Didn't think the tomatoes were coming..

So, it's late September and we're finally starting to get a steady supply of tomatoes. Next year I will definitely plan on getting an earlier start. Also, planting some varieties  of tomatoes that will ripen sooner in the season. Sami and I like all the varieties we've grown but there are some we like more than others. The Pineapple has by far been our favorite tomato we've grown this year. Almost weighing a pound each, red and yellow swirls, a texture that also resembles a pineapple with a sweet taste to it. We've been sprinkling some of our dressing that we've made out of olive oil, basalmic vinegar, garlic, pepper and salt. Making your dressing at home is fun and cost effective.

Basic Olive Oil and Basalmic Vinegar Dressing:

2 Parts Olive Oil

1 Part Basalmic Vinegar

1 or more Garlic Cloves (We do a lot)

Pepper and Salt to Taste

the first summer squash

So, I finally harvested our first summer squash. I know others have been harvesting for quite a while but because of our late start, yesterday was our first ripe squash. This year I'm growing a variety of called Costata Romanesco. A famous zucchini from Rome, Italy. It has green stripes and supposedly stays tender even when big (18"). This variety is thought to be the best tasting and best textured summer squash around. Sometimes it may be called cocozelle or ribbed zucchini. It is considered to be the "classic" zucchini. I slightly sauteed the zucchini and we ate it for dinner.  This morning I through some fresh slices in a salad. It was our first zucchini of the year and it tasted wonderful.

Great Resource for Costata Romanesco growing and cooking tips- 

http://www.harvestwizard.com/2008/09/costata_romanesca_squash.html

It's Hot!

Just thought I share some photos of the garden:

Kiwi, Fig, Blackberry, Blueberry

Corn (Black Aztec and Tricolor), Eggplant (Casper and Black Beauty), Wormwood, Zucchini, Tobacco, Echinacea, and others. Waiting for the beans to take off. I planted two varieties asparagus bean and Kentucky Wonder.

Comfrey

The Chicks

Pumpkins, Cosmos, Cucumbers, Onions, Cowpeas

Banana, Celery, Chard, Yarrow, Oregano, Basil,

Sweet Marjoram, Fig, Winter Squash, Onion(flowering)

Conserving Space in the Garden while Prolonging your Harvest

By installing a trellis behind your garden box you can conserve space in the garden while also providing squash months into the winter. The idea is to plant the winter squash behind your tomatoes, peppers, etc, allowing them to climb up and fall down the trellis. Winter squash use there long tendrils to climb, so they need some sort of support. I chose to use a trellis. 

The trellis can be any size but I would recommend at least making the trellis at least 2 feet above the garden box.  I used two 8 foot long slats of 1/2" by 1" wood. I originally had planned to put the vertical stakes into the ground but found out that I had made it too short. So, instead I used screws to attach it. Make sure you make the stakes long enough so that they can be securely in the ground and still provide you with the needed height. Although, I set this trellis up for growing winter squash, you can easily grow cucumbers, or make it taller to grow beans and peas.

Direct seed your favorite winter squash varieties after the last frost date in your area. This year I chose Pink  Banana, Acorn, Honey Boat Delicata, and Butternut. If your saving seeds and don't want squash to cross pollinate. Try choosing squash that don't belong to some same scientific name. 

Here is a partial list of winter squash and their species name:

Cucurbita ficifolia, Malabar Gourd (Chilacayote), Gourd

Cucurbita foetidissima, Calabazilla

Cucurbita maxima, squash ( banana, buttercup, hubbard, turban, yugoslavian pie pumpkin...)

Cucurbita mixta, squash (green striped cushaw, white cushaw, wild Seroria squashes, silver seeded gourds)

Cucurbita moshcata squash (butternut, cheese, golden cushaw)

Cucurbita pepo (acorn, crookneck, scallop, small striped and warted gourds, spaghetti, and zucchini)

If the variety your looking for isn't up there, give me an email and I'll be able to tell you.

Plants are growing!

Photo Credit: Samantha Hill

It has been a while since I last posted. I've been in the middle of moving to a new place and starting a new job. Thankfully, I found a job working in my field of study. Although, it's a lot of the same tasks as my last job like watering and fertilizing but it's at smaller level with an eco-concious attitude.

I now live in Santa Rosa (Zone 9), with a big front yard, larger than my last garden. I've already filled most of the space with veggies, beneficial  plants, a few natives, a citrus tree, succulents, and some ornamental plants here and there. Along with a chicken coop that has been pass down from my parents. 

In the next couple weeks I hope to start photographing more of the garden and sharing some advice as the garden grows through seed to harvest. I will be using only organic methods and mostly non-hybrid heirloom seeds except for a few exceptions. So, I hope you join me and share your thoughts. Your input encourages me to dedicate more time to this blog. It will be a learning experience for everyone including myself.

-Chris

Spring is Around the Corner

Just thought I post some pictures of my garden right now. I've decided to let most of the fava beans go to seed instead using them as a cover crop. I just don't have the room in my small lot and I think it would be more beneficial to save the seed for next year and also eat a lot of fava beans. :D One of the first recipes I'm going to try is one replacing the garbanzo beans in hummus for fava beans. I'll post that when I go through the process of making it. The sugar snap peas are starting to produce, I've had about a handful's worth. Japanese Red Carrots are starting to poke their head out of the ground. If you've never grown carrots for yourself, it's definetly worth it. It amazes me the taste between food you grow with love then the food massive farms grow with the use of harsh chemicals. 

Vegetarians should all have a backyard vegetable garden, period. Not only recognize what is going on in the animal industry but what is going on in the farming industry. As a side result to industrial farming we have rapidly destroyed the environment by depleting the top soil and poisioning the soils and nearby water sources. Along with a bagful of others things that would take me a whole other blog to write about. Just do a simple google search. Anyways, enjoy the pictures. Happy Spring Planting!

Seeds!

Right now I'm taking a break from sorting through all of my seeds. It's one of those tasks that start small and neat, then end up all over the place. It's rewarding though, getting to go through different varieties of plants. I started to plant some seeds such as Calendula, Pak Choi, Chives, Collards and Lettuce. We've started to get a cold spell here in the bay area so I'm worried about the soil temperature not being high enough. Although, I think they have a good chance because the seeds are sitting on a heat mat in my small yet efficient greenhouse. It's been about a week since I planted the seeds and already the Calendula, Pak Choi, Collards, and Lettuce have their dicotyledons out.

Tips When Planting Seeds-

• When planting seeds, make sure to plant them 2-3 times the height of the seed. For example, if the seed is 2mm big, plant it 4mm to 6mm deep in the soil.
• Label!!! I can not stress labeling. If you want to save your seed, you better know what variety it is. Make sure the labels follow the plant.
• I reccomend using sterile soil because of the reduced chances of getting soil borne diseases.
  
• To prevent dampening off, you can sprinkle sand on top of the soil so that it doesnt stay moist around stem. Thus, reducing your chances of having your seeds dampen off.
  
• With smaller seeds, I reccomend sowing them  on top of the soil, then sprinkling a light layer on top. 
• When transplanting to bigger pots, don't jam the roots down into the hole. 
  
• Dig a big enough hole, so that the plant roots dangle, then fill the soil in around it.

If you have any questions about anything, feel free to email me.