Maritime Horticulture

Homemade Colored Fries

We finally got to dig into our potatoes for the first time. Decided to go the classic route with some wedge and shoestring cut fries. Added a custom seasoning (below) made from one of our dried herbs of last year.

Garlic Rosemary Seasoning

1 tsp dried or fresh garlic (fresh garlic needs minced)

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp fine sea salt

1 tbsp dried rosemary

2021 Potato Harvest.

Garden Update 06•18•21

Been awhile since a last garden update. With the late cool weather, not much was growing except for lettuce and potatoes. However, with the recent warm weather the crop yield is increasing. Tomatoes and strawberries are on the way and the Fava beans and sage have experience exponential growth.

Garden Update 4.18

All garden salad greens are growing at a steady rate. Spinach is a few weeks behind.

All planted potato varieties (4 total varieties, 30 total plants) have sprouted and are in the early stages of leafy growth.

Fava bean plants are growing about a inch per week.

Strawberries are creating new leaf growth.

Just like my sister blog, we shall host Submission Saturday’s every week. Some example things you can ask:

Plant care, outdoors plants, garden problems, pests, plant ID’s, food gardening, soil amendment, crop rotation, ‘How To’s’ on food gardening/starting an edible garden plot, bugs, the weather, recommended garden books, any and all matters of life.

Hellebores are in full bloom.

Crop rotation 3, Zone 8B

Raised beds have been amended with compost and a light layer of bone meal. The dominant crop this year will be potatoes and shall take up the entirety of the first bed, both halves.

While turning my soil I found a few volunteer soft neck garlics hidden among the strawberries. They have been transplanted to the back bed.

Potatoes are sitting out in bright light and starting to put off shoots. They will be planted within the month of March.

Now is the time to start your garden plans for the Maritime Northwest climate. Getting a jump on your season can save you a headache or two once the physical planting time comes.

LENGTHY POST AHEAD

GENERAL INFORMATION

Check your garden soil. Preform a pH test and amend your soil if necessary. If you are planning on a diverse pH planting, make sure your planting area and it’s medium is set for the specific vegetation. Ex, blueberries will require a more acidic pH medium than leafy vegetables.

Weed your garden. Seriously. Start weeding now, your produce seedlings will thank you. The less they have to compete with at a young age, the stronger plant you will have.

Turn your soil. Especially the areas that got hit by the 2021 February snowstorm. Turn your soil after weeding your garden. If you need to amend your soil, this is a good time to do it as you will be mixing your amendments throughout your entire growing area.

Start your warm season seeds indoors. If growing potatoes or fava beans, have their growing plot ready to go by March. Sprout your potatoes a week or so prior to planting. If you need to divide a large seed potato, make your cuts are done 2 days minimum prior to planting to reduce the risk of rot. Fava bean (seeds or starts) can go directly into the ground the first week of March as they are cold hardy and can tolerate light frost.

Start pest prevention early. For slugs use copper tapes and salts to deter them from your seedlings. Use cabbage collars on your cabbage seedlings to prevent cabbage root flies from getting at the stems. Net your seedlings in advance for prevent loss to birds. Use floating row covers while seedlings are young to prevent pest damage and to keep some extra warmth. Don’t forget to remove covers as the weather warms up so benifical pollinators can reach your garden.

Check your garden tools are sharp, oiled, and ready for the growing season.

FOR CANNERS ONLY: If you plan on canning your harvest this year, stock up on a case or two of your preferred canning jars. Once canning season is in full swing, items such as lids, rings, jars, pectin, etc. can be difficult to find.

Try something new. Save a small patch of space in your garden to test out a single planting of a crop you have always wanted to grow! If it performs well, you can add it to next year’s plans. If it doesn’t meet you expectations, you didn’t put a large amount of cost into growing the crop and can try something else next year.

SEED COMPANIES

Below is a list of seed companies I trust and use in my garden. My personal favorite are highlighted in green:

Seed Savers Exchange

Territorial Seed Company

Seattle Seed Company

Heritage Harvest Seed

Seeds of Change

Victory Seed Company

MIGardener

Ed Hume Seeds

GENERAL GARDEN FAQ

1 inch of water equals 16 gallons (60.5 liters)

Succession plant crops every 2 weeks for continuous harvest.

Preform a vigilant 4 year crop rotation to prevent disease in your soil.

Plant marigolds among your crops to keep pests away.

Use flash tape and netting to keep birds out of the garden.

Plant flowers and herbs for benifical insects to assist in your gardens pollination. Some of the best flowers for bees are:

Lavender – Lavandula spp.

Rosemary – Rosemarinus officinalis

Sage – Salvia spp.

Coneflower – Echinacea spp.

Sunflower – Helianthus spp.

Redbud – Cercis spp.

Catnip – Nepeta spp.

Penstemon – Penstemon spp.

Lamb’s Ear – Stachys spp.

Verbena – Verbena spp.

Bells of Phacelia – Phacelia spp.

Black-eyed Susan – Rudbeckia spp.

Oregano – Origanum spp.

Yarrow – Achilliea millefolium

Honeywort - Cerinthe major

Ask box is always open on this blog. There is never a need to wait until a Submission Saturday to ask for help with your garden.

Freshly canned tomatoes.

The last bit of garden tomatoes that we had ripening have been used to make sliced canned tomatoes. This was my first year canning and we have already opened and tasted the first batch I made back in August (pictured above).

The recipes I use can be found here:

Https://nchfp.uga.edu

Tomato Season is here!

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