High 75 Low 50 Absolutely beautiful clear blue sky!
It is late August and the winter vegetable garden has been planted. Broccoli, kale, cauliflower, collards, chard, beets, spinach, lettuces and more are all in the ground. The trick now is to keep them moist during our bursts of warm days and safe from slugs on our wet days, at least until they are larger and sturdier than they are now.
Winter gardening is for the moment, what I look forward to most in the garden. Don’t get me wrong, I love my garden year-round. The warmer seasons bring colorful flowers, berries and all types of heat-loving beings. I enjoy a homegrown tomato at least as much as the next girl but life is so busy in the summer with kids activities, campers staying on SongCroft, the milk flow and all that the slow paced winter garden is when I can really breathe.
Also, we are still in construction on various projects on our croft so we are often busy doing related projects on dry days.
There is also the fact that the Farmers Markets are booming with fresh local produce right now, at reasonable prices, but in the winter it will be hard to come by. Not many folks tend a winter vegetable garden here when prices go up to $3 a bunch for kale and little is locally sourced! I find winter gardening the most “bang for my buck.”
Yes, I am definitely a fan of winter gardens. I hope you have put yours in too!
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High 84 Low 55 Clear with a beautiful blue sky!
It is high summer and the sun is out.The summer harvest is on. It is almost 85 degrees today and the rain has finally stopped. Not that I am complaining. We are fortunate to have the rain that we do. It’s just that we cherish every moment that that great yellow orb hovers above us!
We were in Nelson, B.C. for a wedding of a dear friend last week so I am a little behind schedule on chores. While we were away, our chickens got out and pecked away much of the Winter garden. The rows of carrot seed that I kept moist and nurtured through the warm days, the meticulously laid out patterns of red and green cabbages with yellow beets between were all pecked and thrown about like a giant tossed salad.
Upon inspection, I could see that some of the carrots were still sprouting, so I left them. I replanted the rows with more seedlings. It will be interesting to see where the carrots end up. Perhaps there will be a secret message from the hens hidden in the carrot tops.
At any rate, we are harvesting summer cabbages, purple and green beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, radishes, chili peppers and zucchini just to name a few. I hope you are all enjoying your local summer harvest because it slips by way too fast!
