Monday harvest tally and frost casualties

In past years, no matter what else was going on, I had always kept up with the forecast, ready to grab the last pine nuts at the Harvest Coop and fire up the salad spinner and Cuisinart to get the pesto factory going. It was a family project that kept us up late, and the sharp aroma from bags of uprooted basil plants waiting to be "deleafed" would take over the kitchen.

Didn't someone mention frost last week? Maybe I read it in some other blog post or even wrote about it myself. In any case, the concept seemed far off in the future. Then on Wednesday morning I had to scrape ice from my windshield. Oops. Later that day in the Minton Stable Garden my fears were confirmed when I discovered what had happened to my basil (see below). Karen, another gardener, thought that I could still dry it and grind it up, so I pulled up and bagged the plants. I left the bag on the kitchen counter at home and got busy with other stuff, and the bag disappeared...That was the bad news. Luckily, there were no herb casualties on the home front, which was fortunate considering that the six basil plants in containers had grown taller and greener than their MSG cousins. Four had come up from seed while two had been purchased at the farmers market. For most of the summer I had thought that the German thyme I had sown next to the basil was a failure, until I realized that what looked similar to the low, scraggly thin-stemmed weeds taking over in my shady perennial beds was the thyme itself.The damage to these herbs was minimal to non-existent, probably because the trees, house, and garage near and around them provided some protection. I picked them in no time. My husband was in a pesto-making mood, so I left the task to him and I curled up under the covers with a book. After all, I was the one who had grown the main ingredients. However, I fell asleep before capturing a photo finish. The container of the green stuff is now in the freezer hanging out with the leftover containers from last year's more bountiful season.At the farmers market I noted that a bunch of basil that looked similar in size to our healthy harvest cost $2. I couldn't find any fresh thyme, but found a package with about the same amount at the supermarket for $2.49. Not enough to close the earnings gap, but anyway:

Previous benefits total: $138.69
1 bunch (estimated) basil at $2/bunch: $2.00
1 package (estimated) fresh thyme at $2.49/package: $2.49
New benefits total: $143.18

Current cost total: $171.57
New balance: -$28.39

Sometimes I wonder: if I had decided against investing in a grow light and bought flats of tomatoes and broccoli instead, would I have reported a profit? Probably, but the point of gardening for me has not been to save money on food--it has been to enjoy and face the challenge of growing better food, get exercise and fresh air, and be part of the gardening community. Besides, I still have a grow light. I don't want it to keep gathering dust until February. Any ideas (aside from cleaning it)?

And don't forget to check out the other harvest posts linked to Daphne's blog, if you'd like.

The benefits of gardening: Monday harvest tally

The encouraging news of the past week is that two of my tomato varieties, Cosmonaut Volkov and Rose de Berne, have grown with little or no rot or other issues. Some of the fruits are now the size of tennis balls; given the challenges presented by the rainy and unseasonable weather that's no small feat. However, they are still a shade of light green that would be perfectly appropriate if I were growing Granny Smith apples instead.Now to my Cherokee Purples: As you can see from the above photo of Saturday's soggy harvest I had decided not to wait until they reddened some more. I am showing you the more flattering side of these tomatoes. Turn them around or over and you would find soft rot, holes that may have been bored by some unidentified pest, or cracks. Actually, once I cut into one of them I discovered that the damage was not as extensive as I had thought. Hopefully these will stay fresh for another day or two and I can pick a few others to make salsa.

This past Wednesday I harvested the broccoli side shoots that are pictured below. At the farmer's market on Saturday, an organic grower was charging $2.50 for one of those square cardboard containers often used to package cherry tomatoes or berries. I estimate that my yield could fill half of one of those boxes.The pole beans keep coming, more than I had expected. They are still fetching 99 cents a pound, which is about the sum of the two harvests from the past week. As for the price of organically grown tomatoes, I have seen $4.50 a pound and $3 a pound marked down from $5, but I have decided to use the price of $4 reported to me last week by Daphne. Based on the weight of a tomato I purchased on Saturday, I estimate that two of my tomatoes weigh a pound, minus the blighted bits. So, this week's totals are as follows:

Previous benefits total: $100.49
2 pounds of tomatoes (4), at $4/lb.: $8.00
1/2 box of broccoli at $2.50/box: $1.25
1 pound of green beans at $0.99/lb.: $0.99
New benefits total: $110.73

Current costs total: $171.57
New balance: -$60.84

I hope the the Cosmonauts will land by next Monday so I can enjoy them and add them to the tally. Looking ahead, some of my basil, planted late, is now about 6 inches high, and my fall peas appear to have potential.

An absence of red

One of the growers I encountered this morning at the Roslindale Farmers Market had prepared an informative display about late blight in an effort to explain why there would be no tomatoes or potatoes for sale this year. Perhaps they were getting tired of being asked about the absence of red at their vegetable stand. Although there were some tomatoes available from at least one of the 4-5 growers on hand, most of the vegetables on offer were mainly green, with some white, purple, and orange. The effects of our mostly rainy, dreary summer continue to plague us.Though relieved to have escaped late blight, after a week away, I approached my tomato plants with much trepidation. First I checked what I had growing in containers at home. At the first glance of the green fruit all seems normal. I have come to expect them to be leggier and more behind because of the lack of full sun. I could put the planters on wheels and move them around all day and they would still not benefit from as much light as the ones I have planted in the Minton Stable Garden. But the real test was yet to come.

Like many gardeners, I would feel the bottom of the fruit hoping for a smooth surface, but this year I have had to lower my expectations. In almost every case my fingers would catch something rough or soft, or a hole of some sort. My heart would sink a little as I bent my knees and craned my neck to get a visual assessment, dreading the common condition of blossom end rot. I had never thought I would be relieved to discover a case of catfacing; at least I can cut that part away and enjoy the rest of the tomato. That is, if it ever turns red.My MSG tomatoes are a bit larger, including this Cherokee purple at about four inches across. Normally at this time of year, I'd be harvesting red fruit already and bringing them on a mid-August vacation somewhere, while begging someone to pick whatever becomes ripe while I'm away. Not this season. I'll be lucky if I can make a batch of salsa.Not anticipating any harvest today, I left my bags and containers at home. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find a few beans already, and even more broccoli, about a half pound, though it was on the verge of flowering. Unfortunately, there seems to be some rot on the stumps of where I had previously cut off crowns on the other plants. I haven't checked the plants more closely to figure out if it is being caused by mold or some pests; I'll be back tomorrow to have another look. Hopefully it doesn't affect the chances of edible side shoots.I'll end by returning to my not-so-scientific tally of how much I've been earning on my harvest. I won't include the two pole beans until I get more, but all of the broccoli I harvested. At the Farmers Market organic broccoli was selling for $2.50 a pound. Also, I'll have to add to my expenses by including the basil plants my husband picked up to make up for our lack of a fresh supply.

Previous benefits total: $92.75
2 1/2 lbs. of broccoli at $2.50/lb.: $6.25
New benefits total: $99.00

Previous costs total: $167.07
2 basil plants purchased at Farmers Market: $4.50
New costs total: $171.57
Current balance: -$72.57

I'm looking forward to enough pole beans for a side dish and to close the gap a little more. After I finish this post I'll check out some of the other blogs and experience some tomato envy.

Plot update: Better Late Than Never edition

First, a news blast that, by the time I publish this, will be old news, but I have just learned that the Sounds of the Garden concert scheduled to take place in the Minton Stable Garden at 6:30 tonight has been canceled due to the weather forecast. It has been rescheduled; once the date is confirmed I'll post it here and, of course, it will appear on the MSG website. It's a shame that the show won't happen tonight; I had missed Lloyd Thayer's performance last year so I was happy to learn that he was scheduled for this season's show and that tonight worked for me. I'm not sure if the new date will.

So, instead I'll blog about the usual. Life in my plot has been moving forward. The black-eyed susans are dominating as they did last year, the echinacea volunteers I inherited last season are proving themselves as an excellent cut flower. My Kentucky wonder pole beans are reaching the top of my trellis (see the rear of the above photo) and a few flowers have already appeared.

But the most encouraging news of my Monday photo shoot was about some plants that are behind schedule, due to the spring weather extending into summer and late sowing. They seem to be coming along nicely and I have decided to remain optimistic about the long-term.First, a few of my tomatoes are now bearing fruit. I have six plants in my MSG plot (I had planted out five, but when I cleared away my spent peas, I discovered another that had self-seeded--based on previous years I suspect cherry tomatoes). Only my two Cherokee Purples have reached this stage, but given the weather we've had and other gardeners' reports of blossom end rot, I have decided to look at the glass as half full.

Next, the sweet basil I planted a month late out of despair because the seeds I planted at home were not thriving are coming up. Unless we get a ridiculously early first frost, I am confident that they will amount to something harvest-worthy.

Finally, it appears that I'll have a small patch of zinnias after all. I should probably clear away some of the invasive California poppies and black-eyed susans and give them some more sunlight and growing room.I spent a little time on Monday weeding, a process made easier because of the effectiveness of the salt hay I had spread around earlier. The strawberries continue to spread into the other areas so I have to remain vigilant. I cleared out some more of them to make way for my new raspberry patch. It's not clear if I'll see any berries this season but based on the fact that the plants that Asa put in last year bore fruit, I wouldn't rule it out.

Update on my plot

As much as I liked being away, I was eager to check in on my plot in the Minton Stable Garden upon my return, especially now that summer has decided to grace us with its presence. I had been concerned that the tomatoes that I had nurtured from seed (for a change) would fall victim to this year's scourge, late blight. Last week, Kathy, another Boston-based blogger, published a photo of how her tomatoes were affected, and since then has reported that her potatoes are also showing signs of damage. Fortunately, I haven't seen any brown spots or rotted stems on my plants in my MSG plot, though there are a few brown spots on a few leaves of one of my plants growing in containers on my front porch. My most advanced is this Cherokee Purple shown here, which has started to flower but can probably use some pruning.My pride and joy of the week is this broccoli which is forming a head, currently four inches in diameter. Actually, all five plants are at a similar stage but this head is the largest. The tomato stems you see in this photo are courtesy of my next door plot neighbor (Not Asa, but the other abutter, whom I still haven't met). Like last year, we are once again on top of each other in some places, though another gardener and I were speculating that her tomato plant shading out my broccoli may be beneficial in this summer heat. I am not used to having such success with broccoli so I'm a little unsure of when to harvest. I'll probably not be eating at home the next two nights, so no later than this weekend, I think.In other vegetable news, my pole beans have started making their ascent, and I have harvested another half pint of peas, though they are pretty much done producing. To no surprise, my remaining two heads of Romaine lettuce have bolted. The sweet basil I planted from seed a month ago in some boxes along a wall behind my house are failing to germinate, so today I planted a row of seeds in my MSG plot where some my lettuce had grown. Better late than never, I suppose. Despite a freezer at home still clogged with pesto from last year's harvest, a year without basil is unthinkable. I may also buy a flat or two to transplant in some containers at home.

My yield has died down a bit since the strawberry-and-lettuce rush, but I still have a little to report since my last tally two weeks ago. Half of my snap peas developed into snow peas, which were selling for $2.99 a pound at the Harvest Coop this week, less than the $4.59 that the snap peas fetched before my Canada trip. So even though my methods for reporting are not so scientific, I'll try to make some adjustments to preserve some amount of accuracy and integrity.

Previous benefits total: $87.07
3/4 lb. snap peas at $4.59/lb.: $3.44
3/4 lb. snow peas at $2.99/lb.: $2.24

New benefits total: $92.75

Total costs so far: $167.07

Current balance: -$74.32

We'll see what the future brings as far as harvested broccoli, pole beans, and tomatoes. The other gardeners I've run into this week are bracing themselves for blossom end rot and more blight. Why do we put all of this effort into our tomatoes (especially heirloom) when the risks of problems are so high? Anyone who has compared a store-bought tomato to one grown at home or even locally knows the answer.

The costs of gardening: 2009

In a post a few weeks ago, I summarized a few studies on the monetary benefits of gardening.  More and more people are growing their own food, with many seed companies reporting a 20 percent increase in sales.  Not only do many gardeners prefer fresher, more flavorful produce that they know hasn't been sprayed with some unknown pesticide or shipped hundreds or thousands of miles, they believe that they'll cut their food expenses as well.

I've decided to do my own research on the costs and benefits of growing vegetables and fruit over the upcoming gardening season.  Starting with this post, I'll be reporting from time to time on how much I've spent on my own gardens--both community plot and backyard--and come harvest time, calculate the value of my yield based on local prices for similar produce.  I can't promise accurate results.  There's always a chance I'll forget to factor in some expense such as potting soil, and I won't include the costs of tools I already own, or estimate how much I was billed for watering the backyard.  But I'm curious.  Despite all of my years of gardening, I've regarded the activity a hobby, giving little thought to the financial consequences.

My first expense for the 2009 gardening season is this tabletop grow light from Gardener's Supply.  In the past I've had mixed success starting seeds; despite locating my peat pots or plastic trays of tomato seeds in a sunny window, the soil never seems to get warm enough to sustain them, and I've ended up with stringy seedlings that droop over and fail to thrive.  So with the help of a $50 gift certificate, I was able to purchase this modest set-up for $94.48.

I took up a friend's offer to go in with him on tomato seeds.  For others, I placed an order with Fedco: snap peas, spinach, lettuce (romaine and Buttercrunch), broccoli, sweet basil, and thyme.  Subtracting the flower seeds from the order, the total plus postage came out to $16.50.

So, the expenses so far:

Grow light $94.48

Seeds $16.50

Total: $110.98

We'll see if I can avoid buying flats this season, though I wouldn't turn down a few donations.

The year in gardening

The year is almost over, and the reflection virus has been unleashed.  Top ten lists are dominating print and online media--the top ten movies, the top ten news stories, etc.  Regarding the gardening season, I have collected my own data on what has and hasn't worked, and made resolutions for 2009 as I put my community garden plot to bed.  Here are my lists, not in any particular order, with a few links to past posts.

The top 5 successful plants in my plot:

1.  basil

2.  June-bearing strawberries

3.  Sungold tomatoes*

4.  eggplant*

5.  California poppies

The top 5 failures:

1.  watermelon* (my daughter really wanted to grow it, but I had my doubts)

2.  bell pepper*

3.  fall lettuces* (Bibb and Romaine, planted too late)

4.  the other heirloom tomatoes* I planted (some had ripened but not without rot, catfacing or other problems)

5.  Scarlet Nantes carrots (they had been covered for a while by squash leaves from a neighbor's plot, and I harvested only about a half dozen)

*started in pots by others, and transplanted

Resolutions for 2009:

1.  Provide more supports for tomatoes, especially large varieties like Brandywine.

2.  Contain the strawberries so they don't spread like crazy.

3.  Grow the following:  green beans (haven't head of any Mexican bean beetle infestations lately, and Curtis's crop left me envious), spinach, brussel sprouts, and broccoli (mildly successful in my backyard, would like more).

4.  Skip the following:  peppers (not reliable), carrots (not reliable plus cheap to buy anyway), and some squash varieties that take up too much space.

5.  Start more plants indoors and sow more varieties into the plot, when possible.

6.  Mulch earlier to combat the spread of pigweed and other weeds.  Try to find salt hay before it becomes scarce.

7.  Plug some important gardening reminders into my calendar (such as starting my fall lettuce earlier, from seed).

8.  And finally, keep up the blog.  The exercise in blogging has helped me expand my knowledge of gardening and connect with other gardeners.  Now that I have a better camera (a Christmas present) and some experience, I hope to reach out to more gardeners and deliver more informative and relevant posts.

Happy New Year!  If you have any thoughts or resolutions, please share them.

Last chance

So this is it, according to my husband who was listening to the weather forecast this morning.  He called me from his car and told me to get the rest of the basil out, as tonight's temperature will plunge into the 30s and a frost has been predicted for Northeastern areas as far south as Connecticut.  Since he's in New York I guess that will be my job.  There's not much left in our plot but we have some in planters out back.  A friend of mine suggested drying it in the oven, but some believe that freezing it with a little oil will better preserve its flavor.

Update on my plot

It appears that the major frost around here has not occurred.  Nevertheless, I harvested about half of my basil last Friday and made two batches of pesto.  I may have a little bit of time left, maybe a week, before I need to pull out the rest of the basil.  No such urgency is necessary for the few carrots growing nearby; I'd like to wait until I can see the orange peeking out of the dirt at the base of the plant.  We'll see what contorted shapes have developed, though the soil this year hasn't been that rocky.  In years past some of the carrots appeared to have developed legs and even an arm or two before being pulled.

I've plunked down $3.19 a flat at Allandale Farm in an effort to achieve what I've failed to accomplish by seed--a fall lettuce harvest.   The seedlings have been tucked away in unclaimed sunny corners, wherever the strawberry plants and the black-eyed susans haven't taken over.

One sunflower snapped over after a rainstorm in early September and I felled the other last week because it had stopped blooming.  Now my zinnias have better access to sunlight.  As long as the multicolored blooms keep popping open, I can handle the slow death and decline of my garden as the cold breezes and other sensations of fall become harder to ignore.

Get them out

Here are some perennials from my backyard that I'm planning to bring this Saturday to the Perennial Divide, a Boston Natural Areas Network event that takes place each spring and fall at the City Natives nursery and community garden in Mattapan (another Boston neighborhood).  My understanding is that you can take away as many plants as you put into this swap.  I've brought home columbine and spider plants in past years, but this year I hope to be more strategic.  So far I've divided and dug up a couple of Japanese ferns (one I plan to give to a friend), a more native variety of fern, a hosta, a pulmonaria, and a lily of the valley.  And maybe I'll put a little more thought into what I should take away.  My long-term plans for the MSG plot involve increasing space to grow more vegetables and maybe a few raspberries, so I'll probably focus on a greater variety of shade-dwelling plants for my backyard.

If you are trying to build gardens on a budget, getting donated plants divided by friends and family is the way to go.  Prices vary, but a japanese fern can cost around 12 bucks, and hostas can range from a few to 20 dollars a plant.  I don't think I've ever bought a hosta or a white nancy, and, ironically, the bee balm and echinacea plants that my friends and mom have divided for me have survived much longer than the plants I've bought from a nursery (although transplanting the latter during a July heat wave probably didn't help).

While on the subject of getting plants out of the ground, I'm wondering if I should pull up the basil sooner rather than later.  Forecasts indicate that we might be getting a frost this weekend, though it seems more likely for northern New England.  Some friends of mine on the Cape made their pesto last month; they attest that if you wait longer, basil that has been exposed to colder temperatures at night taste "like silage."  I wonder how they'd like the pesto I made in October 2007 that's still in the freezer.