8025 MEN Guide to Fall Gardening

M O R E T H A N A M A G A Z I N E . . . A W AY O F L I F E

6 6 COVER PHOTOGRAPH: ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/CATNAP72

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Grow a Great Fall Garden

Here’s everything you need to know to grow crisp, delicious broccoli, carrots, spinach and more.

Eat From Your Garden All Year: A Regional Guide

With these expert-recommended techniques and crop varieties, you, too, can break through seasonal barriers in your climate.

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Grow Your Best Fall Garden: What, When and How

Here’s expert advice for the next half of the gardening season.

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10 Fascinating Facts About Edible Plants

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Avoid Common Gardening Mistakes

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3 Rare Root Crops You Should Be Growing

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Bright Bites: Growing Arugula and Turnips for the Table

Dig into the intriguing world of plant science to harvest knowledge that you can apply to cultivate a bountiful, successful garden.

With these pointers, gardeners just getting their trowels dirty can sidestep six classic food-growing faux pas.

Experience the unique flavors of crosnes, salsify and skirret by adding these unsung treasures to your vegetable garden.

Grow crisp turnips and arugula in cool-season gardens and pair their peppery flavors in your kitchen.

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Fall in Love With Spinach

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All About Growing Horseradish

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The Other Onions

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The Best Kales

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Garlic Scapes

Had little luck with spring-sown spinach? Bust the slump by planting this nutrition-packed vegetable at summer’s end.

Horseradish roots are harvested from fall through winter, providing warmth to winter meals. This guide includes descriptions of types of horseradish and tips for growing the flavorful root crop.

Don’t forget about fall varieties like shallots, bulbing leeks and multiplying onions, all with advantages over spring onions.

Start this cold-hardy crop now for sweet soups and salads this winter.

The Tips You Need to Grow Great Garlic

Use this season-by-season guide to cultivate a treasure trove of fat, flavor-packed cloves.

Enjoy the distinctive flavor of these delicious flower stems.

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M O R E T H A N A M A G A Z I N E . . . A W AY O F L I F E

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All About Growing Cabbage

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All About Growing Swiss Chard

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You Can Grow Winter Tomatoes

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Cool Kohlrabi

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All About Growing Broccoli

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Grow Your Own Seeds

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20 Crops That Keep and How to Store Them

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Quick Hoops: Easy-to-Make Mini-Greenhouses

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5 DIY, Low-Cost and Multipurpose Greenhouses

Growing fast-maturing varieties in the fall provides better-tasting cabbage after the first light frost.

Tolerant of summer’s heat and fall’s light frosts, this colorful and flavorful green packs a wallop of a nutritional punch.

With the right light, you can grow tomatoes indoors all through winter.

Cabbage’s crazy cousin is a fun and tasty addition to your fall vegetable garden.

This popular vegetable grows well in spring or fall, but tastes sweeter when it matures after autumn temps turn chilly.

Experience the ultimate in self-reliance, and create new plant varieties that will perform better than other varieties in your garden.

Stash a winter’s worth of delicious, homegrown produce in the cool corners of your homestead.

Stretch the growing season to savor fresh, homegrown veggies all year by using these nifty hoops in your winter vegetable garden.

Use recycled materials to create an affordable garden greenhouse so you can enjoy fresh food all year long!

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Sweet Cider Roundup

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An Electric Cider Press Idea

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Plant Index

Make delicious cider with this advice on the best cider apples and how to press them.

Make the squeezing easier this season with this cool concept.

Additional Resources

Find gardening advice, seed sources and companies, stores for gardening tools, and more.

Find the plants mentioned in this Guide to Fall Gardening and start planning your late-season plot.

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to keep up without a hitch. For in Memphis but struggle in example, you might grow potaMinneapolis. Choosing to grow toes, salad greens and snap peas in crops that are adapted to your early spring; peppers, squash and region is an excellent first step, tomatoes in late spring through but you will still need to take summer; and cabbage, carrots and additional measures to protect spinach from late summer to fall. plants from wild weather.

To avoid taking on too much, Springtime can be especially some gardeners start by growing hazardous because beautiful, only in pots or containers, assumsunny days alternate with others ing this will be easier — but this that are cold or windy, or both. often isn’t true. A container limits Placing milk jug cloches or row the spread of roots (see illustracover tunnels over spring seedtion, Page 31) and the plants can lings will keep your plants’ stress easily become water-stressed and levels low, and, if you live in quite warm on hot days, while an area prone to storms, could the same plants grown in enshield your seedlings from getriched, mulched beds would enting pummelled by hailstorms, joy consistently cool roots. The A nice option for newbies is “bag gardening.” Simply cut out the too. For some crops, row covers top of a bag of soil, make slits in the bottom, and plant seeds. crops that grow best in containers are an important step in pest are heat-tolerant plants, such as prevention as well, so they’ll do eggplant, peppers and tomatoes, which can take warm root temdouble duty for you as you become a more experienced gardener. peratures as long as they’re given a large pot and plenty of water.

With warm-season crops, a common misstep is planting too But even still, you may need to water container-grown crops twice early. You’ll be better off waiting for warm weather to settle in a day during summer’s hottest stretches, which is a major commitand the soil to warm up than pushing for an extra-early start, ment. Comparatively, you’d only have to water plants in garden because warm-natured plants will not grow in cold soil. Plants beds a few times a week. that need warm soil and weather include beans, corn, cucumInstant “bag beds” are a better no-dig option than containers bers, eggplant, melons, peppers and tomatoes. While you wait, (see illustration above), because, with this method, you cut slits you can plant any of these crops that do well in cool soil and can in the bottoms of the bags so roots can move down into the soil take a bit of frost: broccoli, cabbage, collard greens, kale, leeks, below. Plus, the bags can be mulched to help retain soil moisture. peas, radishes and spinach.

2 Underestimating the Weather

will add even more organic matter to your soil over time. Plus, throughout the growing season, thick mulch will suppress weeds, hold in moisture, and help regulate soil temperature.

If you keep chickens, rabbits or other livestock, you can use their manure to make an organic soil amendment, too. To fully compost the manure, add just enough moisture and high-carbon organic matter (such as leaves or sawdust) to help it rot. Keep in mind that composted manure will retain more of its nitrogen if it’s never leached by rain, so be prepared to store the finished product in containers or bags, or under a tarp.

3 Misunderstanding Soil

ELAYNE SEARS

Especially for beginners, soil may be the most mysterious piece of the gardening puzzle. In addition to serving as comfortable digs for plant roots (airy, friable and able to hold moisture), it needs to provide your crops with nutrients.

The sure path to better soil starts at your compost pile, which is why newbie gardeners would do well to dive into composting the same year — or even the year before — they jump into gardening. If you can dig about a 1-inch layer of mature compost into your soil every time you plant, your soil quality will steadily improve. These frequent infusions of organic matter have a neutralizing effect on soil pH and also support beneficial soil organisms, especially earthworms and mycorrhizal fungi.

Another big key to creating super soil: Don’t skip the mulch. Mulching liberally with grass clippings, straw, shredded leaves or other biodegradable materials Score bigger, better harvests by consistently improving your soil with organic matter.

ISTOCK/SANDDEBEAUTHEIL; ABOVE: KEITH WARD

Every climate is kind to some vegetables and cruel to others, which is why heat-loving okra plants are irrepressible

bigger and better in the end, though, because your little seedlings will have the room they need to thrive.

Of equal importance is owning a good hoe so you can weed early and often to keep unwanted plants from stealing your crops’ sun, water and nutrients. Then, as blooms and fruits appear, it’s best to rely on mulch to suppress weeds. If you do a good job of weeding and prevent any weeds from going to seed, you’ll have far fewer weeds the following year.

Wherever you garden, wild creatures are watching you work, waiting for their favorite meal to be ready. To find out which critters to expect, talk with neighbors 4 Miscalculating about what kinds of wildlife are Fertilizer Needs commonly seen in your area and Compared with animals, plants what they like to eat. have skimpy appetites, because sunIn some parts of the Midwest, light is their primary energy source. gardeners shy away from sweet corn Yet plants do need three important because it invites raccoons, which nutrients — nitrogen, phosphorus and will make off with cantaloupes, too. potassium — if they are to function In Virginia, where I live, groundas efficient photosynthetic factories. hogs have been known to level garDry organic fertilizers provide these dens overnight, and the deer regard and other important nutrients, such snap beans as candy. If you can’t fence out animal pilferers, you can as calcium and magnesium, which are protect your crops with chicken crucial for blemish-free tomatoes and wire cages, row cover tunnels, or sweet, thick-walled peppers. even enclosures made of burlap or Don’t overdo it, though. Soilother cloth stapled to wood stakes. testing labs tell us gardeners apply too The roots of crops grown in the ground, rather than in pots, can spread out and reach essential nutrients If animals can’t see plants they’d like much fertilizer far more often than too and moisture. Here, each box equals 1 square foot. to devour, they’re more likely to leave little. In general, apply organic fertilizer them alone. If all else fails, motionat the rate recommended on the label, activated sprinklers that surprise invaders with a spray of water and mix it into the soil just before the crop is planted. As the may help safeguard your garden. growing season progresses, fertilize a couple more times — espeInsect pests are sometimes even more troublesome than larger cially for long-season crops — ideally at a crop’s first fruiting and critters. Watch your plants closely for signs of pest damage, and again as you gather your first harvest. You can do this simply by spreading a strip of organic fertilizer, such as grass clippings or lift up plant leaves to try to spot pest eggs on the undersides. Plus, mature compost, directly alongside your crops — a technique plant some flowers! Most new gardeners are so enthusiastic about known as “side-dressing.” starting the journey to grow veggies that they skip planting flowers, or they relegate blooming beauties to “ornamental” areas of their 5 Crowding Your Crops yard. Instead, incorporate flowers into your garden plans from the A young plant is a solar-powered being, and each new leaf is part get-go. Flowering plants draw in beneficial insects that not only of its expanding solar array. If plants grow too close together or are boost pollination, but that actually eat crop-munching pests. crowded by weeds, reduced sunlight and below-ground competition for water and nutrients can significantly stunt growth. This Award-winning garden writer Barbara Pleasant grows and preserves is why it’s important to grow plants at the proper spacing when a bounty of fruits, vegetables and herbs in Floyd, Va. If you’re you’re setting out seedlings, and to thin the crops you grow from a beginning gardener, we highly recommend her book Starter seed, such as beets and carrots. Seed packets will usually tell you Vegetable Gardens (available at www.motherearthnews.com/store). the optimal spacing. Thinning work is a bit painful, because you feel like you’re killing half of your crop. Your harvests really will be

DIG DEEPER!

Browse our wealth of expert advice on many gardening topics and essential skills, from soil and seeds to fencing and attracting beneficial insects, at www.motherearthnews.com/garden-know-how.

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Bag garden: KEITH WARD Basket of veggies: ISTOCK/SANDDEBEAUTHEIL

6 Inviting Critters

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Lettuce illo: ELAYNE SEARS

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From the cool Northwest to tropical Florida, gardeners in several USDA Plant Hardiness Zones offered tips for this article. Warming global temperatures have been pushing Zones farther north over time.

Asian and mustard greens, chard, beets, parsnips, carrots, fava beans, and wheat through winter. Beets and chard planted in late October have the added advantage of avoiding the leaf miners that often plague these crops in summer. The cooler temperatures are also ideal for cilantro. “Most people try to plant cilantro in summer, but it bolts,” she says. “If you plant it in September, it will produce through winter and flower in March, attracting beneficial insects to the garden.”

She rarely needs cloches or row covers for frost protection. “To protect my frostsensitive citrus trees, I hang old-fashioned white Christmas lights in the trees. They give off just enough heat to prevent the trees from freezing and look very pretty.”

Creasy preserves her garden’s summer flavors in her signature minestrone soup and her apple, tomato, marinara and ran-

chero sauces, which she freezes for winter use. Her frozen treasure trove also contains savory roasted tomatoes, herbs in olive oil, blackberries lightly dusted with sugar, chopped basil layered with Parmesan cheese, and lime juice cubes.

Southwest 4 Cornville, Ariz. (Zone 8). Native American corn and bean varieties are ideally suited to the hot, dry conditions of the Southwest, says Bill McDorman, founder of Seeds Trust, which began in Idaho, moved to Arizona in 2005, and since 2011 has been in Colorado under the direction of Julia Coffeey. (McDorman and his wife, Belle, are now co-directors of Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance.) Many varieties McDorman recommends have been selected over many generations for their ability to thrive in the region’s harsh

SOURCE: USDA

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environment. He harvests grain corn into November, and then stores it for use through winter and early spring. He recommends ‘Rio Grande Blue,’ a flour corn that’s ideal for tortillas. “Dry the corn on the stalk before you pick it. If it isn’t completely dry, peel back the husks to let it finish drying,” he suggests. “Don’t shell the kernels from the cobs until you’re ready to use them. That’s the secret — it makes an altogether different food from what you’d get at the store.”

‘Candy Mountain,’ an early, openpollinated variety with rich flavor, is his favorite sweet corn. Its strong emergence in cool soil and its early season vigor make it a standout for the Southwest and many other high-altitude locales. Among beans, McDorman favors what are now known as “Anasazi” — a type of bean believed to have originated from seed found in a clay pot among ancient ruins of ancestral Pueblo people. “The beans store for up to 10 years, cook relatively quickly, and have a creamy texture and rich flavor,” he says.

He also considers tepary beans (Phaseolus acutifolius) a regional gem. Native groups in Arizona and northwestern Mexico grew and selected these beans to thrive there.

Tepary beans need a short season (60 to 80 days) and are drought-tolerant.

McDorman harvests fresh Jerusalem artichokes, oregano and garlic through winter. Plus, he’s never without greens: “Wild mustard grows in the shade of mesquite trees everywhere around this part of the Southwest. So, I plant ‘Slow Bolt’ arugula, a relative of mustard, near mesquite. I get an unlimited supply of fresh greens for several years without replanting.”

Bend hoops over beds to easily add and remove row cover when needed.

FOTOLIA/JOHNBRAID

Can, freeze or ferment your summer harvests to stretch them into fall and winter meals.

5 Ketchum, Idaho (Zone 5). Bill McDorman is also well-acquainted with the extremely cold, short growing season of the North. He suggests starting seeds indoors, and also taking advantage of warm microclimates, such as an area at the south side of a building with a concrete foundation. Try adding rocks to garden beds to increase thermal mass. “Or, site the garden on a south-facing slope,” he says. “The soil will start to warm about three weeks earlier in spring.”

Gardeners in this climate can grow kale

ROSALIND CREASY

Northern Tier

and Brussels sprouts well into fall and early winter if snow cover is good, he says.

‘Dwarf Siberian’ kale, selected to stay low under the protection of snow, is a favorite.

He also notes that many gardeners plant crops relatively late in the year and try to get them to mature as temps are dropping, which is rarely successful. Instead, focus on planting in time for crops to mature right before the first fall frost, and then use protection devices to keep them going.

To give corn a two- to three-week head start in spring, McDorman says, sow the seeds in the bottom of a 1-foot-deep trench, cover them with a couple of inches of soil, and then roll plastic over the top to trap the heat and moisture. When the corn reaches the plastic, around your last spring frost date, remove the plastic and fill in soil around the growing plants.

McDorman also urges gardeners in cold, short-season areas to grow Siberian tomatoes. In 1989, he collected seeds of 60 Siberian varieties that are now worldfamous for their hardiness and flavor.

“They were selected for the very best flavor by the gardeners who grew them and then traded the seeds,” he says. All are cold-hardy, but many tolerate hot temperatures, too. ‘Mikarda Sweet’ and

‘De Barrao’ are good Roma types for storage. And because all the Siberian tomato varieties are open-pollinated, you can save your own seeds and develop the best strains for your microclimate.

6 Waterville, Maine (Zone 5). Fedco Seeds horticulturist Roberta Bailey harvests brassicas, carrots, beets, cilantro and spinach well after her first frost, using high tunnels and row covers. ‘White Russian’ kale has held in an unheated greenhouse all the way down to zero degrees, and survived in the garden until January beneath insulating snow. Gardeners in the area can also grow ‘Vates’ collards, ‘Green Lance’ gai lan (a Chinese kale used like broccoli), and yokatta-na (an extra-hardy Asian green similar to bok choy) beneath row covers. “If snow cover is constant, ‘Kolibri’ kohlrabi, parsnips and horseradish will survive winter, too,” Bailey says.

Central 7 Mansfield, Mo. (Zone 6). The Midwestern area has a longer growing season than its northern neighbors, but frost-free dates can vary widely from year to year. The growers at Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co. use row covers, cloches and cold frames to protect

14 THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO FALL GARDENING

Mid-Atlantic 8 Devon, Pa. (Zone 7). Contributing Editor William Woys Weaver grows mustard, lettuce, and celeriac beneath tunnels covered with greenhouse-grade plastic. He says the key to overwintering vegetables is to plant early enough for the crops to develop a good root system. If planted by early September, lettuces will develop sufficient roots so they can survive winter and, by early April, will be growing strong again.

Turnips, parsnips, winter radishes and ‘Green Glaze’ collards have proven WWW.MOTHEREARTHNEWS.COM

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Food in jars: Rosalind Creasy

cabbage, lettuce and other greens from damage in spring and fall. They recommend ‘Wong Bok’ Chinese cabbage, as well as the heading cabbages ‘Early Jersey Wakefield,’ ‘Red Express,’ ‘Cour di Bue’ and ‘Late Flat Dutch.’ Tatsoi, bok choy, collards, arugula and ‘Giant Red Japanese’ mustard also thrive.

“For storage, try ‘Pusa Asita Black’ and ‘Atomic Red’ carrots, and ‘Chioggia’ and ‘Golden’ beets,” says spokesperson Kathy McFarland. “Also, ‘Blue Hubbard,’ ‘Galeux d’Eysines,’ ‘Mini Red Turban’ and ‘Moranga’ (also called ‘Pink Pumpkin’) squash will keep all winter long.”

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Garden beds: Fotolia/johnbraid

3 RARE ROOT CROPS

for sandy loam, all three crops benefit from deep trenching, which leads to wellshaped tubers. Crosnes do well in damp locations, and skirret is quite at home on swampy ground or a bank along a stream.

If you have winter garden plots that collect water because of poor runoff, they may lend themselves well to a crop of crosnes or skirret — I’ve planted both in what I call my “swamp,” and they love it.

Low spots tend to ice over, however, so plant these vegetables in a well-drained area under row covers to access them for winter harvests. The same can be said for planting salsify, which will also supply a healthy crop of edible greens when given such protection.

These high-yield root crops are usually free of pests, so they’re quite low-maintenance for organic gardeners. Deer relish salsify greens, but using row covers or a repellent called Liquid Fence will help deter them. Voles are the only serious problems I’ve experienced when growing these rare crops. Fortunately, my farm’s stealthy resident cats have halted many voles in their tracks — and they’ve been rewarded accordingly.

You Should Be Growing Experience the unique flavors of crosnes, salsify and skirret by adding these unsung, underground treasures to your vegetable garden.

Crisp, Nutty Crosnes

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Cooks relate the complex, delicate flavors of ‘Luethy’ salsify to both oysters and oatmeal.

erious gardeners, small-scale market farmers, and the managers of community-supported agriculture programs (CSAs) are always on the lookout for unique crops — especially those they can harvest through winter. Many restaurateurs also support seasonal eating by shopping for unusual, local ingredients to fill out their menus during the chilly months. We need not look too far to find interesting options because an array of old-fashioned crops are well-suited to take up the call where summer vegetables leave off. I’ve grown crosnes, salsify and skirret for more than 35 years and have gotten to know them well. They are the “three sisters” of my winter garden, and they’ve kept my table amply supplied with unusual and delightful dishes.

All three of these epicurean treasures remain fairly close to their wild ancestors. Perennial crosnes and skirret are hardy in Zones 4 to 8. Salsify is a Mediterranean crop and, as a biennial, requires a winter rest period.

It’s hardy in Zones 6 to 8 (or into colder Zones if given ample winter protection). Aside from their preference

TOP: NORM SHAFER; BOTTOM: HELENEDEVUN; PAGE 32: WILLIAM WOYS WEAVER

By William Woys Weaver

This perennial plant originated in eastern Asia, where the tubers are mostly made into pickles. These plants were brought to France in the 19th century under the name “Chinese artichoke,” and eventually took their European name, crosnes (pronounced croans), from the French village where they were first cultivated.

In cookery, you can treat crosnes tubers like water chestnuts. Their mildly nutty, artichoke-like flavor and crunchy texture add appeal to salads, stir-fries and mixed vegetables. They also make excellent pickles because they retain their crispness well. Many Japanese cooks pickle crosnes with red shiso under the name chorogi, which you can purchase in jars in most Asian stores. Rather than the red saltiness of chorogi, I prefer sweetand-sour combinations. Green shiso is quite pleasant for contrasting flavor, especially if you add a few hot peppers to the mix. In fact, most cooks in the United States haven’t explored the full culinary potential of crosnes, so this rare

Unusually shaped crosnes can be cooked, pickled, or used to add crunch to salads and stir-fries.

crop remains on the cutting edge of new American cuisine.

Its foliage resembles mint in appearance, and the plants spread via knobby tubers that develop around the roots during late summer and early fall. For best results, plant the tubers in a grid pattern, 4 inches apart in each direction.

Crosnes bloom with attractive, purple, spiky flowers that look similar to betony blossoms — not surprising, as the two are botanically related. Because of their handsome flowers, crosnes plants lend themselves to accenting colorful, edible landscapes. Keep an eye on them, though, as crosnes can become invasive when grown as ornamentals.

You can begin harvesting crosnes tubers in late fall, after frost has killed the tops, by gently pulling on the plants and digging up the tubers. Continue harvesting into winter. One downside to crosnes is that they discolor if exposed to the air for longer than a day, which is why growers who sell them at markets generally leave them in the ground as long as possible and dig them as needed. Because of their knobby shape, the tubers require special care in washing; an old toothbrush or a small bottlebrush will come in handy for this purpose. As you clean them, you can drop the tubers into a bowl of water with a bit of lemon juice so they won’t discolor before you serve them.

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Top: Norm Shafer

The Tips You Need to

Use this season-by-season guide to cultivate a treasure trove of fat, flavor-packed cloves.

GROW I GREAT GARLIC

By Roberta Bailey

f I could grow only one crop, it would be garlic: pungent, mouthwatering, plump-cloved, health-promoting garlic.

Over the years, I’ve learned some tricks for growing an exceptional, flavor-packed crop. Before you dig in, you need to know the basic types to choose from. Garlic (Allium sativum) is divided into two subspecies: var. ophioscorodon and var. sativum.

Most often planted in climates with cold winters, ophioscorodon garlic is called “top-setting,” “ophio” or “hardneck” garlic; the family includes Rocambole, Continental and Asiatic types.

Leaves grow from a hard, central stalk, and then an edible scape (flower head) forms, with tiny buds called “bulbils.”

Most hardneck varieties form four to eight cloves around the central stalk’s base. Their flavor tends to be pungent, but often has subtle notes.

The sativum varieties do well in all climates. Called “softneck” or “artichoke” garlic, heads tend to be large, with 12 to 20 small cloves and no central stalk. Leaves, which sprout directly from each clove, are quite flexible and best for braiding. Generally, softneck garlic can be either pungent or mild, but lacks subtlety.

Plant garlic cloves at least 10 inches apart (above). After harvest, dry garlic for about three weeks in a shady spot (top right).

“neck rot”). Basal rot may cause yellowing and dieback of leaves, and may manifest as a white fungal growth at the bulb’s base.

White rot causes fungal growth on the stem that extends around the bulb’s base, and afflicted bulbs will have a blackened neck with water-soaked outer scales. Botrytis rot causes water-soaked stems and gray, fuzzy fungal growth. Little can be done to control these diseases; you’ll need to pull affected plants.

Plant garlic four to six weeks before your ground freezes in fall.

If your ground never freezes, plant a month before the coolest time of the year. Timing will determine the number of cloves in your garlic bulb. If you plant early, the garlic will set its roots into warmer soil and deduce that it has lots of nutrients available, and thus make plans to form more cloves. If you plant later, the garlic will perceive less nutrient availability and set fewer cloves. Both heads may grow to be the same size, but the later planting will have fewer, larger cloves.

To grow large heads, devote more planting space, as the roots of a well-developed garlic bulb can spread out 6 inches. Space garlic 10 inches apart in rows at least 1 foot apart. Plant individual cloves 2 to 3 inches deep, pointed end up. Garlic thrives on even, not-too-heavy moisture and prefers cool roots, so irrigate as needed and mulch deeply with straw, shredded leaves or hay.

Mulch will also protect against frost heaving and smother weeds, which is important — garlic despises weed competition. Free up any spears that can’t pierce the deep mulch in spring.

What to Do This Fall

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CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: FOTOLIA/BEERFAN; ROBERTA BAILEY (3)

What to Do Next Spring

DREAMSTIME/PRETOPEROLA

For the biggest heads, always plant individual garlic cloves in fall. Each clove will form a new bulb by the next summer.

Garlic thrives on spring and summer sun and moderately cool nights — it needs heat to form its bulb. Choose a site with deep soil rich in organic matter. Soil that has been built up with cover crops the previous year is ideal.

Before planting, add 1 to 2 inches of compost or well-rotted manure to a deeply cultivated plot. Garlic requires nitrogen to nourish fall root growth. I add nitrogen in the form of fish meal or alfalfa meal at a quarter- to a half-pound per 10-foot row.

Organic soybean meal supplies slow-release nitrogen that lasts in the soil until bulb production takes place the next spring.

Apply a half-pound per 10-foot row. (You can buy soybean meal, alfalfa meal and kelp meal at farm and feed stores.) The organic soil additive Azomite, a type of rock dust, has significantly increased the yield and size of my garlic crop. I add a half-pound per 10-foot row. If you can’t find Azomite, kelp meal applied at the same rate can supply extra minerals.

Start with certified disease- and pest-free garlic from a reputable supplier. Make sure it has been tested to be free of garlic bloat nematode. If you plant infected cloves, the nematodes will colonize your soil. They kill garlic before the bulbs mature.

Seed cloves are also vulnerable to Penicillium decay, a disease that appears as a bluish-green mass. Garlic may be susceptible to basal rot, white rot or botrytis rot (which is sometimes called

In spring, I foliar-feed fish emulsion (1 tablespoon per gallon) every two weeks until scapes appear, or side-dress with blood meal (2 to 3 teaspoons per head) four to five weeks into the season.

Hardneck varieties will send up a scape a few weeks before harvest. Clip these stalks after they have emerged, before they curl.

This will force the plant to put its energy into the bulb rather than scape formation. Don’t just toss the garlic scapes — find delicious ways to cook them; turn to Page 56.

What to Do Next Summer Wait until a relatively dry period, if possible, for optimal harvesting and curing. Dig garlic when the plant’s bottom leaves have yellowed. As the leaves die, layers of the papery “wrapper” around the bulbs will begin to decay, so harvest before you lose too many.

A garlic plant’s roots can spread as much as 6 inches underground (above). The author shows off a spectacular braid of prize-winning ‘Georgian Fire’ garlic (right).

To harvest, loosen soil with a fork, pull the bulbs from the ground and shake off the soil. Garlic bruises easily, so avoid banging the heads. The crop is also vulnerable to sunscald, so remove the heads to a shady spot.

Next, trim the tops and roots, and arrange the bulbs on racks to dry and cure. Or, leave the plants intact and hang in small bunches or spread on racks. I use room fans to dry my garlic crop quickly. After garlic is fully dry (in about three weeks), remove all remaining roots and gently brush off any lingering soil. Store garlic in mesh bags in a cool, dry, dark place. Storage longevity will depend on the variety, but will range from six to 12 months.

To save planting stock from your summer harvest, choose 2- to 21⁄2-inch bulbs that have the variety’s best characteristics.

Set aside the plumpest, largest cloves from within those bulbs to plant again in fall. Avoid double and sliver-like cloves, as the doubles will create a double bulb with a flat side, and the slivers will usually form a small bulb.

Roberta Bailey has grown garlic for decades on her 18-acre farm in Maine, which is surely a vampire-free zone by now.

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In the Kitchen

Various types of slaw made from raw, chopped cabbage are popular accompaniments for seafood and barbecue. Cooked cabbage recipes number in the thousands, from crunchy stir-fries to slow-cooked braises. Tame strong-flavored cabbage by chopping and then blanching for one minute before proceeding with your recipe. Include a few fennel seeds in the cooking liquid to reduce cabbage’s cooking aroma. Large outer leaves may be blanched and frozen for later use making cabbage rolls. Chopped cabbage can be blanched and frozen, or fermented into sauerkraut. (Learn how to make your own kraut at http://goo.gl/eHec6.)

Cabbage is a good source of vitamins A and C. Red cabbage and green cabbage with tight, white cores typically contain high levels of vitamin C, while dark outer leaves offer an abundance of vitamin A. Homemade, fermented sauerkraut (or refrigerated kraut that hasn’t been heat-processed) contains health-enhancing nutrients and bacteria.

All About Growing

CABBAGE

By Barbara Pleasant Illustrations by Keith Ward

D

ependable and nutritious, both green and red cabbage are among the most productive cool-season crops. Gardeners growing cabbage in cool climates can grow blue-ribbon heads.

Where hot summers divide the cool seasons, fast-maturing varieties do well in spring and in fall. All types of cabbage are at their best in late fall, after light frosts.

Types of Cabbage Green cabbage varieties vary in their earliness and mature size.

Red cabbage provides higher levels of vitamins A and C than other types of cabbage do.

Savoy cabbage produces a crisp heart and crinkled, dark green outer leaves.

Pointed cabbage develops conical instead of rounded heads. Its upright growth habit and tight outer leaves protect pointed cabbage from insects and sun.

Napa cabbage (or Chinese cabbage) matures quickly and produces crisp, mild-

flavored leaves. Learn more in “Growing Asian Greens” at http://goo.gl/Ewzrz.

When to Plant In spring, start seeds indoors or in a cold frame eight to 10 weeks before the last spring frost, and set out hardened-off seedlings at about 6 weeks. Seeds germinate best at 65 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit.

In summer, start seeds 12 to 14 weeks before your first fall frost, and transplant the seedlings to the garden when they are 4 to 6 weeks old. Plant early and late varieties to stretch your harvest season.

How to Plant Cabbage plants require regular feeding and abundant sun. Choose a sunny, welldrained site with fertile soil that has a pH between 6.0 and 6.5.

Loosen the planting bed and mix in a 2-inch layer of compost along with a standard application of a balanced organic fertilizer or well-composted manure. Water the fertilized bed thoroughly before setting out seedlings. Allow 18 to 20 inches between plants for 4-pound varieties; larger

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varieties may need more room. Varieties that will produce heads that weigh less than 2 pounds (check your seed packet) can be spaced 12 inches apart.

Harvesting and Storage Begin harvesting cabbage when the heads feel firm, using a sharp knife to cut the heads from the stem. Remove and promptly refrigerate harvested heads. If cut high, many varieties will produce several smaller secondary heads.

Cabbage will store in the refrigerator for two weeks or more, and you can keep your fall crop in cool storage for several months.

Clean cabbage carefully.

Cabbage yield is generally about 1 pound per foot of row. For the spring crop, three cabbage plants per person is probably sufficient for fresh eating. Grow another four plants per person in fall if you plan to store your cabbage or make sauerkraut.

Saving Seeds Cabbage is a biennial crop that produces seed in its second year, after it has been exposed to cold weather. Most commer-

cial cabbage seed is grown in Washington state, where winters are mild enough to allow the survival of seedlings set out in late summer. These plants form only small, loose heads before blooming and producing seeds the following summer. In colder climates, growers dig cabbage plants and move them to a cool root cellar for winter, burying the plants’ roots in buckets of moist sawdust. The stored heads are trimmed and replanted in early spring.

Isolation is often required to keep cabbage from crossing with its close cousins, so you should grow only one type of cabbage for seed in a given year.

Prevention Tips • Tender cabbage seedlings may be felled in the night by soil-dwelling cutworms.

To protect young seedlings, enclose their stems with stiff collars made from plastic cups, shallow cans or aluminum foil, pushed 1 inch into the soil.

• Leaf-eating caterpillars — including armyworms, cabbage loopers and velvety green cabbageworms — can damage cabbage. In summer, harlequin bugs and grasshoppers can devastate young plants. The best way to prevent problems is to install floating row covers the day you transplant seedlings.

• Unless you have a heavy infestation, you can often keep plants healthy by watching them closely and handpicking pests. Biweekly sprays with a biological pesticide — Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) or spinosad — will control cabbageworms and other caterpillar-type cabbage pests.

Handpick slugs and snails.

Growing Tips • Use cloches, row cover tunnels or other devices to get the spring cabbage crop growing a few weeks early. In summer, use temporary shade covers after transplanting fall seedlings into hot soil.

• Experiment with varieties, which can make a huge difference in the success of your crop.

• Give plants extra nitrogen just as small heads begin to form by drenching them with a liquid organic fertilizer.

Cabbage at a Glance

Open-pollinated (OP) and hybrid (F1) cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata) varieties have a range of sizes and maturation times.

Varieties marked with an asterisk can be grown at close spacing and produce softball-sized heads.

Type

Description

Recommended Varieties

Green cabbage

You’ll need plenty of space to grow big heads.

Crowding reduces head size, but miniature varieties such as ‘Gonzales’ fit in tight spaces in the garden and the refrigerator.

‘Farao’* (F1), 63 days ‘Golden Acre’ (OP), 62 days ‘Gonzales’* (F1), 66 days ‘Kaitlin’ (F1), 94 days

Red cabbage

These stunning red heads with white cores are slightly more nutritious than green cabbage.

‘Red Express’* (OP), 62 days ‘Ruby Perfection’ (F1), 85 days ‘Super Red 80’* (F1), 80 days

Savoy cabbage

Dramatic ruffled leaves surround a tender heart.

Fast-maturing varieties do well in spring, but savoy cabbage tastes sweetest in fall.

‘Alcosa’* (F1), 70 days ‘Deadon’ (F1), 105 days ‘Des Vertus’ (OP), 95 days ‘Famosa’ (F1), 68 days

Pointed cabbage

Small, elongated heads are surrounded by buttery leaves with a crisp heart. Easy to grow and loads of fun for the cook.

‘Caraflex’* (F1), 68 days ‘Early Jersey Wakefield’ (OP), 63 days ‘Filderkraut’ (OP), 95 days

To locate sources for these varieties, use our online Seed and Plant Finder at www.motherearthnews.com/custom-seed-search.

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8/21/18 11:35 AM