garden update part deux

In mid June I gave an update of my somewhat lackluster garden, so I thought it was about time I posted another update. 

I am happy to say that my plants are finally coming into their own and I will have tomatoes, among a few other veggies, after all.

I transplanted all of my tomatoes out of the bed along the fence.  They all survived the move with flying colors.  Instead of moving them to a new bed or spending over $20 on new pots, I decided to use a hanging sweater organizer for closets ($13 at Target).  I cut out every other separator to form three even sections.  I lined the sides with some recycled cardboard to help keep their shape and then filled with potting soil.  The organizer is made of canvas – this provides ample drainage and a weed barrier. 

There is even some fruit on the vines!

My tomatillo plant is still growing out of control.  Lots of flowers, but no fruit yet.  Should I be concerned?

I probably should have done a little research on them before sticking them in a pot with my herbs.  I think they are cramping some of my herbs style – I think it is time to do a little more staking/support to reign them back in a little.

This cucumber plant was very sad looking and slow growing in June… not so much now.  If it sprouts a few flowers perhaps it will set some fruit… before Halloween and the first snow.

These are our ridiculously fast growing purple potato plants.  So excited!

Crazy mint… Can you say mojito?

The kohlrabi is still kickin’.

My Contender bean plant is starting to flower and so are my borage plants.  Haven’t tried to eat the borage yet, but I’m excited to try it.  Any recipe suggestions?

The bane of my existence - freakin’ morning glory vine.

I also have a few pepper plants which seem to be holding up (no flowers yet) and eggplants that seem meh…  And that is where the garden stands as of this morning.

whats the story morning glory?

The story is that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. 

When I was young, our summer home had a retaining wall that ran along the back of the house.  Above that wall was a steep grade which essentially was treated as a vacant lot by both my family and the house above it.  Things run wild in a vacant lot and I loved when Morning Glories would spring up and run along the wall.  I thought those blue/purple/pink flowers were so pretty.

Fast forward twenty years.

Now as a gardener, I hate them and their incredibly invasive vines.  They are the bane of my existence, as they weave their way through all of our backyard beds.  They are slowly expanding their reign by slipping under the fence and entering our side bed.  I pull them out everyday, and every next day vines have sprung up again.  They are like a ninja assassin, slipping in unnoticed and killing off an unsuspecting victim.  Their runners move quickly beneath the surface, choking out all the non-invasive plants in your garden.

We are just renting, so I tell myself over and over that I only have to deal with it for this summer.  I pray that when the day comes for us to actually buy a house that there is no such invasion there… I don’t think I could bear it .

Oh Morning Glory, you garden ninja, you wily Medusa, you temptress to the unknowing masses – I hate.  I’m sorry but I do.

kohlrabi remoulade

If you’re not familiar with kohlrabi, it is a member of the cabbage family and both its leaves and bulbus stem are edible.  In German, kohl means cabbage and rübe means turnip - and from that we get kohlrabi, there ya go.  The leaves taste similar to collard/turnip greens/chard (depending on the age of your plant and other gardening concerns like soil, climate, season) and can be prepared using similar recipes.  The bulb needs to be peeled, as the outside can be woody (older/larger bulbs can be more woody than smaller younger bulbs).  With a mild cabbage or turnip flavor, they can be eaten raw in salads and slaws, or on a crudité platter.  They are also often sautéed, battered and fried, and baked in a gratin (I’m sure among countless other ways to prepare them). 

Kohlrabi

I planted some in my yard this spring (both the green and purple varieties) and they are finally ready to pick.  I am picking them on the small side since they are very tender at this size, but you can let them grow much larger.  So far we have enjoyed the bulb part in a salad and the leaves sautéed with olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes (I did add some water to the pan so they would steam and soften). 

Tonight they are on the menu again… Kohlrabi Remoulade Salad.  This salad has a bunch of fun textures – the soft crunch of the kohlrabi bulb, the crisp crunch of the peppers and lettuce, the tender meatyness of the leaves, and the creamy dressing.  I purposely made the dressing a little thinner than the typical remoulade in order for it to act somewhat like a dressing for the rest of the greens.  This cool salad is really nice when paired up with a spicy main dish or a fish dish.

Kohlrabi Remoulade Salad

Serves: 2

• 1 medium or 2 small kohlrabi (leaves and bulbus stem)
• 2 c of lettuce (any type)
• 1/4 c julienned/thinly sliced bell pepper
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp mayonnaise
• 1 tsp grainy mustard (if you have a sweet variety, use that – if not add a little honey to the mix)
• 2 tsp sour cream
• juice of 1/4-1/2 lemon
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tsp fresh herbs of your preference

Pull the leaves off of the bulb part of the kohlrabi.    

Since the bulb part can be fibrous, you will need to peel off the outside layer.  Then slice the bulb into thin, julienne-style, strips.

Cut the peppers into similar sized pieces.  Place the peppers, julienned kohlrabi bulb, and herbs in a bowl and set aside.  I used Savory in my version (it is growing like wildfire in my garden), but tarragon, thyme, dill, parsley, or any other herb you favor will really do the trick.

Bring a pot of water to a boil and salt. 

While the water is coming up to a boil, strip the kohlrabi leaves from their stems and roughly chop.

Blanch the kohlrabi greens in the boiling water for 1-2 minutes (or longer depending on how tough the leaves are).  You want them to be tender, but still bright/dark green, not mushy or fadded, grey green.  Immediately plunge the blanched leaves into a bowl of ice water, or run under the cold tap.  Drain and wring out on a towel.

Mix the mustards, mayo, sour cream, lemon juice (add to taste – it will depend on how tart your lemon is), and honey if needed (if your grainy mustard isn’t sweet).  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Add the mustard mixture to the bowl or peppers and kohlrabi.  Stir to combine.

In a serving bowl, layer the lettuce on the bottom, then add the blanched and drained kohlrabi leaves, and finally top with the pepper/kohlrabi mixture.  There should be some extra dressing – make sure it all gets added to the serving bowl, as this is needed to dress the lettuce and kohlrabi leaves below.  Chill until ready to serve.  

how does your garden grow?

It is time for the next chapter in my gardening saga.  You may remember my excitement of ordering seeds and seed starting, and my disappointing seed failing (or massacre).  I have somewhat redeemed myself with some seeds, continued to fail in other areas, and have had mediocre results, at best, with some of the plant starts I purchased.  One big issue we have encountered is the soil quality in the garden beds.  Poor soil quality is pretty typical unless someone has made an effort to maintain and upkeep the soil quality over time.  This does not seem to be as big of an issue with some perennials (those established and suited to the climate), but is a huge issue when growing veggies and, I would assume, other annuals.  Unfortunately Sportsglutton and I are renters and are not in a spot financially where we could remediate the in-ground soil for our duplex.  So, what to do? Planters. Planters of all different shapes and styles.

Let’s take a tour!

First off, tools – a strong cup of coffee (a must for morning gardening), gloves, gardening tools, and a spray bottle full of an organic insect repellent ”tea” for plants (steap chopped onions, garlic, dish soap, and cayenne pepper over night – strain in the morning and spray on affected plants).

Kohlrabi that is almost ready for picking… better late than never.

Lettuce that has been feasted on by garden critters.  Most likely slugs have been chowing down on my lettuce at night – time to catch them with some beer.

This Juliet tomato plant (little oblong cherry type tomatoes) shares a bed with the kohlrabi and lettuce seen above, as well as some chervil and lemon balm (I think – it just sprouted and I can’t remember if I threw lemon balm or sorrel seeds in there).  I thought this bed would have the worst soil since it juts out into driveway from under our deck, but it actually seems to be doing alright.

Speaking of tomatoes, isn’t the Heirloom Beefsteak plant above the saddest thing you’ve ever seen?  These tomatoes are all in our other backyard bed up against a fence.   This soil is making the Heirloom Beefsteak plant miserable.  Oddly, it is the first plant to sprout an actual tomato.  Maybe the plant thought it needed to leave some offspring behind to carry on its line before it pooped out in the poor soil?  Never fear though, I saved it from certain death after I took this photo.  Oh – If you think the leaves look a little funny on the Beefsteak for a tomato plant, it is because this is a “potato leaf” tomato variety. 

The Kellogg’s Breakfast is supposed to produce huge yellow tomatoes.  I’m not sure how it felt about this soil – it seemed to be struggling a little to me.  I transplanted this plant and the remaining two tomato plants (Principe Borghese and Large Red Slicer Hybrid (which seems only marginally better than the Heirloom Beefsteak))  in this bed to a planter after the success of moving that sad heirloom beefsteak.  After spending a night in their new makeshift home (I will post about that later this week with pictures of their new home), it seems I made the right move.  The Large Red Slicer is still not looking great in the new planter, but hopefully it will perk up since I am looking forward to some tomato slices.  The Principe Borghese is a drying tomato and is supposed to be a very prolific plant – only time will tell.

In this fun (and happy growing) wine barrel, we have a crazy tomatillo plant and a marigold that I purchased as starts.  I also seeded the planter with basil, thyme, savory, dill, oregano, parsley, lemon balm, and sorrel.  I can actually state that these seeds are all doing really well and growing fast.  This is one of my definite successes.

The next few pictures capture a few of my original seed starts that survived – peppers.  Santaka, cayenne, and a mystery pepper plant survived my murderous attempts at hardening them off.  While I am happy they are still hanging on, they are not growing all that well, though I think they have started to pick up the pace in the last few days.  I’m not sure they will produce anything.

When I moved that terrible looking tomato plant, I displaced what I think is a parsley seedling.  I moved that plant in with the peppers.  Why am I not so sure about the parsley plant?  Because it came from this planter:

This is my planter of surprise (aside from the purchased eggplant start that towers in the corner).  When I originally started my seeds back in April I stuck seeds that were left in my hand after sowing each small starting container into this pot.  I figured “hey, it can’t hurt.”  Well it hasn’t.  A bunch of mysterious cotyledons (the first leaves of a plant) appeared two weeks ago. When the first “true leaves” (the leaves that actually express the type of plant it is) appeared on some of the sprouts, it seemed a few of them were parsley.  I moved a more established parsley plant to make room for the sad tomato plant.

This is a neighboring pot that was seeded with plants that do not transplant well, so I had never started them in the first place.  The plant in the middle is a Contender Bean plant, the large, darker green leafed plants on the outside are Borage, and the small outside plants are Cilantro.  This pot is also doing pretty well.  Eventually, as the bean plant grows, I will train it up the poles.

Excuse the weird coloring in this photo – it is a potato plant that is just sprouting in a green bucket.  The sprout is hard to see because it is a purple potato plant and the leaves are almost the same color as the dirt.  It is growing fast, and has probably grown about 2 inches since this photo was taken two days ago.  I have four plants in two buckets and will add more soil as the vines grow to hopefully encourage the plant to increase its yield.

This cucumber plant is also growing a little slow in the same bed as the tomatoes.  I may have to transplant him too.

Mint on the other hand can grow anywhere (it is a perennial though) and is happily spreading like wildfire in that bed.  I believe this is its second year inhabiting that bed.

My Sage plant is hanging in there too.  This plant is new this year, but since Sage is a perennial I am hoping it shows up again next year.

Rosemary apparently grows slowly, so the best way to get a new plant is to take a cutting from an existing plant.  I actually bought a pack of rosemary sprigs from the store one day and they were very fresh, so I thought I would try starting one to see if it would root.  It did.  I removed the bottom 3″ of leaves and stuck the sprig in water. After a few days, a small nub of a root appeared.  A few weeks more and an entire root system developed.  Very delicately, I transferred it to a small cow poop pot.  After it settled into the pot and I properly hardened it off, I was able to transfer it outside to a bigger planter.  The cow poop pots can be planted directly into the ground and they will breakdown naturally in the soil overtime.  I just trimmed off a few inches of the sprig to encourage the plant to bush out and produce more sprigs.

Now for the revived tomato plant reveal!

The plant looked a little better almost immediately after being moved, and looked like a whole new plant the next day.

Happy gardening!

an off day

Yesterday I had planned to post and update on my plants, a tutorial on making cheap and easy homemade tomato cages, and a look at my first loaf of bread for the Bread Baker’s Apprentice Challenge at Pinch My Salt, but yesterday, while not the end of the world, was a little off for me. 

I accidentally hit the oven knob and turned the temperature up 100 degrees on the bread.  The loaves were saved, but a little more… crusty than normal. 

 While the bread was rising, I went out and shot some pictures of the plants (those that survived and some new replacements) and the tomato cage tutorial without incident. 

So what happened? 

I went to upload all those photos into Adobe Light Room and deleted the pics before I hit import.  All those pictures are gone.  No evidence is left of my Saturday.   After I kicked myself for a while, stuck a dunce cap on my head and pouted in a corner, I let it go and started a new project - refinishing a bunch of our furniture using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.  The paint has been getting a bunch of attention on home decor/design blogs lately and I wanted to see what all the hype is about.  Don’t get all excited because a post for this project will not be ready for while.

So sadly without pictures, a brief update on my plants and tomato cage tutorial: 

In the midst of finals, on a nice sunny day, I decided to harden my seedlings.  Hardening is the process of taking plants started inside and gradually getting them used to the outdoor environment.  Inside the plants are protected from direct sunlight, winds, and fluctuating temperatures.  These conditions can be a bit shocking when you’ve lived such a sheltered life, so plants are taken out into the elements for short periods of time to build up their tolerance until you are ready to transplant them outside.  You would want to place the plants in a shaded area protected from the direct impact of harsh conditions.  With a brain full of land use law terms and a belly full of nerves, I unwisely placed my plants in direct sun for way too long – I forgot we were going out to dinner straight from my two-hour final.  Needless to say, a few peppers are the only things to survive my shock and awe style hardening.   

Heartbroken, but determined to have a bunch of veggies this summer, I headed over to our local organic nursery.  Jed and I picked out five types of tomatoes as well as tomatillo, eggplant, sage, and cucumber plants.  I transplanted those in the rain on Friday and started some of my original herb seeds (outside this time), and some other seeds that do not start well inside (beans, corn, cilantro, wild flowers).  I will take pictures, again, later this week.

Using thin metal garden fencing (found in the gardening section at your home improvement store) that was left over from building a cage for our compost pile, I made five tomato cages.  On roll of fencing costs around $20-$30.  Three tomato stakes or one basic small cage will run about $8.  You can do the math. Building your own also allows for customized sizing.  After measuring out the length of fence needed to create a cage with the desired circumference, move one hole further and cut using wire cutters.  Create the cage by twisting the cut wire fence ends around the opposite side or use other wire to fix the fence into the cage shape.   I used my fingers to twist the wire, but you may want to use pliers.  Again, I will post pictures later this week (arghhh).

I leave you with the only picture of the fruits of my labor from Saturday (taken this moring – as you can see most of the loaf is already gone): slightly singed  Anadama Bread.