Kale
Our fall garden is coming right along. The greens are all big enough to harvest, but the only thing we’ve been eating is kale. I need to make a big pot of mustard greens but am waiting on a frost to sweeten them a little.
It’s the first time we’ve ever tried planting cabbage in the fall of the year. We have over a dozen up and doing good so hopefully we’ll get a least a few heads.
The first turnips we planted could be harvested now, but again I’d love to have a frost before pulling them up. We have several other small beds of turnips coming on.
The one little row of carrots I planted are up about two inches. I’m worried they won’t get enough sunshine to do much but we’ll see.
Living on the north side of the mountain we don’t get a full day of sunshine in July, and during the fall and winter months we get even less in the back of the house where I planted the carrots. There’s a few places back there that the sun never hits directly from this time of the year on to spring.
That means if I do actually get snow it holds on a long time around the edge of the backyard that is closest to the ridge. According to the old folklore that says snow laying on the ground for three days is waiting for more I should have more big snows than I do 🙂
The radishes have done really good. I’ve been eating them and sharing with Granny and Miss Cindy. I need to plant us another row or two.
I planted kohlrabi and it’s up and growing.
The beets I planted never came up—I mean not one beet! This is the first time I’ve ever tried to grow them in the fall of the year. Maybe I planted them too early and need to try again now that it’s cooled off more.
Multiplying onions that we planted about a week ago are all poking green spears out of the ground so hopefully that means they’re going to do good for us.
Our weather has been really dry over the last few weeks. We did finally get some rain yesterday but it wasn’t much. I’ve been trying to water my fall things at least every three or four days.
The weather of this summer was entirely different than the last few summers. It was much more like summer used to be. The wet weather pattern we were in for so long seems to have changed, or at least it has taken a break for the last several months and that trend seems to be continuing.
Last night’s video: Breaking Beans & Catching Up in Appalachia | Fall of the Year, Long Goodbyes, and Granny.
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Tipper, it’s amazing all the things you plant. I enjoy hearing about what’s growing and how things are coming along. You do have a green thumb, that’s a fact. With food prices continuing to go up, you are really blessed to have such a variety of good things grown at home.
Like reading a hand-written letter from a beloved distant relative. A lovely way to start my day. Thank you, Tipper.
I’m always amazed at how much you grow, spring or fall. You have a green thumb for sure!!!
I live about an hour southwest of you in Ellijay. When would you suggest planting a fall garden? I wanted to plant lettuce and rutabaga, but I think its too late to start now. Any suggestions? Also, do you cover your dormant planting beds with anything to overwinter?
Thanks for faithfully continuing to blog. I don’t comment much, but your blog is always the first thing I read in the morning.
Cheryll-Thank you for reading the Blind Pig!! I would still chance planting lettuce and rutabagas. They can both stand some cold. We don’t plant anything on our beds but we try to add a layer of compost 🙂
do you not plant kale in the spring? Our kale has been providing greens all summer and will produce even through the late fall. Kale requires 2 seasons to seed so I expect to pick kale before I plow the garden in spring. and this is with extreme cold and snow we get. We had mustard that came up where it reseeded this week. Wife also picked some collard leaves off and we have a bowl of collard greens in the fridge.
Harry-most of the time we still have kale growing in the spring from the fall planting so I save typically don’t since we plant a lot of spring lettuce Love that your mustard reseeded!
I have found that I need to cover fall garden plants if temperatures overnight get into the 20’s or below. Cabbage can be frosted on and it will freeze outer layers with the freezing driving further in as temperatures descend below 32. The frozen leaves rot but there will be a solid core still. So I think you will get cabbage OK. If you have broccoli, the heads are bad to freeze if they are wet and if frozen they rot though the plant will live and can still make side shoots. Temperatures in the 20’s kill the lettuce pretty much with maybe a few scattered survivors.
I have not gotten anything from.fall plantings – too dry. Kind of a toss up how well the stunted plants will come out of it this late. My mustard and turnips are less than 3″ high. Carrots about the same. But hallelujah we are getting some rain this morning so things are looking up.
I sympathize with you about the shade. I have the same problem. I am using just about every bit of sunny ground, so much so that certain areas within the garden fence really don’t get enough sun to try to grow things. One of the advantages of a fall garden is that I start getting better light as the leaves fall. They are doing a really good job of that now because it has been so dry.
It has also been very dry in my area since May. We did have a little bit of rain yesterday. I planted my turnips greens around Labor Day right before a shower of rain and it has done nothing more than break through the top of the ground. Except for tomatoes, I did not get anything from my summer garden. One night the deer jumped a 61/2-7 foot fence and took care of my beans, peas and okra. The sweet potatoes crop has been bad this year for the ones that planted them, didn’t make many and small in size due to hot dry summer. I have noticed the trees are dropping their leaves early because of the dry weather.
Has anyone else heard the older folks call turnip greens “sallet” or say they need to be sowed by Aug. 15 in order to have turnips?
Randy, I have heard turnip “sallet” all my life. My parents, grandparents and so on. No one said turnip greens. It was always “sallet.” Glad to know someone else knows what I am talking about. And as far as sowing by August 15th, I do remember daddy sowing his bed sometime that month because it was still hot, and we hadn’t started school yet but that was a long time ago.
Tipper, while it’s not part of a fall garden – though it is fall now and it’s producing, so maybe I should take that back. It is something which I’ve never done, until this year, but absolutely plan to repeat.
I usually have had a couple-three settings of corn, spacing them around two weeks apart so that corn comes in over time. That would mean a first planting in late April, another in early May and maybe a third in late May. I don’t plant by the signs, so am not constrained in that regard.
But this year, I set out silver queen corn in early July. We’ve been eating it for three weeks now and it isn’t even hinting at moving into the more starch, less sugar phase. We’ve had corn that is dead in its prime over all that time. I had an ear yesterday that was as sweet as could be.
We’ll probably harvest and put up a run or two in the next few days, but I’m hoping to leave some on the stalk until we get a frost – just to see.
Don-that is wonderful! I wish I had a good place to plant corn.
If I had to guess where is Tipper, my money would be on she is in the garden! When you describe all the wonderful foods you grow (or are attempting to) I can clearly see you in my mind’s eye bent over, carefully inspecting each row with a keen eye and tender touch nodding with a grin or a disappointing head shake. I have Brussels sprouts still growing and I’ve never seen anything like these tall, slender cabbage looking things with not a sprout one. But hey, my give a hoot left without saying goodbye… lol. I think all your gardening is a wonderful thing and you excel. I got no idea what type of gardener I am, but it’s not that good. I’m a big believer in the old college try, however, so I will plug along be it ever pitiful… lol BTW are your new windows keeping the heat in and cold and noise out? Mine have already made a big difference here… Thank the Good Lord he made a way!!!
Great update on what’s happenin’ in your garden and life in general. I have never tried beets, but now that I have seeds, it is on my list for next year. Since we don’t have mountains, nor hills for that matter, there is sun on our garden area almost all summer and winner. I will be that your ‘get together’ meals are the best with your extended family. Be kind and share pictures for your next shindig. Take care and God Bless.
I marvel at how much you grow there on the side of the mountain! I was by yesterday afternoon and there on the counter were all the big jars of mixed peppers on the counter that you had just canned. They were more beautiful in person than on to computer screen. The vibrant colors are just stunning!
I have always loved radishes and thoroughly enjoyed the ones you shared with me!
The fall greens are really good!