Gardening: 2015-2016

[IowaDee]

I want to share an interesting book I am reading.  I'm posting here rather than in the cookbook topic because it is about gardening.  The title is Founding Gardeners by Andrea Wulf.  This is a quote from the back of the book.

 

"Founding Gardeners is an exploration of that obsession, telling the story of the revolutionary generation from the unique perspective of their lives as gardeners, plant collectors and farmers."

 

Wulf tells how Washington, Jefferson, Adams and Franklin not only shaped our nation but how their love for all things garden related also had an influence on the outcome.  The author has done a great job of mixing grass and grass roots so to speak.  

Off topic, but the same author also wrote what I consider the bet book of the year so far. The invention of nature, the story of Alexander von Humboldt.  I enjoyed both of the books a great deal.

[ElainaA]

7 hours ago, HungryChris said:

The weather has been cold and rainy for a week or more. Nothing is growing much, just waiting for warm, sunny days to arrive. The peas are up and waiting.

The lettuce (on the left), radishes (in the middle) and the nonexistent beans in the trench on the right are all waiting. I have begun to come to the sad conclusion (it's been 2 weeks since they were planted), that the beans will need to be replanted for the third time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

HC -  Check your soil temperature before replanting; for beans to germinate the soil must be at least 60 F. . If you plant too early the seeds can rot. 

 

The weather here is also chilly and rainy. Too cold to even start hardening off the tomato seedlings. Yesterday I did a round of nursery visits with a friend - none had many plants out. The owners of the two biggest (who know us after 30 years of visits), both of whom grow all their own stock, said everything is weeks behind because of the weather. The average temperature here in April was only 1 degree higher than the average temperature last December. 

Edited May 8, 2016 by ElainaA (log)

[Fava]

Regarding Liuzhou's plant id question - could it be Brazilian Pepper, Schinus terepinthifolius?

Edited May 8, 2016 by Fava (log)

[dcarch]

22 hours ago, liuzhou said:

 

No.

 

It looks awfully like  Nandina .

I did a Google Translate, it is called "南天竹", a popular house plant in China. Plant and berries are toxic.

dcarch

http://s6.sinaimg.cn/mw690/003sae9dgy6YUHtTXsF95&690

 

Edited May 9, 2016 by dcarch (log)

[Thanks for the Crepes]

On 5/8/2016 at 0:23 AM, liuzhou said:

 

OK. Here is an image from a slightly different angle. There are indeed two bamboo sticks supporting the actual stem.

 

 

There was no one at home when I passed so no new info yet.

 

I cannot explain why I am obsessed with identifying this plant, but here are a couple more links to good photos that show a species of bamboo with a configuration of red berries borne on the stalk under the leaves. Still not them, I know.

 

I think it may be a ficus of some species, but since there are many, many hundreds of them, I'm walking away for now. Some ficus do bear small red berries, and some do bear fruit on the trunk. If it is a ficus, it might indeed be edible.

 

Anyone else think the leaves look like ficus?

 

liuzhou's shot above shows that the green stem above is turning woody, so definitely not bamboo.

[Tere]

Back to the farm an hour ago, and one of the first jobs was a potter round the garden, glass of white wine in hand. All the fruit trees are well into leaf and doing well, apart from the Cox's which is yet to bud properly. It's very wick though so still probably OK.

 

My fruit cage is all sprouting well, apart from the summer raspberry which the xxx mole has taken to digging up. There's the largest molehill in the world right next to it. Harumph.

 

The asparagus bed is weedy but I see about 75% have little shoots (or big ones). I think it needs mulching more, the roots are somewhat exposed for my liking. I know it needs to be on the top of a ridge but there are limitations.

 

Wildflower meadow is not sprouting. It's possible the seed is just too old. But it needs a few weeks yet to be sure. If it looks pathetic by end of June emergency time.

[Thanks for the Crepes]

13 hours ago, Tere said:

My fruit cage is all sprouting well, apart from the summer raspberry which the xxx mole has taken to digging up. There's the largest molehill in the world right next to it. Harumph.

 

If you have a hunter cat, they might be able to make short work of your xxx mole. A dog might get it too, but they are not usually as efficient in hunting as a good cat. As long as the mole is there, your gardening dreams may not materialize. They move on after destroying whatever they are currently working on. I hate the xxx mole things too.

[Tere]

Heh. My usual mole control is my next door neighbour plus traps and shotgun, for the fields. I could see if he'd set a trap, trouble is it's all under membrane and gravelled so that's probably more mess than the xxx mole is currently making!

 

I'll have to hope he moves on

[Thanks for the Crepes]

@Tere, I wish you luck with your plan, but moles rarely move on except to more close by destruction. 

[Paul Bacino]

I had one plant last yr  ( gift from my Asian friend who owns a sushi place ) .. Now look

 

I usually eat mine with  Daikon and artesianal soy.. but will entertain other options?

 

Edited May 10, 2016 by Paul Bacino (log)

[KennethT]

@Paul Bacino I just planted some Vietnamese perilla - which is similar to the Japanese shiso.  It's good with a mixture of other herbs - try using it with thai basil, garlic chives and sawtooth coriander.  You can take virtually any protein, add the herbs, and maybe some rice noodles and make a lettuce wrap (even better if you use mustard greens) and then dip in some fish sauce mixed with lime juice and some chilis... simple and delicious.  Also good in salads.

[kayb]

Here at the plantation-light, crops are proceeding apace. I have thinned the yellow squash and zucchini once, and they need thinning again. The cucumbers are struggling a bit, with some sort of critter munching at their leaves. I have blooms on tomatoes, much earlier than I had expected. And the pole beans have peeked through the ground; I'll need to thin them and put cages up for them to run on, soon.

 

Yellow squash, left, and zucchini.

 

Cucumbers. These are all in the front flower bed. I'm going to call them "ground cover."

Tomato blossoms. This is a cherry tomato plant, but some of my Romas and some of my hybrids also have blooms. Nothing on my Bradley heirlooms yet.

Barely there, but we have the promise of Kentucky Wonder beans to come!

 

These photos were yesterday afternoon. Anxious to see how things look today after a good rain last night.

 

[Tere]

I plan to grow some shiso eventually and make a liqueur with it. Shiso gin and tonic is wonderful  (there is a commercial variety I used in Japan but I can't find the right one on an image search. It's a thing, anyway)

[Okanagancook]

Picked a couple of nice baby pak choi. Steamed and tossed with a little oyster sauce and soy sauce.

[KennethT]

Here's this evening's yu choi harvest (cooked about 10 minutes after harvest):

 

and here's what is still growing:

[KennethT]

Here's some updated pics of my Rau Ram plant....

 

Here is the hydro clone (that's been given a haircut several times):

 

And here's the mother, that's kind-of growing in soil... I say kind-of because it has long outgrown the pot in which it is planted, but I've been feeding it some hydro nutrient liquid every day, so the soil it's in is just acting like a root substrate, but not actually contributing anything

 

[shain]

Pittango (AKA Suriname cherry). It's an interesting fruit, it goes from green, to pink, maroon and dark black as it ripens, which happens quickly. While it's dark red and almost ripe, it tasted very tart and sweet. Once perfectly ripe, it turns dark red, almost black and almost all of the acidity disappears. At this stage it tastes complex and quite unique, but it falls off the tree with the lightest touch, making a successfully grabbed one a treat.

[huiray]

On 5/11/2016 at 7:37 PM, KennethT said:

Here's some updated pics of my Rau Ram plant....

 

Here is the hydro clone (that's been given a haircut several times):

 

And here's the mother, that's kind-of growing in soil... I say kind-of because it has long outgrown the pot in which it is planted, but I've been feeding it some hydro nutrient liquid every day, so the soil it's in is just acting like a root substrate, but not actually contributing anything

 

 

KennethT, both pots look very good!! Congrats and happy eating. I know you will greatly enjoy your bounty.

 

I confess I am still puzzled, however, that you do not seem to find this herb in NYC. Quite odd to me, even now, considering the number of Vietnamese folks and restaurants that are present in NYC and environs. But your growing it yourself fills the need for this for you.

 

Annnddd...just to stir the pot... :-) ... here's what I got today from my usual local Chinese grocery, packaged on one of those styrofoam trays wrapped in cling-wrap (from a multitude of such packages) and which I unwrapped and spread out a bit.

 

Their cost? US$1.29 for the lot.

 

I also stuck some partially-denuded sprigs (leaving the leading-tops) of some "tougher" stems of a previous package of Vietnamese coriander I got into a glass of plain tap water and plonked it in a sunny place. Here's a pic of them after a bit:

 

Cheers, huiray.

[KennethT]

@huiray Thanks for rubbing salt in my wounds!!! Actually, in Manhattan, there are very few Vietnamese restaurants... I gather there are more in parts of Queens and Brooklyn, but it would take much too long for me to get there and back to do any regular shopping there.  It takes way too long for me to get to Manhattan's Chinatown for regular purchases for that matter!

 

But, as you've shown, rau ram roots very very easily.... very nice!

[HungryChris]

Made a day trip into NYC yesterday (local library bus trip) and had kind of a hat trick of a day: 1. Lunch at Becco (one of our favorites), 2. finally got to see the musical, the Jersey Boys (absolutely loved it) and 3. got a big bunch of ramps at the Union Square Green Market to plant. My little trial patch has done well but,  simply put, I need more. As soon as I got home last night, I took them out of their sealed plastic bags to let them breath and put them out on the deck wrapped in wet newspaper.  Here is how they look this morning.

HC

 

[rustwood]

27 minutes ago, HungryChris said:

got a big bunch of ramps at the Union Square Green Market to plant.

 

Are you going to cut the bulbs and just plant the roots or are you planting the whole thing?  I just got a box of them yesterday and have saved the roots to plant, but there are some big clumps with all of the roots entangled and still covered with soil.  I am debating whether I should just plant them as they are or try to separate them to some extent.  Also whether or not to at least eat the leaves.  They weren't cheap so I'll be doubly bummed if I plant them whole and they don't come up again.

[Martin Fisher]

The best thing you can do is get them in the ground ASAP.

Edited May 15, 2016 by DiggingDogFarm (log)

[Tere]

Just done planting all the things in the new veg and cut flower beds. And I mean all the things! I'm just going to cut and paste from the spreadsheet record I've just filled in  If it says from Newtown by it it's from a plant and seed swap that's occasionally held at the localish community garden just over the border into Wales. The others are from one of the big seed suppliers (Mr. Fothergills).

 

The nasturtium and possibly the sunflower are for eating too  

 

Cutting flowers
Aster "Duchess Blue Ice"
Aster "Kingsize Appleblossom"
Cornflower "Blue Ball"
Cosmos "Purity"
Nasturtium "Tip Top Velvet"
Nigella "Persian Jewels"
Scabious Tall Double Mixed
Snapdragon "Purple Twist"
Sunflower "Little Dorrit" F1
Sweet Pea "Incense Mixed"
Zinnia "Envy"

 

Veg and Herbs
Basil
Borlotti or similar (from Newtown)
Broad bean "The Sutton"
Broccoli "Raab 60 days"
Carrot "Early Nantes 5"
Chard "Bright Lights"
Coriander "Calypso" (from Newtown)
Courgettes F1 hybrid mixed pack
Cucumber "Cornichon de Paris"
Dill (from Newtown)
Dwarf bean "Delinel"
Leek "Below Zero F1"
Mixed leaves (free from Chelsea)
Oka (from Newtown)
Oriental Tree Spinach (from Newtown)
Parsley, flat leaf (from Newtown)
Parsnip (from Newtown)
Pea "Kelvedon Wonder"
Rocket, large leaved (from Newtown)
Runner Bean "Firelight"
Salsify (from Newtown)
Spinach Beet perpetual spinach
Squash, Hokkaido (from Newtown)
Tarragon (from Newtown)
Tomato "Garden Pearl" (red)
Tomato "Maia" (yellow) (from Newtown)

[HungryChris]

1 hour ago, rustwood said:

 

Are you going to cut the bulbs and just plant the roots or are you planting the whole thing?  I just got a box of them yesterday and have saved the roots to plant, but there are some big clumps with all of the roots entangled and still covered with soil.  I am debating whether I should just plant them as they are or try to separate them to some extent.  Also whether or not to at least eat the leaves.  They weren't cheap so I'll be doubly bummed if I plant them whole and they don't come up again.

These were apparently wild harvested. Some still had roots and some did not. The ones that did have roots, I left the tops on and the ones that did not, I snipped the tops off. Those tops that I took off, I will cook. I think that they were harvested wild because the guy I got them from asked me what I was going to do with them and seemed amazed when I told him I intended to plant them. "And they actually come back?" was his response.

HC 

[Tere]

Ramson scapes are on my to do list. I've even found a seller on eBay. Next year....