So, I'm not going to go so far as to claim that this is the best garden recipe EVER, but I think the argument could be made.
A couple of notes. As I mentioned before, you can add more tomatoes if you have a lot on hand to use up. I think I regularly use about 5 lbs rather than 3. You may want to add more cheese and seasoning, accordingly. Also, the recipe calls for shredded fontina. If you haven't dealt w/fontina before, you should know that there are 2 kinds commonly available in town: Danish and Italian. They both taste good, but the Danish is way too soft to shred. So, ask for the Italian. If you're not in the mood to visit a specialty store, you can substitute "fontinella," which is easy to find at Schnuck's, etc. It's a sharper cheese, but still tasty in this recipe.
Enjoy folks...
Rustic Tomato Basil Tart
1 ½ lbs medium yellow tomatoes, cut into ¼-inch thick slices
1 ½ lbs medium red tomatoes, cut into ¼-inch thick slices
1 ½ teaspoons salt, divided
1 cup fresh corn kernels (about 2 ears)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons sour cream
1 ½ cups all purpose flour
¼ cup yellow cornmeal
¼ cup chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1 tablespoon yellow cornmeal
½ cup thinly sliced fresh basil, divided
1/3 cup (1 ½ ounces) shredded fontina cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper
1. Arrange tomato slices in a single layer on several layers of paper towels; sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt. Let stand 20 minutes; blot dry with paper towels.
2. Preheat oven to 400.
3. Place corn, juice, and sour cream in a food processor or blender; process until smooth. Combine 1 ½ cups flour, ¼ cup cornmeal, and ½ teaspoon salt in a large bowl; stir with a whisk. Cut in butter with a pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add corn mixture; stir until a soft dough forms. Knead gently 3 or 4 times.
4. Slightly overlap 2 (16-inch) sheets of plastic wrap on a slightly damp surface [A large, rectangular cutting board works well here]. Place dough on plastic wrap; press into a 6-inch circle. Cover with 2 additional (16-inch) sheets of plastic wrap. Roll dough, still covered, into a 14-inch circle; place on a large baking sheet in freezer for 10 minutes or until plastic wrap can easily be removed. Line baking sheet with parchment paper; sprinkle paper with 1 tablespoon of cornmeal. Remove 2 sheets of plastic wrap from dough. Place dough, plastic wrap side up, on baking sheet. Remove top sheets of plastic wrap.
5. Combine ¼ cup basil, cheese, and oregano. Combine 2 tablespoons flour and ½ teaspoon salt. Arrange cheese mixture on dough, leaving a 1 ½ inch border. Using a sifter or sieve, sift 1 tablespoon flour mixture over cheese mixture. Arrange half of tomatoes over cheese mixture. Sift remaining flour mixture over tomatoes; top with remaining tomatoes. Fold edges of dough toward center; press to seal (dough will only partially cover tomatoes. Bake at 400 for 35 minutes or until crust is brown [Check it frequently toward the end of the bake time—it usually doesn’t take the full amount of time in my oven]. Let stand 10 minutes. Sprinkle with ¼ cup basil and pepper.
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
new watering schedule!!
here's our new watering schedule:
8/1 DF
8/3 SC
8/5 MG
8/7 TG
8/9 RT
8/11 AW
8/13 SC
8/15 DF
8/17 MG
8/19 TG
8/21 RT
8/23 AW
8/25 SC
8/27 DF
8/29 MG
8/31 TG
9/2 RT
9/4 AW
9/6 SC
9/8 DF
9/10 MG
9/12 TG
9/14 RT
9/16 AW
I'm not sure how late in the year we're actually going to need to water so why don't we just stop it there for now.
8/1 DF
8/3 SC
8/5 MG
8/7 TG
8/9 RT
8/11 AW
8/13 SC
8/15 DF
8/17 MG
8/19 TG
8/21 RT
8/23 AW
8/25 SC
8/27 DF
8/29 MG
8/31 TG
9/2 RT
9/4 AW
9/6 SC
9/8 DF
9/10 MG
9/12 TG
9/14 RT
9/16 AW
I'm not sure how late in the year we're actually going to need to water so why don't we just stop it there for now.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
Update - weeds. 'maters, etc.
Just a little update for everyone, since poor MG has been pretty much the only one watching the garden and I'd guess she is sick of thinking about it. So, I'll try to step in. There is some good news and some OK news and maybe some less than great news.
Good news. So far there are seemingly no large beetle problems, although as you can see from my previous post there are lots of other people in the area who are not so lucky. I've seen a few here and there, but so far, so good.
The weeds, on the other hand, are thriving. We've done a fair amount of weeding in the past couple days and have made quite a bit of progress (I've been just leaving the dead weeds on top of the straw as a second layer of mulch). As we've cleared the weeds, we've found some good surprises (the cukes and one plot of yellow squash look great) and so-so (some of the replanted squash plants seem small but healthy. Brussel sprouts look good. I think the cabbage and broccoli may be toast. I haven't looked at the beans (that area still needs some weeding).
Now, tomatoes. As MG, planbreaker and I have noticed, the tomatoes do not seem to be turning red very quickly (we had a lot of red tomatoes by this time last year). We've also cumulatively thrown out probably 40 rotten tomatoes that have turned red; essentially it seems like if they turn red they rot instantly. There is a similar, though less pervasive, problem with some of the peppers -- although in general the peppers look pretty good. This seems to be only a problem with the regular tomatoes, the cherry and grape varieties seem fine.
However, I talked to a friend who is a big gardener, and got some news that may be better than MG and I had hoped. Turns out a lot of people don't have many red tomatoes yet this year, some people think it has something to do with the weird spring and the effect on bees, which in turn has an impact on pollenation of the plants. However, things are starting to look up in that regard. And, the rotting is likely blossom end rot, which, from what he said and from what I've found online, is caused by soil composition and soil moisture, neither of which there is anything we can do about. HOWEVER, it often solves itself as the season goes on and the roots get better established. I guess for now all we can do is keep an eye on things and hope for the best. The only thing he suggested is more regular watering, but not drowning it when you do (do we need to move to daily watering? Seems excessive, but I dunno...)
I picked a couple good tomatoes today (good sign!), a couple cukes, and a couple beets because I didn't want them to go bad out there. If you want them, come and get them--we're kind of overloaded with food right now. We are probably to the point where there will be good new stuff daily, so people should start picking away. There's also a ton of chard out there and the kale is really good too.
Lastly, planbreaker and I think we should just tear out all the lettuce, maybe plant something new in its place? Here are the things that the UI Extension says can be planted now, and hopefully we could get it harvested by the time they close the garden:
Beets
Brocolli
Cabbage
Leaf lettuce
Peas
Radishes
Spinach
Snap beans
Cauliflower
Carrots
Mustard greens
Mesclun mixes (If weather is unusually hot, plant these greens in partial shade.)
Well, that about wraps up what's been going on. It should be pretty obvious what needs to be weeded, if anyone wants to go out. An hour or so can really make a dent. I'm up for going, with a little notice, if anyone wants company.
We also need to plan a harvest "feast" sometime soon. Anyone wanna suggest a date?
Good news. So far there are seemingly no large beetle problems, although as you can see from my previous post there are lots of other people in the area who are not so lucky. I've seen a few here and there, but so far, so good.
The weeds, on the other hand, are thriving. We've done a fair amount of weeding in the past couple days and have made quite a bit of progress (I've been just leaving the dead weeds on top of the straw as a second layer of mulch). As we've cleared the weeds, we've found some good surprises (the cukes and one plot of yellow squash look great) and so-so (some of the replanted squash plants seem small but healthy. Brussel sprouts look good. I think the cabbage and broccoli may be toast. I haven't looked at the beans (that area still needs some weeding).
Now, tomatoes. As MG, planbreaker and I have noticed, the tomatoes do not seem to be turning red very quickly (we had a lot of red tomatoes by this time last year). We've also cumulatively thrown out probably 40 rotten tomatoes that have turned red; essentially it seems like if they turn red they rot instantly. There is a similar, though less pervasive, problem with some of the peppers -- although in general the peppers look pretty good. This seems to be only a problem with the regular tomatoes, the cherry and grape varieties seem fine.
However, I talked to a friend who is a big gardener, and got some news that may be better than MG and I had hoped. Turns out a lot of people don't have many red tomatoes yet this year, some people think it has something to do with the weird spring and the effect on bees, which in turn has an impact on pollenation of the plants. However, things are starting to look up in that regard. And, the rotting is likely blossom end rot, which, from what he said and from what I've found online, is caused by soil composition and soil moisture, neither of which there is anything we can do about. HOWEVER, it often solves itself as the season goes on and the roots get better established. I guess for now all we can do is keep an eye on things and hope for the best. The only thing he suggested is more regular watering, but not drowning it when you do (do we need to move to daily watering? Seems excessive, but I dunno...)
I picked a couple good tomatoes today (good sign!), a couple cukes, and a couple beets because I didn't want them to go bad out there. If you want them, come and get them--we're kind of overloaded with food right now. We are probably to the point where there will be good new stuff daily, so people should start picking away. There's also a ton of chard out there and the kale is really good too.
Lastly, planbreaker and I think we should just tear out all the lettuce, maybe plant something new in its place? Here are the things that the UI Extension says can be planted now, and hopefully we could get it harvested by the time they close the garden:
Beets
Brocolli
Cabbage
Leaf lettuce
Peas
Radishes
Spinach
Snap beans
Cauliflower
Carrots
Mustard greens
Mesclun mixes (If weather is unusually hot, plant these greens in partial shade.)
Well, that about wraps up what's been going on. It should be pretty obvious what needs to be weeded, if anyone wants to go out. An hour or so can really make a dent. I'm up for going, with a little notice, if anyone wants company.
We also need to plan a harvest "feast" sometime soon. Anyone wanna suggest a date?
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Monday, July 10, 2006
update from the weekend
a few quick things:
-beans are ready so people who want them should go and get them
-there was an extraordinarily large zucchini that i picked and served on saturday night to renee. a couple of more should be ready this week so go get them
-there were 5-6 beetles on the chard so we should keep an eye on them and make sure they don't get out of control.
-i planted some scallions where the spinach used to live. all you need to do is cut off the tops with scissors or a knife, maybe leaving about 4 inches above the ground and it should grow back. i'll check in on them this week so make sure they took to the ground
-beans are ready so people who want them should go and get them
-there was an extraordinarily large zucchini that i picked and served on saturday night to renee. a couple of more should be ready this week so go get them
-there were 5-6 beetles on the chard so we should keep an eye on them and make sure they don't get out of control.
-i planted some scallions where the spinach used to live. all you need to do is cut off the tops with scissors or a knife, maybe leaving about 4 inches above the ground and it should grow back. i'll check in on them this week so make sure they took to the ground
Greens with double garlic
This is straight from p. 562 of How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman so the measurements will be exact. Even though it says "collards or kale," df and I use chard and it's pretty awesome. Actually, I'm addicted to this recipe.
1 pound colars, kale or broccoli raab with stems under 1/4 inch, well washed
1/4 c. olive oil
1/4 c. thinly sliced garlic (about 5 or 6 cloves) plus 1 tsp minced garlic or more to taste
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes or to taste
salt and freshly gorund black peper to taste
1/2 c chicken, beef, or vegetable stock or water
lemon wedges (although this is not absolutely necessary)
1. coarsely chop stems and leaves of the greens
2. place olive oil in a large, deep saucepan. Add the sliced garlic, pepper flakes, salt, and black papper adn cook over medium-high ehat for about 1 minute.
3. Add greens and the stock or water. Cover and cook over medium-high heat for approximately 5 minutes, or until teh grees are wilted and just tender but stilla little firm.
4. Uncover the greens and continue to cook, stirring over medium-high heat until the liquid has all but evaporated and the greens are quite tender. Taste for seasoning and add red or black pepper and salt as needed; add teh remaining minced garlic and cook for 1 minute more. serve with lemon wedges (I usually just put the sprinkle of lemon juice on top and stir).
1 pound colars, kale or broccoli raab with stems under 1/4 inch, well washed
1/4 c. olive oil
1/4 c. thinly sliced garlic (about 5 or 6 cloves) plus 1 tsp minced garlic or more to taste
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes or to taste
salt and freshly gorund black peper to taste
1/2 c chicken, beef, or vegetable stock or water
lemon wedges (although this is not absolutely necessary)
1. coarsely chop stems and leaves of the greens
2. place olive oil in a large, deep saucepan. Add the sliced garlic, pepper flakes, salt, and black papper adn cook over medium-high ehat for about 1 minute.
3. Add greens and the stock or water. Cover and cook over medium-high heat for approximately 5 minutes, or until teh grees are wilted and just tender but stilla little firm.
4. Uncover the greens and continue to cook, stirring over medium-high heat until the liquid has all but evaporated and the greens are quite tender. Taste for seasoning and add red or black pepper and salt as needed; add teh remaining minced garlic and cook for 1 minute more. serve with lemon wedges (I usually just put the sprinkle of lemon juice on top and stir).
Tofu and Kale salad
this recipe is "adapted" from Strawberry Fields. this is a pretty vague recipe.
1 pkg firm tofu
a bunch of kale
corn (either frozen or 3 or 4 ears)
soybeans
cut up the tofu, boil the soybeans (they'll end up firmer than a black or kidney bean when they're done; maybe about an hour or 1:15?), defrost or cook the corn, and steam the kale. the best steaming method for me is to wash it thoroughly, then put it in a covered pan at a low-med heat with all of the water still clinging to it. don't let it get too wilted, but cooked enough, then run cold water over it in a colander so you can roughly chop the cooked kale. when all the ingredients are cool, mix them together in a bowl.
for the dressing, start with a mixture of sesame oil and vegetable oil. i worry that sesame oil on its own is too strong for a raw salad so i cut it with vegetable oil. i guess this is what they mean by "to taste"; i usually do a little more than a third of a cup of sesame oil and then a quarter cup of vegetable oil. like the spices in the zucchini cake, i kind of go by smell. quantity also depends on how much of the other stuff you have. mince 3-5 cloves of garlic, slice up some scallions, add some red pepper flakes and a little bit of salt. whisk up the dressing and then pour it all over the kale and tofu and stuff. mix gently.
this keeps pretty well in the refrigerator for a few days. you can tell when it goes bad b/c the tofu will get slimy.
1 pkg firm tofu
a bunch of kale
corn (either frozen or 3 or 4 ears)
soybeans
cut up the tofu, boil the soybeans (they'll end up firmer than a black or kidney bean when they're done; maybe about an hour or 1:15?), defrost or cook the corn, and steam the kale. the best steaming method for me is to wash it thoroughly, then put it in a covered pan at a low-med heat with all of the water still clinging to it. don't let it get too wilted, but cooked enough, then run cold water over it in a colander so you can roughly chop the cooked kale. when all the ingredients are cool, mix them together in a bowl.
for the dressing, start with a mixture of sesame oil and vegetable oil. i worry that sesame oil on its own is too strong for a raw salad so i cut it with vegetable oil. i guess this is what they mean by "to taste"; i usually do a little more than a third of a cup of sesame oil and then a quarter cup of vegetable oil. like the spices in the zucchini cake, i kind of go by smell. quantity also depends on how much of the other stuff you have. mince 3-5 cloves of garlic, slice up some scallions, add some red pepper flakes and a little bit of salt. whisk up the dressing and then pour it all over the kale and tofu and stuff. mix gently.
this keeps pretty well in the refrigerator for a few days. you can tell when it goes bad b/c the tofu will get slimy.
Chocolate chip Zucchini cake
The recipe is actually adapted from the Chocolate Zucchini cake recipe on epicurious. I wanted it to be more of a spice cake with chocolate chips and zucchini. Here's my variation:
2 3/4 c. flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 c. sugar (maybe a little less)
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. butter (1 stick)
1/2 c. vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c. buttermilk (but I didn't have buttermilk so I just used a little less than half a cup of regular milk and filled up the rest with plain yogurt and lemon juice and mixed it all together)
2 1/2 c (or even more) of grated zucchini
spices--cinnamon, cloves, ground ginger
1 1/2 c. of semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips (I used bittersweet)
Preheat oven to 325. Butter and flour 13x9x2 inch baking pan (I ended up using a 9x9 square and then a 6 inche round). mix flour, baking soda, salt and spices (I eyeball it until it looks and smells the right amount of spice for a spice cake; maybe a 2 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 or 3/4 tsp of cloves and ginger?). Beat sugar, butter and oil in large bowl until well blended. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla extract. Mix in dry ingredients alternately wiht the milk mixture in 3 additions each. Mix in grated zucchini. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake until tester is clean, about 50 minutes.
I put cream cheese frosting on top, which was 1 8oz pkg of cream cheese, 1 stick of butter and confectionary sugar (I didn't really measure; just put a cup in and then added more until the consistency looked ok). Mix it all together and then put in the freezer so it firms up a little bit (that way, you can use less sugar).
df and I discovered that the cake tastes pretty good freshly baked when it's all moist but even better after a night in the refrigerator.
2 3/4 c. flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 c. sugar (maybe a little less)
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. butter (1 stick)
1/2 c. vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c. buttermilk (but I didn't have buttermilk so I just used a little less than half a cup of regular milk and filled up the rest with plain yogurt and lemon juice and mixed it all together)
2 1/2 c (or even more) of grated zucchini
spices--cinnamon, cloves, ground ginger
1 1/2 c. of semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips (I used bittersweet)
Preheat oven to 325. Butter and flour 13x9x2 inch baking pan (I ended up using a 9x9 square and then a 6 inche round). mix flour, baking soda, salt and spices (I eyeball it until it looks and smells the right amount of spice for a spice cake; maybe a 2 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 or 3/4 tsp of cloves and ginger?). Beat sugar, butter and oil in large bowl until well blended. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla extract. Mix in dry ingredients alternately wiht the milk mixture in 3 additions each. Mix in grated zucchini. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake until tester is clean, about 50 minutes.
I put cream cheese frosting on top, which was 1 8oz pkg of cream cheese, 1 stick of butter and confectionary sugar (I didn't really measure; just put a cup in and then added more until the consistency looked ok). Mix it all together and then put in the freezer so it firms up a little bit (that way, you can use less sugar).
df and I discovered that the cake tastes pretty good freshly baked when it's all moist but even better after a night in the refrigerator.
Friday, June 02, 2006
Maptastic
planbreaker whipped up this diagram last night, but netfiles access from home has been wonky lately, so I'm posting this diagram of the garden:
(Click on image for a larger version)
Nice rain yesterday...we'll be eating fresh produce in no time.
(Click on image for a larger version)
Nice rain yesterday...we'll be eating fresh produce in no time.
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Minutes from the garden meeting at the Plot/the Esquire
After our assessment out at the garden plot and a quick weeding and watering, we retired to the Esquire for some refreshments and discussion. Here are things that are now settled:
- Watering schedule: we all agreed that we should each do a little weeding while we're out there. Everyone is on the calendar 5 times. here it is....
June 2-SC
June 4-DF
June 6-MG
June 8-TG
June 10-SC
June 12-RT
June 14-AW
June 16-DF
June 18-TG
June 20-MG
June 22-RT
June 24-AW
June 26-SC
June 28-TG
June 30-DF
July 2-TG
July 4-SC
July 6-RT
July 8-AW
July 10-DF
July 12-AW
July 14-MG
July 16-RT
July 18-MG
July 20-RT
July 22-MG
July 24-SC
July 26-DF
July 28-TG
July 30-AW - tomato cages: we're just going with the old standbys. df and rj are going to borrow John's truck to go to Farm n' Fleet and other places to gather them up in the next week or so.
- staking the peas: hungrygirl and sc volunteered to stake the peas some time in the next week. there are directions on how to stake the peas using a kind of wigwam design in the organic gardening book or we can stake them like last year.
- hay(hey)/straw and plants: tfoster volunteered to pick up some straw, along with two tiger-striped tomato plants. since i have no task yet, i'm happy to volunteer to go and throw some hay around.
- hungrygirl has 4 tomato plants at home that can go in the front plot with the 4 peppers in it.
We also have some other issues that we'll need to figure out in the coming weeks:
- beans and eggplant, basil & soybeans: how long do we wait before we decide to pack it in with these? I think I said I'll try to look for baby eggplant pictures on the web so we can distinguish. In the meantime, i'm happy to take on the weeding responsiblities for that plot.
- if we do have a little more room, what do we want to plant? SC said he'll research radishes, I'm going to see if arugula is a possibility and we all seemed excited about cantaloupe.
- harvesting: we had questions about onions, shallots, broccoli, and spinach.
Is there anything else? Vegetables soon! yay!
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Big Time Progress / Bear Wrastlin'
After several aborted attempts, Your Garden Friends succeeded today in securing a tiller and a truck in which to carry it. Big ups to John of famed Champaign band Shipwreck for the truck.
For those of you unfamiliar with the use of a tiller, it is sort of like a lawnmover with anger management issues. We are talking serious negative affect here. Sasha and I managed to bend the machine's animosity to our will, but to me it felt like wrastlin' with a bear. (Full disclosure: I have never actually wrastled with a bear of any kind, and hope to never be called upon to do so.)
Good news - we have progress. Below are some pictures and a link to a movie of an epic struggle between Sasha, the tiller, and a big weed. See how Sasha expertly forces the conflict between the tiller and the weed and escapes unharmed - sort of like being in a fight with a lion and then coming upon a shark and somehow convincing the lion to kill the shark for you. Ladies, Sasha also rides bikes, is in an excellent graduate studies program, and can cook well.
A small bit of bad news - I have killed a large number of beets through poor thinning technique. Rest assured that they have been replanted and five or ten of the original crop survived my wrath.
Enjoy!
For Weeds - The Movie go here and click on the '2006_05210022.avi' link.
Now, pictures:
Hungrygirl and RJ weeding the lettuce
Beautiful onions, shallots, and peas
The Bear
Tim vs. The Bear
Sasha vs. The Bear
Tilled dirt + Dead Weeds = VICTORY
Nature's glorious abundance
For those of you unfamiliar with the use of a tiller, it is sort of like a lawnmover with anger management issues. We are talking serious negative affect here. Sasha and I managed to bend the machine's animosity to our will, but to me it felt like wrastlin' with a bear. (Full disclosure: I have never actually wrastled with a bear of any kind, and hope to never be called upon to do so.)
Good news - we have progress. Below are some pictures and a link to a movie of an epic struggle between Sasha, the tiller, and a big weed. See how Sasha expertly forces the conflict between the tiller and the weed and escapes unharmed - sort of like being in a fight with a lion and then coming upon a shark and somehow convincing the lion to kill the shark for you. Ladies, Sasha also rides bikes, is in an excellent graduate studies program, and can cook well.
A small bit of bad news - I have killed a large number of beets through poor thinning technique. Rest assured that they have been replanted and five or ten of the original crop survived my wrath.
Enjoy!
For Weeds - The Movie go here and click on the '2006_05210022.avi' link.
Now, pictures:
Hungrygirl and RJ weeding the lettuce
Beautiful onions, shallots, and peas
The Bear
Tim vs. The Bear
Sasha vs. The Bear
Tilled dirt + Dead Weeds = VICTORY
Nature's glorious abundance
Sunday, April 30, 2006
Round two?
We should start thinking about when we want to do some round-two planting. We went to Prairie Gardens to buy some stuff for our backyard garden yesterday and ended up getting some more tomato plants for the Parkland plot too, b/c we wanted to make sure not to wait too long -- plus we liked the idea of buying them small (read - "cheaper"), repotting, and then planting them later. I am gonna be travelling a lot in June, and planbreaker may have end of semester grading plus some of the same travels -- that said, I could do some planting on the morning of the 7th and/or the 13th. I think 2 half-days might be just about all we need to do, if we get a few people out. I could also do some evening stuff the week between the 7th-13th. What does everyone think?
By the way, M. was out at the garden the other day and said things were looking pretty good.
By the way, M. was out at the garden the other day and said things were looking pretty good.
Friday, April 21, 2006
4/21 -- we have sprouts
Just got back from Eddie Albert Memorial Gardens and wanted to fill you all in: The bed containing the onions and shallots has some green sprouts about 1 inch long sticking out of the ground and looking good. The mesclun bed has some very tiny sproutlings starting to show through. The small plants we put in all look good (broccoli, etc). The rest of the beds don't have any action yet, but I'm not surprised as it's only been a week. We aren't supposed to get any rain for a few days, so I gave everything a pretty good soak. I will go back and water on Sunday/Monday but if anyone else would like to do it instead, just let me know and you can swing by and pick up the hose.
All in all, things are looking good.
All in all, things are looking good.
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
Update as of 4/18
FYI:
A and I went out to the garden on Sunday and installed windguards on the rest of the baby plants that we put in the ground on Saturday (and were scared witless when the Parkland tornado alarm went off for some reason while we were there). I will try to get out there to take a look and see how things are doing on Friday. We got the rain on Sunday night and are supposed to get more tonite, then some good sun the rest of the week, so that should make for good growing.
We also started a bunch of seeds at home, I'm not sure what, but A can fill you in. If anyone else wants to start some seedlings at home, I think there may be other stuff that needs to be planted now, but I think we already have most of the seeds already.
Also, we will try to send an email with a list of all the seeds and plants we bought, so if anyone sees an omission that they would like to grow, just post a message or buy the seeds, or whatever.
--df
A and I went out to the garden on Sunday and installed windguards on the rest of the baby plants that we put in the ground on Saturday (and were scared witless when the Parkland tornado alarm went off for some reason while we were there). I will try to get out there to take a look and see how things are doing on Friday. We got the rain on Sunday night and are supposed to get more tonite, then some good sun the rest of the week, so that should make for good growing.
We also started a bunch of seeds at home, I'm not sure what, but A can fill you in. If anyone else wants to start some seedlings at home, I think there may be other stuff that needs to be planted now, but I think we already have most of the seeds already.
Also, we will try to send an email with a list of all the seeds and plants we bought, so if anyone sees an omission that they would like to grow, just post a message or buy the seeds, or whatever.
--df
Monday, April 03, 2006
the blog rules!
So I just looked back and discovered that we didn't do our planting/tilling until the weekend of May 1 last year. Yippee for the blog and its recording of our garden history.
I bring up the date because I think we should start figuring out a plan for when we till, plant, and put up the signs. I know M. is away the weekend of the 29th and df has exams. Which of the next three weekends (the 8th, the 15th, the 22nd) would work for our big garden day? Or should we split up the tasks.
One thing I would like to attempt to do is sketch out the plot before we start planting. So what do we want to plant. Here was last year's wish list:
Eggplant, Tomatoes of all kinds, Yellow squash, Zuchinni, Lettuce, Mesclun mix, Leeks?, Beets, Green Beans, Chili Peppers, Bell peppers, Cucumbers - reg and pickling, Spinach, Arugla, Collard Greens, Chard, Chives, Scallions, Onions, Broccoli, Soybeans, Peas?, Rhubarb?, Brussel Sprouts?, Chayote Squash, Butternut Squash, Rosemary, Basil, Lemongrass, Fennel, Mint, Marigolds
I think we ended up with tomatoes (did well), squash and zucchini (kind of sketchy because of the bugs), lettuce and mesclun (went well but i feel like we should split up our planting so we have more over time), beets (more beets!), green beans (beetle victims), peppers (did ok but not great), cucumbers (we had a bunch and everyone liekd them), chard (chard tart!), butternut squash (did anything ever happenw ith that), broccoli (1 or 2 heads and that's it), rosemary, basil, mint (would have done better if we had planted them closer together and without the weed infestation), snow peas (bugs and bad supports), soybeans (weeds). What else do we want to add and take away?
If we want to do a little bit by hand and clearly mark it, I wouldn't be against planting some shallots, garlic and maybe some early lettuce before the big till.
I bring up the date because I think we should start figuring out a plan for when we till, plant, and put up the signs. I know M. is away the weekend of the 29th and df has exams. Which of the next three weekends (the 8th, the 15th, the 22nd) would work for our big garden day? Or should we split up the tasks.
One thing I would like to attempt to do is sketch out the plot before we start planting. So what do we want to plant. Here was last year's wish list:
Eggplant, Tomatoes of all kinds, Yellow squash, Zuchinni, Lettuce, Mesclun mix, Leeks?, Beets, Green Beans, Chili Peppers, Bell peppers, Cucumbers - reg and pickling, Spinach, Arugla, Collard Greens, Chard, Chives, Scallions, Onions, Broccoli, Soybeans, Peas?, Rhubarb?, Brussel Sprouts?, Chayote Squash, Butternut Squash, Rosemary, Basil, Lemongrass, Fennel, Mint, Marigolds
I think we ended up with tomatoes (did well), squash and zucchini (kind of sketchy because of the bugs), lettuce and mesclun (went well but i feel like we should split up our planting so we have more over time), beets (more beets!), green beans (beetle victims), peppers (did ok but not great), cucumbers (we had a bunch and everyone liekd them), chard (chard tart!), butternut squash (did anything ever happenw ith that), broccoli (1 or 2 heads and that's it), rosemary, basil, mint (would have done better if we had planted them closer together and without the weed infestation), snow peas (bugs and bad supports), soybeans (weeds). What else do we want to add and take away?
If we want to do a little bit by hand and clearly mark it, I wouldn't be against planting some shallots, garlic and maybe some early lettuce before the big till.
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Waiting for RJ
I am eagerly awaiting the response of our newest invitee, RJ. However, since she is in the Dominican Republic, I expect that it will be a few days. in other news, we all have admin capabilities, so if you get a hankering to mess around with this here blog, mess away.
I would like to attend both nerdy garden events.
I would like to attend both nerdy garden events.
Here's your chance to meet Mr. Food!
If anyone wants to *really* geek out, planbreaker and I are thinking of attending the Home and Garden show on Sunday at Assembly Hall to see what that's all about. Anyone wanna join us?
Sunday, March 19, 2006
Kick-Off the 2006 Gardening Season in Style!
Hey gardeners, welcome back to our much-neglected blog! A special welcome goes out to our new gardening partner, Renee (By the way, who is the blog administrator? I think we need to add her to the blog).
Two bits of gardening news. First, Prairie Gardens is having some kind of "Gardening Kick-Off" extravaganza on Saturday, April 1. As part of the celebration, they're holding seminars in the morning with local garden experts on a variety of topics. There are two that I thought might be helpful for us. At 10 a.m. there's a seminar on "Organic Gardening," which promises useful tips on enriching the soil, pest control, and crop pairings. Also, at 11 a.m., there's a seminar on "Pest Control," which has a special emphasis on those damned Japanese Beetles.
I think I'm going to go to both seminars. Is anyone else interested? As an added bonus, they'll have coffee and donuts!! The seminars are free, but they ask that you sign up (there's a book at the information counter). I optimistically signed up myself + 1. I thought it might be a nice way to kick off our own garden season. We could get brunch afterwards & discuss the garden, perhaps?
Second point of business: If you or anyone you know drinks milk in plastic containers, please start saving them. We can use them to protect our baby plants from the destructive prairie winds. Remember last year how we didn't do that? And remember how well that worked?
Is anyone else getting garden fever yet?
Two bits of gardening news. First, Prairie Gardens is having some kind of "Gardening Kick-Off" extravaganza on Saturday, April 1. As part of the celebration, they're holding seminars in the morning with local garden experts on a variety of topics. There are two that I thought might be helpful for us. At 10 a.m. there's a seminar on "Organic Gardening," which promises useful tips on enriching the soil, pest control, and crop pairings. Also, at 11 a.m., there's a seminar on "Pest Control," which has a special emphasis on those damned Japanese Beetles.
I think I'm going to go to both seminars. Is anyone else interested? As an added bonus, they'll have coffee and donuts!! The seminars are free, but they ask that you sign up (there's a book at the information counter). I optimistically signed up myself + 1. I thought it might be a nice way to kick off our own garden season. We could get brunch afterwards & discuss the garden, perhaps?
Second point of business: If you or anyone you know drinks milk in plastic containers, please start saving them. We can use them to protect our baby plants from the destructive prairie winds. Remember last year how we didn't do that? And remember how well that worked?
Is anyone else getting garden fever yet?
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