Winter Garden Update--Mid January 2009

Dear Readers,

As you may remember from an October 2008 posting I was doing some autumn/winter veggie gardening experimentation in my backyard. And, boy did I get the most extreme winter storm to test my experiment to the maximum! Holy moly! The week around Christmas brought an arctic blast like none I've experienced in almost 9 years as an Oregonian. It was even worse than the infamous January 2004 ice/snow storm.

The week before the storm the weather reports predicted very cold temperatures below freezing with snow and ice. With that much warning we were very busy at the nursery "battening down the hatches." And on my day off prior to the storm it was a lovely and sunny day about 40 degrees with no wind. A perfect day to winter-proof my garden. First I watered well everything. Plants have a much better chance of surviving cold spells if they are well watered. This is especially important when the below-freezing winds whip through. I mulched with shredded bark all my perennial beds and my raspberry bed. I gathered together all my containers that have herbs, perennials, blueberries and strawberries and wrapped them in burlap. I harvested all of my carrots, radishes, jerusalem artichokes, and most of my lettuce and left out a few mature heads as an experiment. I mulched with compost my veggie beds and covered them each with a frost blanket. This was in an attempt to protect them from the low temperatures expected. I was not concerned about snow, because snow is an insulator for your plants and I knew my brassicas are tolerant of some snow. I took down my windchimes and emptied the ceramic bird baths. I huddled together the newly planted containers of bulbs on my porch.

I was going into the storm with a lot of veggies still in the ground. It seemed risky but I was as prepared as I could be. First we were hit with temperatures below freezing and some snow. Then the temps dropped into the teens and one night the windchill was 3 degrees. My goodness. And I was working outside at the nursery during the first week of the storm. Thank God I had the sense to go to GI Joes and invest in some lined double front carhart work pants! Long johns & ski socks became my best friend. Well the 2nd week dumped inch after inch of snow and I thought it would never stop. Two days into the storm I went out to measure it was 13 inches in my backyard. One day later it was 20 inches. I could not believe it. Day by day I watched my entire yard including my raised beds completely disappear under snow. I believe this is when frost blankets officially stop working-when they are covered in over a foot of snow! Every day I went out and re-filled my bird feeders and worried over my veggie garden I could no longer see.

A week later once we thawed out I was able to remove the frost blankets and access the damage. I lost 18 pea plants, 10 edible fava bean plants, 3 savoy cabbages, 6 cauliflower, 6 giant red mustard greens, several lettuces, 6 broccoli raab, 4 purple sprouting broccoli. It was almost my entire winter and early spring produce harvest. Dang, it was a mess. A thawed black slimy oozing yucky mess. It's so disappointing to have lost so much. But, it's a good reality check & lesson to learn if I want to be a successful professional farmer. But, there is some good news--there were several snow storm troopers. Cilantro by far did the most exceptional. You'd never know it had been through a 2 foot snow storm. It looks awesome. It did so well in fact that I've been telling my co-workers that I'm going to become a Cilantro Farmer! While my favorite Giant Red Mustard Greens turned to slime, the Green Wave Mustards look amazing. All 6 of my Red Ace Cabbage came through intact ready for spring production. Both Wild Garden Mix Kale and Nero Di Toscana Kale look scrawny, but they will survive. And I've got 3 savoy cabbages with small heads that look like they will make it for harvest in another month or two. My cover crop fava and crimson clover looked wilted and awful following the storm and now they've bounced back and look great! So that concludes my winter veggie garden experiment.

The daffodils in my yard are beginning to bloom, the paperwhites & amaryllis on my windowsill are blooming, and the small fruit selection has arrived at the nursery...that means spring is on it's way. Yeah yeah, I know in another 2 months, don't burst my bubble! Fingers crossed we don't get another big storm in Portland this winter. I promise to get some winter recipes on here this week. For now, check out all the winter recipes in the 2008 blog archive. Stay warm and thanks for reading!

In Health,
Miss Jolie Ann

Fall & Winter Vegetable Garden Experiement

Hello friends!

I got a really late start on my Fall & Autumn vegetable garden. This is due to the fact i thought I was moving out of my home in September, then it turns out I am now staying in my home for at least another season. Most cool season vegetable crops want to go in the ground mid-summer around July or August. Which is exactly NOT what you are thinking about in the mid-summer, right? Fixated on all available garden space, resources, time & energy on those TOMATOES not planting brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale for the winter. I hear that! But, that's when most winter veggies need to be planted to get a good start before cold weather sets in.

Even though I was delayed I managed to get a pretty extensive cool season garden going. Once I harvested and cleaned up a lot of warm season crops I heavily amended my soil with organic matter (compost, earthworm castings, coir) and organic vegan fertilizers. I planted together a mix of overwintering and fall/winter harvesting crops. The overwintering crops were an experiment. And I'll let you know how it all goes. In addition to the veggies I've managed to get 2 empty flower beds planted with cover crops in preparation for perennials and herbs next Spring. I used fava beans for their long tap-roots to break up heavy soil and crimson clover for their nitrogen boosting & easy-to-till-under capabilities. I've also tarped another area of lawn--killing it over the winter for easy digging in the Spring-which will be the site of another raised bed.

Don't forget to reduce your "fall clean-up" efforts. Yes, that's right--REDUCE the yard clean-up. It's important to leave wild habitat that provides shelter & food for beneficial bugs, birds, and other wildlife. Our bug & animal friends need this during the cold and sparse winter. On behalf of our wild friends, thank-you!

Here's what I planted for Fall/Winter...

Fall/Winter Harvest:
Sugar snap & snow peas, mustard greens, lettuce, sorrel, spinach, swiss chard, kale, cauliflower, mache, arugula, mustard greens, radishes, carrots, cilantro

Overwintering for Spring Harvest:
Fava beans, red & green cabbage, broccoli raab, purple sprouting broccoli, cauliflower, garlic, shallots

I'm super excited to see how it goes and I'll keep you posted with my lessons learned. Wouldn't it be great to home-grow veggies all 4 seasons?

In Health,
Miss Jolie Ann

Early Autumn Garden Harvest

Here's the bounty I'm harvesting in the my early autumn garden....

The last of the tomatoes, green beans, zucchini, patty pan squash, bell peppers and cucumbers.

The eggplants are still producing and growing in the first week of October!

The last of the raspberries, blackberries & strawberries.

Carrots
Radishes
Lettuce-romaine & leaf
Sorrel
Mache
Arugula
Micro Greens
Mustard Greens
Kale

Autumn really is a very bountiful time of the year here in the Pacific Northwest with all the Summer crops in final harvest and the beginning harvest of cooler season crops. I love the cooler weather and the fallen leaves. It's a beautiful & blessed season!

In Health,
Miss Jolie Ann

What I'm Harvesting from My Garden--Mid August

After a very slow start to Spring & Summer, including lots of sketchy Portland weather--here's what I'm harvesting in my garden this week:

Cherry Tomatoes
Scarlett Runner Beans
Yellow Wax Beans
Romaine Lettuce
Carrots
Cucumbers
Yellow Patty Pan Squash
Zucchini
Strawberries
Raspberries
Blackberries
Herbs--Basil, Parsley, Cilantro, Dill, Tarragon, Sage, Fennel, Thyme, Mints, Oregano, Marjoram, Lemon Balm, Chevril

Black Beans with Fresh Plums & Bell Peppers

Recipe from The Vegetarian Times Cookbook

This is a great way to use summer plums in a recipe, in addition to fresh eating and canning jam/jelly. We have a plum tree in the yard so fresh plums are only a short walk from the kitchen. Use this recipe at the height of plum season when they are fresh and ripe. I serve this dish with warm steamed corn tortillas, or you could also serve it over brown rice. Simple Delicious Enjoy!

In Health,
Miss Jolie Ann

Black Beans with Fresh Plums & Bell Peppers

Serves 3

4 medium purple plums

1.5 tbsp unsalted butter (I used olive oil)

1 large onion, chopped

1 large red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 large yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed and minced

2 whole cloves

2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves

2 tsp fresh lemon juice

1 tsp light honey

2 cups cooked black beans (I used 2-14 oz cans)

Fill a deep pot with water and bring to a boil. Add the plums and boil for 30 seconds to loosen their skins. Remove the plums with a slotted spoon and let cool.

Melt the butter (or heat the oil) in a large skillet over low heat. Add the onion, bell peppers, garlic, cloves, cumin and cilantro. Cook, stirring often, until the onion softens, about 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, peel the plums, remove the pits and chop the pulp. Add the pulp, lemon juice and honey to the onion-pepper mixture. Add the beans, cover and cook over low heat until the peppers are soft, about 30 minutes, stirring often to prevent sticking. Serve hot or chilled.

Happy Summer!

Hi friends! I just realized it's been almost 6 weeks since my last blog posting. Wow, it's way overdue. My apologies for my slacking. I've had a lot of recipes to post and just haven't managed to get focused. And, my garden, well that's another story. My landlord decided a month ago to start major construction on the outside of my home which has meant demolition and destruction of a lot of my beloved garden. Garden carnage everywhere! It's depressing, seriously. So I haven't really wanted to be home much, let alone blog about the steady decline of my garden. But, it's been over 100 degrees the past 2 days and here I find myself in my basement (where the computer is)--the coolest room in the house! Sorry if I've neglected you. Hope you are having a great summer and I'll post some recipes and garden updates soon.

Much Love,
Miss Jolie Ann

Pasta with Fresh Lemon, Tomato & Basil

Original Recipe by Miss Jolie Ann
Inspired by my friend Sherrie

My co-worker and friend Sherrie is a ray of sunshine in my life. She is full of smiles, affection, warmth and humor for all who cross her path. She even calmly puts up with me when I can't sit still because I'm so hyper from my otc hayfever medication. Ever since she has found out about my kitchen-garden blog and my desire to complete a cookbook, she's been unconditionally supportive and encouraging.

Sherrie and I share a love of fresh home-grown seasonal produce and homecooking. While sharing telephone switchboard duty at our workplace we often swap stories of garden and recipe favorites. If you doubt Sherrie's influence on me let me share the infamous Giant Red Mustard Greens story. I have never grown mustard greens or had any desire to grow them. I don't think I've ever cooked with them either. In early spring when Sherrie and I were getting to know each other she shared how much she loved eating home-grown Giant Red Mustard Greens. Well, I trusted her completely, no questions asked. How could i have missed out on Giant Red Mustard Greens all this time? I set out to find starter tray packs of this mystery vegetable. Every week I looked for it at work (oh yeah, just a reminder-we work in a plant nursery), has it come in yet? I kept bugging and bugging the veggie chicks Jenn & Lana, until finally it arrived. I planted it, it thrived in my garden and upon harvest and cooking it was delicious.

But, I digress....Last week Sherrie was enthusiastically sharing her current favorite dinner recipe "Boxcar." Which is essentially cooked spaghetti with a raw sauce of fresh tomatoes & basil. She and her husband ate it several days in a row without tiring of it. So, Sherrie's boxcar inspired me to invent this pasta with fresh sauce of lemon, tomato, basil & garbanzo beans. I threw in the optional garbanzo beans to add some protein. This recipe is quick and easy to prepare-throw together the sauce while the pasta boils. Serve at room temperature. Yum!

Love ya Sherrie!

In Health,
Miss Jolie Ann

Pasta with Fresh Lemon, Tomato & Basil

1 lb organic spaghetti or linguine --No linguine for Harry! :)

4 ripe fresh organic tomatoes-chopped

2 cloves organic garlic-pressed

Handful of organic basil leaves-cut into thin ribbons

Freshly squeezed juice of 3 organic lemons

1 tsp fresh organic lemon zest
1/4 cup organic extra virgin olive oil

Optional: 14 oz can organic garbanzo beans, drained & rinsed

Sea Salt & Black Pepper to taste

Freshly shredded organic Parmesan cheese to taste

1. Cook pasta according to package instructions. (Usually boil 10 minutes...)

2. While pasta is cooking, combine tomatoes, garlic, basil, lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil, and optional garbanzo beans in a large bowl.

3. Drain pasta, rinse with cold water, drain again. Place pasta in bowl with lemon tomato mixture. Stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Let cool and come to room temperature. About 10 minutes. This also allows the pasta to absorb some of the tasty liquids.

4. Top individual servings with shredded Parmesan cheese.