Baby Bok Choy

evergreenseeds_baby pak choy

So this year I’ve been getting into Baby Bok Choy and am looking for some starts as I’m too late to start from seed. Can you imagine that? Already too late to get some crops started-amazing! Anyways, I’ve tried the full size Bok Choy and like the Baby version better-more tender. I never thought much about it as a vegetable before but I bought some to try. I cut them in half and sauteed them in olive oil and then at the end, added a couple splashes of tamari and it was wonderful. So if any of you know where to buy some locally or seeds for next fall, please let me know!

Santa Fe Master Gardener Association FREE Garden Fair this Saturday!

Last year's Santa Fe Master Gardener Free garden fair

This Saturday, April 30th, from 10 am -4 pm will be our Master Gardener Free Garden Fair at the Rodeo Grounds.

Santa Fe Master Gardener Association is hosting our Annual Garden Fair this Saturday. We will all be there working at the Rodeo Grounds where it is held. There will be garden exhibitors with all kinds of give-aways and information, Master Gardener plant sale, how-to garden demonstrations by our Master Gardeners, national and local guest garden speakers, kids garden area, and our garden shed where you can buy all kinds of used and new garden stuff.  Come learn about how to make a butterfly garden, vermicomposting, herbs, critter control, seed saving, how to prune roses, what perennials do well here, garden design and much more. If you live and garden in the Santa Fe area or if you are a new gardener to our area, you don’t want to miss this-you won’t be disappointed! Over 2000 people will attend this festive event!

My Future Veggie Garden (can ya see it!?)

MY FUTURE GARDEN-CAN YA SEE IT!??(click picture to see bigger)

Well, I told everyone on my blog and in the Master Gardening classes about Arrow Ranch’s free horse manure here in Santa Fe that they load for free  and when I went to get some, they were all out! So I had to scrounge around to find some OLD manure and finally did in Eldorado horse stables. Went and got 2 trailer loads full and got it all dug in main veggie garden except for 3 small beds that I will finish up this week. I will hook up the drip system and make sure it is working also this week. Here is a picture with what will be! Not much now but just you wait!

We’ve been having some great weather, but this week it’s suppose to get cold at night again so I think unless the weather changes, I will wait till next week to plant tomatoes. Now all I got to do is wait for good weather…

My Favorite Tomatoes to Grow

Talking about Virginia Sweet tomatoes made me think of some of the best tomatoes I’ve grown for flavor. So I thought I’d compile a list of them for you to consider growing sometime. These are not in any particular order as each one is unique and wonderful in it’s own way and not all are heirlooms.

striped german 75 day

Striped German-heirloom-beautiful bi-color- red and yellow large beefsteak up to 2 lbs. Luscious sweet-non acidic flavor. Super sweet beefstake. The marbled interior looks beautiful sliced. Complex, fruity flavor and smooth texture. 75 days to harvest.

costuluto genevese 78 day

Costuluto Genevese-heirloom-Italian heirloom tomato that has been enjoyed for many generations along the Mediterranean. Large, deep-red fruits have a singularly fluted profile, are deeply ridged, and heavily lobed. Meaty, full-flavored and delicious. Because of its scalloped edges, perfect for use in an arrangement of different colored sliced tomatoes. 78 days to harvest.

black cherry tomatoes 65 days

Black Cherry-heirloom-Beautiful large black cherry that is dusky purple brown in color. They have that rich flavor that makes black tomatoes unique. Sweet cherry tomato.

paul robeson 75 days

Paul Robeson-heirloom-This famous tomato has almost a cult following among tomato Connoisseurs throughout the world with its earthy, sweet and smoky flavor. Named in honor of the famous black opera singer, star of King Solomon’s Mine,1937. This Russian variety is aBrown/black tomato with green shoulders. Hard to find.

cherokee purple/80 days

Cherokee Purple-heirloom-Old Cherokee Indian heirloom, pre 1890 variety. Unique dusty purple -pink  color. Flavor rivals Brandywine. Real old time tomato flavor-suberbly sweet. Large fruits average 12 oz.

green grape/60 days”

Green Grape-heirloom- bright yellow green cherry tomatoes that are wonderfully fruity sweet and has become one of my favorites.

Virginia sweet/85 days

Virginia Sweet-heirloom- Another one one of the best tasting, bi-colors, gold-red tomatoes I’ve eaten.  The tomatoes are beautiful and large beefsteak, weighing at least 1 pound each. Flavor is sweet and rich.

pantano romanesco/70 days

8. Pantano Romanesco-heirloom-A Roman heirloom. The fruit are large and are deep red, with almost a purple tint. The flesh is very rich, flavorful & juicy. An excellent tomato for home and market gardeners, very rare and delicious.

lemon boy/72 days

9. Lemon Boy-hybrid-The first lemon color hybrid tomato to be developed. They have outstanding sweetness with no acidity.

sungold/57 days

10. Sun Gold Select II-heirloom-Very flavorful and juicy orange-yellow cherry tomatoes.  Excellent in salads or eaten alone as a treat. Very prolific. 57 days to harvest.

San Marzano/78 day

San Marzano-heirloom-Come from a small town in Italy and were first grown in volcanic soil in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius. Compared to the Roma tomatoes, Marzano tomatoes have thicker flesh with fewer seeds. Flavor is more sweet and less acidic. 78 days to harvest.

gold medal/75 days

Gold Medal-heirloom-large beefstake is bi-color of yellow with a blush of red inside. Very little acid. One of the sweetest tomato you’ll ever taste…..a gourmet’s joy when sliced.

Goldmans Italian American/80-100 days

Goldman’s Italian American-heirloom-Discovered by a Amy Goldman in a roadside stand in Italy, this large bright red pear tomato has old fashioned, classic flavor that made the best tasting tomato sauce I’ve ever made. Beats San Marzano in flavor but drawback is it takes 80-100 days to harvest and I had to bring it inside to finish ripening. Still…

brandywine red/80 day

Brandywine-heirloom-It is an old Amish heirloom, dating back to 1885 and named after Brandywine Creek in Chester County, Pennsylvania. One of the best tasting tomatoes ever with a great mix of sweet and acid to make a full flavor tomato.14. Big Zac-hybrid-Humungous red beefstake with old fashioned tomato flavor. Great for sandwiches and salads.
My biggest has been 2 lbs, 11 oz.

Signs of Springs

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Spring is popping out everywhere from the trees to tulips and irises. I even like spurge with it’s chartreuse yellow green color in spring. Photos by Elodie Holmes or Jannine Cabossel

Growing Virginia Sweet Tomatoes

Virginia Sweet Tomato

A lot of people are looking for Virginia Sweet tomatoes. Last year, a friend of mine gave me an unbelievable tomato called Virginia Sweet. They have been hard to find around here in the nurseries but you can find seeds to start your own at Tomatogrowers.com. So when I saw that Aqua Fria Nursery is growing them this year as starts, I got excited. I went out and got a couple of them and can’t wait to grow and EAT them as they are one of the sweetest, tastiest heirloom tomatoes around. They are a rather large (around 1 lb) bi-color tomato with red-yellow streaking on both the outside and inside and one of the more beautiful tomatoes you can grow. They take awhile to grow and get to harvest (about 80 days) but are definitely worth the wait. Right now they are inside under the lights waiting to go outside. If you like large, beautiful, delicious, supersweet tomatoes, you might want to try growing one of these this year.

beautiful marbling inside a Virgina Sweet tomato

Spring Winds-Wake Up Trees!

The temperatures are warmer here in Santa Fe and it would be absolutely delightful if it wasn’t for the winds. Ahh, spring winds. The last few days it has been really blowing here. Why do we have the spring winds? They say the winds wake up the trees from their winter slumber. I like that old saying, otherwise I would hate the winds in spring. Glad the spring wind is good for something! The crabapples are blooming, the apple trees are blooming, the redbuds are blooming, the apricots are blooming, and the aspen leaves are popping out around here.

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GIANT PUMPKIN/WINTER SQUASH-How to Tell Which Direction a Vining Squash Will Grow

Have you ever planted winter squash and it grew in a direction you didn’t want? Here is a good tip for how to tell which direction a vining winter squash (versus a bush variety) will grow. I will use my giant pumpkin as an example but any winter squash that is a vining squash will act the same.

Let’s say you plant some vining winter squash next to a wall or on the edge of a garden bed and you need it grow away from the wall not into it or into your squash bed not out of it (good luck on that one!) When the plant puts out the first two leaves as I have described in previous posts, these are called the cotyledon leaves (baby leaves) and don’t look like any of the other leaves it will grow afterward. All leaves after the cotyledon leaves are called true leaves.

put mark on side of pot opposite of first true leaf

Sooo pay attention to that FIRST TRUE LEAF.  The plant will GROW IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION FROM THE FIRST TRUE LEAF. If I’m growing them inside for a head start, it is easy to mark the container as you will not remember which one was the first leaf (trust me!) when the second one appears. I just take a marker and mark the opposite side of the pot so I know when I transplant it into the ground which direction I orientate it. If I grow directly into the soil, after the first true leaf appears, I gently dig up a big amount around it and gently lift it and the dirt so as not to disturb the new roots and rotate it in the direction I want it to grow. For those who are growing their winter or summer squash seed in the ground, it is too early. Wait till May 15th (our first frost free date) to plant directly into the ground when the soil and weather are hopefully warmer.

Giant Pumpkin Cotyledon Leaves Compared to Tomato Cotyldon Leaves

Here’s a comparison of the giant pumpkin cotyledon leaves (the first 2 leaves to pop out) along with it’s first true leaf compared to a tomato cotyledon leaves along with it’s first true leaf. Notice the size difference! Giant pumpkin cotyledon leaves are the biggest baby leaves I’ve ever seen.

cotyledon leaves on giant pumpkin and tomato

Transplanted Tomatoes Again to Bigger Pots

Ok, yesterday I made another mess in the kitchen. I transplanted more tomatoes up to bigger pots from 2 inch pots to 4 inch pots. I washed the empty pots in bleach water and after planting them, I fertilized them with a weak solution of fish emulsion and Thrive. I knew I needed to transplant them as their roots were growing out of the bottom and they were starting to look stressed. Stressed? How can they be stresssed when they are in a nice warm cozy house under gro lights in a controlled environment-just wait till they get out in the ground, then they’ll be stressed! I tell them they got it cushy now. I think they know their going out early!

I’m chomping to get the tomatoes out. Patience, I tell myself. I looked up when I planted the tomatoes last year and the year before. Last year I planted tomatoes on May 4th and the year before I planted on April 29th when we had a warmer spring. So I guess I’ll wait till around the first of May. It’s always a guessing game when to plant if you want to plant earlier than the first frost free date which is May 15th here in Santa Fe. I like to try to sneak in the tomatoes early because I grow so many mid-late varieties which can take all the way up to 100 days+ to harvest. We have such a short growing season here in Santa Fe that I use all kinds of season extenders to get them in early so they have more time to ripen before that first frost next fall. OMG! I can’t be talking already about fall, we just got into spring and the plants aren’t even in the ground!

Giant Pumpkins and Greenie are up!

Giant pumpkins and greenie are up! The giant marrow is the small one popping up

The giant pumpkins and greenie squash germinated and are looking GOOOD! I planted the seeds on April 7. The first one up was the greenie on April 12, then the pumpkins followed by April 14. The cotyledon leaves (very first leaves to appear or baby leaves) are huge. My all star lineup so far is:

Giant Pumpkins: 1046 Grande 10, and another  895 Grande 08  (which became my New Mexico State Record for giant pumpkin last year)

Giant greenie squash: 903 Noel 07

They are in 4 inch peat pots on a plant heating mat in a light box and I just see the beginning of the first true leaf on the pumpkins and greenie. Looking good so far! Grow naguas, grow!

Mycorrhizal products here in Santa Fe

Someone just wrote me if I knew a source for Mycorrhizal (also called Mycorrhizae) products here in Santa Fe. So I thought I’d respond in a post in more detail as well as reply to him in the comment sections.

Mycorrhizal is a fungi that help protects plants from many diseases and drought like conditions. It forms a symbiotic relationship with the roots, making water and soil mineral nutrients more available to the roots of a plant while the plant feeds the mycorrhizae sugars it produces. It is found in nature in most UNDISTURBED soils. Gardens do not have undisturbed soil- we work the soil to various degrees adding amendments and tilling soil.

There are two main types of Mycorrhizal.

ECTOMycorrhizal works on more woody crops like trees. I don’t use it myself on my trees.

ENDOmycorrhizal works for most (90%) but not all vegetable crops (some crops do not respond to any Mycorrhizal like Brassica crops, spinach and beet crops). I used myco products for both my giant pumpkins and tomatoes in previous years but will also try it on all my curcubit crops this year as well as they seem to get the most diseases and the prices seem to be coming down on mycorrhizal products as it starts to become mainstream.

I just saw that Santa Fe Greenhouse has some Mycorizzial products. I bought ‘BUSHDOCTOR MICROBE BREW’ (by Foxfarm products) from SFGH and will try it this year. It is a liquid. It says on the directions to use 2 tsp/gal of water every 2 weeks as a drench. I think a bottle would last the whole gardening season for most people. I can’t remember what it cost (I bought it a month ago), but didn’t seem like it was exorbitant. I use to have to order myco on the internet so I’m anxious to see how it works. The Microbe Brew also has a bunch of soil bacteria and microbes in it besides the Mycorrhizal that will be good for the soil and plants as well. All these things help the plants either protect or fight off diseases-all organically.

International Sunflower Guerrilla Gardening Day 2011

International Sunflower Guerrilla Gardening Day will be on May 1, 2011. I just found this  out on a blog I visited and I will participate.  For those of you who don’t know what guerrilla gardening is,  ‘It is for anyone interested in the war against neglect and scarcity of public space as a place to grow things, be they beautiful or tasty’. You can find more information on guerrillagardening.org. I have tons of sunflower seeds and plan to go around town planting them in places that have just dirt in hopes of beautifying  more of Santa Fe. I think sunflowers are perfect for here as we don’t get a lot of  rain. Join the ranks and plant some sunflower seeds on Sunday May 1, where ever you live!

Problems Growing Carrots

Last years carrots-Danvers and Cosmic Purple (shown with beets)

Carrots I find can be easy or challenging and I’m not always sure why. Maybe because they know they are not one of my favorite crops to eat. I planted seeds last month outside and hardly any have germinated. I planted Danvers and Cosmic Purple varieties. So I am going to reseed some of them tomorrow. Some years I  get great germination and other years hardly any.

So here’s what I may have done wrong and my excuses (all excuses done in whiny voice):

1. I think I planted too early. The soil was probably too cold and they are either just sitting there waiting for the soil to warm or they’ve rotted and I need to replant. I just read that carrots need the temperatue to be at LEAST 55°F to germinate and I didn’t take the temperature. I bet it was colder. (But I couldn’t find my compost thermometer…)

2. I think some of my seeds are too old. I have several new packets this year but some of my packets are older. I need to check the date stamped on the packet and throw out any that are over 2 years old. We should do this for any of our seeds. (But I need new reading glasses to see the tiny stamped date…)

3. Carrots are heavy feeders and need fresh amendments each year which I didn’t do when I planted the seeds. I’m not sure that matters since they didn’t germinate anyways. (But I’m not really into them. I’m self sabotaging…)

4. I may not have watered enough. I watered every other day but the soil did seem pretty dry whenever I rewatered it. Watering should be consistent to keep soil EVENLY moist. (But it was cold and windy outside…)

5. Maybe the rabbits ate some of the teeny sprouts. I didn’t have it covered with row cover and the rabbits seem particularly hungry this year, especially since my dog Sage is no longer with me to keep them away. (But I couldn’t be bothered to dig out the row cover from the garden shed and I need a new ranch dog or cat to patrol…)

As you can see, I didn’t do anything correct. Anyone can have trouble if we don’t pay attention to details. Sigh! I think I’ll plant some shallots (which I love) where some of the carrots didn’t come up and I will replant some of the carrots as well, just not as many. Which brings up a good point-don’t plant vegetables you don’t really like to eat that much or plant less. Lesson learned..What was I thinking?!

10 things to Do in April in the Garden

Here are 10 things we can do in our gardens this month.  As the season commences, we will get busier and busier which means I’ll be posting at night when it is dark and I can’t be out in the garden! (oh yea-I work too).

1. It isn’t too late to get a soil test to see what amendments you will need for this year. I just sent mine out last week.

2. Time to add AGED horse manure (at least 4 months old) to your beds and dig it in. Don’t use hot manure-it is too late for that. Use hot in the fall so it has time to cool off and break down. Every year I add more and the soil gets richer and richer. Our soil is so crappy that we need to enrich it for veggies. If you can’t find any old, aged horse manure, then buy some compost in bags from your local nursery and dig it in.

3. Finish cleaning out your garden and trimming perennials if you haven’t already.

4. Make some LARGE TOMATO CAGES. I use concrete reinforcement wire because it has 6 inch square holes to get you hand through to pick tomatoes and it is 5 feet tall. Go in with someone to buy a roll if you don’t need too many cages.

5. Transplant your little tomatoes that some of you are growing into the next larger size and give them light.

6. Check your drip systems and timers to make sure they are in good working order BUT do not keep them attached yet because we still can get freezing nights. If you don’t have a drip system, look into doing one. I use the store, Firebird here in Santa Fe to get parts and their expertise on the subjects. It’s not hard to do and really saves on the water and your time.

7. Start adding to your compost pile again. Heat it up. Turn it over. Use HOT MANURE to heat it up or powdered blood meal which is high in nitrogen. I don’t compost in winter because it is too hard for me to keep hot but it is a good time to start one now..

8. Put CORN GLUTEN down in your veggie garden paths. It is a PRE-EMERGENT for controlling weed seeds and is ORGANIC. You can order it from The Feed Bin here in Santa Fe. BUT if your weeds are up already, it acts as a fertilizer. (It is very high in nitrogen and that is why it burns the seedlings but will also feed weeds that get established). Don’t put in veggie beds where you will be planting any seeds as it will burn any seeds

9. Now you can plant carrots, shallots, beets, lettuces, spinach, all greens, onions, and garlic OUTSIDE. I will still use some row cover to protect them at night.

10. Speaking of ROW COVER, now is the time to get some from our local nurseries. MOST of them carry it (but not Home Depot or Lowes-no big box stores). The nurseries usually sell out. I would get some heavy weight for now and a lighter weight for summer or get the lighter weight and double it up for now. You can also order it online. Just google: row cover.

That’s it-Get busy!