taste sweeter. Sounds pretty perfect for Ohio. My friend Allison also lovingly describes kale as the "toothbrush of the colon." What can be better?
--
Also, I've been regretting not planting any mint early this year. It's got a ba-jillion uses. Long story short, I was at the grocery store and found a small mint plant in soil in a 4" tall plastic container. The grocery store sells a few select planted herbs (basil, cilantro, parsley, mint). They are pretty small plants with up to maybe a dozen leaves. I'm not sure if the intention is to provide fresh herbs for a single meal, such that the container and stem are disposed after the single use; or if the plants are to be kept in a kitchen window to grow and be used as many times as possible... Anyways, I bought the plant for $2.99 and planted it in a bigger container using soil, potting soil, and a little bit of "plant-food" fertilizer pellets. I pinched a couple of the stems just above pairs of leaves, hoping to spur new growth in both the shoots (stems) and roots. Hopefully I'll be able to use mint in the next few weeks.
--
I'm considering adding a few elements to the garden to extend our growing season. I've been reading about people using "hoops" (think metal hula-hoop halves placed in the garden) over which they can put shade cloth to keep things like lettuce cool in the summer, or clear plastic to keep things warm in the cold and frosty months. Another useful resource might be a cold frame, basically a box made of wood and glass which similarly protects plants from frost in cold months. I've got a couple months to consider these things...
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