The Modern Victory Garden

The Urban Farm Handbook giveaway had a total of 31 people who tossed their name into the drawing.   On Wednesday I prepared slips of paper with everyone’s name on them that entered and put them in a bowl; tossed them energetically to mix them up; and then my husband did the honors and pulled the winning name out of the bowl.    And the winner is….             

Molly Schultz!                                      

Congratulations Molly!   I have sent you an email requesting your mailing info so I can get this on its way to you.                                       

There were so many people interested in this book, that I was wishing I had a stack of them to give away.                                                     

In other news, we had a fairly sizeable snow storm over the past 24 hours and are currently blanketed in a heavy layer of white stuff.      Temperatures were in the low to mid 20's and cold.                                        

I swept the snow off the grow tunnel cover mid day.                

Forecast is for freezing rain and then a warm up to rain in the next 24 hour period.   The long term forecast is for a week or so of moderate to heavy rains.   Between the melt and the rain it is going to be very wet and chill around here for a while.  Wednesday afternoon I dug into the grow tunnel to trim up the kale plants to give my hens a treat (since they were confined all day to their covered yard due to the snow).   While I was in there I noticed that the kale plants are showing a renewed amount of growth in the main central portion of the plant.   The day length has been noticeably increasing in the past week or two and I think the plants are beginning to respond.    Hurrah!                                                 

It (obviously!) will still be awhile before real growth gets going, but I am encouraged to see the first signs of approaching greener days.               

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

The Review

I have been following the amazing journey of Annette Cottrell for approximately three years now via her blog (Sustainable Eats).   I began reading her blog during the first full year of the journey that her husband, Jared, likes to refer to as her “Crazy Bus”.   This journey was one of having her city dwelling family no longer support the mainstream food industry with their purchases, and devoting herself whole heartedly to the concept of growing as much of their own food as possible and buying the rest from local farmers.   Her husband supported her in this scheme but was not nearly as enthusiastic.   In fact, often when she would come up with a new thing to undertake he would be heard to mutter…”Next stop on the Crazy Bus.”   Thankfully Annette’s “Crazy Bus” did indeed depart the station and has taken a road less traveled that has yielded inspiring results, a lot of lessons learned, and connected her (and her family) to a diverse community of like-minded people.   One particular individual that Annette ended up connecting strongly with was Joshua McNichols.   He and his family had a somewhat parallel journey with their own unique experiences and approach.   Together they collaborated and wrote a book called “The Urban Farm Handbook” that not only describes and contrasts their individual journeys to sustainable eating, but lays out an inspiring introduction to the whole concept and possibilities of achieving a more sustainable urban kitchen and garden.   Whether you live in an urban area, the suburbs, or on a rural property, there are vast opportunities to feed ourselves and our families in a more healthful and meaningful manner.   Those opportunities can be nothing more than just changing our purchasing habits, or if we are really in for a ride on the “Crazy Bus”, we can go all out and integrate the concepts of growing and preserving our own food; small animal husbandry; eating seasonally and buying locally; building a food community; and preparing food from scratch starting with the freshest and most sustainable sources possible.   The choice of how far to go with this food journey is for each of us to make individually, but the rewards for choosing to travel this road are abundant - whether we choose to amble down it on foot or hop aboard the “Crazy Bus” for a wild ride.      

The Urban Farm Handbook is an inspiring introduction to the many areas where we can make decidedly different choices in how we obtain and prepare the food we eat.    It covers a wide waterfront of topics including purchasing and using whole grains; vegetable and fruit gardening (intense growing on small urban properties in particular); raising chickens for eggs; raising small animals for meat and dairy, sourcing your food locally when you cannot grow it yourself; building a food community where you live; and a variety of other topics that all contribute to an improved quality of life via the products and resources we use daily.    Naturally, any undertaking that covers so many topics is limited in how in-depth it can go on any one item.   However, while each topic area can (and does) have books devoted only to that subject, what I really liked about this particular book is that it gave a strong enough overview on each topic that someone could easily get successfully started without further research, and are likely going to be inspired enough to seek out more information on their own.   I also appreciated that there was something in each section for readers of all experience levels – from novices to those with years of specific experience.   I personally found several items that inspired me to give it a try, including some of the many delicious recipes that are interwoven through the book.      

Both Joshua and Annette have engaging writing styles that achieve a happy balance of good story telling and delivery of useful information.   In addition, the quality photography throughout provides visual appeal and the organization of the information flows well from chapter to chapter.   There are literally hundreds of tips and resources provided, many of which will be particularly useful for people like myself who live in the Pacific Northwest region.   Recurrent throughout the book are the concepts of “seasons” and the continuum of choices (or steps) we can take from relatively modest steps - to going all out on each subject.   Also woven throughout the book are personal contrasts of how differently Annette and Joshua often approach the same undertaking.   Reading about their individual methods and philosophies not only provided more information to use, but also emphasized that no one approach will work for everyone.   The underlying message is that the “Crazy Bus” journey will be quite different for each one of us - as it really is all about deciding what makes sense and feels comfortable given the unique circumstances and resources we each have to work with.   Regardless of where you may find yourself on this continuum, I think The Urban Farm Handbook is a great resource to help you to eat the most nutrient-dense and sustainably produced foods possible.   

The Giveaway

When Annette announced that this collaborative writing effort was being released, she asked if I would be willing to read and review it for her.   When I answered to the affirmative, she made sure a copy was sent to me free as a gift.   Little did she know that I had already placed an advance order and purchased one already!   The result of this is that I have an extra copy on hand of The Urban Farm Handbook by Annette Cottrell and Joshua McNichols that I am going to giveaway to one of my blog readers.   If you are interested in having your name thrown into a hat for a drawing for this book, just leave a comment to that effect on this blog post and let me know.   All the names posted as being interested by end of day Wednesday January 18th will be put in a hat and the winner will be drawn at random by my husband (who does not know yet that he has been volunteered for this duty) and announced soon thereafter.   Good luck! 

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

Giving Garden

Since mid May, I have been working every Saturday morning at the Kingston Farm and Garden Co-op Giving Garden.   It is located at Farrago Farm and Vineyard about 4 miles west of Kingston, Washington (Kitsap County).   The Giving Garden is the product of donated resources (use of the land to grow on, seeds, plants, organic fertilizer and other supplies, tools, fencing materials, etc) and volunteer hours from many people.   The purpose of the garden is to provide organically grown produce for our local food bank and schools.                                             

Working with what we have (or can acquire through donations), this hard working group of people has transformed a bare field into a working garden that should provide some real abundance for the benefit of others.         

It is certainly not all work though; we manage to have a perfectly good time together!   In fact, these are some of the nicest folks you could choose to spend several hours with each week.   Kathy and Paul (who host the garden on their land) always make everyone feel welcome and do more than their share of the weekly work of the garden.   They keep a tent awning set up next to the garden, which provides a great place to take a break or to get out of the sun (or rain) for a bit.           

Kathy always supplies us with ice-cold water, fruit, cheese and crackers, and some cookies or other treats.   We are getting quite spoiled by her.          

One of our regular volunteers (Pete) puts in a great deal of work each week and never backs down from the more arduous tasks like cultivating the walkways, digging the planting rows with the broadfork, and digging up and removing some good sized rocks.   One of those rocks now resides at the side of the garden and has officially become “Pete’s Pet Rock”.                 

Kinley, his wife Patty, and their two young daughters are also regular volunteers.   I marvel at how they carve out time for this work when I can tell their lives are very full already.   The two girls really help out, but the thing I find most refreshing about them is that they remind us all that it is good to stay amazed and interested in things like dried up dead snakes and wiggling worms.                             

In addition to these "Regulars", we have a whole bunch of folks who pop in periodically and also help out.   Everyone's help is greatly appreciated!       

The garden is really coming along.   We have planted and growing – sugar snap peas; potatoes; sunflowers; bush beans; radishes; kale; swiss chard; beets; onions; zucchini; peppers; tomatoes (lots of them!); broccoli; cucumbers; pumpkins; and winter squash.                         

We are using wide-row gardening for the most part and are making use of donated tomato cages, plastic mulch, irrigation lines, and bamboo (from Pete’s home garden).   Here’s a sample of how the garden is growing.           

Potatoes

Wide Row of Bush Beans

Some of the Tomatoes

Zucchini

A View of the Rest of the Tomatoes (we had alot of them donated!)

Bainbridge Barter

Recently I received an email from Scott (Opt Out En Masse) informing me that he and several other folks have started up a new Bainbridge Barter  on Bainbridge Island (also Kitsap County Washington).   Scott has an excellent blog that covers topics related to living life in a more sustainable fashion - particularly in a world that has diminishing access to cheap fossil fuels.   The barter is in keeping with that and something that really makes sense to me.   It allows you to use your surplus and acquire something you do not have – all without the exchange of cash and with a minimum of fuss.   They do this at 9 am on Saturdays at the waterfront park on Bainbridge Island (near the ferry).   I have not yet attended but plan to work this in to my schedule soon.   I will have to hustle to attend the barter at 9 am and still get to Kingston and the Giving Garden by 10 am to put in my regular volunteer time, but I think I can manage it.            

If you live in my general area, I would encourage you to join us in these worthwhile pursuits.    If you do not live near me, I hope you can find similar community actions in your own area that you can become a part of too.          

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

If you happen to be a listener of the National Public Radio program "A Prairie Home Companion", you will be familiar with their fictitious radio show program sponsors, one of which is Bebop-A-Reebop Rhubarb Pie.               

(Sung to the tune of "Shortnin' Bread")

"One little thing can revive a guy, and that is a piece of rhubarb pie

Serve it up, nice and hot

Maybe things aren't as bad as you thought.

Momma's little baby loves rhubarb rhubarb, Be-Bop-A-Re-Bop Rhubarb Pie"             

This is usually sung following a dramatic and sound-effect-enhanced tale of woe and immediately followed by "Wouldn't this be a great time for a piece of rhubarb pie?   Yes, nothing gets the taste of shame and humiliation out of your mouth quite like Bebop-A-Reebop Rhubarb Pie."                   

It makes me laugh every time I hear that and I can’t help humming that tune when I am in the garden looking at my rhubarb plants!   Last evening when I was looking (and humming that diddy) I noticed that the rhubarb plants are ready for the first harvesting to begin.   

Up until just recently the stalks were too short and too thin yet, but now that we have had a bit of a warm up in the daily temperatures (still cool but not cold!) they have stretched and fattened up.               

There are several nice sized stalks and many more coming along.   I am going to wait until this coming weekend to do the first harvest from them though, as I want to have a little more free time to use them in a recipe and a few more days will provide even more stalks to choose from for harvest.   

Rhubarb is actually an amazing plant. It is one of the few perennial plants in the food production garden and (along with asparagus) is one of the first to provide food in the spring.   At a time when the garden is producing leafy greens almost exclusively, along come the mysterious red stalks with the umbrella like leathery leaves, holding the promise of some tart and sweet goodness.                      

I found an interesting site that is a compendium of all things rhubarb.     Just about anything you could ever want to know about this interesting plant from it’s history, how to grow it, it’s medical uses, and even what plants look like rhubarb but are not!   A sister site is a recipe collection – featuring (of course) – rhubarb!   If you want to learn more about this interesting, tasty, and often forgotten plant, then check out these two links.                 

Now everyone sing along with me….                         

"One little thing can revive a guy, and that is a piece of rhubarb pie

Serve it up, nice and hot

Maybe things aren't as bad as you thought.

Momma's little baby loves rhubarb rhubarb, Be-Bop-A-Re-Bop Rhubarb Pie"                      

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

There are a couple of new items (new to me at least!) in my garden this year.   You may recall that last October one of my blog readers (Cherie) was very generous and sent me some stem cuttings from her tree kale/collards.   They all got off to a great start and then unfortunately started succumbing to a fungal/root rot caused by the damp and cold of the unheated greenhouse where I had them overwintered.   I lost most of the starts but managed to nurse one lone plant back to good health.   I fussed over it from there on and worried about losing it.   Several weeks ago, I planted it out in the main garden beds and almost immediately afterwards we had really cold weather settle in.   The plant looked kind of rough for a few days and I was convinced I had managed to kill it too.   But then the plant perked up and began to grow, and today it has lots of new growth and is taking on a nice purple coloring similar to my favorite Ruby Ball cabbages.

Another item I am growing this year for the first time is artichokes.   I purchased the seed and then promptly forgot about them until I saw a blog post by Thomas talking about starting his artichokes.   With that reminder, I immediately got the seeds started but I was about two weeks behind the timeline I had worked out for them.   Luckily, the seeds germinated fairly quickly and the plants have been vigorous growers – such that they seem to be galloping along and are now good sized considering how late a start I got with them.                             

 I have three artichoke starts that I recently potted up to very large black containers.    These plants have been outside for weeks now and subjected to the cold nighttime temps.   I am hoping that they have been successfully “chilled” so that they will set blooms in this first year as an annual.   From what I have read they must go through a period of cold in order to actually produce in their first year.   

In addition to all these newcomers to The Modern Victory Garden, there are lots of old standbys growing too.   I put some new dwarfed bare root apple trees in a few weeks ago.   Until they get bigger, the planting area can support other crops.    I planted up the open areas of the bed with lots of lettuce starts.   I have romaine, and a variety of my favorite loose-leaf lettuces in there.   There is also some napa cabbages and pac choi as well.   They seem to be settling in and are putting on some good new growth the past few days.         

 I still need to get those trees staked.   Intended to do that last weekend but just never got it done.   Hopefully I will get it attended to this coming weekend, as it is far easier to do before the plants break dormancy and begin leafing out. 

The tomato plant hardening off process has been continuing all week.   They are pretty much ready to go into the ground (with some protective covers) anytime now.   I have given quite a few extra tomato plants away this week.    One went to a group of first time gardeners who are doing a community garden plot together with the help of a local master gardener.   I donated a Sun Gold tomato, one of the big pepper plants, some basil, some celery, and some swiss chard plants to the group.   I also grew some extra tomatoes for a co-worker (at his request) and delivered his plants to him today.   Tomorrow, I will be taking in to work several tomatoes, a couple of peppers, some swiss chard, a few artichokes, and some basil to give to my staff.   It has become a bit of a tradition with me to do a plant give away each spring of the extras starts – particularly tomatoes.   The rest of the tomatoes (the really big ones!) are kept to plant up in my garden.   They have gotten so big that I had to put some stakes in their containers to give them support.   I have been carting them outside every morning to a sunny location where they can soak up some sun and be exposed to the elements.   In the evening after returning home from work, I put them back into the greenhouse and close it up for the night.   I have them tucked into several corners and spots in the greenhouse.   Took pictures of a few of them this evening after I put them back in for the night.       

Notice the Sun Gold plants are flowering profusely?   I have some other varieties with blooms on too but the cherry tomatoes are definitely more sturdy and further along then the rest of them.   I have not grown Sun Gold before.   Generally, I tend not to get too excited about cherry tomatoes but this variety came so highly recommended and by so many individuals, that I really had to give them a try.   I hope they continue to impress me with their vigor and by producing some early and heavy fruit production.   I am planning to do the tomato bed planting up on Saturday as the weather is forecasted to be good and Sunday will be tied up with Easter related activities.   If I don’t hurry up and get those plants into the ground soon, they will start setting fruit in those small container pots!                     

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

About two weeks ago (January 4) I started a mushroom growing kit and put it in our spare bedroom.   Since then I have been keeping it misted with water and watching it with interest.   According to the information provided with the kit, the white mushroom mycelium begin to grow up into the casing (cover layer) within 7 to 14 days and by the 17th to 21st day the first mushrooms will be ready to harvest.   I must have a precocious box of white mushrooms because it is only day 14 and I have several harvest sized mushrooms and lots more on the way.   Interestingly mushrooms apparently will just about double in size every day when they are young (according to the info I have been reading) and I saw that happen right before my eyes!   I took a picture of the mushrooms on Tuesday morning and they looked like this:                       

And by Wednesday evening (about 34 hours later) they looked like this:                           

Wow!                                                            

Lots of little ones popping up that will come along quickly, but tonight I harvested the three bigger ones to use in our evening meal preparation.   While these are definitely harvestable sized, I could have let them grow larger as these are still just “buttons” with the cap not opened and the veil unbroken (the thin veil covering the gills under the mushroom begins to tear open).                             

I was surprised by how dense and heavy these mushrooms were.   Although there are only three of them, they weighed in at a half-pound!   I think I am just used to mushrooms that have been sitting at the store or in transit and have dried out considerably (making them lighter for the same volume).   These were fresh, fully hydrated, and sliced up beautifully.         

The fresh mushrooms were sautéed along with a very large clove of elephant garlic (diced) and some small onions (sliced thinly) and then combined with a few other simple ingredients to make a delicious beef stroganoff dinner.   All I can say is … yum! I have about twelve weeks of production (it declines over time) to look forward to from this one box. Let the good eating begin!                   

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

I have gone through my seed inventory and pulled out what I need to keep for the coming year (combined with the new seeds I ordered) and have the following seeds that are surplus to my needs:

• Beet – Ruby Queen
• Beans (Pole) – Blue Lake
• Beans (Dry) – Pinto (half runner)
• Beans (Dry) – Dark Red Kidney (bush)
• Beans (Bush) – Royal Burgundy
• Beans (Runner) - Sunset
• Celery – Utah 52-70 R Improved
• Corn – Bodacious (sweet corn)
• Corn Salad – Vit
• Cucumber – Alibi
• Lettuce – Super Gourmet Blend
• Peas – Dakota
• Pumpkins – Small Sugar
• Spinach – Tyee
• Sugar Snap Peas – Cascadia
• Swiss Chard – Bright Lights
• Swiss Chard – Rhubarb
• Zucchini – Gold Rush
• Zucchini – Partenon (only a few seeds)

These are “packed for 2010” and/or saved from my garden in 2010.   I cannot guarantee their viability, but they have generally been stored in a dry and cool area and should be good.   I have a lot on hand of some seeds (beans for example) and only a very small amount of others, so I will provide them on a "first come first served basis" until I run out.   If you would like some seeds – please email me at modernvictorygarden@gmail.com and list what you would like and provide your mailing info.                     

UPDATE - Sunday 3:00 pm - Lots of response to the give away so far and many of the items are now gone.  There are still plenty of beans and peas though so if you are interested in those please drop me an email.                                           

UPDATE #2 - Tuesday 1/11/11 - The last of the seeds were claimed as of this morning.   A large group of seeds were mailed on Monday.   I will be packaging up this last group on Tuesday evening and should have them in the mail on Wednesday.   So with that - the 2011 seed giveaway is concluded!  

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

I have been interested in growing my own edible mushrooms for quite some time.   Never acted on that interest though until this year.   I decided to go ahead and give it a try - but on a small scale to see if it is really something worth pursuing any further.   Purchased a mushroom growing kit that provides everything I need (just add water!), making this “toe in the water” growing effort very easy.   The box arrived yesterday and I was like a kid with a new toy!       

Getting it set up took just a few simple steps.   I then located the box in our guest bedroom (which generally is cooler than the rest of the house).    The information provided not only makes the process easy - it also provides good general background information on the overall process of growing mushrooms.   From here on out I just need to spritz it with water periodically and be patient - as it will take several weeks before I will have anything to harvest.   Patient?   Me?   Now that really IS something completely different!                

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

I have many readers of this blog whom I have had the good fortune to get to know better through regular blog comments, email correspondence, and even an occasional real life garden visit.   One such reader is Cherie.   She contacted me by email quite a while ago and ever since I have enjoyed corresponding with her about our gardens and related challenges.   Recently Cherie wrote that she had noted I mentioned how much my chickens really love kale.   She suggested that to keep up with their demand perhaps I might want to consider growing some tree collards.   Apparently she had obtained cuttings of this perennial non-flowering cole crop from John Jeavon’s gardens in 1990 and has been growing them ever since.   They grow very tall (over 8 feet tall in fact) and are apparently just as tasty and sweet in winter as more traditional kale and collard crops – but produce year round and can grow for several years before a new propagation is needed from cuttings.   She was kind enough to offer to send me some cuttings from her plant if I was interested – which of course I totally was!   Perennial vegetable plants are a bit of a rarity and finding one that is also a cole crop, which grows very well in my climate, is a home run.   Here’s a video clip that talks about this interesting plant and it’s usefulness in a food production garden.                

         

Tonight when I got home from work I found the package had arrived in the mail for me with several tree collard cuttings – as well as a package of some hull less barley seed to trial in my garden.   It was like Christmas in October!   Not only did I get the cuttings and barley seed, but she also sent a nice fact sheet on the plant describing how to grow it from cuttings and how to harvest and use it.                                 

The cuttings survived their U.S.Postal Service journey in good shape and I did not want to let them sit any longer than necessary before getting them attended to.   These plants have several obstacles to get through before they can become mature specimens in my garden – not the least of which is just surviving this journey and growing out roots from the cutting.           

Before I got started, I gathered up the soil mix, pots, cutting board, and sharp knife that I needed to do the planting up process.   The first step is to then cut about an inch from the bottom to reestablish a clean cut that will take up water more readily.   That is easier said than done, as the stems are incredibly woody and tough!             

This was then placed cut side down into a container of very moist potting soil mix ensuring several leaf nodes were below the soil level (this is where the roots will form from) as well as several leaf nodes above the soil level (this is where the new leaf growth will form).           

They don’t look like much at the moment, but they hold a lot of potential.     

If I manage to grow these out and don’t kill them along the way, I will post some updates periodically about them.   In the meantime, I just want to say a big thank you to Cherie for her thoughtfulness in sending these to me.   Hopefully I will find an opportunity to pay the kindness forward to someone else in the future.

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

Between the harvest of cucumbers on Sunday and accumulated harvests from earlier in the week, I had a total of just over four pounds of cucumbers available on Monday.    Our favorite dill pickle relish recipe (Ball Blue Book of Preserving) calls for 8 pounds of cucumbers.                

Dill Relish

• 8 pounds of pickling cucumbers
• ½ cup canning salt
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 1 quart water
• 1 pound onions
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons dill seed
• 1 quart vinegar

Wash cucumbers; drain. Finely chop cucumbers. Placed chopped cucumbers in a bowl and sprinkle with salt and turmeric. Pour water over cucumbers; let stand 2 hours. Peel and finely chop onions. Drain cucumbers. Rinse under cold water; drain. Combine cucumbers, onions, sugar, dill seed, and vinegar in a large saucepot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Ladle hot relish into hot pint jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 15 minutes in a boiling-water canner.      

The recipe has always yielded a full 8 pints of finished product for me.   Since I only had four pounds of cucumbers, I was expecting to make a half batch.     With that in mind, I got started with the chopping of the cucumbers.          

I have used a food processor to make this recipe but find that using a good quality (sharp!) knife produces a nicer sized cucumber piece for this relish.   What surprised me is that when I had finished chopping the cucumbers, I had almost as much as I have had historically in that same bowl – using 8 pounds of pickling cukes!   Look at the amount of finished chopped cukes in this next picture…                        

And then compare it to this picture from 2008 when I made the full recipe.   The 2008 picture has the salt and turmeric already sprinkled on it but you get a good idea of how much was in that bowl.   It was obvious to me at this point that I was going to get more than a half batch out of this recipe despite only using half the amount of cukes.   In fact, I got 6 pints which is ¾ the usual amount from only half the input!    These were truly mysteriously abundant cukes.                         

I had enough ripe tomatoes accumulated to do four pints of sauce while I was at it - since I had the canner going and the kitchen messed up.                

Life provides an occasional mystery and these amazingly abundant cukes definitely have me happily puzzled!                         

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener