Awww... the 70's in December

What do you do when you are supposed to be in the dormant period of your gardening but the weather is acting like it's late fall?  That question came to me today as we reached the low 70's today.  Yes, it was 70 degrees on Christmas day here in Baltimore.  I walked out to take a quick survey of the garden between downpours and I must say that the winter rye crop has grown quite a bit since we started this unusual run of warmer weather.  I am not complaining mind you.  The extra rye will help in the spring.  But who would have thought we'd be in the 70's at this time of the year.  Crazy eh?
I began mentally listing what I could do with the time I have off from work.  Usually, I have stopped most of my work and am looking over my seed stock to see what - if any - seeds I need to get to be ready for early March.  But, given the extra bonus period of nice weather, seeds are the last thing I will be spending my time looking at this weekend.
The first thing I am going to do is walk my garden to see if I need to do any maintenance and general pick up around it.  It was a crazy fall so I think I may have left a few things to Spring.  Guess I'll get to that now.  Cleanup would be a top priority.  I have some leaves from last year that I should probably throw in the couple of composters I have since they are still actively working.  That would also clear up the area behind my garage and set it up for next year.
The second thing I am going to do is remove any leaves remaining in the beds so that I can just cut the rye in the early spring.  That will give me a leg up on the whole process.  Not a bad bonus considering it's winter.  At least I guess it's winter.
And the third thing I am going to do is get my weeder out to trim the grass around the bed borders. The grass has been growing the last couple of weeks.  That has resulted in a blush of growth around the borders which looks unsightly and is a possible source of bacterial growth in the spring.  If I leave the grass and probably embedded weeds to the Spring, the first cut I do of them will broadcast weed seed and any bacteria in them into the garden beds.  If I cut them now, the cold of winter will kill off the bacteria and probably most of the weed seeds too.  So, my choice is to address the issue now when I can let nature do the dirty work for me.  Always a plus.
Given that the forecast is for intermittent rain tomorrow, I will have to pick and choose times to get these completed.  But, get them done I must.  If you have a garden that is currently laying dormant, you too may want to consider doing a few maintenance items to save yourself time in the spring.  If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment and I will respond as soon as possible.  Here's hoping you had a wonderful Christmas.  Until next time, Happy Gardening!      

My passion for gardening

I often am asked by friends and business associates why I am so passionate about my gardening.  It's a good question and I often contemplate why I do actually garden.  It's certainly not because it is an easy to do activity.  It's not because I love the forever battle against the elements either.  There is nothing more deflating than to go out to the garden and find that a wave of leaf miners has let loose on your various plants.  Neither it is fun to survey your garden after a wicked summer thunderstorm to find your Peppers and/or Tomatoes have been severely damaged after they have set fruit.  Nor is there anything more disturbing than to have to cover your plants in the garden due to an impending later than normal frost in the Spring.  Or worse yet, when you go to pick a prize tomato and find out the squirrels have had a bite of it.  No, those aren't the reasons I garden year in and year out.
No, despite all these obstacles to actually garden, there are many reasons to garden.  I like the challenges that a growing plant represents.  Unlike mass producing farmers, a backyard garden does not provide the luxury allowing for some loss.  Each plant is important in the scheme of the garden. That's one of the core challenges of a garden in my mind.  To nurture that plant to it's final fruit despite the many problems you and it face throughout the seasons.
I also like the fact that I am solely responsible for the garden.  My efforts produce the results that are attained.  What I do and don't do, when I do it and how observant I am directly impacts the plants. From what I do to prep the soil in the fall and spring, what specific plants I plant, how I space them and what fertilization methods and inputs I use all affect the output of the garden.  It is all up to me for the most part.
Growing what I love to eat is also a big plus.  I don't see myself as a food snob but it would be rare for me to eat a store bought tomato, cucumber or pepper.  I grow only Heirloom tomatoes, specific types of cucumbers and peppers due to their taste.  There is a huge difference between a store bought tomato and a Brandywine fresh off your vine.  There is nothing like home grown taste.
The last and probably most important reason I have a garden is it is my "go to" place for peacefulness.  When I am in the garden working on the plants or spying possible issues, I am actually quite calm.  It's where I can get my mind to let go of the day and this world we live in.  When I see a bee busily hopping from plant to plant or a butterfly doing likewise, I can watch them going about their business and forget the day and the world.  I can breathe again and just be in the moment.  One moment this year that I can remember is when I found a frog in my garden.  It was so out of the ordinary.  It was so tiny that a pepper leaf covered him.  I watched him for a short time and just released the leaf so it covered him back up.  I never expected to see it there, but for some reason, I just stopped and watched for a short time not worried about what was "next" on my list.  That kind of moment, while not important in the scheme of things, still resonates with me.
So, you see, gardening has it many benefits that far outweigh the risks involved.  You too can do this and feel the same one day too.  All you have to do is just take the first step.  I guarantee you won't regret it.  Until next time, Happy Gardening.  

Leaf composting dilemma

Well, last weekend I had to address the abundance of leaves in my backyard lest I have no grass next year.  Leaves are an essential item in my composting endeavor so I had to get them collected for next year.  As seen in the picture below, our tree blessed us with a much greater yield than last year.

I was faced with quite the dilemma for sure.  So, I gathered them altogether to see just what I was dealing with exactly.  Using a rake and my blower, this is the abundance I had.  

It stood about 3 feet high and 4-5 feet round.  As you might be able to see, I stuck my rake in the middle of it just for perspective.  I have read about composting leaves in bags so I decided to give it a try.  The first thing to know is that you have to use heavy duty garbage bags.  I prefer construction grade bags that I can get at Home Depot.  Normal bags will rip over winter.  

The key to this is that you have to wet down the leaves in the bags and then close them.  I decided that the best way to do this was to fill the bags a third at a time and then water each third as I go.  The water helps bacteria grow and break the leaves down.  What I should have, if this works, is leaf mold in the Spring.  This can be used as a direct amendment to the soil or as an additive to my compost. So, for about 2-3 hours, I bagged and wet down the leaves and tied them up.  One more step has to be followed.  Once the bag is full and tied, you need to poke 4-6 holes in the bottom so excess moisture can escape.  Then you can set them out in your yard and let the leaves decompose.  

After everything was finished, I ended up with 7 very full bags of leaves.  I decided that I was going to use them as wind breaks in my garden as seen in the picture below.  This will help minimize the drifting of snow over my one bed.  In real bad snowstorms, the drifts can get pretty big.

My goal is to minimize the damage that snow can cause to soil.  It's an experiment and if you've read any of my other posts, I do favor a little experimentation in my gardening.  It keeps the juices rolling and the gardening fresh.  I will have to report back in the spring so we can see what all this labor has wrought.  All I have to do at this point, is sit back and wait.  If you have any questions regarding this, please feel free to leave a question and I will respond as soon as I can.  Happy gardening everyone.   

Winter is afoot

Well, maybe it's just starting actually.  I've been incredibly busy with the construction of our new front porch and handling a full time job.  Add to that a newly sodded front yard to attend to and you get the idea.  My time is very limited right now.  It can get stressful and I have done what most gardeners who do it for a hobby do - I have ignored my beds.  As I posted earlier though, the winter rye is in the beds and everything else has come to a stop.  I am still mulling winter crops but time is seemingly just slipping by.  So, my lack of attention to the gardens is my cheat to get through these demanding times.  As I write this, I am relaxing on a very subdued Sunday evening as result of a very hectic Halloween Saturday complete with a half day of work, some construction work on the front porch and some time hanging out with the neighbors and seeing all the kids in their costumes. Phew!! But it is all good as we really don't see the neighbors a lot as winter approaches so that was nice.
Here is a little proof that the gardens are doing just fine without my daily visits.

  

The two pictures on each side are the beds where the seeds were planted two weeks ago.  I took these pictures on the 25th so they are about a week old as of today.  Pretty good growth so far.  The center one is the new bed that had been planted three weeks ago.  The object here is not to get great growth above ground, but to get a solid root system in the ground.  We probably have about a month to go before we start seeing any snow so, with a little bit of fair weather, these plants will grow and spread their roots into the soils.
I have many projects to get accomplished before the snow flies so I will be giving these beds cursory attention.  I am sure they will be fine.  That's all I have to report at this time.  Happy Gardening everyone!    

One week later

It's been a week since I started the winter rye in my two established beds.  The weather was mainly dry so I had to augment mother nature.  I took a look at the beds on Wednesday and there was no signs of life.  I have to admit that I was a little concerned in that I really hadn't had the time to water the beds heavily.  Life does get busy at times and this week was no exception.  I watered them with a heavier soaking Wednesday and followed with a lighter soaking on Thursday.  There were still no signs of life on Thursday evening so I began to think that I would have to seed the beds again.  That is, until Friday night when I came home from work.
While there wasn't a huge amount of growth, when I was watering the garden I saw the beginnings some growth.  I watered the beds in the face of a severe thunderstorm warning Friday evening.  My wife thought I was a little odd in doing this even though there were very dark clouds rolling in from the west.  I watered enough to get the top of the beds wet.  It poured here Friday evening and I was again questioning my choice to water the beds.  I mean, did I over do it?
I went out to the garden this afternoon and the pictures below show what I discovered.

The picture to the left is the one week old seedlings in one of my established beds.  The one on the right is from the two week old seeding I did in my new bed.   It's hard to see the seeding's with a picture, but it won't be long before they look like the ones in the right picture.  They will get maybe two to three feet tall, all depending on the weather.  It tolerates lower temps so hopefully it will stay a little moderate for the upcoming month or so.  I will let mother nature take over at this time only watching the weather to maybe augment some watering.  This is how you grow your own green manure and limit the amounts weeds you will have in the spring.  Plus you don't have to worry about carbon leeching as the roots of the rye will fix the nitrogen in your soil over the winter.  It also reduces damage to your soil that occurs in winter such as erosion or pest infestations.
Well, that's all I have for today.  If you have a question, please feel free to leave a comment.  Until next time, Happy Gardening!

Sunday, busy Sunday

I woke up this Sunday morning with nothing really in mind.  Due to a change in my plans, I decided that since Joachin was a bust here in Baltimore, that it would be a great cool day to shut down both of my beds for winter.  That entailed harvesting the final tomatoes and peppers for the year in those beds.  After clearing out the plants, I then raked the beds and cleared out the few weeds that were in the beds.  Then I seeded in the winter rye.
As discussed in my prior post, using winter rye as a cover crop for winter is becoming more accepted by farmers and gardeners alike.  I have found it to be very useful and have seen an increase in the yields over the three years I have been doing this.  There are numerous advantages to doing this.
I follow the same routine every year.  I will detail that here.  Below are pictures showing the progression to get one of my beds ready for rye.

The picture on the left is the beginning condition of the bed.  On the right, it shows the result of pulling the plants and tilling with a tine rake to clear all the debris and weeds from the bed.  Once you get the bed to this condition, you can then seed in the rye seed.  I use a hand spreader as pictured below.

This helps to evenly spread the seeds to reduce the number of bare spaces in the beds.  The result should look like the picture below.

Once you spread the seed, I suggest you should lightly tamp the seed into the soil using a tine rake in order to make sure the seed is in contact with the soil.  It should look like the picture below.  Again, you would lightly tamp them in.  All you want is for the seed to be pressed into the soil.

                                                                                                                                                                    After this is completed, I go one step further.  I would encourage you to cover the seed with peat moss.  I do this for multiple reasons here.  We have a big bird population here which would mean they would easily find and eat enough seed to wipe out a fair portion of what I sowed.  Secondly, unlike other covers such as straw or a bird mesh, the peat moss does not need to be cleaned or taken off the seeds.  It becomes part of your soil.  Peat moss also keeps the soil moist between your watering.  Below are two pictures showing the peat moss as I progressed.
 

    

The picture to the left shows half of the bed being covered to give you the contrast between what it started out as and what it should look like after application.  The right picture shows the completed bed.  I make sure as many seeds as possible are covered so as not to attract the birds.  

Once you have all the seeds covered as best as possible, you will then lightly water the beds to wet the seeds.  After you have done this, you need, as in all seed applications, to insure that the beds do not dry out.  One hint I have is to watch the weather and if you can, plant the rye when there is an expected period of rain in the near future.  I have done this a few times and it seems that nature is much better at watering than I am.  I get my best results when I am able to time it in this fashion.

Well, that's about all I have for today.  I will update my rye planting as it develops.

Until then, happy gardening everyone.  

Monticelo - part two.

The above pictures represent what I would describe as the best of the day we spent at Monticello. Going clockwise, there is the screenshot of the official banner that was displayed on all the monitors in the various seminar tents, me beside the statue of Thomas Jefferson, the tent where the soil renaissance seminar was held, the various tents on the main grounds where the vendors were set up, a picture of the early morning fog hanging in the valley beside the Jefferson garden and me with Robert Hatch - the man who brought the garden back and who has written several books on Jefferson's revolutionary garden.


As I said in my earlier post, I am quite pleased that I am doing the best I can for my soil.  For, if your soil is good, it solves a lot of issues for your garden.   But more importantly, it was nice to be with people who shared a common interest and but had different perspectives.  Here I am, in the red shirt, sitting with the various people who were attending the soil renaissance seminar.  It was quite satisfying indeed.
I also attended a seminar on winter gardening during the day.  I have toyed with the idea of growing vegetables in winter to be able to extend the growing season.  And, as I listened to the back and forth about the various techniques and structures that could/should be used, I slowly came to realization that maybe this just wasn't what I wanted to be doing after all.
The discussion began about what plants could be grown over the winter.  That list was, to no surprise to me, very limited.  We first established that it was basically root crops and hardy plants like cabbage, kale, broccoli and a few others that could be successfully grown through winter.  They then explained the need for covering the plants with the spun fiber directly over the bed and then the need to build a support structure once the plants began to grow.  So far, not too bad.  But then, we began talking about bigger structures, blankets, and even greenhouse plastic and the need to build heavier duty structures of various types.  This is where I began to think that this was a lot of effort for what they termed as small output crops.  I mean, in all honesty, in my mind it would be much easier to buy my carrots from the grocery store than to put all this effort to get them fresh from my garden once I shoveled them out and uncovered them.  Exaggeration I know but not too far off the point.
So, this seminar was beneficial in that it confirmed what I learned from trial and error here and there over my time as a gardener.  I can understand a commercial or CSA grower doing this - it's their livelihood.  But for the backyard gardener, unless you are in the south and can avoid the structures, I don't see the payoff.
We spent the rest our time at Monticello wandering through the various exhibitors tents and the grounds.  As we were meandering around the Jefferson garden, I recognized Peter Hatch.  He has written several books regarding Jefferson and the revolutionary garden.  I own 'Thomas Jefferson's Garden Book" and will have to buy 'A rich Spot of Earth: Thomas Jefferson's Revolutionary Garden at Monticello'.  I introduced myself and asked him for a picture which he graciously approved.
All in all, the day was fun for me.  My wife, on the other hand, had her moments but was mostly there to spend time with me as we wandered the grounds.  I would recommend Monticello to any one who is fascinated with gardening and also, the history of our country.  There is much to see on a normal tour and it is very beautiful there.

         

Monticello and the Heritage Harvest Festival

My wife and I attended the Festival this past weekend.  We drove down Friday afternoon through the insane traffic that is Washington DC.  We were able to get in to beautiful Charlottesville Virginia, check in to our hotel and then go to the pedestrian mall in the downtown area.  We had been here before but this time was quite different.  It was the home opener for the Univ. of Virginia against Notre Dame.  Guess what color shirt I was wearing - that's right!  Bright green like I was from Notre Dame.  I laid low once I figured that out.
It was a mob scene although it did not seem intense.  I love this little mall as it is quite nice with the blend of eateries and it's quirky stores that populate the mall.  You can eat outside or inside the various restaurants.  There was a nice mix of the students youth from Virginia and the older folks - mostly alumni.  It has an ampitheater on the one end and we listened to the Skip Castro Band for awhile.  We left there just before the UVA pep rally was to start in order to avoid the crush of the people there.
We woke up on Saturday and made our way to Monticello.  When we arrived, it was lightly raining and the mountaintop was covered with clouds and fog.  I had signed up for a Soil Renaissance workshop and a class about winter gardening.  We made our way to the various vendors and perused and purchased a few items from them.  We took in a tomato tasting table from Seed Savers Exchange.  I must say, the chocolate cherry tomato's were delicious.  Only issue I had was that they did not have seed packs for many of the varieties being presented.  Come to find out, they were testing them so they may come available in the future.  I will have to keep an eye out for their catalog to see if any made the cut to packets.
Let me begin the description of what I(we) took in at the festival.  I will begin the same way I tell people to start a garden - with the soil.  Soil renaissance is a group of loosely held organizations that have as their primary goal the education of today's farmer about soil and how to sustain it.  It really was quite interesting to hear the various speakers - one from Soil renaissance, a local farmer, an extension representative from Va., the Monticello chief gardener and a professor from Va. Tech.  All had very interesting points of view and experiences.  While I was sitting listening to each speaker, I was ticking off what I do in my garden as each subject came up.  It was quite gratifying to know that my practices were in line with most of the speakers.  One place I did not mesh with one of the speakers was with the use of herbicides on their crops.  I completely understand that they have a livelihood to protect unlike me.  I garden for the joy of it and not for direct income.  There is a vast difference.
Interestingly, one of the organizations that Soil Renaissance does interact with is the Rodale institute in Kutztown Pa., not far from the Baltimore area. They are pioneers of the organic method and they date back to the early 1950's. According to the SR people, they participate regularly within the SR movement.  Rodale does classes and has tours during the year.  I will have to get up there to see the Institute.  I believe they have over 300 acres of test fields.  They are very cutting edge and I have been reading their website and picking up techniques and such for more than a few years.  If you get the chance and are in the area, it may well be worth the time to go there.
Well, that's all for now.  I will be writing more about this visit but there is so much to tell I feel it needs to be broken down over the next week or so.  I also have pictures which I will also share in the very near future.   If you have any question about this or any other topic, please feel free to leave a comment.  Until next time, Happy Gardening!
  

Harvest abounds

This past Sunday I went out to the garden to see what I had to harvest.  To my surprise, there was quite a lot of veggies to pick.  As seen below, I picked a very nice sized Watermelon (Celebrity), a bunch of Peppers, two cucumbers and, as has been the case all year, a ton of tomatoes.

The watermelon measured 16" long and weighed 15 lbs plus.  I took it over to our family's Labor day picnic.  It smelled great and tasted even better.  Nothing like a fresh watermelon that was picked 6 hours earlier.  I haven't had too much success with watermelons but this year I did get two very nice ones.  I will be repeating this planting next year.  Only thing I will do differently is I will start them sooner in the garden.  

Off topic here, but on Saturday, my wife and I took a trip out to Frederick Maryland to a place called Chartreuse & Co. They have about 4 barns and several houses filled by vendors with antiques and other items.  Each Spring and Fall they have big events where the barns, houses and the fields around them are filled with vendors selling their stuff.  When we arrived, we were a little shocked to find out just how popular this event is.  There were cars everywhere and there were even two buses.  There were cars from Pa.,Virginia and Maryland.  There was so much to see that it took us quite a while to get to all the sites.  I did buy several items that I intended on using in my gardening as seen below.  

No, I didn't buy the dog.  That is my buddy Barkley dutifully guarding my purchases.  I plan on using the bucket and funnel for my compost teas so I can filter it.  The box at the bottom is an old security lock box.  That is where I intend on storing my seeds this winter

Well, that's all for now.  Next weekend my wife and I are travelling to Monticello to take in some seminars they are having as a part of their Heritage Harvest Festival.  I visited it once before and it was very breathtaking.  This time though is to learn about the soil and how to do winter gardening.  I will tell you all about it next week once I catch my breath.  Until next time, happy gardening!    

Awww..September arrives!

Well, as the summer winds down, your thoughts should turn to harvesting the last of your summer crop and if you are of the mind, beginning preps for fall crops.  I have busily been harvesting that which is ready.  My friends the squirrels have become more active lately and thus are also partaking of my last crops.  Luckily, there is enough for all of us so I don't begrudge them the few items they have absconded with.  Everyone has to eat after all.
I did some harvesting of the summer crops this morning.  I decided it was time to pull my watermelon I have been eyeing for quite some time.  As seen below, it's a Celebrity watermelon that has grown to 17" and 15 lbs.  Haven't cut it open yet but we will tonight.  This is the first time I've grown this type so we shall see what all that time and effort has come to.

With fall in mind, last weekend I planted 18 po.ts in my two hydroponic systems.  The crops are essentially various lettuces, carrots and a smattering of various herbs.  It may be a little late on getting them planted but as you can see, they are taking off rather nicely.  The first system to the left is one that I bought from cleanairgardening.com after seeing similar systems at Disney many years ago. The one on the right is a makeshift one I cobbled together after buying the fixture

from a closeout sale of a retailer.

Both systems work well but I would give the nod to the Clean air system for it's compact size.   But the re-purposed unit is quite good with root crops like carrots which is what you see in some of the bowls.  I feed them with the nutrient solutions I also buy from Clean air seen below to the left.  The Coke bottles have each nutrient solution and I mix 3/4 of a teaspoon of each into a gallon of water and flood the systems with that in the morning and evening.  Growth is always good.

My wife, son and I also picked our concord grapes yesterday that we have growing along our fence. We made organic (because I don't do anything but water them) grape juice and jam.  Can't wait to try the juice tomorrow morning.  I'm going to either grow more vines from cuttings or buy more plants to increase our yield.
Well, that's all for this Sunday afternoon.  It's been quite active this weekend and probably will stay that way for another month or two if the weather holds.  Hopefully by next week, I will be able to report on my progress of getting sunflower seeds from the plants we have along our driveway.  Until then, happy gardening everyone!

And the hits keep coming!

Just spent the evening partaking of a very good meal tonight.  My lovely wife made stuff peppers that were fresh from the garden.  She also made me a mix of the mortgage lifter tomato and one of the 9 cucumbers I have picked in the last two days.  They were very good with a dressing of balsamic vinegarette dressing.  Oh, how lovely they tasted while we sat and began to relax for the evening. Well, some of us did.
I went out and watered down the cucumbers so I could pick them tomorrow morning before heading to work and I also picked two Better Boy tomatoes and another scad of cherry tomatoes.  They have been very prolific this year.  I also watered down my watermelon plant.  I will have to get a picture of it so you can see it too.   Along with those, I watered the canteloupes which I have about 6 in various stages of growth.
After that was completed, I ran a bunch of tomatoes over to my in-laws as they really do like them. See, I believe you should share with others as the bounty comes in.  I haven't met too many people who have ever turned down any of the vegetables I have offered.  And this year has been a great year and I expect it will continue right into the fall.  That is, if I stay vigilant about tending to the garden. The hardest thing, as I wrote previously, is to maintain the drive to bring the garden to fruition.
On a side note, I threw some mammoth sunflower seeds into a spot where my wife could see them from the house as she has asked me to grow them.  After about a month or so, they are now over 8 feet tall and, from what I can tell, are getting ready to set flower.  I guess they meant it when they named these Mammoths!  I will get pictures of them when they come into bloom.  It was a nice side activity which was a diversion from the veggie garden routine.
Well, that's all for now.  Been a busy day and there is more to do before I put a wrap on the day.  I hope your garden is giving you great harvests too!  Till next time, happy gardening everyone!  

Harvest time!!!

Yes, it's that time in the garden.  You know - the time when you go out to the garden with a little bit of wonderment of what all your diligent work in the garden will reward you with.  Last night, due to other activities, I wasn't able to get to the garden until around 8:15 pm.   I knew I had vegetables to pick and after inspection, I decided to water them down and then pick them in the morning when they would be their freshest.  So, with headlamp on to see what I was doing, I watered the garden down.  I know my neighbors, if they were looking, must have had a chuckle.
But, this morning I woke up with anticipation of what I had spied last night.  I picked a bunch of the various cherry tomatoes I planted along with a beautiful (in my eyes at least) Mortgage Lifter tomato. It's a Heirloom tomato with quite a story behind it.  It dates back to the 1930's when a gentleman by the name of MC Byles, with no experience of plant breeding, bred 4 different varieties of the largest tomatoes he could find at the time and developed this plant.  Legend and his recorded story has it that he sold enough of these plants to pay off the mortgage on his house.  Good for him and thanks for such a wonderful tomato I say.
So, here's the first Mortgage Lifter of the season.

I find that the first fruits from this plant are a little smaller than they should be.  I will let the next ones sit on the vine a little longer to see if maybe I was a little over eager to pick this one.  They can get close to 2 lbs each and are consistent producers throughout the season.

I also picked a bunch of the various cherry tomatoes I planted this year.  

This is about the 3rd set of these I picked so far this year.  I have eaten some and given away more to various people I know.  Last year I was asked repeatedly if I had them when in fact, I didn't grow any.  Never knew people loved these so much so I guess I will have to grow them due to the demand. 

Lastly, I also picked two cucumbers.  These come from seeds I bought in Italy years ago.  

These are some of the best cucumbers I have tasted.  I'm going to have to do a little investigation as I need to either save the seed if possible or get new seeds.  I ran an experiment with these two cukes. The one on the top hung from a trellis and the one on the bottom was laying in a melon basket as seen below.

Not sure if this will affect the taste or the amount of seeds in the cuke.  I will find out when we cut it open in the next day or so.  My guess is that there will be more meat to the basket cuke.  We shall see!  

So there you have it.  We are in the throes of quite literally "reaping what we have sowed".  I hope your garden is producing in excess so you too can share with others in your life.  If you have anything to discuss or need some help, please leave a comment and I will be glad to share my experience with you.  Until then, happy gardening everyone!    

Hot time in the summer

This morning, I got up early to work on the garden.  Even though it was a Sunday, I had to get up early due to the weather in our area.  I got up at 6:00 AM to do some maintenance and to water down my garden.  It was 75 degrees with a heat index of 84.  It was sticky to say the least.
And that's what I wanted to comment on today.  When you hit the middle of July, you have to contend with heat, humidity and periods of insufficient rain much like today.  This is the time that you need to stay with the program and guard all your work to date from mid summer blues.  It's a time to redouble your efforts and make sure you stay tuned to the basics.
The first item to watch is watering.  This is where the conditioning of your soil comes into play.  If your soil does not retain water easily, you will then have to water more frequently.  And when you do water, you will need to make sure you soak the soil deeply to reach the root zone.
At the point we are now, the time to apply any last application of fertilizer if you are not doing any fall seasons crops is now.  After this point, your main concern is getting the vegetables that are set to ripen and not to get the plants to grow anymore.
Mainly, at this point, you need to concentrate on picking your vegetables to insure you get every vegetable you deserve.  Following these tips will help ensure you take the crops to your dinner table. Afterall, that's the payoff for all your hard work.  

Early July musings

After partaking in the usual festivities of the July 4th weekend, I woke up this morning to pick my first batch of green beans in the early morning hours of a calm, quiet Sunday morning.  Of course, my trusty companion Barkley meandered along with me as we made our way out to the garden. I think he was expecting some kind of treat but it was not meant to be.  It was the first set of beans for this season which reminded me that I needed to plant some more seeds for future crops.  There is nothing that can even begin to describe the taste of fresh picked green beans.  I mean, just look at this scad of beans I picked this morning.

Don't those look great?  Can't wait to eat them as these are so far superior in taste to that which you will find in any grocery store.  I didn't plant a ton of these but rather have spread them out over several weeks by planting about 18 seeds every week.  That way, they don't lose their taste.  

On another note, I am getting ready to pick a bunch of Bell Boy and California Wonder Peppers in the next couple of days.  I took a picture of one Cal Wonder just to show the quality you can get in the garden.  

And, in further proof that I am succeeding(I think) in my organic quest, while perusing the garden this afternoon, I found a guest that I never would have thought I would have seen.  Take a look. 

I am no expert, but logic tells me a frog would not be in my garden if I were using pesticides and such in it.  The tiny creature surprised me as he just hopped out from under one of the pepper plants and stayed still while I went about my business.  I can't really remember seeing a frog in my garden before so I will take that as a sign things are going in the right direction in my organic quest.  Frogs, for the most part, are very good to have in the garden as they eat insects by the bunches.  Now, with that being said, they aren't that selective either and thus can eat beneficial insects too.  Most of my experience says they are good for the garden so I am very happy to oblige this little visitor.  Who knows, he may stay.   

Well, that's all for now.  If you have any questions or concerns regarding your garden space, let me know as I would be glad to assist you with your needs or issues.  Until then, happy gardening everyone!

Progress in the garden

Lots has been happening in the garden since I last posted.  About two weeks ago, I fertilized the garden with an 8-8-8 balanced fertilizer called Purely Organic.  Catchy name eh?  I did research this and it came out looking pretty good.  Again, I prefer organic and will seek it out and yes, I will pay a little more for it versus the chemical fertilizers.  It is blended for both quick and time release of nutrients to the plants.
I must say, the plants did respond to the fertilizer and have shown some real significant progress. The tomatoes and peppers have shot up like rockets and most of the tomatoes have put on both healthy growth and fruit buds.  I saw my first pepper that is about the size of a dime today.  Very exciting indeed!
All the other plants have also shown significant increases in growth to a point I think they have overcome our earlier stunted period in late May.  Since I haven't changed anything and the weather has only recently heated up, I can attribute this growth to the fertilizer.  Will I use it again?  Yes indeed.
I also did on two waterings of compost tea in the last 3 weeks and I think this, combined with the fertilizer, may have done the trick.  I have to keep an eye on things but it is definitely promising at this point in the season.
One other thing that I have done is to use a cover crop in the fall of each of the last two years.  I covered that in an earlier post but it bears repeating.  When it is cut and left to rot and then lightly rototilled in the spring, it enhances the overall nutrient levels in the soil and it also helps with the tilth of the soil.  A organization called the Rodale Institute in Kutztown Pa. has pioneered these processes and done the hard research for well over 60 years.  If you're in the area, you should visit them.  I plan on doing that in the near future myself.  If not, look at their website - rodaleinstitute.org.
I think that my soil has taken some big leaps since I went all in on organic.  I will post about that when the time comes in the fall to begin the next round of soil improvement.
And, the big news is, I have mason bees in the hive I hung up this past Spring.  Establishing the hive is, from what I have read, the hardest part.  Putting it simply, the bees just have to find the hive and they will do all the rest.  I am hoping since they found it, they will stay put.  If you have no idea what mason bees are about, do a little research and you might too want to establish a hive.  In all honesty, it was my wife that spurred this on by buying me a hive for Christmas.  I had no idea until then.
Well, that's about it for now.  I hope everyone's gardens are going great guns now.  Until next time, happy gardening!      

Are you really growing organically?

That is a very hard question to answer with just a simple yes or no. There are many reasons to grow vegetables in your own backyard. Most people speak of the superior freshness and taste of the produce. Some point to the rampant use of GMO seed stock and the use of herbecides and such on the produce you get in most stores. Not to mention the carbon footprint of some of the foods we eat that travel over 1,000 miles or more. But, a fair portion of the gardening world will answer that they garden in order to have "organic" vegetables and fruit. But, if you have a garden, the question remains - are you truly organic? I always thought that I was truly organic. I have my three composters, 4 rain barrels and I don't generally use any herbecides on my plants. I tolerate some destruction in my garden as the natural course of events. If the infestation is intolerable with the risk of total loss being high, I then us a BT based powder to combat the issue at hand. BT is a targeted insecticide that does not kill beneficial insects. It is considered to be organic as it is a naturally occurring bacterium found in the soil. I recently watched a gardening show where I discovered that while I practice generally organic principles, I have been acutely unaware of one area I hadn't given much thought to - seeds! Yes, seeds. I mean, who knew? As pointed out by the guest on the show, if you are using GMO produced seeds or hybrid seeds, then you are truly not growing organic. As a person with a multitude of such seeds, that was quite an eye opener. I guess I need to be careful where I buy my seeds. That's a topic for another post. I hope this was an eye opener for you too. Well, till next time, happy gardening everyone!

Sunday, Sunday

Here's hoping all the Mothers had a very Happy Mother's Day. I sit here looking out into my backyard.  It is sunny and warm while my garden buddy Barkley is running amok with his youthful exuberance.  It has been quite the eventful week as our son graduated (Yeah!) from college yesterday. Both his mom and I are very proud parents.  So, I have a bunch of things to get caught up on as the garden was on minimal maintenance this week.  All the plants are still alive so there was no harm done by my absence.
And that is a very big lesson right there.  Regardless of how much we may think we have control and can affect the outcome of our gardens, the truth is that we are just stewards of the garden and not the master.  There are just so many other variables that go into a garden season that one has to be grateful for the harvest you do get each year.  I don't believe we should take credit for the output from our garden as I believe God has so much more influence.  We can only help the plants along the way.
I have a ton to do as I need to get my peppers and tomatoes planted along with starting the cucumbers.  Much to do very little time to spare.  It is unseasonably warm for this time of year which is having a negative effect on my lettuce that I planted.  Most, but not all lettuce likes it cool.  So far, because the hydroponic system gets the early morning sun and is shaded from the afternoon sun, the lettuce seems to be growing albeit at a slower than normal rate.  I can only hope that we will get back to the 70's which will help with that immensely.
So, for this week, the theme will be plant, plant and plant some more.  Here's hoping your garden is coming along well.  till next time, happy gardening everyone.

What a wonderful life!

This weekend was crazy busy to say the least.  Two days is hardly enough time to get all the work in. During periods like this, I often wonder if I am trying to do too much.  There is that little voice inside my head that doubts the sanity of doing so much to get the garden I really want.  If you are like me, you too will have those moments.  And, just like me, you will come realize in the long run, that it is indeed worth the effort.
We had two beautiful days that were absolutely ideal for gardening.  Both days highs reached near or 80 degrees.  I also had to fit in a family function on Saturday.  So, that compressed my gardening activities even further.  Both days I was up by 6 and in the garden.  Saturday, I put a fence around both beds in order to dissuade my gardening buddy (my puppy Barkley) from digging in my beds or worse.  I also worked on other home items so, for the most part, the fence was major item completed.
Sunday however, was a different story.  I was up by 6 (habit) and out in the garden.  I planted 3 cabbage and 3 cauliflower plants under my shade structure.  I also checked my hydroponic system for the progress of my various lettuce plants

As seen in the picture, there are many pots with plants in them.  The big ones in  bowl 11 are spinach.  It will take another couple of weeks before these are ready to eat.

I also put up a mason bee hive in hopes of getting these voracious workers to settle in my backyard.

They're supposed to be wonderful pollinators and aren't the least bit hostile.  Time will tell on whether this experiment works or not.
Additionally, I erected my mini greenhouse in order to harden my plants for transplanting in the next week or so.  As seen by the pictures, it is quite roomy and it ages well as this one is 6 years old.

Here is another view of it with my plants in them.

So, there is a little snippet of what I did on Sunday.  There is much more to do as the time to plant the warm weather crops is upon us in the Mid-Atlantic.  I can't wait to get digging into the dirt.  Till then, keep on gardening! 

Hallelujah!!

Well, April is always full of surprises when it comes to weather in the Mid-Atlantic region.  Last night was no exception to this.  We had a series of thunderstorms that were quite active with heavy downpours.  I was concerned as the night progressed that my shade structure and the attendant cabbage plants under it were goners.  So, when I went out at 6 this morning with my dog, to my surprise, it looked undamaged much to my delight.  Upon further review of it when I arrived home from work this evening, it did not have any damage I could detect.  And better yet, the plants were doing just fine.
We're certainly not out of the woods weather wise but it appears that the structure can stand up to storms.  I planted 3 Broccoli plants under it tonight.  Which brings to mind how I go about planting seedlings into my beds.  When I do this, I start by making a mixture of equal parts peat moss, composted manure and my fresh compost.  I generally use vermiculite in place of peat moss as the peat bogs are being farmed at alarming rates so I want to do my part to help with that issue.  But, I just happen to have some peat left over from a grass planting I did last fall soo I cannot let it go to waste.
Once I have the mixture made up, I water down the seedlings (soak them actually) and let them drain while I cut in the holes to plant the vegetables.  I cut the holes a little bigger than the size of the root ball and then take a little of my mixture and lay it in the bottom of the hole.  Then I pull the plants out of their containers and tease the roots if they are circled around the medium they are in.  Even if they aren't, I still pull them a little to ensure they're ready to plant.  I then put the plant into the hole and fill any voids around the plants with the mixture.  I lightly press in around the plants with my fingers, water them down and put more of the mixture around them to make sure the root ball is covered.  You should make a slight bowl shape around the seeding to hold the water near the plant to allow it to soak into soil and reach the roots.  It sounds difficult, but you will get the hang of it in no time.
Well, hope you are getting into your gardening full swing at this point.  Happy gardening!        

Its been hectic!

Well, it's has been a while and I certainly apologize for that.  My job has been hectic, work in the garden has ramped up immensely and best of all, my son is getting ready to graduate from college very soon. So, to say life is rolling along would be an understatement.  But still, I do have to apologize for going off the grid for this timeframe.  I will endeavor to be more consistent in the future.

So, garden-wise there have been some successes and alas, failures.  Failure, in one respect or another, is part of the vegetable gardening world.  This failure is really not that big in the whole scheme of things although it is disappointing.  As I have related to you, my goal with my gardening is to stay "organic" in all things.  Last fall I researched various fertilizers to use in the starting of my plants. I switched to an "organic" fertilizer from my preferred one which wasn't certified organic.  After having used this one this year, I would say it was a big let down in regards to my pepper plants.  I am not sure why it didn't feed them enough nutrients, but their growth seems very weak.  My tomatoes seem to be a little behind but not so far behind as the peppers.  Now, if these were the plants I was depending on for my food source this year, then that would be a huge issue.  As it is, my remedy for the situation is to run down to my go to plant supplier and buy theirs.  Of course, this means I will have to substitute their variety for mine, but that is the price to pay this year.  A minor price no doubt.

I finally finished the reconstruction of my beds that I started last fall yesterday.  I will get pictures up shortly once I have plants in them so you can get a sense of what my garden looks like.  Yesterday was one of those days you only get 4-5 times in spring or summer - maybe.  Beautiful sunlight, mild temperatures and a very gentle breeze.  To say I was in my element is an understatement.  I did my sniff test just to jog my brain out of it's doldrums.  What a sweet aroma it has.  All the winter rye has broken down and the beds are now ready for the year.  The soil is a nice dark brown, still cool to touch and friable.  Just the way you want it now.  

I built a structure over the area where I am planting my cool crops this year.  I will need to shade the plants from the sun towards the end of their growing cycle.  I had some left over weed fabric that I tested and it worked pretty well,  Light got through it and at the same time, it shaded the area.  I tested the soil this morning with my hand test and the soil under it was noticeably cooler than the surrounding uncovered areas.  I planted 3 cabbages and will be adding cauliflower and broccoli in the next couple of days.  I'll let you know how this works out in future posts.

Well, that's all I have at this time.  There is so much ground to cover when it comes to vegetables that it is nearly impossible for me to know what you may be interested in at this time.  Let me know and I'll be sure to address it in one of my upcoming posts.  Till the next post, keep on gardening! 

Continuing preparations

Well, we received another reminder this past Friday that winter is not yet through with us.  It was more of a nuisance than anything else but, nonetheless, it was a snow event.  Today, as I sit out in my back porch, the sun is shining very brightly and its in the mid 40's.  I have been able to get the garden moving in several respects this weekend due to two beautiful days.
In my last post, I mentioned that I planted winter rye and the reasons for doing so.  Last fall (September) I sowed the seed and then covered one of my beds with greenhouse plastic and the other I left to the elements to see if covering it would make a difference.  As shown, the answer is a definite yes as seen by the two photos below.  The top one is of the uncovered bed and the bottom one is of the bed that was under a plastic tunnel all winter.

It was worth the effort to cover them as there is certainly more volume of rye to work into the soil.  I cut the first bed by using my weed trimmer.  I cleaned the trimmer and used new line on the trimmer to prevent any weed transference to my beds from the trimmer.  The picture below shows the bed after this cutting.

I will let this lay for a couple of days as seen and then I work it into the ground through shallow cultivation.  This process allows for the break down of the rye and also leaves the roots system somewhat in tact below. This adds structure and concurrent moisture retention with the gradual breakdown of the roots into the soil.  One other advantage is that this is organic which is what I strive for in my garden.
I can't overemphasize that your soil is the single most important part of your gardening experience. My wife and I visited Monticello - the beautiful Virginia estate of Thomas Jefferson several years ago.  The mansion was gorgeous as expected.  Mr. Jefferson was perhaps the first vegetable gardener of the United States and introduced a multitude of plants to the fledgling US.  His garden is nicknamed the revolutionary garden.  He had a garden built of enormous proportions on the side of the mountain on the property.  It is over 1000 feet long and takes your breath away when you see it.  His whole focus of the garden was his unbending belief that a healthy soil grows healthy plants.   From my experience, I couldn't agree more.

Spring's promise.

What a beginning two weeks of March it has been.  In like a Lion, out like a Lamb is very true this year.  We've had over 9 inches of snow on one day and several days in the 50's and 60'S.  And, that volatility is not even over yet. As I write this, we are expecting several days where the lows are going to be below freezing with highs from the 40's to the 60's. Crazy weather - right?
Preparations should be the order of the day for this week.  Speaking of preparations, I now have 3 cabbage, 3 broccoli and 8 pepper plants under my lights.  I also have 6 various types of heirloom tomatoes under the lights.  So, the process is under way for another year of gardening.
There is still a lot of preparation to do before the gardening begins in earnest.  I definitely need to clean and sharpen my tools, perhaps oil them and make sure they are ready for use in the not so distant future.  I began pulling some of the winter stored items out of my shed but I believe doing too much would be a bit hasty at this time.  One thing I did get accomplished was I pulled out my plant boxes for my hydroponic system and cleaned them with a bleach/water mixture to kill off any unwanted problems.  I set up the pole they are held by this morning so it's almost go time for that.  I can't wait to start planting the lettuce and associated crops which I will wait to do until the end of this week.
Cleanup needs to be completed around the beds and probably, thanks to the harsh winter, in the beds themselves.  Last fall I planted winter rye as a cover crop so that really needs to be cut and worked into the beds.  I spotted my weed whacker this morning along with the sting for it.  I just cut the rye and leave it set for a couple days then turn it over once the ground dries a little bit.  I used rye last year and my plants seemed to do better during the dry summer we had. So, I figured I would use it again.  Besides, it keeps the squirrels out of them, adds green manure directly to the soil and it looks nicer than just having empty beds.
Gearing up for Spring can be a daunting task so I try and do a little here and there to take the pressure off once the weather finally turns about mid March.  It almost time but we are just starting to see the beginnings of Springs promise.  

The transitional month of March

As I sit down to write this today, we are having a snow and sleet event here in the Baltimore region. So while I look forward to the upcoming planting season, there is still a bit of winter to deal with. My beds are covered with about 3 inches of snow and any thoughts of working on them must wait for the time being.  But, there are things that need to be done if I am to have a successful growing season. Preparations abound around this time.
Yesterday I started, albeit late, my Cabbage and Broccoli plants.  Sometimes, life gets in the way of your garden and I had one of those life events.  I am trying newer varieties of Cabbage that I have never tried before.  They are Earliana and All Seasons.  The Broccoli are Waltham's which are supposed to be good for Zone 7.  I also started 8 plants of Peppers that are on schedule.  The Peppers are California Wonders which have always been good producers for me.
In the next couple days I will be starting my many varieties of Heirloom tomatoes.  I am going to experiment with Peppers by starting a new set of seedlings in two weeks to attempt to get two harvests before the end of the season.  I cannot start all my plants from seeds as I would need a large greenhouse for that.  So, I have two sources for plants that have proven reliable where I can get the varieties of vegetables that I like at a price that is reasonable.  I'll have more to say on that subject in later posts.
Outside preparations are at a minimum at this time naturally due to the uncertainty of the weather. From what I can see, we will be whipsawing this week as they are predicting just about every type of weather imaginable this week.  That's the nature of March in the Mid-Atlantic.  Given that, I am currently working on a checklist of the various things I need to do when the snow is gone.  I also have been getting my tools in good working order as its a great time to do this type of work.
March is a hard month to read early on.  Some gardeners try to force the beginning of the season with the many techniques that are available.  I too, tried some them over the years.  But, in my opinion, the effort to get an early start is a proposition fraught with peril.  Many times, the plants just didn't seem to produce as well as I would have expected.  I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who hasn't gardened before.  It took me quite a few years to venture out of the normal season.
So, at this point, I am waiting for Mother Nature to calm down.  Until that time, I will keep myself active preparing for when that time comes.  Happy Gardening everyone!              

Meet Craig

My name is Craig and I live in the Baltimore area.  While I am an Accountant by trade, my real passion is growing fresh organic vegetables.  There is no more rewarding pursuit than taking a garden from seeds in the basement to fresh, succulent vegetables on the dinner table.  All that effort, the sweat and labor that permeates your soul, is the payoff every gardener, big and small, looks forward to at the beginning of each season.  We begin with so much promise and so much enthusiasm after a long winter's hibernation.  That is why I do it.  The sheer enjoyment of digging my hand into the soil and feeling the crumbly, soft soil sift through my hands.  I often take a handful of this black gold, raise it close to my nose, and breathe in ever so deeply the rich, fragrant aroma of a new year to come.  That’s what wakes me up early in the morning and keeps me excited throughout the season. 

I was not always a gardener and quite frankly, I wasn’t much interested to tell the truth.  It was not until my mid-teens that this little hobby of mine began.  My parents tore down the old pool in our back yard.  They were perplexed at what to do with the big brown area it uncovered.  Our neighbor Levere convinced me to take a stab at a vegetable garden.  He was a very experienced older Italian gentleman gardener who grew some of the best Italian varieties you could find.  I could swear he took me under his wing more for his own amusement.  Through patient guidance, he helped instill in me the love for gardening.  My first year was pretty good by my standards and each succeeding year got better.  I was hooked from that point and there was no going back.

With that as my foundation, over the years I have explored the many and varied forms of the art of gardening.  As most of us do, I started with the typical row garden.  From there, my gardening has evolved, transformed and begat what I now call my hybrid garden.  I have often tried something new and/or different when it came to the garden.  I have come to believe that experimentation is the best way to keep things fresh for you and the garden.  The results haven’t always been spectacular but I think I learned something new each time I ventured off the beaten path.  And that’s the nature of gardening. 

I have even dragged my wife into this crazy world.  She has fed my obsession with gardening by supporting me with the many well thought out gifts I received over the years and by doing research herself on various things I would only mention casually.  Through her research, I have been exposed to things that I did not even know existed.  I mean, who knew that I needed a Mason Bee Hive in my backyard?  Or even a hydroponic system.   Well, certainly not I.  If not for her, I would not be half the gardener I am today.  

So this is going to be a journey of things known and unknown.  I hope to inspire those who see gardening as a scary proposition to take the leap.  So, come along with me and let's explore the vast world of gardening.  It is a rewarding pursuit.