Row covers in a community garden

Beds in the Pearson Community Garden

There's an interesting community garden in our neighborhood in the mountains.  It's the Pearson Community Garden, supported by the Bountiful Cities Project, a local non-profit organization.

I've posted photos from this garden before; it's been fascinating to see what they're doing and how the garden changes.  I volunteered several times last summer on their regular Wednesday workday, and enjoyed talking with the much younger fellow volunteers, who were keen about learning how to grow vegetables.

But this year, I'm totally impressed (and encouraged) by the success that they've had with simple row covers in protecting winter greens. 

This was a hard winter for us in the Carolinas (in the Southeastern U.S.)  We had unusually COLD temperatures (for example, in Asheville, NC, lows were in the teens (F°) for weeks on end, and there was MUCH more snow than usual.)

Check out these greens! 

These were protected by simple hoops covered with plastic over the winter.  They're growing directly in soil.  Wow.

Pearson Garden rows and hoop house

Lettuces

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More winter greens

Our young neighbors in the mountains (who live in the apartment building next door) have been fun to watch (and encourage). 

There was a large cast iron water feature that was breeding mosquitoes when we took over our cottage;  we put anti-larval dunks in it to their approval (they're mostly health professionals).

a re-purposed salad bowl

But this year, they filled it with potting mix and are growing mustard and chard.  What a nice thing!

Our late November raised beds with leeks, chard, lettuce, and greens

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A long fall season

After a mild frost (30-32°F) last weekend, we've had lovely warm days (highs near 70° F) with lows in the 40's.  Tender annuals and perennials were zapped, of course, but hardier plants, whether ornamental or vegetable, sailed through.

In our (SE US) climate, it's always variable, and with a mix of plants from around the world in our gardens (vegetables included),  it's hard to predict HOW the impact of oncoming cold weather will affect our individual gardens.

There's always the site to consider, and exposure, in addition to how frost affects our plants (whether edible or ornamental).

We're doing an experiment in our unheated education (Sprouting Wings) greenhouse this winter (I've posted about this previously).

It'll be interesting see if we can 'grow' greens in the winter, beyond simply holding them for harvest.

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Winter greens and other winter vegetables

We're doing an winter vegetable gardening experiment in our unheated education hoop house (it used to be a 'greenhouse').

Propane costs ran up to $500/month to heat the house (and after losing all of the tropical plants after an severe freeze, without heat, a couple of years ago), it's quite appealing to run the house as a demonstration 'cold house'.

In our Piedmont South Carolina winter, we only have a few weeks with less than 10 hours of sunlight a day.  That's plenty to support winter greens to harvest, and probably to grow  -- I'm thinking we'll be able to do successive lettuce mix plantings as well as grow hardy and semi-hardy vegetables in containers.  (This house has a gravel surface so isn't conducive to ground sowing.)

West Dean, UK cold frame

We sowed various mixes of greens today, and will be doing more in the coming weeks.  There may be enough light for greens to grow through mid-December and take a rest, and then resume growing, but temperatures will be important, too.

We've got a bank of black plastic drums (recycled soft-drink syrup containers) filled with water that will be serving as a reservoir of heat, and we can always add a second layer of frost-protection with floating row covers.

If Elliot Coleman and Barbara Damrosch can grow greens in coastal Maine in unheated houses, surely we can manage to extend our growing beyond kale and collards in the Southeastern U.S. (They're tasty, of course, but lettuce, spinach, and arugula are great additions to winter salads.)

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Winter vegetables

In the Southeastern U.S., we're blessed with plenty of winter sunshine (at least compared to Northern and Central Europe and Northern Asia) -- I need to check corresponding parallels in Asia, to be sure, actually.

And our winter temperatures aren't so bad either, being much more moderate than the Northeastern U.S. We often experience relatively mild winters, although it's variable, and more recently, even more so.

In the mountains of N.C., we're Zone 6, but have only had a light frost so far, which even romaine lettuce of unknown hardiness (transplants from a big box store) sailed through.  With predictions of 28°F for next weekend,  I harvested all of the outside (lettuce) leaves this afternoon, and chard leaves of any decent size, and the arugula in that category, too, before heading down the 'hill' tomorrow.  I'm sure that the frost/freeze might not amount to much and the raised beds are plenty buffered by their stone walls, but I'd rather enjoy eating the greens than clean up the frost-bitten remnants on a later trip!

The young mesclun mix, kale, and mustard seedlings are on their own.  I'll be delighted to harvest any of them.  The parsley is looking great, too, so I'll probably cut quite a bit tomorrow morning, too.

At home in the Piedmont (Zone 7b), I've planted several beds of garlic, but need to tuck in a couple of more beds.  And I have flats of kale, arugula, and other greens to tend.

I'm planning for a winter vegetable garden experiment in one of our unheated houses at the Garden where I work.  Doesn't it seem like winter greens are a no-brainer?

Check this book out (The Winter Harvest Handbook by Elliot Coleman).  It's a fabulous guide (and inspiration) to what more of us should be doing.

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More winter vegetables

A comment on a post made in December about winter vegetables and an after-school program this afternoon have me thinking about change-outs in vegetable garden beds.

I had harvested some Tuscan and redbor kale, spinach, and purple mustard from the kitchen garden next to the visitor center to show a group of 2nd graders from a nearby school learning about eating and growing vegetables as part of a Clemson University Healthy Campus Initative outreach program.

It was a fun program; three Clemson students in a nutrition class had talked to the kids at their school last week about eating a rainbow of colors and will do a follow-up next week.

We sniffed herbs, sampled flowers from the bolting collards, looked at lettuces, saw strawberries in flower, and tasted garlic chives. Another three Clemson students (student athletes) helped with the kids, too, and were great (they're part of a group called Tigers who Care -- we're the Clemson Tigers in our athletic programs.

I showed them my flat of spicy salad mix (they all tasted young purple mustard leaves), spinach seedlings, and had them 'plant' in dry potting mix seeds of scarlet runner beans and yard-long beans.

We're about two weeks out from our average last frost date.

The variable temperatures and moisture levels have the kales and collards bolting (some years they last until May). So we'll be pulling out (and giving away) the greens in the visitor center vegetable garden over the next couple of weeks, to make room for the warm-season transplants.

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Winter travels

Even in the Southern US, we have gray wintery days. Today wasn't so cold, but overcast and dark. My gardening companion and I are preparing for our annual winter trip -- almost always somewhere brighter and warmer. There's not too much to get ready. Since we travel light, there's not much to pack, and after instructions to the housesitters, and saying goodby to Mocha, we're off.

A travel shop window in Southern England

This year, it may not be too much brighter and warmer, but will definitely be different than some of our previous winter destinations. We're heading towards Campania, Puglia, Basilicata, and maybe Sicily. These Southern Italy destinations have me thinking about interesting seeds to buy -- hmm, great tomatoes, perhaps.... (I've gone to quite a bit of effort to sign up for a USDA 'small seeds' permit, so as not to repeat my unpleasant experience in May where all of the seeds I'd bought - retail commercial seed packets from Great Britain - many from Italy - were confiscated on my return. Hrrmph....)

But really, it's about exploring a new part of the world again -- this doesn't have much to do with natural gardening, but natural gardens. We'll see what the Mediterranean vegetation along the coast looks like, explore a few national parks, and experience Southern Italy in the winter.

And we'll see lots of gardening going on, too, I imagine!

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Winter vegetables

Even though it's been January weather for us this past November, with more freezing days than we'd had in the fall for some time, it's amazing how well the winter greens in our sheltered vegetable garden next to the Garden's visitor center have done.

This photo is earlier in the fall.

The small garden is sheltered by a low brick wall, and it's in full sun; apparently enough heat is stored in the brick to temper the overnight temperatures.

The snow peas have been frosted, and the purple mustards show signs of frost damage, but fresh leaves continue to appear in both the mustards. The turnip greens, kale, broccoli, and collards are fine, as I'd expect, but the spinach also looks wonderful, and amazingly, the arugula in the mesclun mix is looking fine. Ditto, the lettuces, which must get enough warmth from the wall to be sheltered from frost damage.

Perhaps I need to build a wall around some of my beds at home to extend the season!

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