"Gardeners as Superheroes"

There’s a few odds and ends that I want to share with you today. One is that our tomato crop is coming in - yay! - and I’m processing/eating/giving away as fast as we can. I shared some ‘new-to-me’ varieties a couple of weeks ago - and I promised I would show them again as they ripened. So here you go!

One is Indigo Apple, from Wild Boar Farms. It’s a small slicer, about 4-8 oz, maybe in the saladette category. A nice size, bigger than cherry but smaller than some of the big slicers like Black Krim. That makes it hard to use for canning, because it’s a pain to take the skins off smaller tomatoes. But it makes it excellent for fresh eating. And it’s delicious and very sweet! It starts out on the plant as a green tomato with purple shoulders, and then when it ripens it looks like this.

Beautiful dark shoulders and terra-cotta skin color. The inside is a bright pink, which looks great next to the dark edges of the skin.

I really like this variety and will grow it again.

Another is Blue and Gold Berries, also from Wild Boar Farms. This is a cherry tomato, and it starts out a dark purple color nearly all over. Eventually it ripens to gold. This is one of the most prolific cherry tomatoes I have ever grown, with huge clusters of fruit. However it takes a LONG time for them to ripen, and once they are ripe, there is a very short window before they are overripe. This requires swift action at a very certain time, so while they are productive and beautiful (and tasty!), the amount of fussiness required for harvesting is a deterrent to growing them again.

Another tomato I wrote about was Black Beauty, yet another selection from Wild Boar Farms. This one is nearly all black when unripe, but ripens to a rose-red with black shoulders. It’s really, really lovely. Also very prolific (all three of these are prolific!) and this one is larger than the Indigo Apple, more like 8-12 oz.

Let’s move on to non-tomato news, shall we? I had a visitor at the water fountain the other day.

This is one of those juvenile Cooper’s Hawks we’ve had flying around our yard. Isn’t she gorgeous??? You can tell she’s still young because she has some white spots on her back, which will disappear with age. I took this picture from the bathroom window, and I was breathless at the time. These birds are just so magnificent. We were wondering if they were still around, and I guess they are. I wonder how many times they’ve visited the fountain when I didn’t see them.

Next, I’d like to draw your attention to two interesting websites, both geared towards California gardeners and landscapers, but offer valuable information for those in other states, too. One is Calscape, which is a division of the California Native Plant Society. Calscape is a great resource for deciding which native plants belong where in your garden. For instance, you can search out ‘dry shade’ and get a list of plants for that kind of situation. Recently they have added a new tool with aims to provide gardeners lists of plants to meet the specific food needs of certain pollinators. So, for instance, if you want to help out particular butterflies, you find out what to plant to attract and feed them. Once you go to the site, you click on the ‘butterfly’ button at the top of the page. Then you enter your address and it will give you a list of butterflies and moths that are native to your address! When I did this, it came up with 212 species!!! Incredible. Then you can pick a species you are interested in and Calscape will give you the range for the butterfly, the confirmed food sources for them, and the likely food sources for them. These are plants that the butterfly can lay eggs on - food sources for the larvae (caterpillars). I entered Boisduval’s Blue (a butterfly I love) and found that they need lupines to raise babies. Good thing I plant a lot of those!

image credit: Ron Wolf, 2014 for Calscape

This could be a great tool for those of us who love wildlife and want to plant to attract and support them. Pretty much everyone can get behind butterflies, so I imagine this will be helpful for a lot of gardeners in California.

Another site that I am finding helpful is the one belonging to the Pacific Horticulture Society, of which I am a also a member. They have a new series of ‘digital classroom’ videos which are extremely helpful. I particularly enjoyed the one titled “Gardeners as Superheroes” which was really about soil. It’s extremely thorough, 90 minutes of good, entertaining explanation about how the water cycle works and how to improve your soil. It really is about watershed gardening, which I’ve talked about before, but it’s always good to get a reminder of what that means. The other videos are interesting, too, and there will be more in the future. While you’re there, check out their ‘recent stories’ to learn more about the way trees talk to each other, look at their travel opportunities, and upcoming events all over California. There’s some great information here. They also have an extremely beautiful publication that I really enjoy receiving.

image credit: Pacific Horticulture Society

One last thing: I usually start seeds for the winter garden now, the first weekend of August. I’m going to hold off a week or two, for two reasons: 1) It’s still extremely warm, and 2) the summer garden got going very late this year because of our cold and rainy May. If I start seeds now, I’ll want to plant them out the first week of October as I always do, and I’d rather give the summer garden a bit more time. It won’t hurt to wait a couple of weeks. However, it is certainly the time to start thinking about your winter garden. Sow all the brassicas in soil blocks or trays and let them hang out in a warm, sheltered, protected place for a couple months until they are ready to plant in the ground. I’ve planned for broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels Sprouts, and kohlrabi. I will also direct sow all the greens - lettuces, kales, chards, spinach etc. Also leeks, carrots, peas, and beets will be direct sown in October. I may also sow a crop of winter potatoes, and of course garlic and shallots will need to be planted sometime in October. If you haven’t started to think about this, do so now. Planning ahead and keeping good records is key to a productive space.

Restless

It’s that time of year. I’m itching to start summer vegetable seeds, to rip off the row cover, to spend whole days out in the sunshine, to see masses of spring flowers appear in the pollinator gardens. It’s a desperate feeling, and one that cannot be soothed with nice family dinners in the still-early-dark, or browsing seed catalogs, or even walking around the garden. I imagine all creatures in the Northern Hemisphere feel a similar restlessness, whether still dealing with snow and ice, or dreary wet, or just grey skies.

Our property has been inundated with water. The west coast hosted an atmospheric river that flowed through our sky and simply dumped rain at the lower elevations, snow at the higher. This is good. This is necessary. This is exactly what California needs. All of that is true, but it does make for dampened spirits. I am thanking our December selves for obtaining and spreading all those wood chips, as they do a really good job of soaking up a lot of moisture and keeping us mud-free. But our hard landscape surfaces were standing lakes for a good week, and the chickens were miserable inside their coop, looking forlornly out at the rain.

February 15 is our last average frost date, but ‘average’ is the key word there, because we’ll have frosty nights this coming week. So I can’t take the row covers off just yet, even though I’m dying to. I bought a cheaper brand that is barely hanging on, having been ripped to shreds by our high winds and rain. Agribon holds together much better, but it comes in inconvenient sizes and is so much more expensive. Still, once we’ve used up our roll of the cheap stuff, I’ll go back to Agribon. Even though it’s low-quality stuff, the row covers have done their job, protecting all the winter veg from the elements, while still letting in light and moisture. Everything is looking good and tasting good, and that’s really the most important thing about having a winter garden - providing lots of food in the colder months.

However the canning shelf is looking light in everything but pickles, and I yearning for a fresh strawberry. It’ll be a while yet.

I’ll start my veg seeds the first weekend of March, as I always do, in hopes that I can plant them out the first weekend of May. I already know where everything is going to go, planning the summer garden is long since a completed task, and now I just wait. The internet is full of gardeners starting seeds, so it’s hard to resist that urge. From experience I know that it’s best to put it off a while yet.

Meanwhile in the open spaces the wild almond trees have begun to flower, and I’ve seen the first of the poppies, and wild mustard is starting to make its robust presence known. I notice an increase in bird activity, and the bees are loving the cold sunshine. Soon we will need to add some room to their hive, and swarm season will be upon us. Vector control says it’s time to start putting out yellow jacket traps in hopes of catching the early queens, but I don’t usually start to see them until March. Once in a while I see a native bumblebee, but mostly they are still hibernating. I’m hoping that things will really start to wake up in March, and thats the time this restless feeling will go away.

Winter Bounty

Today I uncovered the beds, as we have temps in the 50’s and rain is coming. When the row covers are on, I can’t really see how the plants are doing. When I need something, I undo a small portion of the cover and pick it - some kale, say, or some romaine lettuce (and with this romaine recall, it sure has been nice to have our own supply!). So I don’t really get to see the big picture until they are all uncovered, and then whoa. I realize they’ve grown and look beautiful!

Last year we didn’t use row covers because we did that cover crop of winter wheat. I’d forgotten what a pain it is to cover and uncover the beds. I can uncover them by myself, but I need a friend to cover them properly again. So it’s all a juggle, really. Most of the time the nighttime temps are in the 30’s so the beds have to stay covered. It’s rare that I get to open them, so it’s not like I’m doing it every day, and thank goodness. You know, probably most of what I’m growing can be out in the 30’s as well. Not the potatoes - but brassicas, carrots, beets, leeks, parsnips - all of it can withstand temps just above freezing. I guess I’m just acting with an abundance of caution.

Winter greens are so pretty, with their varying shades of green and highlights of purple. I have discovered that the chickens prefer their greens torn into small pieces. They don’t particularly like it when I throw them whole leaves. Though one clever hen has figured out how to step on one end and tear pieces off the other.

Over time, I have learned that anything that doesn’t get eaten by the chickens, will get eaten by nighttime creatures. The opossum that lives under Adam’s train shed likes rotting things. If the leftovers don’t get eaten, I collect them and put them in the compost pile at the corner of the chicken run. Nothing is wasted.

I found a bag of jalapeños in the freezer and defrosted them, then roasted them. Today I am drying them in the dehydrator to make dried chipotles for a gift. They smell really good as they dry! I am glad I thought ahead to freeze a bunch as well as hang many strings in our house to dry over time. We use them all. A classmate just gave me some seeds for a perennial hot pepper; I’m anxious to try them in the summer. I’ll plant them in pots, so I can put them in the greenhouse over the winter. Honestly I’ve read that you can do this with any pepper - they are all perennial if cut back severely and kept in a warm place during the cold months. Right now, all I have in the greenhouse is a brugmansia and some portalucas that I decided to start for the pallet planter. The brugmansia is one I originally planted in a pot, then into the ground. It freezes every winter and has to start again in the spring, so I never get blooms. This year I decided, on the advice of yet another classmate, to cut off a large portion of the stem, stick it in dirt, put in the greenhouse, and it would root and be ready to plant out in the spring. We shall see! It’s looking promising! The portalucas (moss roses) will be great in the pallet planter because they require great drainage.

Competing with the spicy roasted pepper smell are these cookies. Adam asked for white chocolate/macadamia nut cookies, which I’ve never made before - and may I say - YUM. They are truly delicious. I love wintertime baking. :)

I’d love to hear about your baking and cooking adventures, as well as what you’re harvesting out of your gardens. Do you use cold frames? Low tunnels? Greenhouses? or do you let the ground rest over the wintertime?

Heading

Growing heirloom winter wheat has been such an interesting experiment. Grains are an excellent rotation for any cropping system, as they build soil and feed microorganisms with their extensive roots. They prevent erosion, cover the earth, and provide a great deal of biomass that can be used as mulch or compost material. There's very little pest pressure.  And, if you're lucky, you get a crop on top of all that.

Our wheat crop, which was 'lodging' (or falling over) has righted itself and is now 'heading.' The plants generally go through an aggressive growing process in early spring, then form a type of leaf called a 'flag,' which is easily seen in the above photo. The flag leaf produces a shaft wherein the grain begins reproduction. Those flowers you see are self-pollinating, and after the pollination process, seeds will form.

I grew up near farming communities on the east coast, but I don't ever remember seeing grain. I know very little about it. I imagine if you grow up in the mid-west, you're very used to seeing these crops. I have had a good time researching how wheat grows; I've needed to consult the experts at every stage. It's evident that my crop is heading quite a bit earlier than wheat usually does in our state, early April being the common time. We had very warm temperatures for about two weeks in early February, which I think triggered the plants to begin reproduction. February 15 is our last frost date, so I'm hoping that it won't get too cold now (temperatures have dropped!), and that the seeds can withstand that chill. If they do withstand it, this early heading is a great thing, because I might just get a small crop in before I plant out tomatoes in May. Normally wheat isn't ready to harvest until late May or early June here.

When the plant has set seed, it will start to brown and dry up. Then I will know it is time to harvest, sheave, and then thresh. Of course, the right amount of water is very important now, so I'm glad we have an irrigation system, as it hasn't rained here for the entire month of February, and actually I don't remember getting any significant moisture in January either. 

Meanwhile, I'm in the process of potting up over 200 sunflower seedlings. I may have overdid, just a little.

The Wheat is Lodging

When you grow wheat, you begin to see what an important crop it is in our country. Google-research a problem with, say, kale, and you'll get a bunch of websites written by folks just like you and me. Google-research a problem with wheat, and BAM: You've got the big guns weighing in, from the USDA to the Land Grant Universities. According to the USDA, wheat ranks third among US field crops in planted acreage, production, and gross receipts. (You can guess the top two crops, I imagine.) However, wheat planting and production are actually down this year, due to lower returns and changes in government programs, as well as increased competition from global wheat markets. 

Again according to the USDA, wheat, along with corn, soybeans, cotton, and potatoes, accounts for about 80% of all pesticide use in our country. 

This makes you wanna find your local, organic wheat farm, doesn't it? It sure does for me. It also sure as hell solidifies my resolve to continue baking our own bread with said wheat.

Meanwhile I'm enjoying our own wheat-growing experiment. There are some definite downsides. The main one is space, which is certainly a limiting factor. The ratio of biomass-to-product is quite high; the huge stalks take up quite a bit of room for such little return. You have to plant a LOT of wheat to get any kind of poundage at the end of the process. It's also a long-growing crop; I planted these seeds in October, and the plant probably won't be ready for harvesting until late May, at the earliest. This is an issue when I want to get summer crops in the ground at the beginning of May at the latest. Some crops, such as potatoes, should go in in February. In order to do that, I'm going to have to cut some of the wheat early.

There are lots of positives to growing wheat, though, not the least of which is how beautiful it is. It couldn't be any more GREEN.

Other benefits: The aforementioned biomass is actually a boon, as it can be used in several ways; as fodder for the chickens, or as a mulch for my summer plants. Finding organic straw is difficult, and I've basically made my own. It has acted as a wonderful cover crop over the winter, mixed with crimson clover as an understory plant. Live roots in the ground year-round really promote soil life and health. I mean, just LOOK at all the sunlight that's been captured in these beautiful leaves.

Here's another downside, though, at least in my garden. My wheat is starting to lodge.

Lodging is when the wheat falls over. It's happening in every one of my beds. The outside rim of each bed is fine, beautifully upright, and then the inner portions have keeled over. There are many reasons this could have happened, but I don't see that any are applicable here. The plants could be suffering from excess nitrogen (never a problem in my beds, trust me when I tell you that all my soil nutrient tests come back deficient in nitrogen, which is why I planted clover too - but the nitrogen nodules in the roots of the clover won't be available to nearby plants until after I cut down the clover and let the roots rot in the soil). They could be suffering from a deficiency of potassium (though my soil tests say this nutrient level is ok). They could have fallen from high winds, which I suppose is possible, but honestly, are our winds higher than those in the Great Plains? I don't think so. It hasn't been particularly wet this winter. Interseeding clover is supposed to help with this issue, and I did that. 

The only thing I can figure is, it's the variety of wheat. I planted all heirloom varieties, wheat that could be considered ancient and isn't used any longer on big commercial farms; Emmer, Sonora, and Red Fife. And from my reading, it does sound as though the lodging problem has been bred out of the newer strains, along with a lot of the nutrition. Honestly, I don't WANT to grow modern wheat. I want to grow the good, heirloom stuff.

I am cheered by reading that the lodging may not hurt the seed crop, if it happens before the seed develops. But I do think stems of wheat lying down and collecting water is going to invite rot; and in fact, some of the stems have some discoloration. So, this crop may end up being fodder and straw sooner than I expected, and I'll just have to keep buying my wheat berries from the local farmer. 

Have any of you ever grown wheat? How have you dealt with lodging?