November 16, 2015

Avalanche column

October 29, 2015

With fall temperatures and daylight decreasing, winter veggies are coming into their own.

There have been years that I have sown seeds throughout the year including the winter but I find that seed sown from the middle of November until the middle of February don’t perform very well. This has been especially true with the last few years due to actually having winter like weather.

Seed sown from the middle of October to the first of November actually get some size before the colder weather then go dormant. They then quite easily return to growth with warmer weather. These veggies do not seem to be stunted. Veggies seeded in the coldest time of the year appear to get quite stunted and never really catch up with seed sown the middle of February. So I forgo any seeding during the winter.

There are a number of veggies that I grow through the winter and actually grow nicely in the cooler weather. I have mentioned that plants are survivalist and will grow in less desired conditions than what they will germinate. The germination locks insure that the seed is going into optimum conditions. These conditions can change and thus this is a survival tool that plants have and they will continue to grow after germination.

When one walks down the veggie isle at the store, some veggies (especially greens) are harvested as whole plants or as leaves. Following this lead (because this is what folks are accustomed too), I have harvested whole plants or leaves. There are a few veggies that I struggled with in order to have a constant supply and these were whole plant harvested.

When harvesting whole plants there is the succession dilemma. Successions can be difficult. First it is important to know the days to harvest, then you need to figure how long you want to harvest that sowing, then you count back to your sow date. For successions, taking into consideration how long you want to harvest and this will determine your next sow date. This all depends on everything coming together like clockwork. Yes this can happen.

So going back to the statement that plants will grow in less than perfect conditions that they will germinate set my mind to thinking; why not grow some of the harvest whole plants as cut and regrow.

There are two plants that I do this and they have been well received. They are green onions and spinach. Boc choy is another big favorite and I have never been able to meet demand. This year I am giving leaf harvest whirl. Any crop that you are harvesting the top, this should work, and all root crops there will be the need to plan out the succession thingy.

One big benefit to cutting leaves, plants are slower to bolt with warmer weather.

Questions? I can be contacted at markdirtfarmer@gmail.com. Or more garden notes at redwagonfarm.blogsot.com