It has been so long since I have written on this site that I thought I would catch you up on what we are doing now in the garden.
This year we have grown most of the vegetables that I feature in my book The Survival Garden.
We planted much more of our garden in raised beds and doing has its advantages over growing in garden rows.
Using Raised Beds and Mulching Them
The advantages of planting in raised beds include the fact that we can plant intensively in the bed. We can also focus our resources. These resources include water, fertilizer, insect damage control tools, and disease prevention, and we can mow between the beds. In addition, because the beds aren’t walked on, the raised beds keep the soil aerated for the benefit of plant roots and soil microbes.
We mulch all our beds with our grass clippings. These grass clippings not only conserve water and protect the soil from getting too hot or too cold, but the grass clippings feed the soil by adding nitrogen and becoming food for the microbes too.
The Harvest Has Begun!
We’ve been eating greens from our “salad bar” for several weeks now. I pick and wash the greens and then use them in sandwiches and salads.
We just harvested our garlic and are now planting our sweet potatoes in the same area where we had the garlic. One day we pulled the garlic and cleared out the weeds and the next day we conditioned the soil and that evening we planted our sweet potato slips.
Our beans are growing fast. These are our beans last week.
Our bush beans are now blossoming, and our pole beans are diligently climbing the fences that we provided for them. By the end of this week, we will be picking the first bush beans. We should have enough to eat fresh and have some to either sell at farmers’ market or can. I will probably be doing a load of green bean canning next week.
Soon we will also harvest our potatoes too. These we’ll use to eat fresh, can in green beans and new potatoes, dry in the dehydrator, and prepare and freeze some for French fries and hash browns.
Our tomatoes, peppers, and onions are growing like crazy. We have blossoms and fruit on the tomatoes and peppers and the onions are developing bigger bulbs than we’ve had in this garden.
Our carrots are growing as are the beets. We hope these will be ready within the next few weeks as well.
I hope you take the time to read the book The Survival Garden and apply at least some of the methods so that you don’t have to can, freeze, or dehydrate all of your foods.
Last year and the year before last, I didn’t have that much luck with peppers. The year before last I had quite a few hot peppers, enough to add to the cucumbers for hot pickles and a few to dry, but not much else. Last year I had a few sweet peppers, but barely enough for the canning, I had to do. This year is a different story. I have plenty of peppers both hot and sweet peppers to do everything I want to do with them and then some. I sold a few peppers at the farmers market, but I am not the only one to have peppers there, so, I have had to figure out what to do with what I have.
Canning Hot Peppers
Last year I had to buy some hot peppers at the farmers’ market to make Rotel, so I have plenty of that. It’s just diced tomatoes and hot peppers that I canned together in vinegar and water. This year I am canning some sliced jalapeno peppers in vinegar water in half-cup jars so that I have a few to add to roasts when I cook them in the crockpot. I am also roasting a few larger hot peppers to add to bigger roasts. I don’t need many of those, but they come in handy.
I also have been making small amounts of red enchilada sauce. I first made the sauce and canned them in the half-cup jars but found that there really isn’t enough in a jar for a good batch of enchiladas so I am now making them in cup- and pint-sized jars. You want a good amount of red sauce when making enchiladas or burritos.
I have also used them in making salsa, but for now, I have some left over from last year and made enough for this year as well.
Drying Hot Peppers
When I don’t need to use them in canning, I dry most of the hot peppers. It’s as easy as cutting off the tops, cutting them in half, and laying them out on the food dryer to dry until they are crunchy crisp dry. If there’s any pliability left in them, I leave them longer. Right now, I am just putting the dried peppers into a sealed container. Later, I will put a lot of them through the food processor to grind them for chili powder.
I have a lot of cayenne peppers coming in, so I am drying them separately from the rest of the hot peppers. I’ll be making cayenne pepper powder with those later in the season as well. The process is the same as with the other peppers, but there’s nothing like good fresh cayenne when cooking.
Hot Pepper Sauce
One thing that I am not making that I would like to try perhaps next year is to make pepper sauces. I need to study more on the subject and then grow the right peppers for the project. I’ll let you know next year if I will be doing this.
Sweet Peppers
I use sweet peppers in many of my tomato products. I use them in my salsa along with the hot peppers and my tomatoes. I also use them in tomato sauce. I like making pasta sauce and pizza sauce. The pasta sauce I make in pint jars and the pizza sauce I make in half pint jars. This way I have just enough for a meal and not much more than that.
I have also used them in making relishes, but right now, I have more than enough relish from two years ago. We don’t use a lot of it so I’ll wait until next year before I make more. Also, this year I didn’t get a lot of cucumbers or zucchini squash so relish and pickles where the sweet peppers usually go aren’t a good option this year.
Most of the sweet peppers this year are going into the freezer. It’s a really simple process. I do the peppers two different ways. One way is that I cut them into strips to fry for sandwiches and the other is that I chop them up and spread them out on a cookie sheet and put them in the freezer. When they are frozen, I scrap them off the cookie sheet and put them into a bag, and then back into the freezer. This way, I can get as many or as few as I want at a time. To use them, don’t thaw them, but use them frozen in cooking. I like to use them in anything that I use peppers and onions in including omelets and fried potatoes O’Brien. They can also be added to soups and stews and other cooked dishes that require sweet peppers.
Do you have a bumper crop of peppers this year? If so, please share in the comments below, I would love to hear about it!
The harvest is coming in and many of these vegetables can be kept fresh all winter.
Though astrological fall doesn’t happen for another few days, metrological autumn is upon us here in the Ozarks and the harvest is coming in. Though we can get vegetables throughout the year, during the autumn, prices are the lowest that they are ever throughout the year. Autumn will get you better prices on vegetables of any form whether fresh, frozen, canned, or dehydrated. This has been true throughout history, and even though we have been able to get various types of food in recent years from all over the world thanks to transportation innovation, it’s still true today. Recently, the world has been in flux based on climate change, a worldwide pandemic, and war and this has affected not only our worldwide food supply but also how we are able to transport and prepare it. It is even more imperative than ever to have an adequate food supply on hand.
There is an expected worldwide food shortage and the more food we can get from local sources, the better. However, there is only so long that much of what we get locally can be used fresh. Tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, and the like can only last so long before they spoil. We can prepare many of these fresh foods for the freezer, can or dehydrate them for future use because they won’t keep as fresh vegetables. However, there are some vegetables that don’t need to be stored in any of these ways. They can be stored for several months beyond the time they are picked.
For any of these vegetables that you want to keep for several months, be sure to only store perfect specimens. Bug damage or cuts in the vegetables decrease their longevity.
Onions
Whether you get your onions from your garden, the grocery store, or buy them from a local grower, you can store onion bulbs for several months.
Although you can’t store green onions for longer than a few days, you can store onion bulbs for up to several months.
Before storing your onions, let the skins of the onions dry and their necks begin to shrivel. Spread the onions in a single layer. Keep the temperature around 40 degrees to 50 degrees Fahrenheit (4–10 degrees Celsius) to keep the onions longer. Store onions individually and don’t store them with the other fruits and vegetables since they can reduce the smell and taste of the onions. You can use a pantyhose to store the onions. Simply cut off the legs of the clean pantyhose, place an onion in the foot of the pantyhose, then tie a knot for each onion. Keep adding the onions until the foot is full. and hang the braided bags in a dry cool place with the recommended temperature.
Uncut onions will last several months this way. Use cut onions within two to three days.
Garlic
The storage temperature for the garlic is most important. The ideal temperature for storing garlic is 60–65 degrees Fahrenheit (15–18 degrees Celsius). Although keeping at this temperature is not easy, the closer you can keep your garlic at these temperatures, the longer the garlic will keep. Keep your garlic away from your stove or heat source.
Don’t store them in the refrigerator because it is too cold. and its moisture causes the garlic to rot sooner. Nor should you store it in plastic because it prevents air circulation, increases moisture, and speeds up disintegration. Better to store garlic in a cupboard in a paper bag (or no bag at all) than in it is to store them in the refrigerator or a drawer.
Potatoes
Potatoes thrive in humid conditions. This durable crop is comprised of 80 percent water. The best places to store them long-term should be dark, well-ventilated, and cool areas — but not cold and where they won’t freeze. Keeping temperatures below 55 to 67 degrees Fahrenheit (12 to 19 Celsius) will prevent the growth of sprouts on potatoes longer and reduce both shrinkage and a loss of nutrients. Ideally, keeping potatoes between 43 to 55 degrees Fahrenheit (6–12 Celsius) will allow them to keep for multiple months without rotting or sprouting eyes especially if they are varieties that are meant to keep longer (indeterminant late potatoes).
Sweet Potatoes
Newly harvested sweet potatoes with the roots still attached are the best option to use. Plump vegetables have more usable flesh to eat than skinny ones. It is even more important to be sure that sweet potatoes are not bruised. Shake off the dirt, but don’t wash.
Sweet potatoes should be cured for one to two weeks. This curing process forms a second skin over scratches and bruises. Place in a location where you can keep temperatures between 75–80 degrees Fahrenheit (24–27 degrees Celsius) with a relative humidity of 90 to 95 percent. Use a small electric fan in the area to keep the air circulating to prevent rotting and molding. Do not allow sweet potatoes to touch one another. Cure in this manner for between 7–14 days for longer storage.
Once the sweet potatoes are cured, wrap each one in newspaper. This will allow just enough air circulation to prevent the sweet potatoes from rotting too quickly. Store these individually-wrapped sweet potatoes in a cardboard or wooden box, or wooden basket. Do not use an airtight storage container. Place an apple in the box to prevent the sweet potatoes from sprouting. Store the box in a cool dark place, maintaining a consistent temperature of 55–60 degrees Fahrenheit (13–16 degrees Celsius), a basement or root cellar is ideal. Do not refrigerate. Stored this way, sweet potatoes last up to six months.
Carrots
Don’t wash the carrots before storing them. Simply remove the green tops. Store in a temperature around 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius). Store in a wooden box with slightly dampened sand. Spread sand out on the bottom of the box and the first layer and then put carrots inside without the carrots touching.
Continue adding alternate layers of sand and carrots until you have stored the whole harvest. The carrots will keep fresh for several months.
Beets
Beets are easy to store in the refrigerator. Properly stored beets can last for weeks or even months. Remove beet greens, don’t wash them, and store them in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. Simple.
Turnips
Store undamaged roots. Gently rub soil from the roots before storing them. Store the turnips in a cold moist location at or near freezing (32–40 degrees Fahrenheit or 0–4 degrees Celsius) and at 95 percent humidity. Store them in a wrapped moist cloth or paper towel in a perforated plastic bag in the vegetable drawer in the refrigerator. Turnip roots can also be packed in a bucket or plastic storage container or cooler in moist sand, peat moss or sawdust.
Corn (Maize)
Corn dried on the stalk and further air dried so that it can be stored indefinitely when removed from the cob and stored in sealed mylar bags. The corn can be used to make corn flour or meal or made into hominy and ground into grits.
Dried beans
Beans seeds can be dried on the vine, further air dried, and shelled. Heat beans in the oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit (100 degrees Celsius) and place them in a container or seal them in a mylar bag for extended preservation.
Peas
Treat peas in the same way that you prepared the dried beans.
Squash and Pumpkins
To store winter squash, you’ll need ripe fruits. To determine ripeness, push a fingernail into the rind. If it is hard and nearly impossible to pierce, it’s ready. Cut the squash off with pruners and leave a 3-inch (8 cm.) stem for pumpkins and 1 inch (2.5 cm.) for winter squash. The stem helps prevent rot when you are keeping winter squash in storage.
After you harvest the squash, rinse off the dirt and lay the squash into a single layer to prevent damage to the rind. Next, you’ll want to cure the rinds against moisture, insects, mold, and bacteria. Cure the squash for ten days at temperatures of at least 80 degrees F. (27 C.) and 80 percent humidity. Acorn squash doesn’t need to be hardened off, as they lose their quality. Turn the squash occasionally to expose all sides to air.
Store the squash by lowering the temperature. Every 18-degree reduction in temperature increases the time for storing winter squash. Keeping winter squash in a temperature of 50 to 55 degrees Fahrenheit (10–13 Celsius) is the optimum range for most squash. Good ventilation is a necessity for keeping squash.
You Will Save Money
Storing these fresh vegetables whether purchased from the grocery store, a local source or grown in your own garden will save you a lot of money in your grocery bills without having to do anything more than store them until you can eat them.
For More Information
You will discover more about these vegetables in The Survival Garden.
This year our raised beds did better than other beds so this next year we will be building more raised beds.
The cost of food is rising faster than any other purchases we make regularly. One of the ways that many of us are helping to make ends meet is through gardening. Things are not expected to get any better (or even worse) next year, so my husband and I are streamlining our gardening process with garden beds and saving money where we can.
Get Good Quality Tools
The first thing that we did was to purchase good quality tools to work with. Not purchasing cheap tools may not sound like a way to save money in the garden, but it will in the long run. Last year we purchased inexpensive hoses and this year we are having to replace them with better hoses because the hoses we purchased didn’t last. By spending a little more now, if we maintain them properly, the hoses should last us several years rather than one season.
Going No-till
After having more success with our raised beds this past spring and summer in our two raised beds where we grew our best tomatoes and hot and sweet peppers (along with annual flowers and herbs), we decided to build even more raised beds using as many free materials as possible.
We are building the raised beds using lumber seconds that we get from our local lumber yard. E Because they aren’t perfect boards, we are getting a discount on them. We don’t use treated lumber because treated lumber emits poisons into the soil which we don’t want.
We find that 2×8 foot lumber is right for the job and the least expensive length to purchase is 8-foot boards. We use three of the boards. We cut one in half for both ends so that we have a bed that is 4×8 feet long. We screw the boards together and brace them in the corners. We prepare the soil under where the bed is going. We mow the grass at the lowest setting and then apply chicken manure in the area and cover it with local sawdust. We then cover that with cardboard and place enough down so that it extends beyond the raised bed frame.
Once the frame is in place, it is time to fill it. We add a couple inches of sawdust and scatter chicken manure over that and then add as much topsoil as we can get on top of that. Next, we use a simple sheet composting system to fertilize the ground during the off-season.
Simple Compost of Household Waste
One of the easiest ways to utilize compostable materials from the house is to put them directly in the garden area where you want to grow your plants next season. Personally, I like to just drop the garbage onto the growing surface during the non-growing season and allow the chickens free range in the area, to eat what they want and leave their own droppings behind. Then when I plant the area, I put a fence around it to keep the birds out as well as other wildlife.
Shred yard wastes for mulch
This fall when we mow the lawn, we capture all of the grass clippings in our grass catcher and incorporate them with the household wastes that we are bringing into the raised beds. This way, when the chickens scratch the surface, they are incorporating the clippings into the first few inches of the soil for the soil microbes.
We also incorporate fall leaves into the garden beds. Again, we use the lawnmower to chop up the leaves and gather them and then dump them into the beds. The chickens turn the materials in the bed for us to add to the ingredients of food for soil microbes.
Use Saved Seeds
I have looked at the price of seeds recently and I understand why people say that the price of gardening is so expensive. I started collecting my own seeds in the fall to use for the next year. Seed saving, however, is a skill, and not every seed is handled the same way for it to be viable. However, the skills are not difficult to learn.
We Grow Our Own plants
This past year we grew more of our own plants for transplants from seeds than we had in the past. The process of growing seeds for transplants involves some expenses at the beginning like you need good lighting or your seedlings will get too leggy to plant and you should use the proper germinating medium in which to grow it. We discovered that growing our own plants from seed too takes skill, but it also saved us a lot of money.
Recycle Items in the Garden
Above, I mentioned using household garbage, yard waste, and cardboard in making our garden beds, but there are so many other things that we recycle in the garden. We use plastic milk jugs to pick berries and to make cloches to cover plants on cool early spring days and nights.
We also could also poke holes in the bottom of them and bury them around newly planted tomatoes and peppers and fill them every few days with water to soak in around the plant roots over an extended period. Watering this way is better than surface watering because we’d be watering at the roots of the plants and not allowing the water to evaporate before it benefits the plants.
Now It’s Your Turn
There you have it, the seven ways that we are saving time and money for next gardening season. I would love to hear what other ways you use to save time and money in the garden. What do you do?
I remember when I was a kid, my mother had an elderberry bush at one corner of the house and every year she would pick the berries and we would have elderberry and blackberry or elderberry and apple upside-down cakes and pies throughout the winter season. She also made elderberry jelly which we ate regularly on toast and on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
As an adult now, I don’t have my own elderberry bush, but recently my husband and I have been harvesting some down by the river. Two years ago, we made an elderberry tonic, which not only tasted good but supposedly kept us from getting respiratory illnesses. (Neither of us caught C-19 but that might have also been because we also got our C-19 shots.)
This year my husband wants me to make more tonic, but I really want to make some jelly. He’s planning to go back to the river to get more so perhaps we can do both.
Elderberries are highly nutritious, can be used medically, in personal care, and is also delicious.
Elderberry Nutritional Value
Elderberries are high in vitamin C (52.2 milligrams per cup) and dietary fiber (10.2 grams per cup). One cup of elderberries also has 26.7 grams of carbs, 0.7 grams of fat, and one gram of protein.
Elderberry Uses
Elderberry is an antioxidant, and researchers think the compound that makes it blue lowers inflammation. This same color can be used for food coloring.
If you don’t need elderberries to produce the color you can use them for something else because elderberries have many uses. They can be used medically and made into syrups, tonics, tinctures, gummies, lozenges, pills, and teas.
They can also be used in body lotions, jams, baked goods (with another fruit is best), and wine.
Elderberry Warnings
Always cook your elderberry berries before consuming and never eat any of the rest of the plant or unripe berries because they contain poison. Other parts of the elder tree, including the branches, twigs, leaves, roots, and seeds contain a type of cyanide called glycoside.
Poisoning can cause nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Larger amounts can cause more serious poisoning symptoms.
Never consume elderberry if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
Individuals with an immune deficiency may have reactions to elderberry.
If you get a rash or have trouble breathing after you have some, you might be allergic to it.
Because it’s a diuretic, be careful when you take it if you’re also using medicines that make you pee more.
Always consult your doctor if you’re thinking about taking elderberry.
Planting My Own Elderberries
I want to grow elderberries where I live so that I don’t have to go down to the river to harvest some. One of the things that I just did which might produce elderberry bushes is I threw the elderberries that I am not using for the tonic and jelly into the perennial garden at the edge of the yard and perhaps they will grow. If not, I have other alternatives in mind.
Elderberries are supposed to be easy to grow from cuttings so this fall, we are going to get some of the cuttings from some of our favorite plants down by the river and plant those cuttings along with willow cuttings with the intention of having both root into the soil. Willow cuttings have a natural growth hormone that stimulates growth in other plants including elderberries.
If that doesn’t work, I can still purchase elderberry plants either at a nursery or online and can even purchase elderberry seeds online as well. As you can tell, I want to add elderberries to my own yard.
How about you? Do you grow elderberries? What’s your favorite way of using them? Please share in the comments below.
Baking bread from scratch is one of the most basic skills for anyone who wants to develop self-sufficiency and create a perpetual homestead can learn.
I remember when I was a kid going to Dad’s cousin,s house. She worked out of her home before it was cool and baked bread and rolls for a locally owned store. I always liked to go to her house because it always had the wonderful smells of fresh, baked bread and any time I had a meal at her house, we always had some of that wonderful homemade bread. Sometimes I was there when she was making it and I learned a few of her breadmaking.
As an adult, I have learned that I am able to duplicate her breadmaking process and I am sharing some of what I know now.
Basic White Bread
Into a large preferable glass bowl (glass holds heat better than plastic or metal) put 2 ½ cups lukewarm water and sprinkle in two tablespoons of powdered yeast. Dissolve the yeast in the water.
Once dissolved, add a quarter cup of sugar. Let bowl of mixture set until yeast begins to bubble in the water mixture. Once the bubbling begins to occur, add ¼ cup of vegetable oil, one egg, and 1 ½ teaspoons of salt to the mixture. If the bubbling doesn’t occur, you’ll want to throw out the contents of the bowl and the yeast and get a new batch of it.
Next mix in 8 cups of white all-purpose or unbleached flour. The last of the flour you will probably have to mix in on the counter or a board. Add more or less flour depending on the consistency of the ball of dough.
Once you have the ball of dough at the right consistency and sitting on the counter or board, wash out the bowl and add a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil to the bowl and place the dough in the bowl. Coat the dough with the oil and cover with a towel. Put the bowl of dough into a warm location to rise.
Once the dough is doubled, punch down and form the dough into two loaves. Place loaves of dough into two greased 9×4 ½ inch bread pans, brush vegetable oil on the top of the loaves and allow to rise until doubled. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Without punching down, place loaves into oven. Bake at temperature of fifteen minutes then lower temperature to 350 degrees and bake until bread sounds hollow when tapped on the top. Remove from pan and tap on bottom. If the bread still sounds hollow, the bread is done.
Remove the bread from the pans and brush bread with melted butter to make soft bread crusts. Allow to cool before serving the bread.
Other Types of Bread
You can adapt this bread recipe for other types of bread easily.
For a crispier crust, don’t brush on the butter after baking.
For French bread, make an elongated loaf and sprinkle with seeds or herbs if desired.
For rolls, shape into rolls and place on a cookie sheet.
Whole Wheat Bread
Substitute 4 cups of whole wheat with 4 of the cups of all-purpose or unbleached flour
Rye Bread
Substitute 4 cups of rye flour with 4 cups of the all-purpose or unbleached flour
Potato Bread
Substitute 2 cups of mashed potatoes or dried mashed potatoes for two of the cups of all-purpose or unbleached flour can use in other types of bread as well to reduce over-all all-purpose flour needed.
Sweet rolls or Loaves of Cinnamon Bread
Roll out the dough and spread softened butter onto the dough.
Sprinkle cinnamon over the butter then sprinkle a generous amount of brown sugar over that and then another layer of cinnamon over the brown sugar. Add another generous amount of softened butter on top of that. Roll the dough as tightly as possible. Cut the dough into rolls or just into loaves. Allow the bread to rise and bake.
Tips for Successful Bread Making
Store yeast in the freezer to keep it fresh.
Make sure that the liquid (water) that you use is lukewarm, not hot, and not cold as this can prevent the bread from rising.
In cold temperatures, prewarm the bowl that you’re using for rising the bread.
If your yeast doesn’t bubble after sugar is added, don’t add the rest of the ingredients. If your water was warm enough, discard the water mixture and get different yeast.
Work your dough until it is elastic and not too dry and not too wet to work. If it still sticky and sticking to the working surface, add a little more flour.
If you want a softer crust, brush with butter. If you want a crispier crust, don’t brush with butter.
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Maybe it is because we have just exited an intense drought and it has been raising, but I have started working on my fall garden and have been thinking about what I can do to extend the crops that survived the 100-plus degree heat.
Last week my post was about the vegetables that I am going to be planting during the next couple of weeks. Here’s a link to that post. My focus on this blog this week, however, is to demonstrate ways that we can extend the harvest past the first frost in the fall.
Extending your garden beyond the normal autumn season is much like extending beyond the normal spring season except that you’re protecting bigger plants.
That’s right, ways do exist to extend vegetables like tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, and peppers beyond the first autumn frost with the use of a season extender.
Many of the early season frosts can be made harmless to a plant simply by using a simple season extender. Often an early season frost would come and then warm weather would come and if the crop is not protected it will freeze and vines and fruits can be damaged. By using one of these season extenders even just one night, frost damage can be put off up to an entire month in which the plants can continue to grow and fruits can continue to mature.
A season extender can be used to trap heat from the sun to keep your plants and soil warmer as the temperatures outside dip down. It also protects your crops from the wind and snow, creating to a micro-climate in your garden.
Recycled Sheets
The first way that I learned to extend the harvest beyond the first frosts of the autumn season was to throw old bed sheets over plants like squash and cucumbers to keep the plants from an overnight frost. This was very effective for this type of plant with early frosts. These do need to be removed every morning, however.
Cold Frame
Another way to extend a harvest is to erect cold frames around plants that are growing. A simple cold frame can be erected by setting square hay bales around a group of plants and then putting old windows in frames over the bales or even covering them with sheets of plastic. Remove the plastic or window frames if the weather becomes warm and sunny or you’ll cook your plants.
Floating Row Covers
Purchased floating row covers do well for protecting long rows of vegetables from frost and these don’t have to be removed every day. These hold in the heat, create ventilation and allow rain to percolate down to the plants. To keep floating row covers from blowing away, be sure to anchor the edges of the row cover with rocks, sandbags, or bricks.
Greenhouse
The ultimate season extender is a greenhouse. Although this doesn’t do much for extending the season of plants that are already in the ground, you can plant a late crop of those same crops in the greenhouse to last you well into the winter months. If you heat the greenhouse, it can last even longer! However, greenhouses are expensive.
High Tunnel
A high tunnel is a greenhouse-like structure that you could put over an existing bed to extend your harvest longer into the winter months and are much less expensive. An easy high tunnel to build is made of cattle panels, supports, and sheets of plastic. They are fairly easy to build, and directions are available in many sources.
Low Tunnel
Another alternative is a low tunnel it is a cross between floating row covers and the high tunnel and can be used in conjunction with a high tunnel for additional season extension.
Cloche
If you only have one or two plants that you want to protect and that plant isn’t too tall like a pepper plant, you can build a simple cloche using a large tomato cage and plastic. Put the large tomato cage around the pepper plant and cover the cage with plastic. Remove plastic if the weather turns sunny and warm.
So what do you use or plan to use to extend your garden into the fall months? Please share in the comments below
Gardening recently has become a popular way for many people to make ends meet and creating a fall garden is a great way to extend your harvest longer into the season.
We’ve been in a drought with temperatures over 100 degrees Fahrenheit for the past two months and rain and the temperatures have fallen so I am feeling that it is time to plan to plant my fall vegetable garden.
What I Have Done So Far
Last week I planted broccoli and cabbage indoors and now I intend to plant them outdoors within the next couple of weeks. If I had any seed for it, I would also have planted Brussel sprouts, but I don’t have any available now. I do have seeds for other vegetables. Here are some vegetables that I will be planting during the next couple of weeks.
Green Beans
One of the first vegetables that I am going to be planting is more bush beans. I already pulled out the bush bean I had grown earlier this season. I would like more fresh beans than the pole beans that I have so another planting of bush beans would be good not only for eating fresh but also to add to what I have canned already.
Greens and herbs
Another group of crops I intend to plant soon is greens. Greens come in many forms. Lettuce, arugula, beet greens, spinach, collards, and kale all can extend the vegetable harvest well into the autumn months. These are easy to plant, but you’ll want to plant them deeper than you would in the spring. Once planted, water every day until the plants become well established. Pick the outer leaves rather than taking the whole plant to help extend the harvest.
Some herbs like parsley, cilantro, and chives love the cooler weather. The cilantro can be allowed to go to seed. The parsley will produce until well into the winter months and the chives are a perennial that will come back season after season.
Root Crops
Root crops are another group of vegetables that grow well in the winter. Carrots, turnips, and beets all do well and will produce edible roots before snow flies. In many cases, you can make several plantings in succession every couple of weeks to guarantee a large harvest that you can keep over the winter months.
Radishes that take a month or less to produce can also be grown in succession and I will probably start growing some myself probably starting in September once temperatures cool down at night. I can also plant these in succession every week and may be able to continue to eat these along with the greens well into December and beyond if the weather stays mild.
One of the nice things about being a perpetual homesteader is that there are foods that I am now growing that I didn’t have to plant this year. I have taken some permaculture practices and added them to my homestead so that I don’t have to reinvent the proverbial wheel every year by planting a strictly annual garden.
Today I want to share some of the fruits and vegetables that I planted last year that I don’t have to replant this year.
Strawberry Plants
When I lived back in Springfield, I was growing these strawberries and brought them with me when I moved here. I have a nice little patch of strawberry plants growing. Though I plan to move them to a better larger location next year, this year, I’ll have a nice little supply for us to eat.
Asparagus
Planted next to the strawberries is the asparagus. They take three years to get up to eating size. I started these from seed back in Springfield so they are a year shy of us being able to eat them, and they are almost to the size we want. We didn’t get any of the asparagus this year, but the chickens enjoyed a few choice spears. Next year we should be getting a decent crop for our own use. I am sure they will be worth the wait!
Baby Peach
Here on my peach tree, I have the first of two peaches growing. I am really excited because these are the first peaches I have ever grown. The variety is resistant to several peach diseases and insects. I am still learning about the various natural means of protecting these peaches from those problems.
I planted the peas this year, but is dill that I planted the year before last is coming in strong for the third year! This plant is not a perennial like the previous plants that I have shown. It is a self-seeding annual among several self-seeding plants that I have not had to plant this year. The rest of the vegetables that I am showing on this blog are also self-seeding annual vegetables.
Self-seeded potatoes
Though I planted a lot of potatoes this year, I found that a whole row of self-seeded potatoes also came up in the area where I planted last year. Potatoes, of course, are not usually grown from seed, but from tubers from the year before. It looks as though I didn’t get all the potatoes last year but that’s okay because it just means we’ll have more to eat this year!
I also have some lettuce and radish seeds that seeded themselves and in a day or two, I’ll be able to make a salad from these early vegetables.
If you’re interested in learning more about how you can create your own perpetual homestead, I am working on a book series called The Perpetual Homesteader series that shows tips on how you too can produce a perpetual homestead of your own. In the meantime, check out my other gardening books. Simply Vegetable GardeningThe Survival Garden And my latest book The Four Seasons Garden Get your copies today!
What do you do when your garden is too wet to plant?
For the past month, we have had warm dry weather intermittent with cold wet weather and mornings where frost has nipped certain plants that we were able to get into the garden. That changed this past week. Now the temperatures are perfect, but rain has become the issue. This past week, we have had a lot of rain that inundated many of what we had planted. The water-logged ground prevent us from being able to plant the rest of the garden as well.
Many gardens in the western United States are suffering from excessive dryness and much has been spoken about what they do about excessive dryness. However, not as much is written about flooded gardens and what to do about it. Therefore, if flooding is an issue for your garden, this post is for you. Many people would have just raised their hands in defeat, but here are some ways that I am dealing with the flooding problem in my garden.
Raised Some Garden Beds
Every year, this time of year, we get more rain than what we can use in the spring. Therefore, because we knew this is a yearly occurrence, one of the things that we did earlier this year was build a couple of raised beds for some of our plants. The tomato plants in those raised beds are doing well and are growing, but the ones along the fence in the main garden were swimming in pools of water. We’ll no doubt be growing more of our tomatoes in raised beds next year.
Dig a Trench
Another thing that we have done is dig trenches the length of the garden bed perpendicular to the slope so that the water runs into the trenches and doesn’t wash the soil off the side of the slope. If soil runs anywhere, it will run into the trenches which is why we took an additional step so that the soil wouldn’t just run into those trenches.
Filled the Trenches with Organic Material
Because the soil is still so cool and saturated, we decided that we didn’t want to put mulch around the plants just yet. Instead, we are adding organic material to the trenches. We use these trenches for pathways between the garden beds. We’ve been using sawdust and a small amount of chicken manure as a sort of water collection system. This way, much of the water that sheds off the land into the trenches is absorbed by the organic material. Any soil that washes off the beds washes into the trenches and mingles with the organic material. The water is thereby stored in the garden for the months when the rain stops which around here is just after Independence Day. The organic material and the soil that came off the beds become food and home for soil microbes and earthworms and incorporate into the soil for future gardens.
No Tiller When Planting in Wet Ground
Often around here, the soil this time of year is so saturated that we are unable to plant using conventional methods once the rain does start to fall in the spring. Therefore, we must get a little unconventional in our techniques.
We do a lot of our garden prepping in the winter when it doesn’t rain as much, and we use a broad fork rather than a tiller. We don’t use a tiller partly because we have clay soil that if worked when wet becomes like adobe. Another reason we don’t use a tiller is that tilling destroys the garden tilth. And if that isn’t enough, tilling brings up weed seeds that have long been buried in the soil. A broad fork doesn’t create any of these problems except when the soil is saturated like it is now, so we have to get even more creative if we want to plant our spring garden in the spring which is our rainy season.
Planting in Saturated Ground
Because our soil is primarily clay, we have started to add small amounts of organic sandy loam to our garden in exactly the places where we need it most and that is on top of newly planted seeds. In some cases, for large seeds like corn and beans, I dig a row in the ground, put in a little organic kelp and the seeds, and cover with the sandy loam soil. Sometimes, especially with smaller seeds like carrots and lettuce, I broadcast the seed over the soil and sprinkle the sandy loam soil over the planted area. The plants come up in a few days.
How about you? What challenge is this garden season bringing to you? Please share your questions and comments below.
Sweet potato vines and roots from the garden. Will plant vines in tires in the garden in the spring.
Having a highly productive garden doesn’t require a lot of space, but I find gardening very satisfying no matter what the size.
Great If You Don’t Have Much Space
Container gardening might be the answer if you don’t have much space. A few years ago, I lived in a house where the only outside space I had was a concrete patio that faced east. For two years I grew a small container garden on that patio. I grew potatoes, cherry tomatoes, green beans, peppers, lettuce, and strawberries in five-gallon buckets and plastic pots. Of course, I didn’t grow enough to grow everything that my family ate, but it was something.
Use Containers to Get a Jump on the Season
In the later winter and into the early spring of 2020 I started planting seeds indoors that I knew I would plant in my garden at our new place. Even though I had not moved yet I had lots of different seedlings growing from herbs to onions to tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and even sweet potatoes had been started in dirt ready to be planted outdoors.
That year, I didn’t plant anything to stay in containers but instead grew to plant directly in the ground. The garden was fantastic. I was even able to can some of what we produced there on the property.
Why I Now Grow Both in Ground and In Containers
In 2021, however, I decided to try a little experiment and planted some potatoes in plastic buckets, but most of them I planted in the ground. I knew enough about how to plant each variety. The red potatoes that I planted in the buckets did well, better than the red ones that I put in the ground. When the buckets were ready to harvest, all that I had to do was dump it out on a tarp and collect the potatoes. I then took one of the small potatoes from the pile of potatoes and planted it in fresh dirt to see if I could get another crop from those potatoes. At first, the potato didn’t grow (I guess because the temperatures were too hot, but when the temperatures were optimal, they started growing and I had a crop before frost. I am guessing that the crop might have been bigger if I would have brought them inside when frost threatened.
Planting Sweet Potatoes in Tires
This year, I decided to plant some potatoes in the buckets as well. I intend to plant a bucket every week for ten weeks. (I have done six weeks already). The plan is that this would make it possible for us to have fresh potatoes available to us all summer long. Because I don’t have a lot of buckets this year, I plan to recycle bags that I got potting soil in. I just poked a few holes in the bottom of the bags for drainage and planted like I usually do. In addition, I planted potatoes in tires to contain them so that they are easier to dig as well. I am doing the same with sweet potatoes.
Sweet potatoes are an interesting project for me because I have been saving roots left from one year’s harvest, planting them indoors in containers, and then replanting them outdoors when all danger of frost has passed. I have planted them in two tires one on top of the other and filled with dirt. I plant them in tires so that they stay warm. They are easy to care for. I just make sure they get enough water and they love water. They are easy to harvest. When the plant dies back or frost threatens in the fall, I just kick off the top tire and pick up the sweet potatoes. I gather up a few of the roots and plant them indoors for the next year. They are that easy for me to grow.
Other Containers I am Planting
In addition, I have some sweet peppers planted in containers so that I can get some peppers as early as possible as well. I could do the same with tomatoes, especially our cherry tomatoes, but we already have them in the ground. I am thinking about planting some flowers in pots and putting them around the garden where I want pollinators to come and do their thing. I haven’t done that yet, but I think it’s a good idea.
We are starting to grow our tomatoes and peppers in raised beds this year and plan to do more during the next few years.
Our garden isn’t all that big. We don’t have a quarter acre in vegetable gardens, but we hope that our garden will provide more than enough vegetables for my husband and I this year. We have a 40×40 foot garden that has been in a conventional row system for the past two years, but this year, we plan to put in some smaller raised beds and will eventually replace the conventional garden with raised beds in the same area.
Our conventional garden had a lot of success. However, the garden required a lot of work just to get into shape for the following year. That’s why I am working to advance my entire garden to raised beds.
Why Raised Beds?
If you’re a beginner gardener, raised beds are for you because they remove many of the barriers that you face. Though raised beds require a little more upfront investment, it guarantees better success that first year. Build a box, add some soil, throw in some compost, sow some seeds, sprinkle on some water, and something will grow. This is much better than tilling, fertilizing, tilling again, seeding, weeding, weeding and weeding some more and then bending over or fighting hard rocky soil to get vegetables out of the ground.
A raised bed will up my soil for the easiest possible gardening. The less work, the better. Rather than tilling the soil every year to add fertilizer and amendments, I will be maintaining my raised beds by simply adding materials on top.
It will save me lots of work. Compost, mulches, manures, and other soil conditioners can all go directly onto the top few inches of the soil without the need for backbreaking work. The soil can do its own tilling as worms and roots push their way through. While regular mechanical tilling depletes the soil structure, adding organic material builds up the organic component of your soil over time. Instead of compacting the soil where the plants are growing, I walk on the paths between the beds, and never on the beds themselves.
I am getting older and I can use all the help I can get to continue gardening. A raised bed reduces back and knee strain. A raised bed, especially one that is at least twelve inches tall, can resolve debilitating back and joint pain. Building raised beds is an investment in my health.
Raised beds help keep pests out of the garden too. The tall sides of a raised garden box will slow down the migration of slugs and potentially rabbits into your garden. In addition, some gardeners attach copper flashing to their boxes to keep the slugs out. If you install chicken wire to the bottom of the box, you’ll prevent digging animals, like moles and voles from eating your root crops. Dogs are also less likely to urinate on your box. If deer are a problem, consider placing inexpensive six-foot bamboo fencing around your garden area. Though the fencing is lightweight and easy to move, deer won’t jump the fence because they can’t see through it. Uniformly designed raised beds are easy to add prebuilt plastic hoops to them for bird barriers, cold frames, or row covers.
A raised bed offers better drainage. Early in the gardening season, my garden is prone to flooding. The most popular depth for a raised bed is eleven inches, which is one inch below the sides of a twelve-inch high garden box. For most crops, this is enough drainage and gives plants almost a foot of extra breathing room above wet conditions. Raised beds also tend to drain better in general, even in heavy rains.
My garden will have fewer weeds and crabgrass. This was the biggest reason I am not using conventional rows. My garden became inundated with Bermuda grass, a perennial shallow-rooted grass that doesn’t quit during drought or deluge. This is wonderful grass for my lawn but chokes out everything in my garden if I don’t stay on top of it.
I don’t have to till. Tilling germinates more weeds by burying weed seeds and giving them the perfect opportunity to propagate. It also uncovers weeds that have been buried too deep to germinate. To make gardening even easier, I cover my beds with mulch, and cardboard, after a quick clean-up and dig with a broad fork in the fall to kill any of the plants that might grow during the winter. When it’s time to start planting again, I simply rake off the dead weeds before they have a chance to go to seed. I’m learning that one of the most effective ways to battle crabgrass is with a raised bed. I put cardboard on the bottom of my beds before I fill them to stop the grass from infiltrating.
Raised beds can be planted earlier in the season than conventional rows. Early planting in raised beds is possible because the soil dries out faster in the spring and warms more quickly for planting than soil at ground level. Many gardeners also find a surprising number of plants have overwintered in a raised bed that usually wouldn’t otherwise. This partly relates to the type of soil in the bed. If untilled and fortified with compost, your soil will regulate temperatures better than disturbed, nutrient-poor soil. In addition, raised beds can be retrofitted with a cold frame that helps warm the soil.
Planting in beds save me space because I’m able to plant closer within the bed than I would if I had to weed between each row. The closely planted garden vegetation will require less space than it would if the plants were planted in rows. If a plant gets a disease, I can easily pull it out and replace it with another. I can also plant smaller quicker growing plants between larger slower growing plants and get more than one harvest in that bed.
Other Situations Where Raised Beds Would Benefit
Raised beds look good, especially if the only decent place you find to grow your garden is in your front yard. In the city, a raised bed may be needed to keep neighbors from complaining. I have my garden beds in the front yard because the ground in the backyard slopes to the south and the neighbor’s trees block the sun. Because I planned the bed spacing to specifically accommodate my lawnmower, I’ll be able to mow the pathways between my raised beds and create a distinct separation between the bed and those pathways. This will decrease the need for weeding because I won’t have to weed those pathways. A pass with my lawnmower and my garden path looks manicured. Throw in a few strategically placed flowers in the front garden beds and my garden will become a showplace.
If you’re not in your forever home like I am, raised beds may be the best answer for you. Raised beds don’t have to be permanent. If you don’t own your garden area and you’re not sure if your landlord would allow you to have a garden, talk to them about your plans and show how aesthetically pleasing your raised beds can be. A neat and properly built garden box can enhance property values and be a feature rather than an eyesore. If the landlord still says no, a temporary garden can be built by using a removable garden box. The box is simply set on the ground, cardboard is placed over the grass inside, and the box is filled with soil. When you move, take the box with you, spread out the soil, and throw down grass seeds.
With raised beds, you can avoid soil contaminated with heavy metals. Urban gardeners are at a higher risk of ingesting heavy metals, especially lead. Many different vegetables, especially roots, tomatoes, and greens, can easily absorb unacceptable amounts of heavy metals from contaminated soils. Keep your beds away from the road and research how your land was used in the past. If possible, plant thick between the road and your garden beds. Then bring in new soil for your raised bed that hasn’t been subjected to whatever toxicity may be on site. Toxicity is further reduced by adding compost. As time goes on, you’ll be diluting the concentration of contaminates every year by binding heavy metals to soil particles.
Planting these tomatoes was the first step in developing this raised bed.
One of the widely practiced strategies used in gardening involves interplanting. Intercropping is a gardening strategy that involves planting or growing more than one crop at the same time and on the same piece of land. It means having more than one type of crop growing in the same space at the same time. It also means more vegetables coming from that space! One of the most efficient ways to interplant is by using a raised bed.
Planting in Raised Beds
This can be done with numerous types of vegetables and herbs and will help you make the most of your garden space. We’re using growing our tomatoes and peppers in the same beds this year. We plan to get lots of tomatoes and peppers from a small space.
Planting the Tomatoes Outdoors
We’ve already planted the tomatoes in the middle of the bed and put cages around them so that they grow more vertically. We put water containers with holes cut out of the bottom to keep them warm enough not to freeze during frosts that are sure to come. At night we remove the caps from the jugs and during the day we take them off so that the tomato plants can breathe. We want to get the tomato plants well established before we put in the pepper plants. For more information about planting tomatoes see my post on this blog: Healthy Tomato Plants from Seed
Planting Peppers Outdoors
Around these tomatoes, we’ll be planting peppers in staggered rows two rows on each side of the tomato plants. Although we were able to plant the tomatoes in the beds before the last frost, we will put the pepper plants into the garden after all danger of frost has passed because we have found that they are much more sensitive to cold than tomato plants are. We have two of these raised beds devoted to peppers and tomatoes. One will have sweet peppers in it and the other will have hot peppers in it. We keep the hot peppers separate from the sweet peppers because often the two types of peppers will cross making the sweet peppers taste hot like the hot pepper. There’s nothing more shocking than eating what you think is a sweet pepper when in fact, it has crossed with a habanero!
To learn more about how we grew our peppers from seeds, see my post on this blog: Pepper Plants from Seeds
There’s More Room for Even More!
Once we plant the peppers in the bed with the tomatoes, we’ll sprinkle basil and cilantro between the pepper plants and put marigolds at the corners of the beds. These aromatic herbs and flowers will help keep pests from damaging the pepper and tomato plants. Even weeds will have a hard time competing with these plants!
You can make newspaper pots using newspaper and a recycled soup can for plants sensitive to transplant shock. You can use tape or hot glue to keep them together.
The average American creates up to 2,072 pounds of garbage every day. I would bet that my husband and I produce far less than that because we recycle a lot of what garbage we produce with garden projects. Here are a few of them that I have been using lately.
Making Seed Planting Containers
I have reused planting containers that I got from nurseries to use as my seed planting containers. I have cut the bottom out of milk jugs and water and soda bottles to use as planting containers and having seed some planting containers, I started using yogurt containers.
In addition, if I need biodegradable containers that I can use that will transplant shock in plants like cucumbers and other members of that family of vegetables, I make newspaper pots. I make them by cutting the bottom out of a tomato soup can and then cut newspaper pieces twice the length of the can and able to go around the can at least twice. Wrap the newspaper so that one end is even with the top of the can and the other half hangs over the end of the other end of the can. Wrap the can and hold the end with some hot glue. This creates the sides of your pot. To create the bottom of your pot, take the overlapping end and push it into the bottom of the can to create a bottom for your pot. To hold the shape of that bottom, use a dollop of hot glue. Carefully remove the newspaper pot from the can and begin making the next one.
Recycled Potting Soil
Once you have the pots, you’ll need something to fill them. If you have any, you’ll want to recycle your old potting soil too. This will save you money. To recycle it, you’ll want to add some homemade compost (made with recycled household and yard wastes, of course!). Add any other favorite organic fertilizer and you have soil ready to use again!
Recycled Seeds?
I save seed. I save a lot of money by saving the seed from one season’s growth to the next. This isn’t technically recycling, but it does create a sustainable source that you don’t want to ignore.
Preparing the Soil with Recyclables
After you have plants made from recycled items, you’ll want to continue using recycled materials in the garden. I never use store-bought fertilizers. Instead, during the winter I put yard wastes and kitchen wastes onto the garden and allow my chickens to eat and scratch in it. I also put my wood ashes on my garden areas. If I had more time in the fall, I would lay cardboard on the soil and the compost on top of that. So far, I haven’t done that, but what I have started doing this year is using the cardboard in my mulching system. Before the gardening season begins, I put cardboard down in the pathways and then cover them with sawdust (also a recycled item that I can get for the price of someone hauling it for me. If I had my own truck, it would be free.) More uses for cardboard to come!
Recycled Outdoor Planting Containers
A lot of times we just plant in the ground as a no-cost container. Other times, we have reasons for building containers. Most of my garden is currently planted in the ground, but I also have some raised beds made of old lumber that we had lying around our place that we nailed together. In addition, I have potatoes planted in used tires placed on cardboard and filled with garden soil. After the potatoes start growing, I fill around the potatoes with mulch. I also plant potatoes in recycled buckets. I put holes in the bottom of the bucket, fill it halfway up with soil and plant the potatoes in it. I then fill up the rest of the bucket with mulch. Once filled, I allow the potatoes to finish growing.
I don’t do this but I have heard a lot lately about people using cardboard boxes for growing potatoes. Do you or do you know of anyone who does this? Please tell me about your experience in the comments below.
Homemade Cloches from Recycled Milk Jugs
I am using recycled milk jugs for cloches. A cloche is a small translucent cover for protecting or forcing outdoor plants. I am using them to protect my tomato plants and pepper plants from late frosts.
Recycled Vertical Supports and Fencing
You must be careful when using supports that have been recycled. Rotten or insufficient plant supports can do more harm than good. Some of my favorite recycled vertical supports are supports made of durable materials like metal that will last decades. Fencing is the same. Purchase good materials in the first place and you’ll have materials to recycle indefinitely. For more ideas about vertical supports, see my post in this blog: Support for Your Garden Plant.
Recycled Mulch
Recycled yard wastes make some of the best mulch. Grass clippings and tree leaves as well as wood chips and sawdust all contribute to a well-mulched garden. I make mulch gathering around the yard easy by using a grass-catching lawnmower to chop and gather leaves and grass that goes onto the garden throughout the season. This mulch breaks down and becomes nutrients for the soil. I have found that the mulch breaks down too fast and that perennial grasses and weeds readily break through the mulch. This year I plan to put cardboard or paper feed sacks down before I put down the mulch to smother the weeds longer so that the plants have a chance to take over the bed.
These are, of course, not the only ways that I recycle otherwise disposable items and with imagination, I am sure that you can think of other ways to recycle them in the garden. What ways do you recycle in the garden?
Some plants need support and others do not. Some plants require support to prevent being deformed and prevent disease and pest damage from the ground. In addition, vines allowed to grow indiscriminately can choke out their own vines limiting proper fruiting of that plant.
Supporting your plants helps in saving garden space because you’ll allowing them to grow vertically. By training them to grow upward, you may even be able to utilize the space vacated by planting other plants under them.
Plants that need support
Plants that are best supported include cucumbers, peas, beans, winter squash, and tomatoes (especially indeterminate varieties).
Use Vertical Structures for Growing Up Rather than Out
These vertical structures can be placed in a way in which the plants around it are placed on the sunny side of a structure (in the northern hemisphere it is on the south side) or on the north side of a structure so that it shades the plants you’re trying to grow. Alternately, you could also place the structure in the center of the bed so that you can plant vegetables of both.
Some plants need structures to support a plant to go upwards. Fences, trellises, stakes, trees, corn, sorghum, and even hanging baskets are examples of verticals structures. Just be sure that the structure will be strong enough to hold the plant as it grows and develops. Lightweight and flimsy structures can easily collapse under the weight of a heavy plant.
Examples of structural Garden Supports
Fences-A fence around your yard that gives you enough sunshine can serve as a support for your plants. An open metal wire fence works better than closed wooden fences because the lack of sunlight can block the sunshine. A challenge can be weeds along the fence. This can be remedied by keeping weeds pulled or prevented with a heavy mulch.
In addition to existing fences, you can also consider putting up fencing specifically to grow within the garden. To save even more space, consider growing on both sides of a metal wire fence. I often plant peas on one side of the fence and later plant tomatoes on the other side.
Tomato cages-just because it is called a tomato cage, doesn’t mean it can only be used for growing tomatoes. Other vegetables can be grown on them as well such as beans or peas.
Bean towers-You can buy bean towers, or you can construct your own. Bean towers aren’t necessarily just for growing beans either. They can be used to grow peas. Sturdier ones may even be used to grow squash or melons.
Trellises- Like tomato cages and bean towers, trellises can be used to support any of the vegetables mentioned previously. As stated previously, be sure that these trellises are strong enough for the intended plants.
Stakes-Individual stakes can also be used to hold up individual tomato plants or used to support beans or peas. They can also be used as supports in windy areas for things like corn or potatoes.
Trees-we don’t often think of trees as supports for garden vegetables, but in some cases, plants will grow up trees especially if there’s adequate exposure to sunlight. Trees on the north side of a garden work well for this. In addition, you can grow peas in the spring on trees before the trees’ leaves are out.
Corn-Another living vertical support is corn. Corn is one of the well-known sisters in the three sisters’ garden and provides vertical support for beans and squash (or pumpkins).
Sorghum-Yet another living vertical support is sorghum. Sorghum is a lesser-known plant that can be used for its grain and for making sorghum molasses. I like to grow it with cowpeas and okra. It provides support for the cowpeas and grows well with okra.
Hanging baskets-many people don’t think of hanging baskets as vertical growing, but they are. Hanging baskets can be hung on the south side of a porch and offers a growing area for plants such as peas, pole beans, squash, and sweet potatoes. You can also grow strawberries in these hanging baskets.
Planting towers-Plant small plants in numerous built-in pots in a planting tower. Greens and many herbs grow well this way and if you plant the individual cells over time, you’ll have a continuous harvest of greens and herbs from an amazingly small space. You can build one of these yourself using pallets. Nail four of them together into a square. Half fill the center with soil. Plant indeterminant potatoes in that center part. On the outside, create little planting boxes around the outside and up the sides by securing landscape fabric to the bottom of each of the boards, and fill the little boxes with soil. Plant vegetables like lettuce and other greens, plant herbs like parsley, chives, and cilantro, and even fruit like strawberries in each planting box that you create. As the potatoes grow, fill in the bed with more soil, straw, hay or even dried grass clippings (dried because too many green grass clippings and the grass will heat up and burn the potato plants.
South (or in the southern hemisphere, north) facing wall of a building-You produce a lot in a space that is not often utilized in your yard simply by growing hanging plants and growing plants that grow vertically up trellises and utilizing planting towers that can either be homemade or purchased. It’s almost like having another complete garden area to work from!
This pepper plant has been transplanted by placing a small peat pot into a larger peat pot enabling it to have more room without transplant shock.
Although it is easier to purchase ready to plant transplants, many reasons exist for growing your own pepper plants.
Why Grow Peppers from Seed?
The pepper transplants that I grow at home are healthier, sturdier seedlings than any I could purchase at a nursery. That means they’ll suffer less transplant shock, which often means better production.
I have found that healthy plants are less likely to develop diseases and are less prone to being attacked by insects.
Annual plants that I used to buy from nurseries were available only during a few months out of the year. Therefore, if I want to eat from my garden longer in the season, I had to learn how to grow some of my own. When I grow my own transplants, I usually end up with more plants than I need, so I share or trade with friends or neighbors.
In addition, you’ll be able to time transplants for when you need them, not just when they are available at the nursery. You can time them, so they’ll be just the right age when you’re ready to transplant Seedlings you buy are often root bound which slows down their growth. By growing your own transplants, your plants will have a better start on life and be healthier overall.
I discovered that peppers sown from seed let me choose from a larger number of varieties. A lot of gardening diversity is only available to gardeners who grow from seed!
In addition, things happen. If one of my plants dies, I have a plant available to fill in. I’m able to grow plants indoors that wouldn’t be able to grow outside at that time of the year. Not only can you grow transplants for getting an early start in the season, but you can also grow indoors in air conditioning, cool weather plants that don’t germinate well during the heat of the summer.
Peppers are especially sensitive to the cold and won’t germinate unless temperatures are warm because they are tropical plants. Because I don’t have a greenhouse (yet!) I start my pepper plants indoors. This year I discovered that my heat mat really speeded things up because the plants were kept warm enough to germinate.
Potting Medium
The purchased potting soil specifically indicated as seed-starter is good for planting seeds. The seed-starter potting mix has been sterilized so there are no fungal or bacteria that can overcome the young plants. If soil is not sterilized, young plants are especially sensitive to a disease called dampening off. This fungal disease is evident when the young seedlings sprout but suddenly turn to mush and the roots sport white webbing. By sterilizing the soil, the soil no longer can harbor this disease.
This potting soil has a light texture which allows the roots to grow deep. Garden soil is too heavy and may cause plants to rot if it has too much clay or sand, and the soil will not be able to hold the water that the young plants require. A peat and perlite blend gives the average plant its best shot at good root growth. Before putting soil in your pots, dampen the soil so that it has the moisture content of a well-rung-out sponge. You don’t want it too wet. Dampening the soil is best done in a large tub.
How to Plant Peppers
When I fill the pot with soil, I use biodegradable pots that I can bury the pot and all into the soil. You could use commercial pots of various kinds, or you can make your own. If you’re recycling pots from previous seasons, it helps to wash your pots and then soak those pots in a bleach solution for about fifteen minutes.
I put an indentation in the middle of the soil in my pot and drop in my pepper seed. I then cover the seed with soil to the point that soil covers the plant to a depth of two times the length of the seed. When in doubt, I use the depth recommended on the seed package.
Once the seed is covered, I spritz a little water over the top of the soil in the pot then cover the entire pot with some breathable plastic. This will keep the top of the soil from drying out. I have used plastic bags from the grocery store and have had good results. I keep the plastic on the pots until I see the seed leaves or cotyledons appear. These are the first leaves to emerge from the soil when a plant germinates. They are part of the seed’s embryo and provide nutrients to the plant until its true leaves unfurl and begin photosynthesis. Most plants don’t need to be in the light to germinate but make sure to get them under a light as soon as these first leaves appear. Good grow lights are critical to growing healthy pepper plants.
Once the peppers germinate, plants should be either put under grow lights or outside in a greenhouse. Keep them watered and fertilized until ready for transplanting.
When to Transplant Seedlings
I know when my plants are ready for transplanting when I loosen the plants from their containers and the plants hold their shape. If a large amount of soil is not held together by the plant’s roots, my plant doesn’t need to be transplanted yet. However, if the plant holds its shape and the roots are starting to wrap around the outside of the container, I’ll either need to repot the plant into a larger container or plant it directly in the garden.
When replanting into another pot, I fill the new pot up with soil and then take the pot where the seedling is growing plastic pot and all and create a hole in which the pot can fit. Once the hole is created, I sprinkle a little organic fertilizer into the hole (I use dried kelp) and then remove the plant from the pot and place it in the hole. I make sure that it fits so that I don’t need to add any more soil. I then pack the soil around the plant from the top and water from the bottom of the plant. I don’t plant the pepper plant any deeper than it was growing in the original pot.
Before I plant the peppers outdoors, I harden them off like I recommended for the tomato plants in the previous post Healthy Tomato Plants from Seed.
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Tomatoes are the mainstay of almost every backyard vegetable garden and our garden is no exception. Our plans this year include eating all we can while they are fresh, canning them in various forms as well as selling some at farmers’ market. We have planted several varieties of tomatoes that we plan to put in our garden this year.
Planting Tomato Seeds
I plant tomatoes differently than I plant other annual vegetables from seed. I have a special way that I start them that helps me grow strong healthy tomato plants with deep root systems. This year I discovered that I like growing them in peat pots which will be easier to transplant and cause less stress to the tomato plants than growing them in plastic pots would. Instead of planting them in a small planting cell, I like to plant them in quart-size pots and fill only half of the pot with soil. I then plant tomato seeds in the pot and cover the pot with a plastic bag. I then put the planted pot on a heating mat. Within a few days, the tomatoes begin the germinate.
After the seed germinates, I put the small plant under grow lights and let the plant grow. Once the plant has its first true leaves, I start adding more soil to the pot around the young seedling. As the plant grows, I add more soil around the stem of the plant until I have filled up the entire container. New roots will start growing around the stem of the plant. Once you have a nice plant above the rim of the pot and the danger of frost has passed, it’s time to prepare your plants to plant outdoors.
Hardening Off
Don’t confuse ‘hardening off’ with ‘dampening off’. Dampening off is a fungal disease. Hardening off is a process in preparing your plants for planting outdoors. Plants grown indoors have been treated delicately as they grew, but when we put them outdoors, they are exposed to things they don’t get exposed to indoors like heavy rains, strong sunlight, and drying winds. Hardening them off toughens them over a week or so. By doing this they can better handle what nature throws at them. If you take plants straight out of your home or greenhouse to plant them into the garden, they don’t have a good chance of surviving the transplant. They will start by wilting badly and going into shock. Their leaves can turn white from being sunburned. You’ll slow down their growth or worse, kill them.
You’ll need to have a way to take your plants in and outside because in the next several days you will be doing just that. A strong tray or box works well for this purpose. I use cookie sheets that I picked up at a local secondhand store. Also, you will need a place to put your plants where it will offer shade at least part of the day and where they will be protected from the wind.
The hardening off process will take you between a week and ten days to accomplish. Start by placing your plants in the shaded area. Keep them outdoors for between 30 minutes and up to four hours. On the second day, increase the time your plants are outdoors by an hour. On the following day, put them in a location where they have some filtered sun and increase your time by another hour. Continue increasing the hours outdoors and exposure to sunlight by an hour every day. If a cold snap prevents you from taking your plants outdoors, you may need to start the process all over again or add a few days to the process. This depends, of course, on how cold and how long the cold snap lasted. On the last day or so before transplanting, put the containers in the garden where you plan to transplant the plants and leave them there all day. If they don’t show any signs of distress, they are ready to transplant into the garden.
While hardening off, put extra water in the plant reservoir and increase exposure to breezes as well.
How to Transplant Tomatoes
When I plant tomatoes in the garden, I plant them differently than I do other plants to produce strong root systems and increase production.
I have learned that it is important to put the support structures into the area where I am putting in the tomato plants before planting the tomatoes. This prevents damage to the plant roots. The only exception to this would be tomato cages which you would put in immediately after planting and do your best to avoid severing the roots with the cage.
Once you’ve hardened off your plants, you’re ready to transplant them into the garden. You shouldn’t plant your tomato plants to the same depth as the pot in which they were growing. Instead, remove all but the top cluster of leaves and plant the tomato plant up to that top cluster. Before planting, however, you’ll want to remove any flowers or small fruit that may already be forming. This may seem counterproductive, but at this stage of the plant’s growth, energy must be concentrated on the plant’s roots for the best production from the tomato plants. The stronger the root system, the more resilient the plant. If you live in an area that lacks rainfall and is hot, plant tomato plants deep. If you live in an area where rain falls regularly and the temperatures don’t cause soil to overheat, plant them so that the roots spread out sideways along or in front of the bed.
Dig the hole for the tomato plant in the way that you intend to plant it. Now, In the bottom of that planting hole, put a dusting of powdered kelp. Sprinkle in some worm castings, as well, if you have them. The kelp will ensure that the tomato plant gets the nutrients needed to prevent blossom end rot and the worm castings will provide nitrogen in the root zone will give them a boost for growth right after transplanting.
Water the bottom of the planting hole and then put the tomato plant into the hole. Because my tomatoes are planted in the peat pots, I can bury them pot and all. Cover the plant’s stem with soil up to the leaf cluster at the top of the plant. Again, water over the entire area where the plant is buried. Keep the soil around the plant moist until you see new growth on the plant then water deeply once per week, or let the rain do it for you, at the rate of one inch per week. It is important to maintain even watering of your tomato plants especially during dry weather to prevent your tomatoes from splitting when it does rain.
When you see new growth in the leaves on the tomato plant, mulch around the plant as well to help keep the tomato plant’s moisture from evaporating. Mulch also prevents rain or irrigation water from splashing onto the plants which can cause blight to spread from the soil onto your plants.
Through the Season Maintenance
Once you have your tomato plants established with a great root system, you’ll be in maintenance mode. Much of what you have already done will ensure that you have healthy plants that shouldn’t have as many problems during the growing season. Some of the other things that you’ll be doing, while you’re maintaining the plants, will be tying up the plants so that they are not laying on the ground, watching for pests, weeding, mulching, and watering until your tomato crop comes in. I’ll be sharing more on this in the coming weeks. Until then, happy gardening!
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What should you plant in your vegetable garden this year?
It’s that time of year again! It’s time to purchase seeds for starting the annual vegetable garden. But what should you be growing? With the uncertainties of the food supply chain, it is imperative that you know how to discover what to grow in your vegetable garden.
If you’re new to gardening, this article is here to show you where to go to discover what you should grow successfully.
Grow What Your Family Will Eat!
Probably the most important advice that you’ll get from anyone is that you should grow the vegetables that your family will eat. For instance, if your family doesn’t like carrots, you shouldn’t grow them. If your family only eats corn, green beans, potatoes, and tomatoes, then you should grow them. You should grow them if those vegetables will grow in your area. So, determine what your family will eat and put them on a list. Now that you know that, it’s time to find out what you CAN grow where you live.
How Do You Know if What You Eat is What You Can Grow Where You Live?
I would love to be able to give you step-by-step instructions on how you can grow your best garden every year, but even if you did exactly what I do, you won’t get the same results that I get. In fact, if I do the same plantings in different locations or in different years, I will get different results.
I can’t tell you when to plant specific varieties of plants, nor can I tell you specifically what vegetables you should plant when or whether or not you should plant a specific type of vegetable! I would take with a grain of salt anything that anyone who tried to say that they can do this for you. I can, however, suggest places you can go to get better educated on your planting region and zones so that you can make better choices on what grows in your area and what doesn’t. This information can also help you know when to plant your garden and the general types of vegetables to plant.
Your County Extension Office
One of your local resources is the county extension office of your county if you live here in the United States. These people are paid with your tax dollars so why not hear what they have to say. They can tell you what zone you’re living in, what others have grown in your area, and what you should consider not growing.
Glean Information from Your State Conservation Department
Speaking of those who are paid with your tax dollars, you can also contact your local conservation department to learn what animals might be a problem for your crops and what you can do about them as well as what endangered plants and animals you should avoid killing. They may also be able to tell you when various insects are likely to be causing problems in your area.
Plus, they will tell you things that you should know like how many deer, raccoons, possums, crows, and other animals are near where you live. This is good information to have if you want to know what critters are in your area. Deer may be a great resource if you’re a hunter but are not so good for you as a gardener. If you want to grow a lot of corn, you may want to have a plan in place to combat raccoons.
Fellow Gardeners as a Resource
Find out about other gardeners in your area. Perhaps there’s a nearby gardening club. If another gardener lives nearby and you like how their garden looks, consider introducing yourself whenever you see them working in their garden. Be sure to have a list of questions that you would like to ask. Most gardeners are happy to share what they know, especially if you offer to help do a little weeding with them while you talk. They can also tell you about what you can and can’t grow.
Seed Catalogs
Seed catalogs also offer a lot of information about specific varieties. Pay particular attention to what zones the variety grows best and compare that to where you live. If your planting zone falls into the recommended zones, that seed might be a good option for you. In addition, the seed catalog description will tell you how much sun the plants will require, how far apart to plant the seeds, how far apart to put the rows, and how many days from seed, or transplant to harvest.
Seed Package Information
Don’t overlook the seed package itself as a resource. It’s pretty much the same information that comes from your seed catalogs but is more readily in hand.
Your Own Experience
That’s not to say that I believe that you should take the word of anyone else as gospel. Your own experience will teach you better than what others can tell you about what vegetables will grow where you live. As I said before, your land is going to be unique and will have its own set of idiosyncrasies also, what works one year might not work the following year.
For instance, my garden in 2020 was amazing. I purchased one of those “survival gardens” that had numerous types of vegetables and I planted some of all of them in my garden (at the right time of year, of course). I was able to keep getting food from the garden all spring, summer, and fall from what I planted. My experience in 2021, had different results. My bush beans didn’t do well, but later my pole beans did, but the pole beans had not done well during 2020, but the bush beans did). I had a difficult time getting squash of any kind to produce. The insect pressure was too great. (It was the same for most people in my area, even those who used pesticides which I don’t use.)
I can’t tell you that you will have a perfect garden every year, but what I can tell you is that if you grow a diverse variety of vegetables, plant over several months, and maintain healthy soil, you’ll develop a garden that you can pick from every day of the year from early spring to late autumn and beyond!
What I can tell you is that by experimenting with different growing styles and vegetable varieties, you will soon know what works in your location and what doesn’t.
Are there questions you have about what vegetables you should grow where you live? Is there anything that you would like to comment on regarding what you like to grow in your vegetable garden?
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Where you locate your garden is as important as what you put in it.
With the price of food skyrocketing, many people are gardening this year for the first time. This article is to help you determine where the best place is on your property for your vegetable garden. If you’re thinking about putting in a vegetable garden this year, you’ll need to consider several factors for where to put your garden. You’ll need to have good accessibility, you’ll need to know your climate and weather, you’ll need to know how many hours you have access to direct sunlight, and you’ll need to know where water is most readily available to your garden, and you’ll need to have a location with good soil.
Personal Accessibility and the Accessibility for Tools
How easily can you get into the garden? Do you need special accommodations to be able to work in your garden? For example, if getting down on your knees is too difficult, perhaps you should consider using raised beds that eliminate much of the bending and stooping.
Also, can you get whatever equipment you’ll be using into the area? What about supplies? Can you easily get supplies like manure, compost, and mulches to your garden area?
Climate and Weather
How well do you know your climate? What is your average monthly rainfall for each month of the year? Does your area usually have regular rainfall during the summer months? Are there months when you’re likely to need to irrigate? How many sunny days do you have every summer? What is your average high temperature each month? What are your summer highs? What are your summer lows? When is your average last frost date in the spring? When is your first average frost date in the fall? Don’t know the answers? Ask a neighbor or friend who has been gardening for a long time or contact a local government agency.
Sun Access
Will your garden have at least six hours of direct sunlight per day in the spring? How about in the summer and fall? Is it possible that you’ll have too much sun for your vegetable plants?
A seedling’s sun exposure requirement is indicated on the seed packet or nursery label. Full sun is 6-8 hours of direct sunlight each day. Next, plant your garden to follow the sun. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west. The Eastern morning sun is mild and the western afternoon sun is considerably hotter, especially in the summer.
Row orientation. Experts advise the best way to give plants the most sun exposure during the northern hemisphere’s growing season is to plant rows of vegetables running north to south. Personally, I plant my rows going east and west and plant taller plants on the north side of the garden and shorter plants to the south.
Access to Water
Almost every annual vegetable that I have ever seen requires at least one inch of water per week. In most areas, at certain times during the gardening season, the rain will not be sufficient to provide that one inch of water per week, so you’ll need to supplement the water needed for optimum productivity.
Watering for too long creates an open invitation for fungus. Water too little, and roots become shallow. If you’re watering too high off the ground, half the moisture will be lost to evaporation.
Water is a precious resource for any gardener. Consider collecting water for your garden with rain barrels that have garden hose connections. You can build your own rain barrel or shop top-rated rain barrels.
The best time to plant is either in the early morning between 5 and 10 a. m. and in the evening just before dark. (Though some experts say to never water in the evening because warm wet soil and foliage attracts insects, fungus, and disease.
Avoid watering lightly or more often because it promotes shallow root growth. Be sure to water deeply and about 1-2 times per week only so that the water reaches the root. Soaking the soil to 5 to 6 inches encourages deeper root growth and creates more resilient plants.
Don’t water overhead. Water the base of the plant rather than the foliage because wet foliage invites fungus. Also, less water will evaporate because you’ll be watering the root zone making it more available to the plant roots. For best irrigation methods that conserve the most water, use a drip irrigation system rather than a sprinkler system.
To conserve even more water, mulch beds and containers with several inches of organic mulching material cool the soil and retain moisture. Watering soil that hasn’t been much can splatter mud on plants and cause runoff. An added benefit is that mulching also cuts down on the need for weeding!
Flatten a Garden Slope
Sloped garden areas are unique challenges including difficulty maneuvering on the sloped ground, establishing plants on it, and controlling erosion. You may want to use the land for perennial ornamentals or perennial vegetables, berries, or even orchard trees, rather than cultivating annual plants on it, but in many cases, the recommended steps below may make annual gardening possible.
Next select plants. Grow perennials or suitable groundcovers whenever possible between annual beds to act as soil anchors, slow the speed of the water running down the slope and reduce the force of impact of raindrops on the soil surface.
When you plant, orient rows or plants on contours perpendicular to the slope and alternate plants in rows so that individual plants are staggered and prevent water from running in a line straight down the slope. When cultivating, leave small channels between rows to collect water and allow it to drain slowly into the soil.
Many people would direct water off the slope with one or more French drains or perforated drainpipes located halfway down or at multiple levels on the slope. They create a trench at least 6 inches deep and wide that runs perpendicular to the slope and leads to a ditch, rain garden, or another suitable outlet. They place perforated pipe in the entire length of the trench and fill the trench with clean, coarse gravel. If the soil is particularly silty, they might line the trench or wrap the pipe and gravel in landscaping cloth or filter fabric to prevent clogging.
I think that a better choice is to use berms and swales Instead of using a French drain to redirect water. Berms and swales help slow and direct heavy rains to soak into the soil rather than being directed down and off the slope. The longer it takes for water to meander down a hill, the more it will soak into the ground.
A swale is a shady spot, a sunken or marshy place, or in other words, a shallow channel with gently sloping sides. A swale may be either natural or human-made. Artificial swales are often infiltration basins, designed to manage water runoff, filter pollutants, and increase rainwater infiltration.
A berm is a level space, shelf, or raised barrier, usually made of compacted soil, separating areas in a vertical way, especially part-way up a long slope. It can serve as a terrace, road, track, path, a fortification line, a border/separation barrier for navigation, good drainage, industry, or other purposes. Berms also control erosion and sedimentation by reducing the rate of surface runoff. The berms either reduce the velocity of the water, or direct water to areas that are not susceptible to erosion, thereby reducing the adverse effects of running water on exposed topsoil.
If a slope is very steep, install terraces or a retaining wall. Terraces break the slope up into multiple nearly flat steps. A terrace can be made from earth, rocks, timber, or other materials. Each “bench” should have a slight slope perpendicular to the hill’s slope to direct water to one side or the other. Also, consider putting in steps to make maneuvering down the terraces easier. Just be sure that you’re not using treated lumber if you are growing vegetables because any leaching from the lumber is toxic to the plants and to you too.
In addition, spread mulch over the soil around plants. Mulches such as wood chips or shredded bark slow runoff while also conserving soil moisture, regulating soil temperature, and contributing nutrients as they break down. Don’t depend on just mulch to keep soil in place on a very steep slope, however. The mulch may just wash off after severe rains.
Plant Where There’s Rich Organic Soil
Plant your garden where you have good soil that is rich in organic material. The organic material improves the ability of the soil to retain water and the rate at which water is absorbed.
Improving the soil condition is an easy fix. Add organic soil amendments including manure, compost, sphagnum peat moss, or grass clippings. The best time to add most of these is in the season before planting the garden rather than during that season. If your garden is small enough, consider topping the surface of the whole garden bed with compost and then plant into the soil. Once the plants start growing, cover the compost with mulching material. Use foliar sprays and side-dress plants with amendments during the growing season for an added boost. If you continue adding organic material of different types, every time you plant, you will be amazed at how much your soil will improve.
That said, some hard, rocky, or hardpan soils can’t be readily used, and building up an area by creating a raised bed may be necessary. This is also a choice that many gardeners choose because of the convenience of a raised bed.
Imagine not having to worry about whether there’s an adequate supply of fresh produce at your local grocery store or whether it has been put on a recall list.
Cygnet Brown
Imagine every night going to the garden and picking vegetables for your supper. Imagine not having to worry about whether there’s an adequate supply of fresh produce at your local grocery store or whether it has been put on a recall list. Wouldn’t it also be nice to know that you have the added satisfaction of knowing exactly how your vegetables were grown and that it’s fresh?
\That’s some of what you’ll get when you develop a seasonal garden. What is a seasonal garden you ask? A seasonal garden is a garden that isn’t just planted once in a season and then forgotten. It’s a garden that you start planting early in the spring before the last frost and continue planting over the rest of the summer so that you have a continuous harvest all the way until the last frost and beyond.
Increased Nutrition in Vegetables
You’ll love the fact that you’re picking your produce from your garden daily and eating it fresh because it increases the produce’s nutritional value. According to a University of California study, vegetables lose 30% of their nutritional value within a week of being picked and spinach can lose up to 90% of its vitamin C within 24 hours of harvest. By picking your vegetables straight from your own garden, you’ll be giving your family the most nutritious food possible.
If you raise it organically, you’ll be getting an even higher nutritional content because the soil would have more micro-nutrients available for your vegetables. Considerable evidence exists that decreases in nutrition may be related to changes in farming methods, including the extensive use of chemical fertilizers, as well as food processing and preparation. A 2004 study evaluated Department of Agriculture data for 43 garden crops from 1950 to 1999. The researchers found statistically reliable declines for six nutrients — protein, calcium, potassium, iron, and vitamins B2 and C.
An added benefit to growing your food organically is that it can cost you less than growing it using chemical fertilizers especially if you’re composting house and yard wastes and using it in the garden!
Protect the Environment
Growing your garden and eating it directly can help protect the environment and lower your carbon footprint. Recycle yard and garden waste to keep it out of landfills! Decrease transportation costs to the environment because your vegetables are not coming from other states or countries! Decreases the need for food processing for storage in things like canning supplies, freezers, and dehydrators because you’re using your vegetables straight from the garden!
Use Your Gardening Hoe as a Piece of Exercise Equipment!
Plus, if you choose to dig your garden by exclusively using hand tools like hoes, shovels, rakes, and broad forks, not only will you be lowering your carbon footprint, but you’ll benefit from increased physical activity as well. It provides healthy exercise. The bending, stooping, raking, hoeing, and digging of your garden will likely increase the amount of exercise you are getting. In addition, time in the sun provides vitamin D.
The Emotional Benefits of Gardening
It benefits your emotional and mental health too. Along with being an excellent way to fill your free time, gardening also helps to promote mental health and emotional wellness. The American Institute of Stress states that gardening can have the following mental health benefits:
It will save you money in many ways as well. Growing food organically and making household and yard wastes into compost saves money on fertilizer. Using produce directly from the garden daily prevents the expense of canning or freezing. It even reduces the need for refrigerator space because you’re using the produce soon after you pick it up!
Also with the price of food going up and up these days, the carrots you plant now may be worth much more by the time they are ready to harvest!
Amazing Benefits to Eating Fresh from the Garden!
As you develop your garden, you’ll get better and better at being able to eat from your garden every day. If you compost your house and yard wastes, your garden soil will become better and better, and your health will continue to improve as well because your exercise and food consumption will be of better quality. You’ll save money. You’ll be helping the planet as well by removing carbon from the air and replenishing it in the soil. It will be a win, win, win!
Can you think of other benefits for this type of gardening? Please share them in the comments below.
If you want to know more about seasonal gardening, follow this blog to learn more and about when my latest book The Seasonal Garden will be available! In it you’ll learn the how-tos of growing a garden you can eat from frost to frost and beyond. If you’re in obtaining a review copy, let me know in the comments below! Interested in what else I write? Check out my other blog How My Spirit Sings
One of the things that I discovered during the past two gardening years has been ways that I can get more from my harvests and how I can perpetuate a garden crop, which has been the focal point of this blog. Nothing can be easier than perpetuating sweet potatoes.
Here’s how many people start their own sweet potato slips. They wait until January or February and use this method. It’s how I started and it works, but I’m sharing a better way!
Rather than waiting until spring to create slips from sweet potatoes from a sweet potato root, I started collecting sweet potato roots with the stems and leaves attached in the fall and planting them in containers in the house to last all winter. But first, let’s find out how to take care of the sweet potatoes you are dig up.
Digging Sweet Potatoes
Where I live, it is now time to dig sweet potatoes. I use my broad fork to dig my sweet potatoes. To avoid damaging the tubers, I begin digging just outside where the potato vines are growing and dig in toward where I planted the original vine. That way as I come to a sweet potato, I finish digging it out with my hands and then place the sweet potatoes in a bucket. Once all of the sweet potatoes are picked, I take them inside and place them in a warm and dry, but dark area to cure. Some southerners recommend storing them in temperatures as high as ninety degrees so don’t worry that the temperature is too high where you are storing them. I spread them out on a table so that they can cure evenly and remove excess dampness that can expedite decomposition. Spreading them out and allowing them to dry out allows the skins to harden.
In addition to hardening the tuber’s flesh, curing in a warm and dry environment helps convert the starches of the sweet potatoes into sugars thereby increasing the sweetness of the sweet potatoes. Putting the sweet potatoes into cold storage stops the change from starches to sugars, so don’t move the into cold storage until they have cured in the warm dry environment for two weeks.
After the two weeks, I remove any damaged sweet potatoes to use regularly and store them in boxes in a cool dark place.
Periodically remove any sweet potatoes that show signs of decomposition. If you plan to can any of your sweet potatoes, for best results, can them before New Year’s Day.
Saving Sweet Potato Roots and Leaves Now for Spring Planting
Sweet potatoes are perennials so, the roots have the same genetics as the sweet potato. This enables me to eat the big sweet potatoes rather than keeping some back for producing slips.
Because I am growing the roots all winter, the plants produce more slips in the spring and uses parts of the sweet potato plant that I don’t usually use. I also get the added benefit of access to the sweet potato leaves that I can use during the winter months. These leaves are delicious and can be eaten raw or steamed and provide even more nutritional value than the sweet potato tubers.
When growing new sweet potato plants, most people purchase a sweet potato in the spring and plant the slips they produce from it or they purchase slips (often hard to find) from other growers. These slips can be put in the ground even without roots. Just keep them well watered and soon they will take root, and in a few months, will begin producing sweet potatoes.
I have my own solution. I grow my sweet potatoes from the roots left over from the previous year.
Because I am growing sweet potato roots all winter, the plants produce more slips in the spring and uses parts of the sweet potato plant that I don’t usually use therefore I can eat every sweet potato myself.
I have grown sweet potatoes from roots of sweet potato plants that I grew this year. These roots will begin creating shoots and leaves. Once that happens I can plant it in a shallow tray for the rest of the winter
Since I’m digging sweet potatoes anyway, and sweet potatoes are perennials and the roots have the same genetics as the sweet potato, now is the perfect time to start the sweet potato slips for next year’s crop. As I dig the sweet potatoes from the ground, instead of throwing the roots onto the compost pile, I put them in a bucket and take them indoors.
If the weather is not too hot, I have just put the sweet potato vines and roots into a bucket, then in an hour or so taken the vines and roots into the house to process and still had success. However, a better solution is to have a bucket of water to put the vines and roots in so that they don’t die before I can take care of them.
Although not as pretty as plants grown from a tuber, many of these leaves and stems will root and can be used to grow sweet potatoes next year. Once they’ve rooted, I will plant them like I do the roots I saved.
Last year, I pulled up the roots and just planted them in a shallow tray. This year I am trying something a little different. I am cutting the stems from the roots and cutting leaf segments and then placing them in water until they start to sprout roots or leaves respectively. Once they sprout, I’ll transfer the segments into soil This will not only make transplanting into the shallow trays easier but will also make it easier to plant the young plants in the garden come spring.
Once the leaves start growing on the sweet potatoes, I can also harvest the leaves all winter and eat them fresh in salads or steamed as side dish of greens with my winter meals for added nutrition. These leaves are delicious and can be eaten raw or steamed and has a higher nutritional value than the sweet potato tubers.
Try this method when growing your own sweet potatoes. I am sure that you will find that done right, you’ll have more sweet potatoes than you know what to do with them!
For more information about growing vegetables that can be stored throughout the winter without canning, freezing, or dehydrating, purchase my new book The Survival Garden!
The second is to purchase a supply of the vegetables suggested for your winter nutrition from your local market so that you can have them throughout the winter to begin your own survival vegetable experience.
In this post, I will show you eight other ways that you can begin your survival garden this fall.
Allow Livestock to Help Clear and Fertilize the Garden
Chickens clear away weeds and overwintering bugs.
The first one is to allow livestock to help clear and fertilize the garden.
Most of the time we try to keep the animals OUT of the garden, but this time of year, having animals in the garden is helpful.
The idea is that once your crop is harvested from the land, you can send your animals in to clean things up a bit before winter. You can even send in more than one animal type to do even more of your garden work.
Send in cows to clean out what they want, send in sheep to eat what they want, then send in pigs to eat what they want and finally send in chickens to pick out what’s left and to get rid of any bugs that are thinking about over wintering in your garden.
If all you have is chickens, it’s okay. Just run them through your garden and see how much “damage” a few birds can do!
Preparing the Soil
This is a photo from last winter. Much of this garden was cleared and mulched, ready for this season.
Don’t wait until spring to prepare your garden beds for planting. If you have the time before winter sets in, prepare your beds now. Once you have allowed animals to benefit from your garden wastes, it’s a good time to prepare the soil. This way you can tailor each bed to the needs of the plants that you’ll plant in that area in the spring.
Only dig up the areas that you are going to actually be planting in the fall. Any areas that the animals dug up that is on a slight slope, rake evenly and sprinkle cover crop seed in that location to prevent erosion.
Cover the Soil
Once your ground is exposed, it is a good idea to cover it to prevent erosion and nutrient depletion. There are two fantastic ways to do this. You can either mulch the area or use a cover crop. Both are good choices. Mulches and cover crops are both composed of biological mass, either once-living or still-living, used to optimize soil conditions.
Mulches consist of dead plant material like compost, leaves, spoiled hay, grass clippings and pine needles. During the summer they keep the soil moist and control weeds that could rob water from the crop. During the winter months, it helps protect the soil from harsh weather fluctuations and keep water from running off. Mulches are best used on level beds or terraces. One of the best mulches and most readily available mulches in the fall is autumn leaves.
Plant cover crops in areas of the garden that are on sloped areas and are also a good choice for pathways during the winter months. Cover crops help prevent soil erosion because the roots hold onto the soil to prevent erosion. In addition, the foliage above ground, even when not growing, protects the soil from extremes in weather and breaks up rain droplets before hitting the ground. The roots absorb the rain and hold it in place so it can be used by garden plants later.
Make Compost
Compost can be made in many different ways. A cold compost consists of layering compostable materials as they come and allowing nature to take its course.
A hot compost is a science experiment that can offer high quality nutrition for garden plants and is produced from yard and house wastes that would otherwise end up in a landfill. You can create hot compost quickly, so you really want to wait until early spring to actually start creating hot compost. However, now is a good time to start piling your brown composting materials in preparation for combining with the green materials in the spring.
Fall can be a fantastic time to start cold composting, however. Starting compost can be as easy as burying a pile of shredded brown and green yard and kitchen wastes in a garden bed and covering it with mulch. By spring, the wastes will be black gold compost that you can use immediately.
Save Garden Seed
If you have garden plants that are going to seed, now is the time to collect it, air dry it and get it ready for next season.
Plant Biennials to Save for Seed
In addition to seed saving, if you’re in an area where this is possible, consider planting biennials that you might be able to get seed from next summer. Begin planning in the early in the fall months and allow them to grow until well after the first frost. Later, you’ll be deeply mulching or digging up these vegetables for the winter. If you dig them up, you’ll be re-planting these same plants in the spring. If you leave them in the ground, you may instead wish to use these vegetables in the early spring before your garden begins producing in the new season. Use them before they begin growing again in the spring.
Plant Garlic
Fall is the best time for planting garlic.
Once you have some ground prepared for your spring garden, take some of that to plant garlic. Garlic produces better, more reliable bulbs if planted in the autumn months rather than in the spring. Plant garlic when you plant daffodil and other early spring bulbs.
Plant Sweet Potatoes Indoors
This is how most people grow sweet potatoes. I, however, bring in the roots and plant them in a grow box.
Rather than waiting until spring to create slips from sweet potatoes from a sweet potato root, I started collecting sweet potato roots with the stems and leaves attached in the fall and planting them in containers in the house to last all winter.
Sweet potatoes are perennials so, the roots have the same genetics as the sweet potato. This enables me to eat the big sweet potatoes rather than keeping some back for producing slips.
Because I am growing the roots all winter, the plants produce more slips in the spring and uses parts of the sweet potato plant that I don’t usually use. I also get the added benefit of access to the sweet potato leaves that I can use during the winter months. These leaves are delicious and can be eaten raw or steamed and provide even more nutritional value than the sweet potato tubers.
With the days shortening and the nights lengthening, you often don’t have enough time in the day to get everything done, but if you’re able to do these ten things this fall, you’ll have a head start toward producing your own survival garden.
A few weeks ago, I made The Survival Garden available as an eBook on Amazon. Now, it is available as a paperback as well! Get your copy today!
Why I Wrote This Book
As I mentioned in my previous post about the fact that The Survival Garden was available as an eBook, (see that post here), I told how this book idea came about because my brother told me how people in Pennsylvania couldn’t find canning lids or jars last year.
What I didn’t mention was that gardening as a whole had been part of my preparedness goals for a number of years and that my big goal is to write a series of books called The Perpetual Homesteader which is what this blog is all about. I started with this book because I feel that it is imperative that as many of us as possible start producing our own supply of food by growing food that will help supply healthy calories throughout the winter without needing freezer space, canning equipment, or even a dehydrator (although I do use a freezer, a canner and a dehydrator as well!)
Should You Wait Until Spring?
Definitely don’t wait until spring to start thinking about growing these foods! You can start right now by purchasing The Survival Garden and read it!
Next, start purchasing those vegetables in the book from your nearest supplier whether its a grocery store or a local farmer! This time of year they are readily available and you can often purchase them in larger quantities.
Finally, start implementing those vegetables into your daily diet.
Is there more you can do now? You bet there is, but those are subjects for future blogs.
Over the next several weeks I’ll share what you can and should be doing now so be sure that you’re following this blog to keep updated on what you can do to maximize the produce of your own survival garden!
Last year, I called my brother in Pennsylvania and he told me that a lot of people in his state started growing gardens because they were afraid of what could happen during the pandemic. Their plans were to garden and freeze or can what they produced. The problem was that though they were able to find seeds in the stores, canning jars, lids, and freezers were in short supply. Their garden produce grew well, but because they had no way to preserve their food, what they couldn’t eat rotted and was wasted. Numerous people tried to capitalize on their bounty by selling it, but that too became a problem because everyone else was doing the same. The countryside was littered with little roadside stands that had produce that no one wanted.
That was what gave me the idea forThe Survival Garden: Plant a Garden for Food to Last all Winter that You Won’t Need to Can, Freeze. or Dehydrate.This short little book shows you how you can grow and preserve a huge percentage of the calories that you and your family will need to survive the next winter or any winter of the future even though food is in short supply in the grocery stores for whatever reason. These are foods that you don’t need any canning equipment. You won’t need to hunt all over town or get gouged with internet prices on canning lids. You don’t have to worry about purchasing a freezer or concerning yourself with the fear that the electricity could go out and ruin your produce. All twelve of the vegetables in this book can be raised in your garden and stored without any of these worries.
In this book, you’ll learn everything you need to know about growing, harvesting, and preparing these vegetables to last well into the winter months and potentially until the next harvest!
One little early potato can lead to many a summer meal
Container Planted Potatoes for Early Crop
A few years ago, I grew potatoes in buckets on my patio at my townhouse when I lived in Springfield. I had mixed results. One of the reasons that I had problems was because I tried to grow what I later learned were indeterminant potatoes whereas what needed to grow were determinant varieties. The basic difference between indeterminant and determinant potatoes is that if indeterminant potatoes have good conditions, they will continue growing all season whereas determinant potatoes grow a short time and then die off leaving behind a specific crop to harvest immediately.
As I understand, determinant potatoes have a short growing season (as little as seventy days) and can be planted in succession throughout the growing season. That is what I want to try to happen this year.
Another problem I had was that I put too many seed potatoes in my buckets. The buckets soon became crowded, so the potatoes stayed small. This year I am planting just one potato per bucket.
I want to try to grow potatoes so that I have a continuous crop coming in all summer long. The variety of determinant potato that I will be growing is Red Norland which has a growing season of just 70 days! I want to see how many buckets of potatoes I can grow during the summer and how many I need to keep myself supplied in potatoes for the entire growing season.
If I have more than enough Red Norland potatoes to supply me with potatoes throughout the growing season, and I have more than enough to sell at Farmer’s Market, I’ll take what extras I have and can some of them. I don’t think that will happen this year, because I only bought five pounds of this type of seed potatoes.
Because I only had three buckets available this year for the early determinant potato, I planted most of them in the ground in the main garden.
How to Plant a Bucket of Early Potatoes
To plant early potatoes in buckets, begin by putting holes in the bottom 1/3 of the bucket. I only put holes in the top of that bottom third of the bucket so that water would drain out only if it reached that part of the bucket. The lower part of that bottom third of the bucket would be used as a wicking bed of sorts. This way I wouldn’t have to water the buckets of potato plants quite as often.
I fill half of this bottom third of the bucket with sawdust, add a half shovel full of aged chicken manure and then cover that with more sawdust and filling that remaining bottom third of the bucket. Over the sawdust I put a one-inch layer of soil. In the center of the bucket on top of the soil, I set the potato or potato piece so that the rose end with the majority of the eyes was facing upwards in the bucket.
I put in a layer of sawdust, a layer of chicken manure, another layer of sawdust, a layer of soil and set the potato in the bucket.
Once the potato piece was in place, I filled the remainder of the bucket with soil so that only two inches of the brim showed.
Once the potato plant surfaces above the soil line, I will fill the remaining space with grass clippings. I use grass clippings at this point because the grass clippings contain nitrogen so that if gives the potato plant’s leaves a little bit of a boost early in the growing process, but not so much to prevent the potatoes from producing the root vegetable.
Companion Planting for Potatoes
I am planting a companion plant with the potatoes in the garden. Because the potatoes take up a lot of growing space, I like to plant them with bush green beans. One reason, I like to use green bush beans is because bush green beans are a legume and while legumes are growing, they store nitrogen from the air in their roots that potatoes have access.
Another reason is that potatoes and bush green beans are harvested about the same time. I am able to harvest the potatoes and harvest the bush beans together and remove them both and replace them with a later crop like cabbage or spinach.
A final reason is that potatoes and bush green beans have a symbiotic relationship where they protect one another from insect pests. Green beans repel the Colorado potato beetle and potatoes protect green beans by repelling the Mexican beetle, a nasty pest that can quickly destroy a lush crop of green beans.
A Late Potato for Winter Storage
In addition to growing determinant potatoes for use during the gardening season, I am growing an indeterminant variety as well. The indeterminant potato variety that I will be growing will be White Russets. I know that they are good storing potatoes because I stored them in a cool place in my kitchen over the winter. I am experimenting with them as well. This experiment is that I planted some in the autumn and hope that they will start growing this spring. I also have some that I planted this spring. These potatoes are considered late-growing potatoes and should keep me supplied during the winter.
I have some idea about how many potatoes I will need this next winter because this past winter I bought 100 pounds of potatoes to use this past winter and there was enough in that my husband and I were sufficiently supplied with them throughout the winter. Therefore, if I can grow at least that many for the winter, it should be a sufficient supply for the upcoming winter.
How about you? Do you grow potatoes and if so, what do you find helps you improve your potato harvest?
It takes at least three years to produce a decent asparagus plant, but you’ll have perennial growth for about 20 years
A garden is good insurance for making sure that nutritious, delectable vegetables are available throughout the year, wouldn’t it be nice if you could plant a vegetable that you plant once but it keeps offering you its produce year after year. Well, you can do this with perennial vegetables.
Perennial vegetables like asparagus, rhubarb, Jerusalem artichokes, and horseradish among other vegetables can be planted once and with little care offers a crop year after year.
Asparagus
Native to Western Europe, but a hardy perennial here in the US, asparagus, is probably the most popular perennial vegetable. With good reason, asparagus plants are viable for up to twenty years and nothing compares to the taste of homegrown fresh asparagus.
I grew my asparagus last year from seed. Growing from seed takes a lot of patience, but it’s worth the wait. However, if you don’t want to wait, you can also buy two to three old crowns.
I started my asparagus plants in January 2020. I put the seed in the refrigerator for a couple of months so that the seed would chill. I soaked the seeds overnight and then when I was ready, I planted them indoors in flats. This way I was able to control their growing conditions. Also, the asparagus didn’t need to combat weeds just to get started. (It takes anywhere from 2-8 weeks for asparagus seed to germinate).
I planted the seedlings in the garden bed behind the shed in April last year and kept them reasonably weed-free so that they could grow. Their roots are well established now, but it will still be a year or more until I am able to get a harvest.
Rhubarb
The black blob in the middle of the photo is of a rhubarb crown. In a few days it will green up and begin to grow.
Pioneers called this perennial “pie plant” because rhubarb pie was a favorite among them. Though used like a fruit in pies, rhubarb is actually a vegetable. I planted my rhubarb in the part of the herb garden where I had grown kale, greens and late corn last year. I planted it here for a couple of reasons. One, the garden had been deeply dug and lots of organic material had been added and perennial grasses had been removed. It is a sunny enough location (more than 6 hours of sun per day).
I have two plants so I planted them on opposite sides of the four foot long bed. To plant them I dug a hole and positioned the bare root rhubarb plant so that the crown was 2-3 inches below the surface. I tamped the soil down lightly over the rhubarb and watered it thoroughly.
Jerusalem Artichokes
<p value="<amp-fit-text layout="fixed-height" min-font-size="6" max-font-size="72" height="80">Also called sunchokes, Jerusalem artichokes grow wild where I live, but I decided to grow them in my yard, because I love to use them in stir fries in place of water chestnuts. They can also be used in place of potatoes. The tubers look like ginger root and provide a starch (inulin) that converts to fructose in the digestive tract and is better tolerated by diabetics than the potatoes would be. The flowers look like sunflowers and produce edible sunflower like seeds. (the seeds are smaller than sunflower seeds.)Also called sunchokes, Jerusalem artichokes grow wild where I live, but I decided to grow them in my yard, because I love to use them in stir fries in place of water chestnuts. They can also be used in place of potatoes. The tubers look like ginger root and provide a starch (inulin) that converts to fructose in the digestive tract and is better tolerated by diabetics than the potatoes would be. The flowers look like sunflowers and produce edible sunflower like seeds. (the seeds are smaller than sunflower seeds.)
This hardy perennial prefers cool weather and grows best in poor soil. I planted mine in the yard across the driveway from my perennial herb garden. They will flower during mid-summer. I planted it in the late winter just after the really cold weather. I added wood ashes and planted the tubers 12 inches apart and covered them with 3 inches of soil. I then added sawdust around the outside edge of the bed and placed rocks on top of the sawdust to ensure that I knew where the plants were when I mowed the lawn later in the season.
Horseradish
This vegetable is a hardy perennial and grows in all planting zones except the hottest desert regions. For perennial planting, I gave mine plenty of space and planted it at the edge of my herb garden next to the frost-free faucet. Because I have three plants, I planted them in a triangle and planted them 3 feet apart. It thrives best in sandy soil, but since I have clay soil, I amended it with plenty of organic material. Because it loves potassium, I dusted the area with wood ashes. It does not like too much nitrogen, so I did not add composted chicken manure. I buried the horseradish so that the crown was placed in the hole at an angle, not straight up and down with the top two inches below the soil level and backfilled the remaining hole. I then covered the horseradish bed with sawdust for mulch and so that I knew where the horseradish was planted.
So, what is your favorite perennial vegetable? Is it similar to what I am growing or do you have something else that you like to grow year after year?
The June-bearing strawberries are coming to life after a fall planting
So far, my perpetual homestead has the start of a perpetual garden. In addition, it has an orchard that will produce peaches, pears, and apples but those will not bear for a few more years. What I have that will all begin bearing in the next couple of years is the berry patch.
There are, of course, many other berries that could be planted, but I decided not to over-extend myself this first year. One berry, you might notice, isn’t included on my list is blackberries. The reason for this is that I am able to get out and pick wild ones that are growing nearby. I hope, next year, to get some elderberries. They not only are good in pie baking, but they have excellent medicinal properties as well. I would also like to add currants, gooseberries, and goji berries. For now, though, I am growing June-bearing and everbearing strawberries, blueberries, and yellow raspberries.
June-Bearing and Everbearing Strawberries
The first berries that I started growing were the June-bearing strawberries. The reason that they are called June-bearing is that they put on one crop of berries in a short period. They generally produce one large harvest in late spring or early summer. I started growing these in a container garden while I still lived in Springfield. Last spring, I moved them out here with me, planted them in a temporary location in the garden. In September I finally transplanted them into a more permanent location where I am able to give them more room. I should be getting some berries from them this year because they had all winter to develop their root systems.
To plant the June-bearing strawberries, I planted them so that they were planted 12 inches apart in staggered rows twelve inches apart. After harvesting the berries, the strawberry plants will produce runners. Instead of allowing these runners to develop roots in the ground where they want, I am going to be putting pots under each of them and coaxing the roots to develop in the pots. That way I can move them and keep their roots more intact when I transplant them. My plan is to sell some of the plants and to plant the rest between the trees in the orchard to create a fruitful ground cover for the trees.
Doesn’t look like much but this strawberry plant will be producing strawberries late this summer.
A second type of strawberry are everbearing strawberries. These produce two to three crops over the course of the summer and into the fall, with the larger crop coming in the summer. The berries on the everbearing strawberries are smaller and sweeter that the June-bearing plants and produce fewer runners. Like with the June-bearing, I planted the everbearing in two rows, with staggered plantings twelve inches apart. I planted them so that the strawberries roots are completely covered, but the crown remains above the soil line.
I planted the strawberries in late winter, so I spread a thin layer of partially decomposed chicken manure on top of the soil around the strawberry plants. This way, the manure will filter down to the roots during the spring rains and help nourish the plants’ roots. If I would have planted them in the spring after things started growing, I would have watered the plants with compost tea.
Next, I used sawdust to mulch the patch to reduce weed growth, hold in moisture and keep the manure from washing away or dissipating into the air. I have heard of people using plastic for mulch around the strawberries but because it can facilitate diseases such as leaf spot and anthracnose, I don’t recommend it.
Once things start growing in the spring, I will give the patch one inch of water per week if the soil is dry. It is important that strawberries get enough water until they are established. During production, Strawberries may have up to 2 inches of water a week.
If I would have planted the June-bearing strawberries in the spring, I would have removed blossoms and runners in the first year. However, because I planted them last fall, I don’t have to do that. For everbearers, I will remove blossoms and runners only until July 1. This will enhance strawberry plant growth and production.
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Blueberries
A freshly planted blueberry plant.
I planted my blueberries in the ground where I grew potatoes last year. This way the soil was loosened with the broad fork several times and rocks and weeds were removed as well. Because I had mulched the area heavily with leaves and grass clippings, the ground was light and highly organic. Because blue berries prefer much more acidic types of soil, measuring a little closer to 4.5 to 5.0., I am continually adding coffee grounds to quickly increase soil acidity.
I planted two kinds of blueberries. One was Patriot and the other was Jersey. Blueberries should be planted during the early springtime or just when the winter season is about to come to an end. Choose a part of your garden where your blueberry plants get access to sunlight for most of the day, but without it being harsh and full sunlight. Companion plant with strawberries and thyme. I planted the blueberries to the depth that they grew when they were at the nursery.
Yellow Raspberries
Don’t let their appearance fool you. Those sticks poking out of the ground are raspberry plants.
I decided to grow Fall Gold raspberries. I may grow red and black raspberries in the future, but for now, I’ll stick to the yellow ones. One reason is that (I am told) that the birds are less likely to eat them than they would the red or black raspberries.
These berries are a primocane type which means they bloom and fruit on first-year wood. Sometimes people refer to the primocane varieties as “everbearing” because they produce two crops on each biennial cane (unless pruned otherwise). The fall crop comes on current-season canes, at the top 1/3 of the canes. After overwintering, and if not pruned, a second crop will be produced in late spring to early summer at the bottom 2/3 of the canes. If I wanted a single heavier crop, I would prune all the canes to the ground every year before growth started in the spring. This way the new cans would produce fruit in late summer or fall that same year.
To plant yellow raspberries, I Choose a planting spot for my raspberries where they had plenty of room to grow and lots of sunlight. I only have three plants right now, but that number will grow every season, so I planted them on the south side of the garden. Plants tend to grow toward the sun so by putting them south of the garden, they will grow away from the garden and not toward it.
Because the raspberries are at the edge of the garden, I didn’t have to worry about breaking up hard ground. I worked some aged chicken manure into the top couple of inches the soil for a nitrogen boost. If I were limited on space, I would have put the raspberries on trellises, but since I am just growing a patch right now, I will let the raspberries grow naturally.
I dug a wide shallow hole for each bare root raspberry plant. If they would have been potted raspberries, I would have dug a hole big enough to accommodate the entire contents of the pot. Each raspberry plant was planted about 2 ½ feet apart.
I trimmed off damaged roots from the bare roots and spread them out. I would removed the plant from the pot and would have left the soil intact if I planted a potted plant. Prepare the raspberries for planting. Trim any damaged roots from bare root plants. Spread the roots out. Remove potted plants from the pots, leaving the soil intact around the roots.
I set each plant in a hole, bare roots spread out, into the soil. I didn’t plant the roots deep put left them less than two inches below the ground. I buried the roots and firmly pressed the soil to remove any air pockets. Potted plants should be planted so that the plant is buried no deeper than the surface of the soil in the pot.
I cut the canes to about six inches tall. I watered the raspberry plants just enough to settle the soil and mulched them to suppress weeds, hold in moisture and keep soil cool from the heat of the sun.
Now I have several berries that will soon offer me fruit from June until late summer and with a little maintenance work, they will do so year after year.
Now its your turn. Are you growing berries where you live? If so, what’s your favorite?
The orchard doesn’t look like much, but if I properly planted it and maintain it, it should do fine.
This past week I finally planted the trees in my permaculture orchard. I decided to plant semi-dwarf trees because they tend to be heartier and live longer than dwarf trees but produce in a smaller area and produce more quickly than standard trees.
I bought bare-rooted trees from GrowOrganic.com for my mini-orchard. Bare rooted fruit trees are those sold without a pot and the type purchased by tree nurseries, but they can be purchased by individuals too. Bare-rooted trees will save me money and are available in a much wider selection of varieties and sizes than those sold in pots. Also, they are less expensive to ship. Because bare-rooted trees don’t have an extensive root system, they do require proper planting and careful treatment during the first year to establish healthy root systems and provide a reliable harvest.
I bought three apple trees, a pear tree, and a peach tree and I purchased them so that I would have tree fruit from mid-July to November.
First, we have the Red Baron Peach. This tree is the earliest of all the trees in the orchard. It is self-pollinating. It blooms early to mid-season and harvest from the middle of July to August first. It produces a rich juicy, large yellow freestone fruit. It is a vigorous tree that needs fertile, well-drained soil and regular pruning and thinning.
The pear is the Pontiac Pear. It is self-pollinating and has a superior resistance to fire blight with good-quality fruit. This fruit harvests in August-September.
The first apple that I chose was the Golden Delicious. The reason I chose it, is that it is not only self-pollinating, but it also pollinates other apple trees too. It resists woolly apple aphids and collar rot. This is the earliest of the apples that I chose and produces ripe apples in early September and is a sweet eating apple.
I chose the Braeburn apple because it can be kept in long term storage and I like the fact that it was grown from a “wild-seedling”. It doesn’t hurt that it originated in New Zealand too. This apple is harvested in mid-autumn.
Finally, I picked the Liberty apple because this apple is low maintenance. It has a natural disease resistance to apple scab, powdery mildew, cedar apple rust, and fire blight. Its fruit has a crisp white flesh, yellow with red overtones, a crisp white flesh, and a tart but sweet taste. It harvests in late autumn.
The Red Baron peach tree was properly planted, staked, and mulched.
Where I Planted My Trees
I put a lot of thought into where to plant these trees because once they are in the ground, they can’t be moved. Our land is on a south facing slope which is great for gardening, but not so good for orchards. South facing slopes heat more quickly than north facing ones which wouldn’t be a problem, but late spring frosts can destroy the tender buds on those south facing trees. Therefore, it is necessary to protect the trees from a direct southern exposure, but how do I do this on a south facing slope?
I made the use of a microclimate created by the buildings on our place. I planted these trees along the western boundary of the property on the north side of the trailer just north of the hen house. This way, sun shining on a frosty morning won’t cause sunscald. There’re large trees on the western side of the yard so the trees are protected from westerly winds. Also, the north side of the yard will stay cooler than the south side of the yard and will prevent the trees from budding too early. The fruit trees will bud later, preventing late frosts from destroying the flowers and therefore future fruit.
How I Planted My Trees
Here in this part of Missouri, we are able to plant trees any time that we can work the soil during the late winter. In more northerly climates, trees would need to be planted later in the season either late winter or early spring but definitely before the trees bud.
For each tree I dug a hole about a shovel’s depth and at least three times the side of the bare-root stock. I made the holes square because a square hole is better than a round one as it encourages the roots to push out into the surrounding ground. I kept the soil I removed on a tarp.
I added a few inches of good garden compost and worked it into the soil around the hole. I mixed the compost into the top two inches of the soil out to what would be the tree’s dripline. I placed the tree in the center of the hole and spread out the roots. As I put the soil back around the tree, I made sure to mix some compost into the soil as I replaced it around the tree. I made sure that I planted just to the slightly darker junction on the tree’s trunk that indicated where the soil level was when it was first grown. I made sure that the soil around the hole wasn’t planted deeper or shallower than when the trees were first grown. Since my fruit trees were grafted onto rootstock, I made certain that the joint was above ground.
Before I buried the tree roots, I put a thick wooden stake a few inches from the center of the hole and on the side of the north wind (As I said earlier, I have trees for a windbreak.) I hammered this firmly into the ground using a mallet. I firmly pressed the tree and post into the ground with my heel, careful not to damage the roots. When the hole was half full, I pulled the tree up an inch and then let it drop to help the soil fill in around the roots.
When all the soil was added and firmed, I attached the tree to the stake with a soft tie and left enough room for the tree trunk to grow. I plan to add a protective fence around the trunk of each tree. At this stage I covered the area which would be the dripline with sawdust to suppress weeds.
I watered the soil well to stop the roots drying out and to further settle the soil around them.
Further Care During the Spring/Summer/Fall
Until the root system is at least as large as the tree it supports, the trees are particularly vulnerable to environmental stress. During this first year, the trees can easily die from not getting enough water or nutrients. I will need to keep the trees well-watered, especially during dry weather. A good soaking once or twice a week is much better than surface watering daily, though during extreme heat it can be worth doing both. It’s also vital to keep the area around the tree completely free of weeds and grass as they will compete with the young tree, which is why the sawdust mulch will be highly effective.
<p value="<amp-fit-text layout="fixed-height" min-font-size="6" max-font-size="72" height="80">I will also have to remember to remove any and all blossoms from the trees this first year and not let any fruit develop. By keeping the trees from bearing the first year, the trees will have less stress and become healthier and produce greater bounty in the future.I will also have to remember to remove any and all blossoms from the trees this first year and not let any fruit develop. By keeping the trees from bearing the first year, the trees will have less stress and become healthier and produce greater bounty in the future.
I am looking forward to sharing more about this orchard in the future. If you have any questions about growing your own home orchard, please let me know by commenting below.
<p value="<amp-fit-text layout="fixed-height" min-font-size="6" max-font-size="72" height="80">If you have anything you would like to add, feel free to add it in the comments below as well!If you have anything you would like to add, feel free to add it in the comments below as well!
This setup has an incubator and a brooder side by side. It’s not a bad system for just a handful of chicks.
On my homestead, the answer to that question was the chicken. However, hatching eggs is part of the perpetual equation. On July 9, 2020, my chicks arrived from The Cackle Hatchery of Lebanon, Missouri. I chose The Cackle Hatchery because I listened to some advice Dad gave me some advice about purchasing chickens when I was growing up. He said to always buy my chickens from the reputable hatchery nearest my home. This way the chicks don’t have far to travel and will have less stress on them. I found that to be true. Out of the 50 chickens that I ordered, I received 55. Of that 55, I had 53 survive to adulthood. I have butchered (with help) a few of the roosters (with more to harvest) and still have a large flock. This past week we added five more.
On December 21, 2020, the shortest day of the year, my hens started laying their first eggs. From then on, all winter, the hens have been laying like it was summer.
On February first, just before the coldest weather so far this winter (and hopefully the coldest overall) I started incubating eggs. To incubate eggs, of course, I needed fertile eggs. Hens can lay eggs without a rooster, but they cannot get fertilized eggs without one. Because I had my chickens and oodles of roosters with them, I am certain that I had fertilized eggs.
I chose other criteria for the eggs I chose. One criterion is that I needed eggs that were as clean as possible. I chose the cleanest because eggs have a natural coating on them that protects the embryos in the egg from bacteria so I don’t want to wash them.
Also I like to choose eggs that are as round as possible. According to my Dad, his mother used to do this and 80% of the eggs that hatched were hens. I don’t know how true this will be for me, but I believe it is an experiment worth trying.
For what should be obvious reasons, I didn’t refrigerate the eggs I used for hatching. However, I needed to keep the eggs more than 24 hours before incubating, and I turned them from side to side every twelve hours until I was able to get them into the incubator. This will keep the yolk from being stuck to one side for too long. I also made sure the eggs were stored pointed end down. The pointed end should be down at all times during storage and also while in the incubator. The reason is that the chick inside will need the air pocket that is on the rounded side.
In the past, I had an incubator that did not have an egg turner with it. I had a large mortality rate with the chicks because I had to manually turn them and sometimes, I would forget. I set up the incubator in a quiet location and then plugged it in, ready for the eggs, but I ran my incubator for a few days to make certain that everything was working properly. I kept tabs on my humidity levels and be certain that the humidity levels don’t go below 50%. Next, I put the eggs in the incubator pointed end down. I put an “x” on one side and an “o” on the other so that as it turns automatically, I’d be able to tell if the turner was working properly. I kept this up until the eggs had been incubated for 18 days. Also, I checked humidity and temperature levels daily.
Candling
On day eight, I carefully took out each egg and used the candling light on the incubator in a dark room to check to see if a chicken embryo was growing. If I saw a large mass inside the egg, it meant that an embryo was growing if I saw air pockets through the egg, there was no embryo, and I discarded that egg. Also, I removed any broken or cracked eggs.
Hatching
Chick recently hatched and still in the incubator.
On day 18, I stopped turning the eggs and around day 21 I started hearing some peeping inside the eggs. However, I knew that I did not want to open the incubator anymore for any reason. I didn’t lift the incubator hood because I didn’t want to get any cold air or any bacteria in it and I didn’t want to bother the chick either.
I left the chicks alone and knew not to try to help the chick peck its way out of the shell. I knew that it won’t survive if I did. In some cases, hours pass before a chick busts through its egg completely. I allowed them to dry completely before I put them in the brooder box.
I wasn’t worried about keeping the chicks in the incubator too long, especially since the weather had been so cold lately. Chicks can remain in the incubator for up to 48 hours. I, however, kept them in there only about 24 hours after hatching.
Brooding
A mason jar waterer and a homemade feeder and a heat lamp create a comfy environment for these chicks.
On day 18, I set up the brooder in a packing box next to the incubator. I put several layers of newspaper at the bottom of the box and set up a heat lamp. I filled the chick waterer and had it at room temperature before moving chicks into the box. I also filled the feeder with food in it ready for the chicks.
Yes, five chicks hatched from this first batch. The youngest didn’t hatch out until day 24 and unfortunately he did not survive. This first batch I am keeping for our use, but from here on out, I hope to hatch chicks to sell as well.
I have the second batch of eggs in the incubator right now. My ability to raise chickens perpetually has now been made possible.
Now that the first batch has been removed, the incubator has been fumigated and the second batch started.
The Perpetual Homestead Series
As mentioned in my first postBecoming a Perpetual Homesteader, one of the books that I will be writing for The Perpetual Homesteader series is The Perpetual Chicken House. Feel free to ask any questions because I would love to help! Ask your questions in the comments below.
Grow tomatoes from seed for better selection and cost savings.
The cold and snow from the past few days has got me thinking even more about starting my garden. I have a lot of other things that I would like to do. For instance, I have to get my fruit trees in their permanent locations, and I have perennial plants that need to be put in the ground as well however, with more than six inches of snow still on the ground, those projects will have to wait until the snow is melted. That should be happening this coming week, but until then, planting indoors seems to be on the agenda.
I am Wanting Lots and Lots of Tomatoes
That’s why I am planting tomatoes from seed. Tomatoes are very versatile. Tomatoes can be eaten raw in salads, on sandwiches and just eaten right off the vine. They can be canned into tomato sauce, tomato juice, tomato paste, salsa, with peppers and onions, and plain canned tomatoes. Green, tomatoes can be made into relishes and pickles. I never seem to be able to grow enough tomatoes.
Last year, planted several varieties of tomatoes from seed and bought some others as plants. The plants I purchased had thick stems and were about 8-10 inches tall. Because I had moved to my new location, many of the taller plants that I had grown from seed had died and all I had were small tomato plants that were only a couple inches tall. I thought that there was no way that they would ever grow. However, they did. Actually, what surprised me was that the small tomato plants took off in my garden almost immediately whereas the taller, store-bought plants did not do as well, and the homegrown plants actually overtook the other ones.
I didn’t do as well with my tomatoes as I would have liked, but this year I plan to do a better job with them. More on that later when I plant them in the garden. For now, though, let’s go over planting seeds for growing transplants.
What Tomato Seeds to Plant
Planting tomato transplants from seeds to plant in my garden later will save me money and lets me choose varieties that are not often found at plant nurseries. Because I save seeds from tomato plants that I grew last year, I use only heirloom or open pollinated seeds. This way the tomatoes that I grow will grow true to the variety. I have several types of tomatoes that I will be growing this year. This first batch of tomatoes is the Beefsteak variety. This variety is an indeterminant which means that the plant will grow and produce throughout the season.
Preparing the Soil
Next, I mixed my soil. My soil mix is primarily garden soil and vermiculite. The reason I am using the vermiculite was because a friend gave it to me, and I never like wasting anything.
I put this soil into growing trays or small containers: Recycled or biodegradable trays are best. I use a plastic recycled planting tray and place recycled pots inside them. Later I will transplant the plants into individual containers so that I simply place the whole thing into the soil. As an alternative, you can use an egg carton. For the later transplants, I like using Dixie cups.
Some people like to use a glass or metal spray bottle for watering the seeds, but you can repurpose an empty household bottle. Just make sure to pick one that never contained harsh chemicals, as the residue can damage your delicate plants. I personally use a one cup measuring cup and pour small amounts of water over the soil after planting.
Popsicle sticks make handy plant markers and that is what I am using here. These markers are like name tags for your plants, which comes in handy when you’re planting different varieties. Of course, if you’re only planting one type of seed, they’re not necessary. I have a supply of them so I will definitely be using them.
Putting Seeds in the Soil
I start my tomato seeds 6-8 weeks before the last frost date indoors. Doing so allows my plants to go through the whole germination and into the growth process and be ready to bear fruit when warm weather arrives. If you’re planning to keep your tomato plants indoors or in a greenhouse, this is not an issue, so you can start any time.
I placed 2-3 seeds per container to make up for any that may not germinate. I spaced them with equal distance between each other.
I then sprinkled a little extra potting soil on top of the seeds and gently patted the surface to make it smooth.
Next, I sprayed my seeds using my spray bottle until the soil is moist but not soaked. This requires about 4-5 squirts. Once my seeds turn into plants, I’ll be able to use a small watering can.
I mark one of the popsicle sticks and write the names of the tomato varieties on the stick and note the dated sown on my gardening calendar.
Finally, I cover the planting tray with the plastic and place them onto the growing shelf.
Germination
Tomatoes love warmth, so I placed the planting containers in the sunny window in my living room. During the germination process, I will keep the tomatoes warm and moist. That is why I cover the plants with plastic to ensure the soil stays moist and the seeds stay warm. Keep lights above and a heat mat under tomatoes until they germinated.
Grow lights are highly recommended. Because the lights can be placed only a couple of inches above the seedlings, it prevents the leggedness (long, skinny stems caused from insufficient sunlight of a window). The lights help tomatoes develop stockier stems and bushy leaves.
In addition to lights, rotating my plants so that they get equal amounts of sunlight will prevent them from leaning in one direction.
Growing the Seedlings
When the first true leaves appear, gently brush I’ll gently brush my hands over their leaves a few times per day. This action simulates wind and helps to strengthen the plant’s stems. (If you smoke, be sure to wash your hands before doing this as tobacco mosaic can disease your tomatoes.)
Once your tomato plants have at least three or four sets of true leaves, they’re ready to be hardened off. More about planting tomatoes in the garden later. I will probably be transplanting these tomatoes into larger containers before putting them permanently in the garden, however because this way I can develop a better root system before planting outdoors.
I planted eight varieties of herbs this week too. More about herbs later! I hope you’re having a good week! Do you plant your own seeds for transplants? I would love to hear about it!
Right now, as I am writing this in the middle of a Sunday afternoon, I am sitting here watching the snow fall. Just because it is cold and snowy, doesn’t mean that now’s not the time to begin preparing for this year’s garden. I have started a number of projects. Here is what I have done so far this winter.
Sweet Potatoes
By the time they are ready to plant, these sweet potato plants are going to be producing a massive number of sweet potato slips.
I mentioned in my previous post that I am raising sweet potatoes from roots of last year’s sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes are tropical, perennial vines that may have originated in India, although until recently, scientists thought sweet potatoes were a South American native. The plants produce edible leaves as well as tubers.
Last year when I started the original plants, I planted a single sweet potato just after Thanksgiving in soil in a pot and kept it watered. I had to wait patiently for several weeks before the first leaves showed above the surface. From the plants that grew, I secured several slips (plants with leaves and roots) and planted them in an area of the garden.
Because my garden was just starting, and I didn’t have a bed ready to plant them, I piled a bunch of leaves in a ditch where it had good sunlight and then topped them off with soil I found in an old tractor tire. I then planted the four surviving sweet potato slips in the new bed. I wasn’t sure what to expect, I kept it watered and somewhat weeded. The plants started growing slow, but as the weather heated up, the plants not only took over the bed, but took over the lawn around it. Because I couldn’t mow the lawn around the sweet potatoes, I piled grass clippings around the plants though this didn’t keep all weeds down, having the mulch there did make it easier to pull the weeds that did come up.
I harvested before the first frost of the year. I harvested about twenty-five pounds of potatoes.
After harvesting the sweet potatoes, I harvested the roots. Because sweet potatoes are perennials, the roots, if kept from freezing will produce the next year. I planted them in a long low recycled planting container. As you can see, here it is January and I have a good start on these plants.
Onions
Onions under grow lights on a snowy February afternoon.
Though I will be planting onion sets in the garden, I planted onions from seeds. I will be putting them in the ground about the same time I put the onion sets into the ground as well. One advantage to growing from seed is that I can plant different types of onions and do it at a lower cost than with onion sets.
Chives
Chives belong to the onion family and can be sown directly outdoors in a garden bed, but if you’d like to get a head start, start seeds indoors 8-10 weeks before the last spring frost.
Cabbages and Broccoli
Cabbage and broccoli are such close relatives that they can be planted in the same way for transplanting. Sow two cabbage seeds about ½ inch apart and ¼ inch deep in each cell. Spritz the soil surface with water from a plastic spray bottle to evenly moisten the surface. Do not water enough to make the soil soggy or wet. Close the flat up in a clear plastic bag. Poke a few holes in it with a toothpick to allow for proper air circulation. Set it in a warm, brightly lit room out of direct sun. The top of your refrigerator or above a hot water heater are ideal locations. Your cabbage seeds will sprout in about three to four days if the soil temperature remains between 80 to 85 F. Cooler soil temperatures may slow germination time to as long as two weeks.
Check the soil every day to make sure it never dries out. Spritz with water as necessary to keep the soil surface evenly moist but not soggy or wet.
Feed the seedlings a water-soluble 15-30-15 houseplant fertilizer about three days after germination. Dilute the product to half-strength. Repeat applications every two weeks. Follow the packaging instructions.
Cut the weakest seedling in each cell off at the soil line with clean, sharp scissors when the plants each develop one set of true leaves.
Harden seedlings off one week prior to planting in the garden. Set them in the shade during the first two or three days and bring them in at night. Place the seedlings in a sunny spot during morning hours for the next three or four days. Move them to shade during afternoons and bring them in at night for the next few days. Allow them to spend all day in the sun and bring them indoors overnight for several days. Set them outside for good thereafter.
Peppers
Peppers and herbs growing under grow lights.
I sowed my pepper seeds 10-12 weeks prior to transplanting. I planted them ¼” deep in a fine-textured soil mixed with vermiculite to provide good drainage. I planted two kinds of hot peppers and two kinds of sweet peppers. I made sure that I had each one carefully labeled because I would hate to mix them up. Because they are growing in my living room window, I didn’t worry that the bottom heat needed to be between 80–90°F/27–32°C. Seeds will germinate in 7–8 days at that temperature; at lower temps, germination is slower, erratic, and percentage germination is reduced.
In about 2 weeks, when the first true leaves begin to form, carefully separate the seedlings and transplant them into cell trays or pots.
Pepper seedlings should be grown for 10-12 weeks before being transplanted outdoors.
Egg Plant
Growing eggplants in containers will allow you to grow these veggies earlier since the soil in containers warms up faster. Growing in containers will also help you deal with weeds and pests conveniently. In fact, these troubles are less likely to bug you when growing eggplants in containers.
I started the eggplant seeds indoors. I filled the pot with vermiculite and soil and planted the seeds so that I could thin them later. Eggplant seeds will germinate in about ten days and will be ready for transplanting in 6 to 8 weeks.
Other Herbs to Begin Early
Some plants are slow germinating but do best when they are first treated with cold for 30-90 days. I start these seeds by putting some vermiculite in a plastic bag and dampened with water and then putting the bags in the freezer for one to three months. Afterwards, I bring the seeds back up to room temperature and plant as recommended. Here are the herbs that I treated with this method. These are parsley, lavender, echinacea, and true comfrey
In addition, other herbs, particularly perennials need more time to get started so that they can be planted later out in the garden with better results. These are hyssop, oregano, and Russian tarragon-I used the same vermiculite and soil mix that I used for the other seeds. Because the seeds were so small, I just pressed them into the soil and watered as usual.
Why I Am Not Using a Tiller
Last week, I said that I would tell you why I am using a broad fork rather than tilling. There are two basic reasons. The first one is that it enables me to dig out the Bermuda grass that invaded the garden. The second reason is because I don’t turn the soil with the broad fork. The tiller destroys tilth and causes hard pan to develop below the ground that is turned. Instead, it simply loosens and aerates the soil which is especially good to do with clay soil like I have.
If you enjoyed my post, I would love to hear what you think of this post! If you have any questions about growing transplants from seeds, please feel free to ask them down in the comments below.
When your green tomatoes won’t ripen, use them to make foods like green enchilada sauce.
During the past several weeks that I have been attending the farmers’ market, I have only had green peppers and garlic to sell there for vegetables. Last week we had the farmer’s market at the Black Gold Walnut Festival in Alton, Missouri and I gave away more peppers than I sold and didn’t sell any garlic.
I have been using my tomatoes myself. Most recently, I have been making red enchilada sauce and tomato juice with the ripe tomatoes. It is getting close to frost time and that means that I will soon have to pick the remaining tomatoes no matter how green they are. Fortunately, one of the recipes that I will be using is a recipe for green tomato enchilada sauce that I will can and use when I make chicken enchiladas during the winter season. Here’s the recipe I will be using.
Green Tomato Enchilada Sauce for Canning
The ingredients:
2.5 lbs green tomatoes, diced
1 large onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
3 green peppers (bell, Anaheim, poblano, or any combo), broiled until blackened then peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped (optional)
3 1/2-4 cups water or broth
1-2 tsp Salt
Instructions
Wash all the jars and canning equipment in hot soapy water. (Each batch makes about 7 pints). Rinse well.
In a large pot or skillet, sauté the onions in some olive oil until translucent and soft.
Add the cumin and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally for a few more minutes. Add the tomatoes, roasted peppers, and water or broth and salt to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 20-30 minutes until the tomatoes are mostly broken down.
While the sauce is cooking, sanitize clean canning jars in boiling water for 10 minutes.
In a separate pan begin simmering water and add the canning lids about 5 minutes before you will need them.
Once the sauce has cooked, blend or process the tomatoes in the food processor until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning. Return the sauce to a boil.
After you sanitize the jars, remove the jars from the boiling water and add 1 Tbs of lime juice to each jar.
Fill each jar with the sauce, leaving ½ inch of headspace. Wipe the edge of the jars to make sure they are clean and place the lids on the jars. Lightly tighten the rings (just as tight as you can with two fingers).
Process the jars in a water bath for 35 minutes (or 20 minutes in a pressure canner) at sea level (you will need to add additional time as you increase in elevation).
How about you? What is your favorite way to use end-of-the-season tomatoes?
You would think that during this past week I would have been working in the garden, but to tell you the truth, I have been busy doing other things around the farm. One of the things that we did this past week was clean the pantry/garden room in the house. Our trailer has two bedrooms and the second one was dedicated to the pantry and grow lights set up for starting plants for the garden. This spring it proved valuable for the garden. Right now we have a lot of tomatoes and peppers (both hot and sweet) coming on again since our drought ended earlier in the month.
Besides cleaning, we also had to repair the floor because of some water damage that we had last winter when we used the room for growing. I brought home some plans for a cattle panel greenhouse that I hope my husband uses to build hoop houses for us to use this winter and early next spring.
We have been using some canned goods from the pantry that I canned back in 2019 and the plan is to use it up and replace it with jars of the same items we are canning this year. We’ll be making Jeff’s Hamburger Soup soon and we have 3 jars left from 2019 that we’ll be eating soon. It tastes as good as the day I canned it. Here’s the recipe that I put on Hubpages a few years back.
With the weather starting to look more like fall than summer, I have been making more comfort food using canned foods. I mentioned before that I canned enchilada sauce and we decided to try some of it this week to see how well we liked it. I had estimated that we would need half a cup per batch, but I discovered upon using it that we needed a full cup per batch so I needed two half-cup enchilada sauces for each batch. That means that instead of having enough sauce for ten meals, I have only enough for five. That indicates that I need to make much more.
I canned more tomato juice this week so I have as many tomato juices as I have canned tomatoes. I have some more ripe tomatoes on the counter ready to put up. More tomatoes and peppers are in the garden so making more enchilada sauce should not be a problem. That’s the good thing about using some of my canned foods now, especially with new items that I canned this year. I can make more because we like it and we’ll use it.
Other Homestead Projects
In addition, I have started baking bread again. I have sold some at the farmers’ market and we’ve been enjoying it ourselves. I also made my husband some pecan sweet rolls.
I have also started cleaning out various parts of the house and throwing out or giving away items that no longer serve us. Sometimes it’s better just to get rid of things than to keep them “just in case”. We have several places where we can pick up almost any used item that we might need so, why store them?
Now it’s your turn. What are you doing right now to prepare for this winter? I would love to hear what you have to say down in the comments below.
![The Survival Garden: Plant a Garden for Food to Last all Winter that You Won't need to can, freeze. or dehydrate by [Cygnet Brown]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/514TP8GXZoL.jpg)
The Perpetual Homesteader 