So, it's February and this afternoon Ohio expects to be dumped on for Round 2 of "Winter". I've done a great job of ignoring the garden since last fall. I was even able to ignore the lettuce heads that were struggling to live in my half-assed cold frame made of 2 x 4s and a piece of glass from a picture frame.
Anyway, I finally broke open our seed catalog and did a little bit of internet shopping. No buying. "Just looking" as you would say to that stalker of a store clerk haunting you around the shop. I've got a few plans brewing and figured I might as well dust off this virtual journal to share with nobody.
First, I plan on building a few raised beds. They're gonna look great too. I hope. Not sure what's going in them...
Also, zucchini is going in the front yard this year. I had enough problems with vine borers last year. Eff that. And I'm using whatever kind of organic pesticide I can find too. I was pissed about not having any homegrown zucch' last summer.
Pea trellises are going to be 5, maybe 6 feet tall. And that ish isn't going to fall over. And we're going to plant a ton, and freeze most of it.
As for the sunken patio, I need to put some sort of retaining apparatus around the surrounding garden beds. This is a crazy challenge. My first thought is to get some sort of metal or plastic edging. My second thought, pour and shape my own concrete wall... Not sure which is the better choice. Currently we have tiny bricks out there, but they can't hold back anything, especially dirt being washed away by rain.
Our indoor mint plant has been surviving, albeit stressed by cool nighttime temps and lack of direct sunlight. It has been getting super lanky just trying to find a good beam of photons.
Showing posts with label winter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label winter. Show all posts
February 5, 2010
October 2, 2009
Early frost
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.
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.
August 31, 2009
Weekend updater
Good morning internet!
This weekend I did a whole lot of over-due weeding, especially in my lawn and in the garden beds in the front of our house. I picked my first bright red "mariachi hybrid" pepper, though, I admit, I haven't tasted it yet. It promises to be a mildly hot pepper. What's strange is all the mature peppers seem to be splitting all over. I'll try to take a photo to show what I mean. I believe it's probably due to over-watering and expect that it shouldn't really compromise the taste.
Basil is going MF-ing wild and I realize I need to harvest a bunch and make some pesto.
I have 4 heads of Romaine lettuce that are 'bout ready to eat--they have been growing so well thanks to the afternoon shade provided by the tomato and pepper plants. I'm thinking about direct-sowing a few rows in an empty spot in the garden.
Out of the 8, only one kale plant is growing in those peat pots I started a couple weeks ago. Very disappointing. I'm going to try to start a few more because I know they can survive through overnight frosts.
The grocery store-bought mint I transplanted is doing AWESOME. It freaking exploded and is probably 3x larger than it was when I bought it. I pruned a branching stem of it and crushed some leaves in ice water.
Speaking of transplanting, the oregano and lamb's ear cuttings I buried both seem to be surviving. Hopefully they'll establish some roots before winter hits.
--
Meanwhile, mornings are getting really chilly and it feels like summer is starting to fade. I wore a winter jacket to walk our dog before work today.
Hopefully I'll get our compost pile turned soon, adding sticks to the bottom and perhaps even a couple sections of PVC pipe with drilled holes to increase aeration. That's a big goal to complete before winter...
This weekend I did a whole lot of over-due weeding, especially in my lawn and in the garden beds in the front of our house. I picked my first bright red "mariachi hybrid" pepper, though, I admit, I haven't tasted it yet. It promises to be a mildly hot pepper. What's strange is all the mature peppers seem to be splitting all over. I'll try to take a photo to show what I mean. I believe it's probably due to over-watering and expect that it shouldn't really compromise the taste.
Basil is going MF-ing wild and I realize I need to harvest a bunch and make some pesto.
I have 4 heads of Romaine lettuce that are 'bout ready to eat--they have been growing so well thanks to the afternoon shade provided by the tomato and pepper plants. I'm thinking about direct-sowing a few rows in an empty spot in the garden.
Out of the 8, only one kale plant is growing in those peat pots I started a couple weeks ago. Very disappointing. I'm going to try to start a few more because I know they can survive through overnight frosts.
The grocery store-bought mint I transplanted is doing AWESOME. It freaking exploded and is probably 3x larger than it was when I bought it. I pruned a branching stem of it and crushed some leaves in ice water.
Speaking of transplanting, the oregano and lamb's ear cuttings I buried both seem to be surviving. Hopefully they'll establish some roots before winter hits.
--
Meanwhile, mornings are getting really chilly and it feels like summer is starting to fade. I wore a winter jacket to walk our dog before work today.
Hopefully I'll get our compost pile turned soon, adding sticks to the bottom and perhaps even a couple sections of PVC pipe with drilled holes to increase aeration. That's a big goal to complete before winter...
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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