FALL/WINTER Gardens 2014-15, Part 1

Nope, I start everything outside. Carrots don't transplant well at all.

I have 25 broccoli, 4 cabbage, and ONE collard greens seedlings up, under fluorescent lights. Looks like the broccolis will have a set of true leaves by Sunday. They're growing very fast -- almost too fast!

Feeding daily with a new formula of nutrients.

Need to test those collard seeds before I waste time on any more from this vendor...

Will sow more seeds on the weekend.

waiting for my seed trays to arrive before i go any further in my sowing. the kale that did come up in my veggie bed that i direct sown are now just totally gone, not even a stem (even despite sluggo plus being put down), so obviously the culprit is not slugs or anything else it has listed, could be a dang mouse or something, lol. So i will wait until the ones i grow in trays are a respective size before putting down there in that bed.

I'm about ready to got start up my tiller - work up an area in the South Veggie Garden, throw some seed on the ground and wait on the rain to cover the seed. Think that will work? Sometimes it gets disheartening with all the efforts we put out - UNTIL HARVEST.

Just keep trying new things.............

yeah, i suppose we would take it for granted if there were not any effort required :)

Well - I sorted through my veggie seed and had decided on a few turnips, a variety of lettuce and some early maturity carrots, with all good intentions of getting them on the ground. By the time I got to the tiller, it was thundering in the, not too far distance. There I stood - pondering that I didn't think it would be a good idea to start up the tiller with lightning threatening. Then I heard the rain coming. I headed back for the house without getting too wet. Wonderful rain - really needed it. Decided to can tomatoes in the dry. Got-r-done.......... Still raining

I have my fingers crossed for lots of rain now through Sunday, but they seem unsure about it. It'll probably be one of those fronts where one part of town gets flooded and the rest of us only get humidity and an occasional rumble of thunder.

Good deal on the trays jmc!

And happy for the rain everyone's been getting. I got 1/8" last month and zilch so far this month so really am hoping that it will come soon. Plants are needing daily watering and that's a major pain in the butt.

Aaaand I finally got some seeds sown indoors. 5 cells each of 'Romanesco' broccoli, 'Michihili' asian cabbage, 'Long Island improved' Brussels sprouts, and rainbow Swiss chard. Can't wait to see their little heads popping up :)

Like this?

got the seedlings moved into their cell flats today, Swiss chard rainbow mix, siberian kale, Bulls Blood Beet, Golden detroit beet, and Jericho romaine lettuce.

Gave them a nice little treat of worm castings sprinkled on top of the planting mix after i got them in there.

JMC1987,
Shut UP! You are seriously working with those seedlings! Looking very good!

Have a great weekend!

LOL! like i said, no more being an amateur for me ;)

i plan on planting some radish a month or so later (since it only takes a month for them to reach harvest size, lol, not to mention still too hot for radishes here--they'd go straight to bolt)

Also plan on companion planting pansies all throughout

jmc1987 - What do you mean you plan on companion planting pansies all throughout your radish?

ooh, my goof there, should have said i was going to companion plant pansies all throughout the entire garden bed that i plan on putting all of this stuff in :)

Are pansies good guardian flowers too? I mostly use marigold and nasturtium, but it would be great to be able to use pansies as well!

mainly it will be for pops of extra colors, and a bit of winter interest after everything else has been harvested and gone.

jmc1987 - Hum! You and 13Turtles had triggered my thoughts with companion/guardian flowers. I never would have thought of planting guardian flowers. The pansies usually make it through the winter here, but the marigold and nastursium would definitely not. How about wallflowers - do either of you have luck with them? Back to jmc1987, are you thinking of planting the pansy by seed or plants? I'm liking how this sounds.........

im going by seed, i got a good mix of colors.

Photoshop time: This is something like what im hoping to achieve (its perhaps a bit more busy of a photo than it probably would be in real life, lol)

My veggie gardens are not where I can see them from the windows (in winter), so I am trying to think if I have a spot in a flower bed that I can plant some veggies with some pansies. Times not waiting, I best hurry that thought up. I've never planted pansies from seed - but I have violas.

Interesting photoshop.

Yes, this all sounds good. And I'm lucky enough to have a great big window on my entire back garden where I sit most of the time, especially at breakfast. Violas often make it through the winter here, so I bet pansies would too.

Unless we have a winter like last year.

I'm having trouble, as usual, figuring out planting times. Most www places don't include fall sowing. I'll keep plundering along, and someday I'll get some full flavor eatins.

You're an inspiration jmc.

Yes Linda, like that :D

In fact all are up now except for the Swiss chard. 36 hours ain't bad at all!

Can anyone suggest a winter crop I can replace spent melon vines with after first frost gets them? I can start seedlings now and have them ready to go once the melons are gone.

What does Swiss Chard taste like and how is it prepared?

This year, I saved seeds from my two of the varieties I grew this year. I did a test germination on them to see if the fermentation worked. I had 100% germination!! Now I'm saving some cucumber seeds.

Steph my buddy says since she she can't grow spinach, she direct seeds the chard in her bed a month before frost and harvests all winter and spring. Blanch and freeze, then use it recipes in place of frozen spinach. Hope it works, I'll be making spinach dip to my hearts content :)

I plan on transplanting these bad boys (which just sprouted today btw. Pink and red), but if they don't make it that long, I'll direct seed in October.

Swiss Chard. Most people are not aware that on salad bars, Swiss Chard is in the greens mix. Little leaves with red & yellow stems. You can also cook it. It replaces Spinach, which likes to bolt in hot weather.

I also just steam it, very quickly, in a wee bit of lemon juice. One of my favorite greens.

Swiss Chard is one of my favorite green to grow in our DFW area. It is very hardy, in fact I do have a few volunteer plants in my flower garden right now with 100F degrees.
I love the thick stem SC http://www.rareseeds.com/fordhook-giant-swiss-chard/
You can eat the small leaves in regular salads or you can stem/boil them when large.
First I do remove the stalk, cut in pieces and start to stem them first, then the rest of the leaf.
SC is much sweater than spinach in my opinion. I normally boil a large ball and keep in the refrigerator. Then use it by itself or with other veggies.
Salt, pepper, olive oil and vinegar = delish !
Or, you could boil and freeze (making sure you will squeeze out all the water).
I am not very fond of the colorful small SC varieties. probably because they don't have the thick stem.
Wednesday August 13 is a LEAF day and I will start Swiss Chard and my Kale indoor.
I did start a few SC seeds outdoor, but they are growing very slow.

Here is my favorite Italian cooking website: http://www.rareseeds.com/fordhook-giant-swiss-chard/
Italians use a lot of Swiss Chard = BIETOLA DA COSTE. We use it in stuffed pasta, quiches, risotto .... If you open the page with Google Chrome it will give you the option to translate in English.

Happy Gardening

What to Do with an Overload of Chard
http://food52.com/blog/11025-what-to-do-with-an-overload-of-chard

Beautiful SC harvest there!

Thanks for the info. I've noticed a lot of people growing it and it's pretty, but never knew how it was used. Hubby loves spinach, so maybe I can get him to grow this. It'll add something pretty to the garden in the winter.

Steph,
Swiss chard grows well beyond the winter here. I put several plants on my covered patio, and, if I hadn't abused them to death (by forgetting to water), they would probably still be hanging on.

Swiss Chard is prone to aphid attack when the weather gets too warm and stresses it (as are most stressed plants...), but, a protective barrier over it (like some tulle) will give it some defense until it perks back up when the weather cools off again.

Linda

Thanks! Will have to see what the husband wants to do. I just like the pretty colored stems. I'm not a fan of cooked spinach, so wouldn't want a whole slew of it.

jmc1987 or anyone else using those metal tubs for planting - - - do you drill some holes in the bottom first?

yeah the tub was originally used by my dad for growing elephant ears during summer weather, until he found a bigger tub for them, lol. So when i received it, it already had the holes in the bottom that he put in. (otherwise you will end up with a swamp in a bucket)

started my pansy / viola seed today. according to the planting guide it came with, i may have actually started them too late for proper fall and winter enjoyment, especially considering rumors going around here that the fall season may show up early.

The okra's coming along nicely, especially when the hubby remembers to water it. LOL

We have 8 Emerald Okra plants. If they all produce like they should, we'll have tons of okra!

Steph,
Is there enough heat ahead to bring in a crop of okra?

Yes. Even if we don't get a huge crop, it'll be enough, believe me. We started these about 5 weeks ago.

Ok. Thanks!

According to my fall planting calendar, we can plant from July 15-Aug 15. We planted right around July 15th.

I do still notice that i have a few of the bulls blood beet that i tried direct sowing, still alive down there, although over the past 3 weeks total that they have been down there (not counting germination), they have not moved a muscle beyond their cotyledons, no rotting or other forms of decline from what i can see, they are just all totally ruby red from top to bottom (no green), and just sitting there, lol. While the ones that i have in the potting mix in the metal wash tub, and the ones in the seed starting cells are taking off, and their foliage is color mix of green and red. There are still some leftover cucumber plants down there that i am allowing to give just a few more fruits before i have to dig them out. Maybe they are hogging all the nutrients away from what few beet sprouts that are in there

Jmc I'm sure the beets that are stunted will eventually catch up. Maybe you could shade them a little more? I know that my main problem with direct sowing.. Too much sun at first and they just sit in waiting..

My fall veggie seeds germinated like champs.. I have 9 romanesco broccoli (which is technically a cauliflower), 12 Brussels sprouts, 17 Swiss chard and 18 chinese cabbage. Should I wait a few more days for any late bloomers to arrive? Or start potting them individually now?