It seems that summer crops have just begun. I got my first tomato today and I'm still waiting for my melons to ripen. I also just harvested numerous broccoli heads from my spring planting. Then I looked at my garden planner and saw that this week I need to get broccoli and cabbage seeds started inside. Already!
I love how I map out my garden plan in the middle of winter while cozy on the couch, likely with a cup of tea. It seems that anything is possible. When I looked at my layout, I planned to have an entire row devoted to broccoli this fall. That amounts to 124 broccoli plants! The problem is that broccoli has to be started inside long before it gets planted in the garden, which means I need to plant and grow 124 broccoli seedlings while harvesting, weeding and preserving a busy summer garden. We will see if this happens. I do love broccoli. It is one of my favorite vegetables. I remember making this plan and dreaming of having so much broccoli that I freeze the excess.
I did decide to slightly alter the plan and attempt growing some cauliflower and Brussels sprouts. I have never been successful growing cauliflower and had one successful attempt at Brussels sprouts. It has been awhile since my last try, so why not. I had planned to spread out my broccoli seed planting over the next three weeks. This week I ended up planting six cauliflower, three Brussels sprouts and 33 broccoli along with ten cabbage (three Golden Acre, three Charleston, three Late Flate Dutch and one Red Cabbage).
The seedling tray will stay inside where temperatures are cool until they germinate. Then I will move them to the screened back porch that gets morning sun and afternoon shade until they are ready to be transplanted into the garden.
Here's to fall gardening in early July!
Showing posts with label cool season crops. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cool season crops. Show all posts
Thursday, July 7, 2016
Monday, September 5, 2011
Fall Garden
It's that time of the year to clear out the spent summer crops and get ready for a fall garden. Since I missed early spring with all the garden renovations, I am excited to get a second chance with the cool season crops. One crop that I have always had problems with is peas. I never get them in the ground early enough in the spring and they quickly wilt and die in the SC sun. I'm hoping that I can have some pea success in the fall. I may have gone overboard by planting four different varieties and at least 30 seeds of each. Stay tuned to find out if I get buried under a pile of peas!
Next up in the fall garden are the root crops. I'm excited about the colorful carrots and beets- never had a purple carrot before! I'm also not sure about the difference between turnips and rutabagas- they look a lot alike. Maybe I don't need to plant both, but I guess I will find out how similar they taste. I've never grown or even eaten kohlrabi. It's my fall garden adventure crop!
I also planted several varieties of lettuce, kale, swiss chard, broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts. Radishes and garlic will be on the planting to do list in couple of weeks. I find the hardest part about growing a fall garden is keeping the seeds from drying out. I use vermiculite to help hold in the moisture, which also seems to help the carrot seeds to germinate. Luckily the forecast for the week has lots of rain, although tonight the rain has been coming down for awhile. Hoping seeds don't float away!
Next up in the fall garden are the root crops. I'm excited about the colorful carrots and beets- never had a purple carrot before! I'm also not sure about the difference between turnips and rutabagas- they look a lot alike. Maybe I don't need to plant both, but I guess I will find out how similar they taste. I've never grown or even eaten kohlrabi. It's my fall garden adventure crop!
I also planted several varieties of lettuce, kale, swiss chard, broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts. Radishes and garlic will be on the planting to do list in couple of weeks. I find the hardest part about growing a fall garden is keeping the seeds from drying out. I use vermiculite to help hold in the moisture, which also seems to help the carrot seeds to germinate. Luckily the forecast for the week has lots of rain, although tonight the rain has been coming down for awhile. Hoping seeds don't float away!
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