how to have greens all winter

one word: arugula!

i started planting arugula a few summers ago as a non-bolting replacement for lettuce when the heat intensified. but here it is, the last day of january and my arugula is still going strong...i mean really strong! this has been a mild winter with little snow, but the arugula has flourished and provided me with delicious salads for over nine months now.

i cant complain. arugula rocks!

container gardening

this year i tried something different in the garden: i planted every seed i owned! yeah: i am a hoarder of seeds because i buy a pack of 1000 seeds and plant six..then i have leftovers...lots of leftover seeds. so this year i decided to plant everything: every last seed. i now have (50) feet each of 12 types of pumpkins sprouting...9 varieties of winter squash ready to plant... italian parsley, sweet basil, swiss chard, arugula, radishes, chives, leeks, mixed greens, sweet, snap and snow peas , zucchini, fennel and dill in the square foot garden: all erect...eggplants (what?), multiple sweet, hot and decorative peppers growing rampantly...seven varieties of heirloom tomatoes including yellow pear minis...and sweet potatoes. speaking of potatoes: in the potato bags i have russet and fingerlings ready to bear babies, plus random blues and yukon golds ready to go. the strawberry and blueberry pots are doing their thing...and, oh: the onions...i have lots of spring onions. it truly is better to have a successful small garden than an unsuccessful large garden. no need for salad  greens for months...if not years, if i get it together. i just hope i can maintain this fantastic supply chain!!! note to self: buy deep freezer asap.

and the new arugula is...

last year it was reported that dandelions were the new arugula...i am not buying any at whole foods because i certainly have a good supply on hand! but something happened with the weather (hellish winter to immediate spring) and everything went from nothing to well, blooming...and dandelion leaves are a bit bitter for my palette after they bloom...really. so what i am trying to say is, i missed the dandelions again this year...but i was ready with the old arugula: arugula. the seed sprouted in three days, and it wont bolt like lettuce despite the 92° today.

love arugula: tangy, not bitter.

fall harvest from my 'square foot' garden

whereas my large vegetable garden which i worked so hard on was a complete failure (again), my august-planted square foot garden seems to be something of a success! i have been harvesting arugula for small salads and sandwiches for a couple of weeks, but today i plucked out radishes, a little sunburst squash and some pear tomatoes (volunteers: the ones i planted are red and covered in worm holes). also, the swiss chard looks great, and i have onion sprouts! this is very encouraging: i think i will be thinking small again next year.

today's menu includes stuff from the garden!

with all of this year's personal gardening disasters, there has been some success! the square foot garden i planted ten days ago is doing quite well (?). im not sure why: its august, 96° and we haven't had rain in a while, but i'm just going with it! i thinned the arugula and used the micro-greens along side tomatoes grown in sandy loam from my coastal virginia farmer o'bier to top off today's tuna-fish sandwich: super yummy! not sure if i can do anything with the beet greens i also thinned: i will let you know!