Wrapping Up 2013

December view of Box Garden,
from Center path in Way Back

Here's a snap (left) of the Box Garden, all covered up for the recent cold weather.  You'd never guess there are carrots, beets, spinach, broccoli, collards, and lettuces under those row covers, would you? And onions...lots and lots of onions! Oh, and some garlic in the Center Square...almost forgot about that.

Turnip Greens, growing in
the Way Back Row Garden

You might also see a row of green in the middle-upper left. That's a row of Seven Tops turnip greens, which don't seem to mind the frosty temps in the least. The more frost, the better the taste! Here's a close up I took of that very productive row a few weeks ago, right:

Unless you are a gardener...or farmer...you may think that the Winter months are a time of rest and reflection; a time to relax, have another cup of coffee, and enjoy the arriving seed catalogs...far removed from the soil. You would only be partially correct.

As the year comes to a close, there are several things on our To Do list before we can put the Way Back gardens to bed:

1. Apply dormant oils to orchard trees, berry bushes, and roses. (That's what I'm working on later today...when the temps hit 50. Remember my motto: "Between 50 and 90...no lower, no higher." In summer I say, "Noon or 90...whichever comes first." But that doesn't apply here...:-)
2. Remove the remaining vegetation in the Kitchen Row Garden.
3. Till up the rows in the Kitchen Row Garden.
4. Add lime to rows and to rose garden, per Soil Test Report.
5. Mow over and collect remaining leaves on the ground in the Way Back. Add to gardens for mulch and compost. (Mr. T actually got the leaf-mowing done a couple of days ago, so we can check this one off the list.)

To elaborate a bit...

Dormant Oils -- So called because they are applied in the dormant season (winter months in the Northern Hemisphere) before bud break in late February to mid-March (in USDA Zone 7b in the Piedmont area of NC), a more accurate name would be horticultural oils, because they can be used at other times of the season (at lesser strengths). Because there are NO leaves or buds on the plants to be sprayed, we can use the oils at full-strength, as directed on the label ("the label is the law"). The winter applications of these include "All Seasons" Dormant Oil, Copper-Sulfate, and Lime-Sulfur Oil, which we purchase in concentrated form and then mix with water in a 2-gallon pump-sprayer.

As I have said before, I try my best to use the kindest, gentlest methods of pest control possible, preferring a natural choice...although I stop short of saying that I am an "organic" gardener.

The trickiest part is getting the "environment" right: temperatures must be above 45 degrees (preferably less than 70) when sprayed; there must be no rain and/or freezing temperatures forecasted for at least 24 hours; and the wind should be negligible-to-light (less than 5 mph). Finding a day that meets all of those criteria in December is tough...but fortunately today is almost perfect to get started! Yes, we could postpone until January...but we can't wait too long because (ideally) we will want to do another spraying after 30-45 days, and that second spraying MUST be done before bud-break...which can sometimes surprise you in mid-February. Plus, we can't spray the Lime Sulfur or the Copper Sulfate at the same time as the Dormant Oil without risking vegetation damage; we have to wait 1-3 weeks...and until we have ALL the right "environmental" conditions.

A good way to remember WHEN to spray is to think in terms of Holidays: New Year's for the first spraying, Valentine's for the second. That should give you a little wiggle room for dealing with the vagaries of the weather.

Here is some great information on Dormant Oils:
http://extension.missouri.edu/phelps/documents/Horticulture_News/Time_for_Dormant_Oil_Application.pdf
http://ucanr.edu/sites/marinmg/files/116758.pdf

Remaining vegetation -- As you have seen, we still have a good stand of turnip greens in one of the rows that we need to till (more on that in a minute), which I will harvest and cook for my "Good Luck Greens" on New Year's Day...putting the rest in the freezer. I'm the only one that eats turnip greens, so I'll have plenty to keep me busy until next Fall...no worries! My original plan was to leave the greens to "go to seed," which means they send up flower stalks...and serve as excellent attractors for the pollinators (bees, mainly) that we will need for the orchard in a couple of months. And, we still have a few okra stalks still hanging on to their roots that must go to China. All of that has to be removed so we can...

Till up the rows -- We have two main reasons for tilling up the rows in the Kitchen Row Garden: (a) to turn the soil over to expose overwintering pests, especially the squash vine borer; and (b) to add amendments like lime (per our Soil Test report) and compost (like leaves). While adopting a no-till policy is admirable, we find that a winter-till is more beneficial to our soil and our harvests. Hence, the change in plan about the greens being left to flower.

Of course, we have to wait until we have dry soil to till...and that has thus far eluded us this month. We got another 1" of rain yesterday, so it will be early January before we can check this chore off the list. Sigh. Oh well, while we are awaiting dry soil, we can catch up on a couple of things inside...by the fire...with a warm beverage in hand...

Journaling -- I have been pretty faithful in keeping my Garden Journal this year, but the Holidays played havoc with my resolve to write. I want to have a good verbal "picture" of the gardens in 2013 so that I can begin planning 2014 in earnest.  That's where the letter carrier comes in!

Perusing the arriving Seed Catalogs -- Oh yes, they are arriving daily, sometimes 2 or 3 a day...making me feel for our letter carrier. And I see that along with the usual suspects (red tomatoes, green peppers, and orange carrots), the Color Purple is becoming quite popular in the vegetative universe. Purple carrots. Purple-podded (green) peas. Purple-skinned potatoes. I kid you not.

And, we know how I love to trial new things in the gardens!

Happy hoeing!