MY GARDEN HAS INSOMNIA

When I lived in Eastern Canada gardeners were well assured of having a respite during the winter. It was a time when browsing through seed catalogues and placing an order was the highlight of winter gardening. Seed starting came next, geared towards being able to plant frost sensitive flowers and vegetables outside by May 24th. The garden slumbered under a thick layer of snow.

Now here I am in Texas with its unpredictable climate and often mild winters. Because I knew there was to be no winter travel this year it gave me the opportunity to be more diligent about planting a winter vegetable garden. It has been a great success.

 

 

We have had an unusually mild fall, although frost has made an appearance on several occasions necessitating the covering of my peas.  I was  determined to keep them going in order to get an early spring crop, but because of mild weather was rewarded with a winter crop. 

 

We have already devoured two crops of broccoli, pak choi and a succession of chard and kale not to mention peas, carrots and beets. All these plants are contained in beds in my vegetable garden. Even so there are many intruders in those beds chiefly larkspur, California poppies and the most successful seeder of all Love-in-a-mist. Known as hardy annuals this is their time to germinate, growing over the winter in time to flower in the early spring. I regret I have allowed them to take over. 

Those spaces between the pavers create an ideal spot in which seeds from last years flowers settle and particularly with Love-in-a-mist it seems every one germinates.  

And they found an even better home in the vegetable beds among the cilantro.

And poppies too.
 

And bluebonnets. Knowing how they can cover a diameter of 3' I may need to remove the one in the center of the path.

Every year I vow to keep those paths free of these opportunists and every year I relent which means even more will arrive every year. 

Blanket flowers, Gaillardia pulchella give me great difficulty. That is because they behave like perennials and these rather shop-worn plants are beginning to flower again. Soon they will have to go because they make a tripping hazard but I will leave them in case the bees come by looking for nectar or pollen. There are hundreds of seedlings just getting going.

It is my firm intention this year to reduce their numbers before they make it impossible to walk down the paths. 

Some plants don't seed quite so prolifically  so I am happy to see a few rose campion, Lychnis coronaria, just beginning to develop. I plan to remove them from where they are growing at the edge of the path to a more prominent position.

 Those that are a little larger will have to stay. A happy trio of rose campion, Lychnis coronaria, Gulf coast penstemon Penstemon tennuis,  and alyssum, Lobularia maritima. They are in the herb garden and will stay there.

Verbena bonariensis by the hundreds! I have already shared many and have potted some up in case of a some weather mishap. Last year's plants are looking strong and healthy but there is much winter to come yet. 

 Larkspur seedlings in the sunken garden. A little thinning required. They won't grow as large as the ones in the beds because the soil is poor. The same being true of love-in-a-mist.

Here is a plant that hasn't slept in 2 years, Scabiosa. One of my favorites in the rock garden becaseu its foliage is never touched by insects.

Someone once said my weeds were a lot different from theirs. The fact is a weed remains something that is growing in the wrong place and I have plenty of those.

DREAMING OF A GREEN CHRISTMAS

You may be dreaming of a white Christmas or there may be visions of sugar plums dancing through your head. Over here we are thinking of lots of greens. I am having a really super winter vegetable crop year. With only 2 frosty nights and lots of warm sunny days and a sprinkling of rain it must be perfect conditions. I even have peas! The first successful fall planting.

There's lots of this. Napa cabbage.

Although the the first pick doesn't have a very tight head I'm not complaining. You can see what dish I made at the end.

Homegrown broccoli is so tender there is no need to peel the stalks.

And lots more peas in the making.

This particular snap pea is called Cascadia. It is tender at all stages even when the peas have fattened up in the pod. You'll find it at Botanical Interests.

Delicious peppery arugula. Cut and grow back again.

Dinosaur kale, delicious stir-fried in olive oil with garlic.

More peppery mustard greens.

Beds of chard and broccoli.

Multiplying onions, from Bob and Renee. The lemon tree came out of the potting shed today and received a root pruning. We lifted it out of the pot, amended the soil bringing it up to the right level and pruned some of the long straggly roots.

I finally got around to thinning a row of the beets the other day, putting the trimming in a green smoothie.

So this is the salad we had the other night  using the Napa cabbage. It is Asian style with a peanut sauce. You can add whatever you have on hand. I used cauliflower, carrots, radish and bean sprouts. Topped with scallops and shrimp it makes a delicious meal. I have  Renee Studebaker to thank for the recipe, which she shared in the Austin American Statesman years ago. It's one of the reasons I grow Napa Cabbage.

Now to go outside and pick dinner.

THE NEW, TIDY ME

I know, you have heard it all before, but this past week I came to grips with how I must keep my pathways clear. Once again it was becoming ridiculous, having to walk on the vegetable beds to get anywhere. And it was time to think about the fall/winter garden.

I will say that the cedar mulch I put down in the early summer did the trick. Very few weeds to contend with. I have already planted snow peas, kale, chard, broccoli and Napa cabbage. I tried a new idea for seeding this year. I heard on Gardeners' Question Time the idea of laying pieces of 2x4 on the bare ground and mulching over the top. That way when you are ready to plant seeds you just lift the 2x4 and bare earth awaits. I didn't have a 2x4 so I used a length of drain pipe.

I had to remove the mulch first, amend the soil and then lay the mulch back down. It seems to work and arugula seeds planted 3 days ago are already germinating.
Napa cabbage is really coming along.

I am pleased to say I have limes this year. After my concern about the distorted flowers on the tree we have a nice crop.

Mexican limes

There are plenty of Meyer lemons but they are the smallest fruit I have ever seen. I shall have to blame that on the lack of summer rain although it may be they need root pruning. Either way the soil needs replenishing in the pots as in some cases it is 6" below the pot rim. No other lemon compares with a Meyer lemon.

I am feeling rather pleased with my new-found tidy look and moving next to the long vegetable beds. More of a challenge.

FRUITS OF THE GARDEN

Yesterday I picked a nice bunch of rhubarb, beets and one tomato. We have really enjoyed eating the rhubarb and I would count the experiment as a great success. We can only grow it as an annual in central Texas but I am really surprised how it achieved such a size, from seed, after 8 months. Two of the plants have wilted but the third is still producing. I noticed the price of fresh rhubarb in the store the other day was $6.99 lb. It was nice and pink but even though this variety, Victoria, is green it seems to be less astringent than most. Growing up we used to force rhubarb in the early spring, by putting a cover over the top. This would result in tender pink stalks. I did try that early on but the stalks grew long and lanky, probably because there wasn't sufficient root to hold the stalks up.

Beets have produced well this year and I make use of the tops and roots. We shall be having pasta with sauteed beets, basil pesto and parmesan tomorrow. Tonight the roasted beets will accompany a pork pozole, which has become a favorite. It has tomatillos in the recipe so I need to grow those next year.

The tomato is a mystery variety. Bought as Viva Italia, it was mislabeled.  No matter, the fruits are delicious and an early ripener. I have already picked 4. None of my other tomatoes are anywhere near ripening.