Winter Garden

[rence]

Well I planted some of my winter garden today. It's probably a bit late, but I'm sure some stuff will survive

Before I did that though, I let my goats in the garden to clean up the summer mess, and it was like the Tornado Elves hit it. Buckets turned over, pots turned over, Tomato cages everywhere...and THEN they rubbed on the walls (8 foot chicken wire) and unstapled a portion of it from the supports (4x4s and 2x4s) and got out of the garden and started grazing. Well I fired them, and put them back in goat jail...

BUT, they knocked over the potato baskets. Remember the late summer potato experiment where I planted a few yukon gold seeds in bottomless laundry baskets? I lined the bottom with a few inches of soil, put the seeds down and covered it with hay? Well, I got three pretty good sized potatoes and about a dozen baby potatoes...and a few skins...the goats probably ate the rest :/ But considering it was an experiment that I thought was too late to work anyway, I was quite pleased

Anyway, today I had help. So I cleaned out some containers and sowed spinach, broccoli raab, toy choi (baby pak choi), kaiilan (chinese broccoli), turnips, kale, chioggia beets and I did another experiment. I re-sowed seven brussel sprout plants. They burned when I planted them at the recommended time. I figure, they'll either make it or it won't. Over the summer I bought row covers, so maybe some of it will do okay. I know the kale is especially cold hearty, and so are brussel sprouts but they may be too young If I see something at the Co-Op or the feed store, I'll get some transplants....I have some place left

[Stacy]

Anh..worth a shot, right? We planted late too Rence. And only five rows at that! We planted I want to say, maybe a month ago now? Broccoli, spinach, loose leaf lettuce (some of which we are already cutting and eating) and snow peas. Stuff isn't growing as quickly as it would in spring, but again...anh.... worth a shot, right?

[rence]

Stacy, last month would have been on time for peas, spinach and lettuce. It was the right time to transplant broccoli too. So you're probably good

[Stacy]

Well, we started the Broc. by seeds. It's seeming like it's going "ok" so far. I don't know if the snow peas will makek or not, but I can hope! The loose leaf lettuce is pretty tastey though.

[catherine]

Well, I am just now finished getting my garden really dug planted. It's actually my "herb garden", as the big acre veggie garden went to weeds so badly in the summer that I've turned the cows into it, and now the pigs. The fall garden may be too late, but then again, it depends on if we get an Indian Summer or not. We usually have a cold snap for H'ween, and then warm back up to shorts weather for Thanksgiving and even Christmas. Our coldest and wettest weather usually comes in January and even February. So far, I can report that for the first time in a year, we actually have green grass really growing in our pastures! ;D We've seeded for the third time in a year, and gentle rains have come at the right times to not only sprout the seed, but also encourage it to grow (as opposed to sprouting and then letting it dry up)! I can't tell you how nice it is to see green!!! And my fall garden has garlic, onions, broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts, carrots, beets and all the other goodies growing. We'll just have to wait and see if anything bears. I'll try to post a photo, when then weather clears up a bit.

P.S. Please post photos of your gardens, too???