Sowing, Harvesting...

Cropping at the moment are the Broccoli Rabe, which turned out not to be what I was expecting - its kind of bitter, and OK, but not really a useful crop in general, I think. I suppose its worth growing a handful on some waste ground for winter greens, but thats about it. I was probably thinking about purple sprouting broocoli. Strangely, Broccoli Rabe (rapini) is NOT Rape, as in rape-seed oil (Brassica Napus), but rather Brassica Rapa. Also cropping; the second batch of Peas, Lettuce, green Garlic and I'll be taking some Swiss Chard soon. The Broad Beans, the few that actually germinated, are now flowering, so hopefully I can take some nice whole pods sometime soon. I did eventually get some multicolored carrots, but these were quite a dissapointment with their size - most are quite small, and others are sending up flower heads. I guess winter sowing is not a great idea. This year I want to try sowing them in August or September.

However, its time to look towards new plantings; I've been putting in a few more Eggplants, Peppers, Chiles and heirloom Tomatoes (Brandywine, Black Krim, Green Zebra), as these become available cheaply as plants outside grocery stores, in the Farmer's Markets, etc. I put one Brandywine in one of those topsy-turvy planters to see who that works. It took a bag and a half of compost to fill, surprisingly.

Last weekend, I soaked some Runner Beans overnight, and then planted them in small pots of compost; these really need to get growing soon. I was hoping their supports would have grown more by now - the sunflowers and corn, but while the sunflowers are inching upwards, the corn planted outside (not in Jiffy's) doesnt seem to have germinated yet.

Not wishing to waste space for too long, I planted out that red salad mix that had been growing in the apple-containers for wayyy too long in the space where the peas used to be; this is a now a shady spot under a tree, but hopefully that should be fine for them.

Harvesting

Two meals from the Broccoli Rabe, four from the peas. I took down the peas today, harvesting the last of them and throwing the stems on the compost heap. Damn slugs knocked off a crookneck squash yesterday. The sooner these plants get beyond the slugs the better.
Soon it will be time to plant the runner beans, but I'd like the corn and sunflowers to be taller before planting. Still, cant wait forever. Perhaps 2 sowings of the beans would be a good idea.

Lovely Rain

This rain we're having is a godsend - its coming about half an inch or more, about once a week, enough to slowly build up a nice soil moisture bank that should take us through the next few months. To help it along, I have been taking some water thats pouring out of the gutters and pouring it into the ground at the top end of the garden, where it will hopefully build up the water levels even more. Because the rain was so strong today, I took the opportunity to shake out some fertilizer so that it could soak in nicely and not burn the plants. Not too much though, I'm trying to keep as organic as possible. I'm not a purist though.

The photo shows my recycling plant - the compost piles. These are largely kitchen peelings, lawn trimmings, weeds and leaf sweepings. I contain these in wire mesh cylinders - easily and cheaply made with wire mesh from a hardware store. These take surprisingly long to build, as the stuff rots and compacts quickly. I turn the heaps every couple of weeks or so, to re-oxygenate the piles - more often when the grass clippings are fresh. It also helps to mix the ingredients.

The peas sown in early Feb are now also putting in their first pods, and are about 3-4 feet high. The broccoli rabe has finally taken off, and may be harvestable soon (the crop isnt huge, but I should get a meal or two out of it - it was really a test run to see how well it grows here in Almaden. Meanwhile, I have been engaging in plotting my next moves in this bed - I've planted out some jiffy-pot-grown sweetcorn (Kandy Korn hybrid, Ferry-Morse) and filled in a few holes with seed, so I should have a little-staggered crop. Corn has to be grown in blocks, as its wind-pollinated, and the bed is fairly narrow, so I've been planting through the peas, broccoli, as well as in the bare spots. The plan, when these are starting to take off - say a foot high - is to plant runner beans beside them. The beans can then climb the corn as they grow. Hopefully.

I have plans to do the same against the fence - this time with a mixture of sweetcorn and sunflowers.

So far, from the Xmas sowing of peas, I have had 3 meals - or rather, 2.5 (the first was rather thin). I have at least one more coming, and probably one after that. Then, its off to the compost with the rest - and the soil will have plenty of nitrogen added by the peas. I hope to get these peas finished shortly, so I can plant other stuff in that bed - either Zucchini, or maybe salads (its getting quite shady now that the tree above it has leafed.

San Jose Plant (Tomato and Peppers) sale

San Jose Master Gardeners plant sale will be taking place on Saturday April 10 at Kelley Park, 1650 Senter Road, San Jose 95112
A good place to source your heirlooms. I have my tomatoes out already, so I dont know if I'll be going; parking looks as if it will be tight also, and most of it is paid parking, which will add to the cost. I notice that that Palo Alto have a similar sale the next week, I think, but if this is a leftovers sale, it may not have the same selection (but parking should be easier in terms of locating free parking).

In the picture above, you can see one of my test ideas for this year - milk bottles buried in the ground, filled with holes. The idea is that this will facilitate getting water down near the roots, without necessarily splashing so much water around on top. As you can see, its already a handy place to leave the hose while you switch the tap on or off, instead of just throwing it on the lawn, wasting more water.

Also, you can see how the tomatoes are doing - some growth since they were planted, not much, and there are flowers developing on all of them.

Peas

Well, so much for 2 and a half feet. My peas, sown around Xmas, are now so high that I'm looking up at them, at least 7 feet high, and possibly higher if you stretched them out. They're still setting flowers, so I can look forward to more peas in weeks to come. For a short row (about 5 feet), I'm getting an OK yield, 3 portions so far, but I have to say that the flavor isnt what I remember; next year I'll try Hurst "Green Shaft", the variety I'm more accustomed to. Maybe I just undercooked them - I just gave them a couple of minutes on the boil. Next week I'll try cooking them a bit longer.

The big mistake I made with these peas was (a) not planting enough - I should have used the full 10-foot length of the bed, and (b) I should have planted the peas (taller) on the north side of the bed, not the south, as they are shading everything else.

The yellow and white flowers you can see at the left are some mesclun lettuce-like thing and rocket, respectively. Under the peas, you can see more salads and above those, some garlic (doing well). At the right, a Kohl Rabi from the supermarket is providing sprouting broccoli-type greens. To the left of the rocket, you cant really see, but there are 2 rows of carrots and I have planted out a green pepper and a habanero.

Zucchini ready for planting out shortly

After the slugs got my purchased Zucchini plants, I sowed some seeds in Jiffy plugs inside, where they sprouted rapidly. On the weekend, I transferred them to pots, where they are currently putting on their first true leaves. The corn and sunflowers I sowed about a week later are currently germinating, and I'm in the process of putting the corn in the bed next to the house wall at the moment. My plan is to shade my window and keep some of the summer heat out, and at the same time to use the corn as support for some runner beans I will sow later. The Sunflowers I'll put against the neighbours fence, again as support for more runner beans. At the base of both, I plan to plant other vegetables, either lettuce or swiss chard (I have transplants waiting to go of both), or the zucchini. This squash/corn/bean combo is an ancient Indian trick, as the beans fertilize the ground, the squash shades it, and the corn provides support for the beans.