I Need The Orioles Back!

I wish our Orioles were still here, if they were these hungry worms would not be on my Lacinato Kale plants.  The little guys have pretty much destroyed the 6 plants that I put in last month.  I picked off a couple of the worms a few days ago, but I guess I missed this one because I didn't see it until I went to post this photo.  If you click on the picture it will enlarge enough for you to see the little guy on the center top of the leaf.

I do have more seedlings that are coming in and so far I have not seen any damage to the leaves.  I already picked a batch of the kale that the worms didn't get to, but it was tough to find!  Below are some photos of what is doing well. I should be picking the lettuces in another week.

We will have Greens for the Thanksgiving Table!

This is French Breakfast Radish, also planted Black Radish and Easter Egg Radish

Sugar Peas, also planted Snow Peas

Assorted Lettuces, I planted Sassy Salad and Mesclun along with Bok Choy, Mache, Arugula, Red Sails, Speckles, Oak Leaf, Buttercrunch, Black Seeded Simpson, Green Salad Bowl, Lolla Rossa, Red Oak Leaf and Rouge d'Hiver, Tango, Grand Rapids, Mizuna Mustard, Lolla Rossa, and Black Seeded Simpson.  I am sure there are more that I have missed, but that pretty much sums up what I have now. I plant seeds about every 3-4 weeks.  This allows me to harvest some for baby greens and also to let some grow to full height.  I planted another 3 feet today, but keep in mind that my rows are only 20 inches wide.

Lacinato Kale, what's left of it, you can't see in this photo but just to the right of the plants I have more seedlings coming in.  I guess I will need to break out the Insecticidal Soap.

Ruby Red Swiss Chard, I also seeded some Bright Lights Swiss Chard, both from Botanical Interest Seed Company

Sorrel

Rocket Arugula, I also planted a Wild Arugula that has very narrow leaves. It has a slightly stronger, more pungent flavor which is wonderful with Parmesan Cheese.  I also love to let some of the wild go to seed to harvest the flowers. 

Parisienne Carrots, a short round French Carrot

Yellow Bush Beans

More of Mesclun Sassy Salad Blend

Farmer's Market Blend, this is a mild mix

Not sure what is here, could be the left over seeds that I mixed together.  Looks like there is some Swiss Chard, Arugula and ??  I also put in Beets, but only a few came up.  

My neighbors dog decided to visit the beds shortly after we put down the seeds. The poor thing is old, and blind and wonders about the neighborhood aimlessly weaving in and out of peoples yards.  He is a Golden Retriever with very large paw prints, but I don't have the heart to chase him off, he is so sweet.  Often times I am working in the beds and he will come up behind me, startling me so that I almost fall backwards down the bank. 

Rainy Day and Vegetable Beds

I'm afraid this will be the only sun I can show you shining on my garden today.  The rains have finally come to Southern California; if the weather man is correct it sounds like we will have about three days worth. I took a quick walk to take a few photos of the beds and to cut a lot of the lettuces before the rain beats down so hard that they get muddy.  We are forecast for some hail and I don't want it to ruin the leaves of the kale and swiss chard, so I cut as much as I think we will need for the week.

Bed 1, Kale and Beets

Bed 2, Swiss Chard and lettuces

Bed 3, Snow peas.  Also in this bed is newly seeded Cilantro, Arugula, Radishes and more Onion Sets

Oak Leaf Lettuce. Ruby Red Swiss Chard to the right

Mache (or Corn Salad), Red Sails, Tango Lettuce Leaf and Spring Onions

more Red Sails, Tango, and cilantro popping up in back

this is a blend of Asian greens, includes Arugula, Chinese cabbage, Japanese Spinach, Mizuna (mustard) , mustard greens red and green, Ruby Streaks mustard, and Tatsoi Bok Choy.  A nice blend of mild an spicy salad greens that is also nice to add to soups.

Nero Toscana or Italian Lacinato Kale; also known as Dino Kale

Garlic and Bok Choy seedlings

Onions and more greens seedlings. 

Seedling progress. These will go in the garden in March. Peppers and tomatoes.

Tomato and Summer Squash seedlings

Swiss Chard, Kale, Arugula and Cilantro backups

Nasturtiums coming up on front bank and under grapefruit tree. I like to save a lot of the fresh seeds to pickle and use like capers. The flowers are wonderful in salads or stuffed with an herb goat cheese.   I am happy that they reseed freely!

Lavatera (tree mallow-malva) in the Butterfly and Hummingbird Garden along our driveway

Rain

The rain is raining all around,
It falls on field and tree,
It rains on the umbrellas here,
And on the ships at sea.

- Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1895).
Scottish essayist, novelist and poet.

Winter Garden 2011 "We Have Sprouts"

We planted the 3 raised beds last Saturday, September 17th with our winter crops.  We already have lots of goodies sprouting.

Bed Number One

 In this bed, I have planted 2 rows of Bright Lights Swiss Chard from (Botanical Interests) which I started a few months back so I would have a head start on this green, which I love!  Also planted in this bed is 7 rows of Organic Early Wonder Beets and 3 rows of Organic Lacinato or Dino Kale. I will plant more Kale on my east bank next week as I will need a lot more than 3 short rows. We eat a lot of greens, just about everyday.

Bed Number Two

In this bed I have all my lettuces. I have planted 2 rows each of Mesclun, Asian Salad, Rocket Arugula, Farmer's Market Blend of Mesclun, Mache, Leaf Lettuce, Red Sails Lettuce, Oak Leaf Lettuce and 2 rows of Bright Lights Swiss Chard; same as in my first bed but I planted seeds here. All the seeds in this bed are from Botanical Interests.  

Already lots of little sprouts are showing their faces, as if to say "Here we are ready to help you have a healthy heart"

 

Bed Number Three

 In the third bed I have planted 4 rows of Snow Peas, 3 rows of Heirloom Kohlrabi 3 rows of Heirloom Rutabaga and 3 rows of Organic Tyee Spinach.  

I still need to plant a package of Easter Egg Blend Radishes, Watercress, Sorrel and more Cilantro. We were lucky this summer to have cooler than normal temperatures and my Parsley is still growing; only a few have sent up seed heads so I may get by without having to plant more seeds. I have seen a few sprouts popping up amongst the stone pathway that leads to the herb garden so I think I will have plenty for winter.

I also purchased a pony pack of Brussels Sprouts and will plant these six on the east bank as soon as the San Marzano tomatoes are finished. I am still picking tomatoes from these plants even though our temperatures have dropped to the high 50's at night. If you only plant one tomato, make it a San Marzano . You will not be disappointed!  Take a look at a few of my tomato sauce jars I canned this year. I also canned my own juice.

San Marzano Tomato Sauce

 Juice ready for the jars!

Peppers picked today and ready for roasting

Pink Grapefruit

Yellow Grapefruit

Lemon Tree

We are picking lots of Pink Grapefruit, Yellow Grapefruit and Lemons now, too. Oh, I forgot I made Preserved Lemons.  You can find out how to do this by visiting Emelie Tolley's Blog.  She is the author of two of the herb books you see on my blog photo.

Try to remember the kind of September ...
when life was slow and oh, so mellow. ...

Enjoy your final September Days!

Winter Veggie Bed Update

I took a few pictures of the raised beds today to keep my blog up to date on the growth.  The rain this week and last has really helped in watering.  Normally at this time of year our weather is hot and dry.  I am so grateful to mother nature for providing us with this rain. 


All of these beds were planted on September 11th and 12th.  In less than a month we are almost ready to pick some of the lettuces and green onions, too.

Onion and Shallot sets, a few Garlic sets, Sorrel, Mesclun, Arugula, and Mache

Onion Sets, Swiss Chard, Kale, Radicchio, Spinach, Watercress

Beets, Kale, Cilantro, Radish and more Swiss Chard

I still need to find a place to plant my pea pods.