Garden Visitor

Garden Visitor
November 7, 2009

This little guy visited us earlier in the month. He was a bit sluggish so I moved him off the path. Autumn has been rather mild and for the most part drier than the spring and summer. There isn't much left to do in the garden and yard other than the last minute tidying. We've cleaned the beds from debris and most of the leaves have been raked up from the yard. One tree is still dropping leaves so it will be awhile yet before we can clear up all the leaves. At any rate we are getting things ready for the cold weather that will hit any time now. It's time to get on the seed catalogue lists for 2010.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2009

Garden Report - Winding Down

After a cool spring, cooler and wet summer Mother Nature hit us with a cooler start to the fall. I had hoped for a bit of nicer weather but it wasn't to be. The vegetable beds have been a bit neglected mainly because of the rain. We've already had our first hard frost too. Yesterday I spent a bit of time in the garden. It was one of the very rare days where the sun was actually out!

Tomatoes

To the left the herb garden continues to do well. The Italian parsley has taken up it's square foot and then some. The plant is huge so it will be moved to another location in the spring. The Nasturtiums also became extremely large plants so I will have to find a more appropriate location for them in the spring.

Bed#1 is essentially done although there are a couple of hardy pepper plants I might bring indoors. The hard frost killed just about everything in the bed. I was pleasantly surprised to see a little Chinese mustard still going.

What I really missed not growing in this year's garden was zucchini. I also missed Kentucky Wonder beans and some of the herbs I didn't plant this year. I'm a bit disappointed in that I don't think my rhubarb survived and I didn't get the everbearing strawberries in the ground. They are happily growing indoors for the winter. So next year's garden is destined to be bigger and better!

Eggplant

Growing eggplant was a first for me this year. The plants went in late but I wanted to see how eggplants grow. Unfortunately the frost killed off the plants so imagine my surprise when I discovered one small eggplant about 6-inches long! It was still attached to the plant but laying on the ground where slugs could get at it so even though it looks pretty on this side it wasn't edible. Eggplant is definitely on my list of things to grow next year!

From my garden observations this year I am going to be dealing with more slug issues likely a direct result of putting vegetable beds over an area that was overgrown. There was obviously a healthy slug population already present. I manually remove slugs as I find them but will add copper tape to the raised beds in the spring to give better control. I'm also concerned over the tomato hornworm as I know they overwinter in the soil. This was my first year dealing with a larger infestation of them. They can be quite devastating in a short period of time so that is something I will be on the look-out for in the spring. Normally I don't turn the raised beds as part of winterizing but I think that might be a good way to curb the tomato hornworm so am planning on doing that this week as well.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2009

Saving Seeds

During the home garden harvest most home gardeners save seeds for the following year's garden.  When saving seeds it is important to collect from heirloom plants rather than hybrids.  You can collect seeds from hybrids but they often will not breed true.  Seeds from herbs and flowering plants are best collect after the dew has dried on a clear, dry day.  Do not collect seeds from any plants that show signs of disease.  Collect in such a manner as to keep the seed types separate.  Once collected any plant material such as stems should be removed then the seeds left in open air for at least 24 to 72 hours.  This will ensure there is no moisture.  Place the dry seeds in an airtight container.  Label and store in a cool, dark location.

Some seeds require special preparations for storage.  Beans and peas should be shelled then left to dry fully before storing.  Tomato seeds are encased in a thick pulp.  Remove the seeds with pulp and place in a small bowl.  Cover with water.  Set in a warm location out of direct sunlight.  Skim off anything floating daily.  Let sit for 3 to 4 days.  Pour through a strainer and rinse the seeds well.  Dry the seeds on wax or parchment paper.  Don't dry them on paper towels as the paper will stick to the seeds.  Once dry place in an airtight container for storage.  Store in a cool, dark location.  

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2009

Garden Report

The weather has turned quite cool here with frost threatening although I doubt we will see frost for a few days yet. The garden is winding down. Late blight has affected most of the tomato vines but not before I could get some nice clippings for growing indoors. It did affect some of the green tomatoes as well. We also had 3 days of heavy rain so a lot of tomato splitting. Yesterday I did as clean of a pick as possible of the tomatoes and peppers. I brought in a few pots of plants as well. I'll be harvesting the herbs for drying shortly so other than that there isn't a lot going on in the garden right now.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2009

Little Marvel Peas (Pisum sativum var sativum)

Most home gardeners know certain varieties are consistently good performers for them. There are three ways to tell if a variety is a good performer for you general area. The first way is to pay close attention to the varieties being sold at local nurseries. Usually there will be one variety that is consistently sold at all of them. The second way is through word of mouth and the third is through trial and error. When you find a good performer you will likely plant that variety each year. So it is with Little Marvel Peas.

Little Marvel Peas

Little Marvel Peas (Pisum sativum var sativum) are consistently good performers for me. They are frost hardy so should be planted early in the spring as soon as the ground can be worked for an early season harvest and in mid to late summer for a late harvest. They mature in 64 days on compact plants making them ideal for square foot gardening. I will be growing a couple of Little Marvel peas indoors this winter as part of my continuous harvest plan.

There are 7 to 8 nice sized, sweet, tender peas per pod. The firm pods are almost round in diameter when the peas are ready for picking. The pods snap open easily for shelling. Pictured is an average sized pod from this year's

Harvest

Unless you grow a lot of pea plants it is difficult to get enough for more than fresh eating. My yield this year has been about a pint of shelled peas. That's not enough for preserving but they were quite tasty for fresh eating.

Pictured are a few of the shelled Little Marvel peas along various peppers from the garden. The Homesteader peas gave a very light yield of about 10 pods. The main problem was the peas were planted too late for a good harvest. Rather than try for fall planting I've decided to start both in pots indoors.

The peppers went into over drive so I've been picking a lot of those. They are such gorgeous colours! I can't help but smile when I see them peaking out through all the greenery.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2009

Tomatoes

This is a wonderful time of year in the garden! The garden is blessing with it's abundance daily. I am dealing with a couple of problems and the ADFF (average day first frost) is quickly approaching. The days are getting shorter and cooler. The evenings have been fairly cool as well. After such a cool, wet summer it is hard to know whether we will have a nice autumn although that is the prediction. I'm not taking any chances in case we get frost earlier than expected.

Vine Ripe Tomatoes

Pictured is yesterday's tomato harvest. There are Sweet Millions (cherry), beefsteak (upper right), Lemon Boy (bottom right) and Heinz 1429 (bottom left). By far my best producers are the Sweet Millions, beefsteak and Heinz 1429. The Sweet 100's have produced very little. The Lemon Boy has once again proved itself to be somewhat problematic, low performers.

Recently the rain has been less resulting in less tomato splitting. By far the cherry tomatoes have been most affected by splitting. Tomato splitting occurs when the tomato roots take up too much water causing the fruit to plump quicker splitting the skin. The next problem is some tomatoes simply falling from the vines. This is primarily affecting the Heinz 1429 tomatoes although it has happened with the cherry tomatoes as well.

Late Blight

Throughout the entire growing season there have been horror stories of late blight. Late blight is a fungal disease that rapidly spreads through tomato plants. This year it has been particularly bad. True to previous experience Lemon Boy was the first to be hit with blight. Late blight is controlled by removing damaged foliage and not composting it. Washing your hands well after working with an affected plant will also help control the spread.

I noticed the first signs of late blight a couple of days ago. At this late stage in the outdoor there is little point getting too stressed about it. I'm removing as much damaged foliage as possible while trying not to knock of immature fruit so there is a bit of a trade off. I also noticed a couple of tomatoes with blight damage so I removed those as well.

Tomato Clippings

At the same time I am taking a lot of clippings of the healthy growth for growing indoors. Pictured is the first grouping of clippings to come indoors. As you can see the foliage is quite healthy. It is important to ensure any foliage used as a clipping is healthy to prevent any disease from spreading through the indoor garden. I cut a clipping and put it into a water filled container then wash my hands and repeat for 4 clippings per container. Then I set the container on the patio well away from the main garden and other clippings for a week. As long as there are no signs of disease, I check for any insects and manually remove them then bring the clippings indoors. The clippings are checked daily for any signs of insects. Indoors I use manual removal combined with a homemade soap spray if necessary. Once roots form the clippings are either planted in soil or left as individual plants in water. I use an organic fertilizer for the plants. As the plants grow the process for rooting clippings is continuously repeated throughout the winter.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2009

Continuous Harvest

Commercial Greenhouses
August 29, 2009

The idea of growing edible plants indoors is not a new one. Archaeological excavations of Pompeii (79 AD) uncovered the remains of early greenhouses so they have been in use since at least that time if not earlier. The ancient Romans ensured the survival of vegetables and grapes by using greenhouses to protect produce from in-climate weather. They were the early versions of the modern greenhouse. Modern greenhouses originated in Italy in the thirteenth century as a way to study, keep and propagate exotic plants brought back to Europe in early plant hunting expeditions. Greenhouses and conservatories were first used to grow plants indoors throughout inclement weather have been used in Europe for thousands of years.

Commercial greenhouses have been used for decades to grow both edible and not edible plants year round. During the winter months one of our favourite pass-times is to visit Colasanti's Tropical Gardens in Kingsville, Ontario. Strolling through their large greenhouses filled with beautiful plants on a snowy winter's day is simply delightful. Other large commercial greenhouse operations along the Talbot Trail running from Windsor, Ontario through the Niagara region ending in Fort Erie, Ontario grow hot house tomatoes, various peppers and cucumbers for a continuous supply of Ontario produce for consumers. In recent years more and more farmland in southern Ontario is being turned into large commercial greenhouse operations.

On a smaller scale many Canadian universities and schools have greenhouses and/or solariums or atriums. Many home gardeners have hobby greenhouses and/or solariums to help extend the growing season. Solariums have become a popular addition for many home owners because they provide free heat on sunny days as well as create perfect a growing space for growing plants. Home gardeners whether or not they have a greenhouse or solarium still bring in plants when frost threatens. Plants are over-wintered to be replanted in the garden the following spring. Typically these plants include ornamentals like geraniums and annual herbs. A growing trend to compliment over-wintering is to specifically plant fruits and vegetables in containers to be grown indoors.

Basically a modified garden is sown and grown indoors during the winter months. I recently showed how to root tomatoes (more here) for growing indoors. Most herbs, strawberries, peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, lettuces, chards, radishes, beans and even zucchini can be grown indoors. Aside of providing fresh fruit, vegetables and herbs during the winter months there are other benefits to growing edible plants indoors.

• Growing indoors eliminates many pest related problems. You don't have to worry about waking up to find deer stripped your garden or the rabbits got your beans. For the most part you should not have to worry about any insect problems if you are careful to quarantine any plants brought inside from the garden
• Many environmental factors that affect gardening are eliminated when growing indoors. These include not having to worry about: damaging winds, drought, excessive heat, unexpected frost, torrential rains.
• In most cases plant diseases should not be a problem when growing indoors.

Growing fruits and vegetables indoors presents a few extra considerations. Just like growing outdoors plants need suitable growing conditions. When growing indoors you need to mimic these conditions with respect to water and light. You may need to supplement natural light with grow lights and use self watering containers especially if you will be away for a few days. If you are going to be away for a few days you will not be able to turn the heat down to 10ºC (50ºF) for those heat loving plants like tomatoes. In addition to those conditions many homes that are heated during the winter months are drier so you may have to increase the humidity level in your home for healthy plant growth. Fruits and vegetables growing indoors are grown in containers so you will need to use an organic fertilizer for healthy growth. You will also have to manually pollinate your plants when growing indoors.

Although growing fruits and vegetables indoors presents few problems when the growing conditions are met, there can be a few secondary problems. All soils contain mould spores. Some individuals are sensitive or allergic to moulds so to lessen the impact use sterilized potting mixtures or soil-free potting mixtures. Hydroponics is an ideal solution to growing indoors without using soil. Any damaged or decaying plant material should be removed immediately. As with growing outdoors always do a clean pick removing all ripe fruit or vegetables daily.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2009