Putting the garden to bed for another winter

'Tis the season - not the shopping season, sillies. 'Tis the season for putting the garden to bed. I'm a little late this year because of cataract surgery. I was either in surgery, recovering from surgery, or on restrictions related to surgery for the majority of October. Some of the restrictions included bending from the waste or lifting anything more than ten lb., so digging up the garden and spreading compost were, well, out of the question. I managed to find a few mornings when I wasn't restricted and took out the tomato supports and the boards that become my stepping path (can't call them stones, now can I). Two weeks later, with pressure behind the eyes settling and the miracle of a warm day, I did more raking. The silver maple that towers over our yard is still dropping its leaves. I raked for an hour Sunday morning, dumping the leaves on the triangle garden plot to insulate it and decompose atop the soil.

We brought in the herbs and set the shelves in the sunniest part of the living room. This spot is also rather drafty, so I might put the greenhouse covering on the shelves. Readers, what do you think? Will my herbs do better in the house if they're sheltered a bit? The water might not evaporate quite as quickly, and they might stay warmer. It's certainly worth a try.

If I don't have another chance to work out in the yard, I've accomplished enough that my garden beds will live through the winter and be ready for spring. Spring... it seems so far away!

Now, I'd better get to that holiday shopping.

Top Ten Reasons to Walk to Work

10. The streets in the neighborhood are beautiful, especially in autumn.

9. I spend most of my day in a cubicle in a chair; walking lets me stretch.

8. Driving less often reduces my family's dependence on gas and saves money.

7. Walking home provides thoughtful "decompression" time after a busy day.

6. I enjoy the fresh air.

5. Walking is good exercise.

4. I lower my carbon footprint by leaving the minivan in the garage.

3. Driving less often saves wear and tear on my aging minivan.

2. Parking at my workplace is limited, to say the least.

1. This is the view of my favorite easy-out, shady parking spot after the latest storm went through.

Yeah, the aging minivan would have been toast. I wasn't working that day, luckily.

Thank goodness for the Farmers' Market

I bought a butternut squash and a pound of zucchini at the Farmers' Market. But why? I planted both varieties in my garden!

The only squash in my garden is a hybrid. Imagine it: green, but in the shape of a butternut squash. My dilemma: what should we call this? Zutternut? Butterzuch? Zhuccernut? Oh, well, I guess I'll see what it looks and tastes like before I decide. I might end up calling it compost.

Not a natural flower

Wisconsinites like to say that there are two seasons: winter and road construction. We're currently in the latter season. The evidence is everywhere. In fact, road construction barricades have their own names in this part of the country.

See these? We call them Schneider Eggs.

Without Schneider eggs, where would the big orange trucks come from?

Last week I heard a bus driver refer to the orange markers as "Wisconsin's State Flower." Ooh, ooh, here's a bouquet growing in -- gravel?

I see these flowers spread out when they're allowed to grow in grass.

If the big orange cones are Wisconsin's State Flower, what are these?

Seeds?

Pickles! We have pickles!

Here you go, a quick look at the result of Tuesday's recipe. Let's see: one jar is open and in the refrigerator, one jar went to my brother's house, one jar is on its way to my mom's...

I think I need to make a second batch. Works for me! Tastier than store-bought, and less expensive, too. Need I mention it's my favorite kitchen towel? Nah. You knew that.

Farmers' Market Days

Saturdays are Market Days - Farmers' Market, that is. I reserve Saturday mornings for going to the market and buying whatever is in season. I reserve the afternoons for prepping and freezing or even canning. Here's a taste.

Berries! From left to right: sweet Bing cherries, blueberries & raspberries. The blue and red mixed when I dropped the bag as I tried to fit one more purchase in my big blue bag on wheels.

The first chore of Market Day this week: sort the mixed up berries. I nibbled quite a few. After this, I rinsed all three kinds of fruit and pitted the cherries. The blueberries are now in the freezer; the cherries and raspberries will be eaten by Tuesday.

Here's the rest! From left to right, again: sweet corn, asparagus (the last of the season!), garlic, onions, tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, and lots of pickling cucumbers. You can tell I had a goal - pickles. The batch of fresh dill was on the deck; I bought it at the mid-week market on Wednesday.

I offered before and after for the berries: here's the After shot of the dill pickle spears. It was a busy night, but totally worthwhile. Some time in the winter, we'll appreciate the spoils of the summer. We won't have to buy store pickles, a money savings. These will taste so much richer, too -- being made from locally grown ingredients and made in my own kitchen.

Now that's a Market Day I can enjoy from start to finish.

Signs of a Gardener

You may be a gardener at heart if:

• There's dirt under your nails.

Dirt? Is that all? I either have dirt under my nails or fingers stained with cherries, strawberries, or thumbs that are green from shelling peas or - you get the picture.

• You think of soil as a foundation, the stable ingredient in creating a garden space.

After ten years of composting - okay, twelve plus - the soil in my first garden bed is rich and dark and drains well. The new garden is still heavy with clay, but improving a little every year. It needs a little decomposing TLC.

• You have a specific pair of shoes for the garden.

I have a pair of crocs. I can get them wet or muddy and I don't care.

• Watering is relaxing, not stressful.

Filling a watering can from a rain barrel or setting up a soaker hose takes time, and it's a good use of time. My mind wanders, my shoulders relax, and any stress headache goes away.

• You welcome rain or sunshine.

Rain provides a good soaking to the plants and fills the rain barrels for later. Sunshine invites stems and branches to reach for the sky and grow to their full potential.

• You talk to the plants.

"Geez, beans, I gave you a nice set of climbing equipment. Why do you insist on attaching to the fencing? It'll just put you within range of the bunnies and other furry critters who might nibble, and then... here. I'll show you." Meanwhile, I'm wrapping the bean vines around the supports I just put in and hoping they get the idea. And maybe hoping the neighbors didn't hear me.

• You talk to critters who might turn up near your precious plants.

Hey, rabbit, how did you get in there? What do you think you're doing, relaxing in my lettuce?

You, raccoon. Get out of my compost, punk!

I only came up with seven. Can you make this a top ten list, readers? Add your signs of a true gardener by commenting.

Dear NFL Owners and Players;

Dear NFL Owners and Players;

I sincerely hope you'll find a settlement sooner rather than later. In the meantime, I'll keep harvesting and cooking one of my favorite fresh vegetable combinations:

Green Bay Packers beans.

Say it with me: green and yellow, green and yellow, green and yellow...

Garden Mishaps

I can't seem to get peas. I just can't seem to get them right. Either I have a wimpy support and the peas can't climb, or the peas are trapped in a non-sunny spot, or something unknown prevents them from doing well. My pea vines are already dying, and there aren't many pods to pick. You see the peas here behind my excuse for a scarecrow: old CDs.

Chuck came in and asked, "Did you kill your chives? If you killed the chives, I'm revoking your gardener's license!" Well, no, I didn't kill the chives. I transplanted them last year so they're closer to the house. He had observed these: the shallots.

Shallots were (are?) an experiment this year. I wasn't sure if I had the time or the right kind of soil to grow them well. I'm still not sure. This lying down on the job act: does that mean they're ready to harvest, or does that mean they're dying? Anyone have a clue?

To conclude this valuable discussion, I'll just leave you with some philosophy. Garden growth is dependent on so many variables. Rain, sun, quality seeds, critters... oh, yes, critters. I walked out to the garden to pick the few peas that are growing, and I found this little furball sitting in my lettuce. In my LETTUCE!!

My reaction (you won't be surprised) was to stop in my tracks, look that bunny right in the eye, and call out, "How did YOU get in there?" It didn't answer me.

I call him Peter, even though I'm not Farmer McGregor. He's better not invite Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cottontail to a lettuce party. I'll be waiting.

Rain, rain, come my way!

The thunder yesterday sounded encouraging, but the storm dropped so little water that I felt I still needed to lug around the watering can again.

It's been so dry (how dry was it?) that I've used up all the water in both rain barrels and I'm filling the watering can from the house tap. Sigh. It feels so wasteful! I've almost - almost, mind you - been tempted to hook up a sprinkler.

In the category of wasteful, sprinklers score a capital W for Wasting Water. The water sprays into the air where much of it evaporates and never reaches its target. The area watered by a sprinkler gets wet - all of it. Vegetables, flowers, weeds, and walkways all receive the same amount of water. Water ends up soaking the leaves rather than the roots, too. Some water will evaporate from the leaves, but too much may cause diseases. When I bring out the watering can, I can direct the water to individual plants and pour it straight into the ground for those thirsty roots. A sprinkler doesn't do that.

Soaker hoses are better. I own a soaker hose, a short permeable hose that lets the water drip out into the soil. I can wrap it around the areas that need water the most and know that very little will evaporate. It's especially fun to hook up the soaker hose to a rain barrel, but you heard me earlier; my rain barrels are empty.

Sigh. Mother Nature, the rivers in the North Dakota are high enough. Send some rain this way!

the Gated Community - er, garden.

Last summer we tried. We had good intentions. But I was sick, Chuck had craziness at work, and we never got around to fencing in the newest garden plot. As a result, the neighborhood wild bunnies ate my broccoli.

Yesterday I came home from a baseball game with Amigo and found the wire fence had been tightened up, a gate installed, and my garden safe from bunnies! And when I say gate, I'm not kidding. I don't know where Chuck found this one, but it's very sturdy. Cute, too.

He was a little concerned about one of the tomato plants that had been squashed during the building process and the stem broken. I trimmed it, cut it back, and I think it'll be okay. If not, I have at least one other plant of the same kind.

The back view, behind the new gate, looks pretty good. It's no-till, so it's not gorgeous, but everything is growing nicely. If we don't get rain today, I'll use the rain barrel supply to water everything tonight.

By the way, I harvested spinach today, too. Anyone want some?

Weeding! It's not so bad. In fact, I enjoy it.

Finally, the plants are maturing enough that I can see what belongs and what doesn't. That means it's time to start weeding!

Readers, did you notice I didn't complain? Weeding is productive and therapeutic and even enjoyable. I searched through old posts and found out that I've discussed the positives of weeding in the past.

Here's one from June, 2007.

I enjoy weeding because I can see progress. My garden is divided into small sections, set apart by my stepping "stones" made from old deck and fence pieces. I set a goal of weeding one section at a time. When that's done, I can quit weeding or choose to finish another section. This is a managable goal; I feel productive when I can see the results in one part of the plot. It spares me the frustration of not "finishing" the whole thing, which is of course an impossible goal. Today I chose one triangular section of the garden and weeded out the many mini maples that flew in from the lot behind ours. If I ever abandon this small plot of ground behind my garage, I predict the mini maples will take over, leaving room for a blanket of clover underneath. But for now, look out maples! I have garden gloves and I know how to use them.

Here's an older post from July, 2006.

Weeding feels good because:

• I can't hear the telephone.
• Digging in the dirt is fun.
• It doesn't matter if I'm all sweaty and grimy.
• I can appreciate the growth of my vegetables by comparing them to the weeds I'm pulling out.
• I see the little flowers that mean the plants will bear fruit -- some time.
• I can laugh at the tiny "stray" tomato plants that grew where the rotten fruit dropped last fall.
• The science teacher in me looks at all the clover and thinks, "Wow! There's a lot of nitrogen in this soil! Who needs fertilizer?"
• I notice the little grubs and worms that aerate the rich soil; and they're not, I said NOT, yucky.
• I notice how dark and rich the soil is, thanks to our home-grown compost.
• The weeds (well, most of them) will become part of the cycle of life by decomposing in the compost bin.
• Progress is noticeable. Every little bit of weeding shows results.

I heard a garden expert on the radio recommend that serious gardeners spend about 30 minutes a day weeding and maintaining. I don't come near that, so I guess I'm not "serious" by his standards. I do keep it up, though, and get my hands dirty and produce good things to eat. My garden makes me happy. Isn't that enough?

Rock on with a rock garden!

This is the "before" picture. Mint, mint, and more mint. A few tulip and daffodil bulbs, but other than that, the area is almost entirely occupied by mint. Sure, it smells good. I could use it to make mint syrup or garnish a refreshing beverage. But this plant is aggressive. A-G-G-R-E-S-S-I-V-E. It takes over. I've tried pulling it; it comes back. I've tried moving it; it spread. I placed layers over the mint last fall, hoping I could start a new raised garden over the top. Nope; mint was determined to find the sun.

I started this time by again removing the mint. I moved the bulbs (see the daffodil remains on the right?) to a better place. I set the mint on a drying table in the backyard. I might compost it. Maybe. Does mint seed get destroyed in compost or does it flourish? I'll find out.

Next step: cover the soil, again. This time I'm going one more step. The area will become a rock garden. This concept worked around my rose bushes, intimidating the clover and other weeds into submission so the roses could thrive by themselves.

For now, it's just a batch of packaging held down by large stones and heavy planters. I have extra gravel; but do I have enough? Maybe, just maybe, I can build this rock garden without spending money on the materials. I'll find out, and I'll let you know on the next episode, when I hope to have a picture of all rock, no visible packaging, and certainly no more mint.

Rhubarb, tomatoes, and random thoughts

Rhubarb! I have rhubarb! In fact, I spent time last night looking through my new go-to books for canning, wondering if I could can some of this bountiful harvest. Since it was too cold to plant tomatoes until very recently, I focused on rhubarb.

I did find a recipe that looks a lot like the stewed rhubarb I made for supper tonight. It was like applesauce, but with rhubarb instead of apples. Make sense? I found one and thought Yeah! Canning commences! And then realized I will need eleven pounds of rhubarb to fill seven quart cans. Yes, I said 11 lb. of rhubarb! Well, if I harvest and freeze this week and do the same next week, I'll have all eleven before I know it. Yum.

The tomato seedlings are in the ground now! I tallied up the tomatoes and put the supports in place as a planning maneuver. All right, I also did it because I wanted to get in the garden and it was too darn cold to plant! Only a few green sprouts dared poke their little heads out from the soil, and they're all spinach. Yep. I will have a minimum of 13 tomato plants, even if those I started from seed do not make it (darn late blizzard) and at least 5 peppers. The pepper plants are coming up better from seed, and if they survive, I'll have nine pepper plants. Salsa time!

I'm experimenting with various new dishes, and right now rhubarb is my theme ingredient. Part of the locavore menu involves eating what's ripe and in season. By the time it's our of season, we'll be tired of it and ready to move on to something else. About the time my family rebels and shouts out "No More Rhubarb, Mom!" strawberries will be coming into their prime. Then I can mix strawberry-rhubarb pie, strawberry-rhubarb crisp, strawberry-rhubarb dump cake -- bwahahahaha! Just kidding, family. I'll be more creative than that. Maybe.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, we helped another family rescue five bunnies last Monday night. I think that's a sign that I'm feeling a little more energetic; I went with daughter to help out, even though it was getting late.

I could share a picture of the garden plot, but it would be rather dull. It's exciting only to me. Soil, compost, remains from last year because I'm going no-till this time, and a few red spiral posts standing sentry over small tomato plants.

But trust me. I'll overwhelm you with garden pictures eventually - hopefully sooner rather than later.

Weekend To-Do List

The weekend's to-do list:

Buy plants from arboretum plant sale. Check.

-heirloom plants, tomatoes and peppers

Remove weeds from garden plot.

-the soil we bought last year (for the new raised bed) was weed-filled. I'm still fighting some of the more prolific weeds. Growl.

Set up rain barrels. Check.

-Husband was a great help. I had one set up already, and he felt obligated to catch up with me by setting up the other.

Make grid to guide planting.

-This takes time, but it's worthwhile. I'll have my tomatoes and peppers spaced well with room to grow, but not too much room for weeds.

Plant tomatoes and peppers.

-Fun! I add extra drainage by digging the holes a little deeper than needed and filling them with shredded paper before I put in the tomato seedlings.

Put in the tomato supports.

-I like my spiral supports from Fleet Farm. I'll post pictures later, I'm sure.

The Milwaukee Brewers were playing well Sunday afternoon, though. It was a little distracting. Must enjoy those home runs while they're happening! Go, True Blue Brew Crew!

The tomatoes can go in tomorrow.

Sorta Square Foot Gardening

I garden the way I teach and the way I cook; I don't always follow the script exactly.

In Square Foot Gardening, it's only right if the garden has a permanent grid and uses the perfect mix of soil. Well, I applied some of the philosophy. I rarely plant in rows; I usually plant in groups, often squares, to use the space more efficiently and choke out weeds whenever possible.

My soil, however, is the basic backyard garden soil with twelve years of compost mixed into the ground. It's not a perfectly lovely store bought mix, but it drains well and grows lots of vegetables. I don't use a permanent grid, either. I like the concept, and I measure (well, I estimate) when I'm planting, but I don't build a grid. I use temporary guidelines of masking tape or in this case, string. Again, not perfect, but it gave me the guide I needed to plant seeds in the right portions and the right places.

The walkway is an old board. I'm not even sure what it was anymore. Fence? Deck? Now it provides a boardwalk so I can stay out of the mud and avoid stepping on my precious plants.

This, my friends, is the before picture. In a month or two I'll post a during shot - if I remember. The after picture, the one with results, might not happen. Hopefully, I'll be too busy harvesting and preserving the goodies!

Seeds of Spring

I've tried starting seeds early a couple of years with minimal success. I'm trying again, this time with a better plan - I hope.

My Ultimate Greenhouse (set of shelves with a fitted plastic cover) is assembled and sitting on the deck. The herbs that survived the winter are there, as are the newly planted seeds. With about 6 weeks until planting time, let's see if I can put together a garden from scratch.

So far, I have:

• jalapeno peppers
• green bell peppers
• broccoli
• cilantro
• oregano
• yellow pear tomatoes

If I can maintain these and care for them well, I'll have seedlings when spring becomes summer-like and frost warnings are over, well, minimal. If the list doesn't sound like much, remember that I usually buy tomato and pepper seedlings in mid-May. I'll have them in plenty of time to join the pre-planted pals. Beans and peas and squash will wait until the end of May, too. I have a wish list of seeds that I might give in and buy from Hometown Seeds. I tested a variety pack from their site last year with excellent results.

My goal this year is to fill both new and old plots. Instead of telling you, I'll show you - when there are actually plants to show, that is!

Warm breezes, dirt under my nails -- it's definitely spring.

Gardeners' Sustainable Living Project

Over the ground lies a mantle of white... so how can I be thinking green? A week ago I could see brown - yes, the ground was showing! Then we were hit by a late-arriving record-breaking snowstorm, and my gardening goals had to wait. Again.

Each year, every spring, I expand on my eco-consciousness by choosing at least one more goal toward a more sustainable garden. Last year my goal was learning to can. I made jams, stewed tomatoes, and salsa. I blanched and froze green beans, sugar snap peas, and corn sliced off the cob. In fact, we just finished the last bag of green beans last week. I had just enough organic strawberries to make ice cream last week, and the blueberries in yesterday's muffins were organic, too. There isn't much left in the freezer; thank goodness spring and garden season is on the way!

My main goal this year is to plant primarily heirloom varieties of tomatoes and peppers. If possible, I'll do the same with green beans and squash. These seeds and seedlings may be more expensive than my usual stock, but the quality and perhaps even the quantity will be well worth it. Last year only half the new garden plot was planted; this year, I'm filling it completely.

Sustainable Gardening goal number 1: Plant heirloom varieties.

Sustainable Gardening goal number 2: Fill the space, square foot style

Sustainable Gardening goal number 3: Enjoy. Enjoy the planning, the planting, the process, and eventually, preserving the results (family says "More salsa this year, mom!).

Are you interested in becoming more sustainable? Join the Gardener's Sustainable Living Project! There's snow on the ground, but I joined in anyway.

Planning for Spring

Thinking ahead - gardeners do this a lot. I'm stuck inside with a major headache, but I can look out the windows and see sunshine in a late-winter thaw. Sunshine lifts my spirits and raises thoughts and plans for spring's eventual arrival. I don't have a drawing yet; yes, I often sketch the garden plan so I buy the right number of plants and seeds. Most of the winter I'm in brainstorming and dreaming mode.

Random gardening thoughts:

• I'd like to incorporate shallots and leeks. They can go in the smallest corner of the triangular garden.
• We'll have the fence up this year with a supporting border of marigolds, so I'll put in broccoli. Maybe our own bunnies will actually get to eat it! Last year only the wild backyard cottontails had the joy of fresh broccoli.
• I'm letting the raspberries expand. I moved the chives and asparagus out of the general area of the raspberries, so nothing is in the way of their spreading. Not that anything stops raspberry plants!
• Peas will go in front of the beans on a new trellis. They didn't get enough sun last year, so the move will help. Peas mature before beans, so they'll be harvested and gone before the beans need the bulk of the sunshine.
• Squash! Where should the squash go? I'm putting in butternut squash and my usual zucchini. If I plant the seeds near the beans or peas, they'll grow toward the sun. They also mature later. This should work.
• Bunny food! The usual lettuces and spinach and parsley will have a space. They might go in the area that will be taken over later by squash.
• Tomatoes; oh, I love my tomatoes. I had success canning stewed tomatoes and salsa, so I'm going to put in more heirloom pulp tomato varieties. I'll still put in the standard eating tomatoes and the cherries; they're delicious and they freeze well.
• Freezing: now that's another post.

You can get a sense of my garden plans for the coming season. I'm planning on using the space well, using the sunshine efficiently, and preserving more of the harvest. Oh, winter sunshine, you taunt me! I want to get started now.

Spring Fever in the depths of winter

My garden is under a foot of snow. The topsoil is frozen, but underneath, the little microorganisms keep living and dying and decomposing, making the soil rich and fertile for spring. There are several piles of compost, frozen solid, dumped last fall but not spread, in between bouts with gout and an influenza-like virus. We barely got the rain barrels emptied and turned so they wouldn't freeze during the winter - spreading the compost just didn't happen. It'll have to get spread in the spring.

Spring. I can look to spring and think positive thoughts. I'll still be on my extended leave of absence. I won't be juggling planting schedules around school calendars; I can work on putting in the seeds earlier than usual, and care for the seedlings by putting them on the deck by day to soak in the sun, and bringing them inside overnight to avoid freezing.

In fact, in the middle of winter - in January! Football isn't even done yet! - I went to Fleet Farm and bought one of these. It's called the Ultimate Greenhouse. I don't know that I'd call it Ultimate, but it was an inexpensive set-up that will work beautifully on my deck while I'm waiting for the frost danger to end.

It does look handy, doesn't it? Mine will be full of vegetables rather than flowers. It's still in the box in the garage. When spring fever hits (April, most likely), I'll put it together. I'm looking forward to that activity, and that's what it's all about right now.