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Spring Garden Update

May 1, 2018 Carrie
Spring Garden

I grow in zone 10ish. I know, what is it, zone 10a or zone 10b? By the charts we are zone 10b, but California is a unique place full of microclimates and mini zones. There are a few givens in our coastal community, just south of Los Angeles - we can grow all year, we get a marine layer, we will have powdery mildew and we will have aphids. As we head into May we are prepping for summer, dealing with cloudy mornings and experimenting with methods to control the powdery mildew and the aphids. I am including our planting lists, some garden goals and methods to deal with powdery mildew and aphids.

The Good Stuff

We are currently eating:

  • purple mustard greens
  • several types of lettuce
  • arugula
  • tender leaf chard
  • swiss chard
  • kale - red russian
  • radishes - french breakfast, rat tail and stargazer
  • herbs - basil, dill, cilantro, chives, oregano, mint and sage
  • giant snow peas
  • strawberries
  • oranges
  • lemons
  • edible flowers - nasturtiums, violas and chive blossoms

Β 

Purple Mustard Greens

Purple Mustard Greens

French Breakfast Radishes

French Breakfast Radishes

Stargazer Radish

Stargazer Radish

Giant Snow Peas

Giant Snow Peas

Our greens, peas and radishes have exceeded expectations and given us plenty of extras for sharing. I am regularly handing out bags of salad makings and citrus to neighbors and co-workers. Yay! One of our garden goals was to have enough extra produce to share - goal achieved! You know I love a good salad. The Spring Garden Strawberry Salad and the Kale and Mixed Greens Salad are on repeat in our house.

In the garden now, but not ready to eat, includes:

  • tomatoes - black prince, cream sausage, cherokee purple, sungold, silvery fir tree
  • eggplant - bride
  • artichokes - green globe
  • peppers - gypsy, aleppo, mini chocolate, pequin, gochugaru, etc. (I like peppers!)
  • squash - yellow and costata romanesco
  • cucumbers - lemon and patio snacker
  • lima beans - shantyboat
  • asparagus pea
  • pink banana squash - living in a pot until temperatures are more stable

We planted during a heat wave and then the weather took a turn. A cool wave and a heavy marine layer set in, making it hard on the squash and cucumber plants. Normally, we are safe to plant most things in April, but that may not be the case this year. Mother Nature can be so difficult! Not to worry though, I have back-up seedlings coming along in case conditions prove to hard for the new plantings. In the past I might try to nurse along stunted plants but now that I am a seed starting addict I realize It is much better to remove a stunted plant and replace it with a new healthy one. My space is too limited to put up with under performers.

More Seed Starting

More Seed Starting

The spring garden is really full right now but most of the greens will start to bolt or fade and need to be replaced soon. With that in mind, I did another round of seed starting this weekend that included:

  • Okra - kibler family, bradford family and rabwah taj
  • cowpeas - california blackeye
  • pole beans - cherokee trail of tears
  • bush beans - mascotte
  • melon - red fig, ha ogen
  • squash (just in case we planted too early) - yellow and costata romanesco
  • mexican sour gherkins
  • lettuce - red sails, salad bowl blend
  • tomato - green zebra, costoluto fiorentino
  • sunflowers

I also direct sowed Italian basil, purple basil, cilantro and dill. All of these are growing now but you have to keep starting successive rounds of seeds as these herbs have a limited life. I plan to start a few more "just in case" cucumbers too.

The Problem Stuff

We have already had a mild powdery mildew outbreak that resulted in some seedlings and young plants finding their way into the trash. Sorry, but it was the best answer. I saved a couple of seedlings and put them into quarantine to experiment with a couple of recommended treatments and preventative options. The worst affected plants will always be removed from the garden but I am hoping some preventative measures and early treatment might prove effective. I am trying the following:

  • milk spray method
  • Dr. Earth's Fungicide - another organic option

Aphids are always a problem here and in the past I have found my best option was to give the plants a good higher pressure water wash. You see the aphids hang on by a proboscis and the washing will break it off and the aphids will die. Again, garden life is hard.... If all else fails I end up removing the affected plant. Recently, my sweet neighbor, Lorie, gave me a gift of a homemade bug spray and it seems to work on the aphids without harming the plant and it is organic. Lorie got the recipe from her friend Judy - hence the name. 

Judy's Super-Duper Bug and Worm Killer

  • fill quart spray bottle 3/4 full with warm water
  • add 1/4 cup of Listerine (yep - I said Listerine)
  • 2 squirts of dish soap
  • 1 teaspoon of oil (olive or vegetable)

Shake it all up and spray generously on affected plants in the evening. Most of the aphids will be dead by morning and can be washed away. Reapply as needed. 

Spring Garden Abundance
A Typical April Harvest

A Typical April Harvest

This is how we close out April in zone 10ish and head into May. We are eating salads, peas and greens while looking forward to tomato, squash and cucumber time. Doesn't it seem like the minute you can't eat another pea they are done and something bright and new is ready. It just doesn't get old! I hope your garden is coming together and Mother Nature smiles on your space. FYI, feel free to keep any aphids to yourself...... 

In Garden Tags garden, urban garden, kitchen garden, plant list, powdery mildew, aphids, seeds, seed starting, spring garden, garden life, vegetable garden
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Hi there. We are Nancy and Carrie. We are 2 cooks and food growers with 2 different approaches, but it all works. READ MORE........

 

On Instagram now.....

Welcome to the top shelf of my refrigerator! πŸ€— On any given day there are many jars of things I have preserved and am now using in our daily meal prep. Some things are accents - like pickles and ferments. Other things are more of a treat - like jams,jellies and shrubs. And then there are the things that add flavor - like pepper infused oil, preserved lemons and roasted tomatoes in olive oil. This shelf changes almost daily. It is the first place I look when I need inspiration for a meal. Does your fridge look anything like this? Do you have go to make ahead accents? I hope so! ....,,,,,,#kitchengarden #preserving #jamming #infusions #kitchenproject #pickles .
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I couldn’t miss National Cabbage Day! πŸ’šπŸ₯—πŸ’š Mini Napa Cabbage planted in succession, has been my favorite veggie of the winter. I have had a constant cabbage supply and it is not done yet. Since we are a small family, the mini cabbages have worked perfectly. Every season we seem to hone what works in our space and with our lifestyle. Cabbage has gone into soups, salads, slaws and fermented into kimchi - oh, yes!!! Happy National Cabbage Day - there should be a present for this - right???πŸ’šπŸŒΏπŸ’š πŸ’šπŸ™πŸŒΏπŸ’š #nationalcabbageday #cabbage #napacabbage #kitchengarden #wintergarden #holidayparty .
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First tomato planted outside. πŸ’šπŸ…πŸ’š This is a Polbig and it is said to do fine in cooler temperatures. So, let’s see what happens. Usually, I have some sort of tomato growing through the winter but this year my timing was a bit off. Some summer tomatoes just kept going.....so, I never got around to replacing them and then one day the summer guys gave up. I decided to experiment and start some seeds recommended for cooler temperatures in hopes of getting an early round of tomatoes before the big summer season hits. Moscovich, Sungold, Glacier and Polbig are all getting a chance to shine. So far, the Polbig and the Glacier are doing the best and seem to be the most disease resistant under less than optimal conditions. Is anyone else ready for Spring??? πŸ’šπŸŒΏπŸ…πŸ’š πŸ’šπŸ™πŸŒΏπŸ’š #tomatoplant #californiagarden #kitchengarden #wintergarden #seedlings #readyforspring .
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February garden picture. πŸ’šπŸŒΏπŸ’š Here we are at month 2 of my effort to photograph the garden from the same spot, on the same day of each month. California has had a surprisingly cold transition into February with low temperatures in the 40’s. So, greens are a bit stalled and it is too cold to put in any spring veggies. Mustard spinach is bolting and the bees LOVE it. Rat tail radish pods are now so prolific we can’t possibly eat them all. Potatoes are ready harvest. The area under the obelisk was expanded and replanted with pea seedlings and seem very happy with all the extra space. The tomato seedlings are ready to speed the night outdoors if Mother Nature would just cooperate.πŸ€žπŸ…πŸ€žπŸ’šπŸ™πŸŒΏπŸ’š #gardeneachmonth  #californiagarden #lawntoveggies #kitchengarden #gardendesign #obelisk #wintergarden .
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