Winter Hardy Plants

I just read the greatest article in Mother Earth News. If you don’t read that magazine, you really should.  It is a great source on how to grow food! Anyway, here is something I had never thought of: grow your own winter hardy veggies.

Now this will not work for the summer veggies like tomatoes and squash, but the cool weather veggies have a shot at this. It makes sense in that it is just natural selection, but here is how it goes.

Plant your fall garden as usual. Harvest the product like normal, but leave just a bit on each plant. The ones that survive a serious freeze are the seeds you want to save.  Isn’t that the most incredible and simple idea? I love it. The whole article is great but here is the link to the specific section I referenced: http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/fall-garden-zm0z11zmat.aspx?page=5

Good luck on your fall garden; we have had a rugged time with our summer garden this year. We moved just at the beginning of the garden season and then we had horrible heat. You just can’t water enough when it is 114°F to make plants happy. In fact tomatoes will not set blossoms at that temp. So I am really looking forward to fall.

It is finally getting cool enough to plant the fall crops; it takes awhile for the soil to cool off enough to make the broccoli and spinach happy. We now live far enough south, that I can plant cool weather crops in late August or early September.

 I am going to plant corn salad again this year too. This great green is also called Mache, so if you can’t find corn salad, look it up by that name. These greens have a great flavor and will tolerate a much cooler temp than normal lettuce and spinach will. We like the corn salad that grows as rosettes the best, but we eat both kinds. It is a great addition to any food supply garden. Mache can stretch the season without the need for a cold frame or a tunnel. 

Tullamore Returns to the Celtic Ozark Music Scene

Tullamore, one of my favorite celtic ozark music groups will be returning to the SW MO Celtic Heritage and Music Festival on September 10, 2011. Read more....http://ping.fm/Qv0v1

Keeping Tomatoes Alive in High Heat

Keeping tomatoes alive in high heat is very difficult. Tomatoes are tropical plants so they love hot weather, but they do not like brutal heat. These super hot days are hard on every living thing. Especially when there is no real cooling at night, there is just no rest for anything.




We hit 114 in Arkansas yesterday which was record heat.  It is unbelievable. This has been a hard season for us to grow tomatoes. We had a cool wet spring in Missouri which rotted the first batch we planted. Then we moved to Arkansas, still in time to plant tomatoes, but late. Our plants look great, just really setting good blooms and now into the blast furnace.



So what can you do to save your tomatoes? Healthy plants have the best chance of surviving. So if you have any sick plants you have been babying, you may have to have a hard heart and let them go. Keep your plants healthy by watering at the base of the plant and not on the leaves. This helps prevent mold and rust. This will also conserve water. We don’t have water rationing yet, but that may be coming. Keep the garden mulched to help prevent evaporation. This also cuts down on weeds that will compete with your tomatoes for water and food.



A drip irrigation system is really the best for a large tomato patch. However, if you have just a few in a square garden type of arrangement, you may want to water twice a day morning and mid afternoon, by just pouring the water around the bases of the plants. I use a clean milk jug. This lets me put the water only where I want it. I can also add some worm tea or compost tea if I want to.



Do not fertilize during the brutal heat. Let the plant rest as much as possible when it is incredibly hot. When it cools off again just a bit, you can fertilize if you need to. If you have just a few plants, a sunscreen may save your plants from the unrelenting sun. Let the plants get the morning sun and put the sun screen up around noon. This will let the plant get enough sun for photosynthesis, but save it from the brutal afternoon sun.



Just remember, fall is coming and that has potential for more fall garden goodies. It's not easy to know how to grow your own food in this kind of climate. So remember: not every year will be the optimal growing year. It certainly makes bumper crop years a true blessing.

Keeping the Celtic Ozark Garden Alive in Summer

Keeping the Celtic Ozark Garden alive in summer is no easy task. In the cool of the morning, I wake up and take a short stroll through the vegetables and flowers that make my life so rich. My heather has long since not been too happy. The heat of the mid west is too much. The thyme, rosemary, and oregano are also struggling a bit. That is why I have these plants in a semi-shaded section of the garden. I water them in the morning, only using water that has been heated by the sun (and cooled some at night).

Cold water straight from the hose can often shock plants, and prohibit natural growth. In addition, and I don't know how scientific this is, but I notice more issues with blossom rot with really cold water. As I go around and water my tomatoes, green peppers, and the like, I also make sure I am not watering the fruit or blossoms, whenever possible. The wear and tear on my back yields less issues with fruit trying to grow in the heat of summer.

At times, we also use cotton muslin, old sheets, or cheese cloth to create a kind of temporary cover for the fruiting plants. The white cloth allows sun to get through, but cuts some of the intensity of the blazing sun. In Missouri and Arkansas this year, we are having record heat, so we have to do extra things to keep the Celtic Ozark Garden alive.

Soon, it will be time for the squash bug to return to the garden, and so we will be watching for them, always watching....always!

Ray Province
Celtic Ozark Garden.

Do Some Fall Food Supply Gardening

The month of July officially starts the beginning of the fall food supply garden. And food supply gardening does not stop, just because summer is coming to an end. In fact, many parts of the United States will have good weather well toward Christmas.
In the Ozarks, it is certainly got enough, but it will not be too hot to start the process of growing food in the fall. There are garden plots to prep and fertilize, seeds to propogate and start, etc. So, get yourself a cool glass of sweet tea or lemonade, and let’s grow some food this fall. Knowing how to grow your own food supply would not be complete, if we let go of several months of growing season.
Read on at http://ping.fm/1Qg0E

Joplin Tornado and Possible Help From Your Garden

Dear Friends,

As you know our Ozark neighbors in Joplin have been hit by an EF-4 tornado. So many folks have no home to live in. A large number of wonderful volunteers have made their way to Joplin to help their neighbors. All these people will need to be fed.

If you are starting to get produce out of your garden and live close to Joplin, please consider donating any extra produce that you have. Some outlets will include local churches and food pantries. The situation is very dynamic at this point, so there will be many opportunities provide food. It is amazing how healing a bit of normalcy can be in this type of devastation. A fresh spinach salad or fresh leaf lettuce can bring back some happy memories plus provide much needed nutrition in a suddenly torn apart world.

If you still have garden space, consider tossing in some extra tomato plants, green beans, squash, and herbs. There will be a need all summer to help these folks. It will take time to pick up all the debris, get new houses built and get the infrastructure back to normal. People who normally helped local food banks and church-based relief activities may now find themselves in need of help. It is time to pay it forward if you can.

If your garden is too small to provide any extra that is okay. I am sure our neighbors would appreciate your prayers. The numbers of people who lost their life is absolutely mind numbing. Their families will need the comfort that only the Great Healer can provide. Unlike the produce which is perishable and needs to be grown close to the disaster, prayer has no expiration date. It can be transported over many, many miles without any wilting or spoilage.

Thank you for considering planting an extra row of crops to help. Thank you for your prayers and help. While I don’t live in Joplin, my heart aches for my neighbors and I so appreciate any comfort you can give these folks. Blessings to you and yours.

Ray Province, the Celtic Ozarkian
www.celticozarkian.com

Ten Thousand Missouri Gardens

If you live in Missouri and have a garden, do I have the website for you. The state of Missouri is trying to get 10,000 new gardens registered across the state. This project started small with a goal of 1,000 gardens several years ago. That goal has been met so it is on to bigger and better goals.

All gardens are welcome to be registered. You don’t need a huge truck garden to feel comfortable in this group. Any garden is welcome to apply. Whether you are growing food for your family, or flowers to feed the birds and butterflies, take a look at this site.

Actually, that is one of the reasons I love gardening. I can grow great tasting food for my family and have a little corner that produces food for the birds. I love growing sunflowers for the birds. Some people place net bags over the heads of the growing sunflowers to keep the seeds safe. I however, just let the birds eat them whenever they want them. It doesn’t necessarily make for the prettiest sunflowers, but I feel good about feeding the critters. It is my garden and I can grow it my way.

If you haven’t started your garden, it is not too late. In fact we are moving this summer so I don’t have a summer garden in this year. For the first time in forever, there are no fresh tomatoes coming from my labors. However, we will be settled in time to start a fall garden this year.

I may get in a few tomatoes before it is all said and done, but I plan to buy the majority from farmers markets this year. However, I will be planting rosemary and thyme as soon as possible. Then as the summer starts to cool, I will be planting lettuce, spinach, peas, and some corn salad or mache.

If you don’t have space for a garden, consider growing a small garden in pots. Herbs love to grow in pots, and there is nothing like fresh cut herbs to brighten any sauce or salad. I love to grow rosemary both inside the house and in the garden. I keep a pot of rosemary on the window sill for a quick snip for a sauce, a dice to throw in a loaf of bread that is rising to bake, or to toss a couple or sprigs on a baking chicken. It is so fast and easy and really makes a huge difference. I even just brush the leaves gently to release a wonderful aroma as I am standing at the sink doing dishes. All of that from one little pot of rosemary that I got on sale at my local nursery at the end of the season.

If you have a garden space but it has been too wet to get your tomatoes in, have no fear. Go ahead and plant your tomato plants now. It is really to late for seeds, but tomato plants will catch right up with your neighbors in the coming hot days. In fact, we have still had some pretty cool nights that have slowed down the growth of any tomatoes already planted.

Now is a great time to get beans and squash in the ground. If you can just find a day when the ground is dry enough, it has been a bit rough in this part of the Ozarks this year. But that is the life of a gardener. Too much rain, not enough rain, hail, and strong winds always make being a gardener a challenge! Speaking of challenges, here is the website I promised. Sorry I got so wordy; I just love all aspects of gardening. http://ping.fm/M1DNO

Ten Thousand Celtic Ozark Gardens

If you live in Missouri and have a celtic ozark garden, do I have the website for you. The state of Missouri is trying to get 10,000 new gardens registered across the state. This project started small with a goal of 1,000 gardens several years ago. That goal has been met so it is on to bigger and better goals. So, why not have as many as possible registered as Celtic Ozark Gardens

All gardens are welcome to be registered. You don’t need a huge truck garden to feel comfortable in this group. Any garden is welcome to apply. Whether you are growing food for your family, or flowers to feed the birds and butterflies, take a look at this site.

Actually, that is one of the reasons I love gardening. I can grow great tasting food for my family and have a little corner that produces food for the birds. I love growing sunflowers for the birds. Some people place net bags over the heads of the growing sunflowers to keep the seeds safe. I however, just let the birds eat them whenever they want them. It doesn’t necessarily make for the prettiest sunflowers, but I feel good about feeding the critters. It is my garden and I can grow it my way.

If you haven’t started your celtic ozark garden, it is not too late. In fact we are moving this summer so I don’t have a summer garden in this year. For the first time in forever, there are no fresh tomatoes coming from my labors. However, we will be settled in time to start a fall garden this year.

I may get in a few tomatoes before it is all said and done, but I plan to buy the majority from farmers markets this year. However, I will be planting rosemary and thyme as soon as possible. Then as the summer starts to cool, I will be planting lettuce, spinach, peas, and some corn salad or mache.

If you don’t have space for a garden, consider growing a small garden in pots. Herbs love to grow in pots, and there is nothing like fresh cut herbs to brighten any sauce or salad. I love to grow rosemary both inside the house and in the garden. I keep a pot of rosemary on the window sill for a quick snip for a sauce, a dice to throw in a loaf of bread that is rising to bake, or to toss a couple or sprigs on a baking chicken. It is so fast and easy and really makes a huge difference. I even just brush the leaves gently to release a wonderful aroma as I am standing at the sink doing dishes. All of that from one little pot of rosemary that I got on sale at my local nursery at the end of the season.

If you have a garden space but it has been too wet to get your tomatoes in, have no fear. Go ahead and plant your tomato plants now. It is really to late for seeds, but tomato plants will catch right up with your neighbors in the coming hot days. In fact, we have still had some pretty cool nights that have slowed down the growth of any tomatoes already planted.

Now is a great time to get beans and squash in the ground. If you can just find a day when the ground is dry enough, it has been a bit rough in this part of the Ozarks this year. But that is the life of a gardener. Too much rain, not enough rain, hail, and strong winds always make being a gardener a challenge! Speaking of challenges, here is the website I promised. Sorry I got so wordy; I just love all aspects of gardening. http://agrimissouri.com/gardens/gardens10K/join . So, let's get your Celtic Ozark Garden in today.

Celtic Ozark Heather

Celtic Ozark Heather is one of my favorite herbs in the garden. It is also a favorite ingredient for a Scottish brand beer that I brew. Keeping in my garden here helps me to think about the healther and mountain thyme that covers the mountains of far away Scotland.

It is a happy growing plant in nothern Europe and the British Isles because of its ability to handle cold, and thrive in rocky soil. So, you may have to really work at this plant if you are too hot an area. Heather is not real happy in most of the Ozarks.

If you want to take a crack at adding this plant to your Celtic Ozark Garden, you will need to have an acidic soil. The plants grow best in soil with an acidity of pH 4.5 – 5.5 (slightly acidic).
If your soil is pH neutral (6.5 – 7.5), you'll need to raise the acidity with soil additions. Chemicals such as elemental sulfur or gypsum (calcium sulfate) work well.

As a general rule of thumb, this plant needs at least half a day of sunshine. More specifically, plant the heather in a location where it will get at least six hours of sunlight, and up to twelve if planted in a sunny-but-shady area. Afterall, the plant is used to growing on the sides of sunny mountains. If it gets enough light, it will produce more brilliant colors in their flowers and leaves. Too little sunlight will make the plants leggy and dull their colors.

Heather should be planted in either the spring or early autumn. Plant them in open areas that get some airflow. You can plant them from seeds, layerings, or cuttings. If you want to grow one from a cutting, take the cutting from a healthy plant in August. Plant the heather in a space that is two times as large as the root system, so it has some room to grow.

If you use mulch, use an acidic one, like pine straw, peat moss, or leaf mold. If planting in the autumn, evergreen boughs make good winter mulch. Depending on the exact type of heather plant you choose it will flower between late July and November.

Fertilize your heather with a rhododendron acid based fertilizer when you first plant, then just leave them be. This plant can be very sensitive to over fertilizing. Water your heather a couple of times a week for the first couple of months. After that, they should get pretty happy on just the rain they get from Mother Nature. Remember, they thrive on the side of mountains, which can be almost desert like, in terms of water.

Let us know about how your heather does in your Celtic Ozark Garden.

Now is the Time to Plant Tomatoes

Now is the perfect time to plant tomatoes in the Ozarks. Yes, I know that some folks already have their tomatoes in the ground, but we have had some really cold weather. One of the things to remember in how to grow your own food is to find the optimal planting time. Tomatoes are a tropical plant and they do not thrive until the temperature is consistently above 55 degrees at night.

I usually hold off on planting tomatoes in our part of Missouri until Mother’s Day week. By then the temperatures have usually stabilized at night enough to be safe, although we did have frost in spots last week. It will be close to 90 degrees this week with high humidity, but we had frost last week! Welcome to the Ozarks.

If you don’t have a garden spot, but you do have a sunny porch, then consider tossing a tomato in a large pot. I have consistently grown tomatoes in pots with great success. I love to toss cherry tomatoes or Roma tomatoes in a pot close to the kitchen door. I love tossing warm cherry tomatoes fresh from the garden right in the salad for supper. What a treat on a hot summer day.

Look for a nice big garden pot for your back porch tomato. Select a tomato plant that is at least 6 inches tall and looks vigorous. Fill your pot with nice rich potting soil and amend it with vermicompost. Tomatoes love a rich soil. I grow my own worms, so I have a nice supply of vermicompost. If you’re new to growing your own food, making your vermicompost may be something you might want to consider down the road.

You will want to bury your tomato plant deeply in the soil. I always gently pinch off all the leaves except the top two on my tomato plant. Then bury the plant to with in about ½ inch of the leaves. The goal here is to plant the tomato as deeply as possible, but still have the leaves up away from the soil. You do not want the leaves to get wet.

Now is the time to put your tomato cage on. I always forget to put it on until the tomato is big enough to need it if I don’t do it now. Trust me, if you plant your tomato when it is warm and water it faithfully, you will need that tomato cage faster than you imagined you would.

Always water your tomato plant at the soil level. Do not let the water run over the leaves. Now you are thinking “but it rains on the top of the leaves” and I agree with you. But your tomato plant will be healthier if you don’t get the leaves consistently wet. We typically get infrequent rain in the Ozarks in the summer time. So there are not many chances for the tomatoes to get wet leaves naturally.

You will need to water your tomato plants in pots very frequently. In July, when my tomatoes are producing heavily and it is very hot and dry, I usually water my tomatoes in pots twice a day. You can adjust that as needed depending upon the rain and the heaviness of your soil. Tomatoes don’t like to be too wet, just a nice consistent amount of moisture.

In addition to the vermicompost, I always add a nice sprinkle of Epsom salt for the added magnesium. Epsom salt is inexpensive and readily available. I usually add more midway though the season to my plants in pots because the extra watering will wash out the magnesium. Do not add to much at one time as a time saver because it will interfere with the calcium uptake. Your tomatoes need both elements to produce fruit and thrive.

Even if you only have a tiny space, you can grow at least some of your own food, by throwing at least one tomato in a garden pot. You won’t get enough to can, but you will get enough fresh tomatoes to supplement your diet. In addition, you KNOW exactly what was put on your food. You raised your own tasty veggies, and picked them at the peak of freshness. It is hard to get veggies any fresher than that.

Tomatoe Tricks from My Dad

It will soon be time in the Ozarks for me to plant tomatoes in the Celtic Ozark Garden. We have had them growing in a green house for some time now. Our goal is to get them to around 8 inches tall by the time they hit the ground in May. In the Celtic Ozarks, the weather is not warm enough for tropical tomatoes until early May. We are, in fact, just reaching our last potential frost date. The lettuce may love this hot/cool weather, but the tomatoes will not. So, avoid the temptation to run to Wal-Mart and grab the tomatoes, unless you can keep them in full sun indoors, or in a green house. Once your nights can stay above 50 degrees, the tomaotes will be happier. That's a trick my dad taught me early.

Another trick my dad taught me was how to grow big tomatoe plants, and I have to say that the secret is getting a big root system. When my plants get to be 8 inches or so tall, I have enough plant to turn them into big roots. Once it is time to plant, I dig a trench around 5-6 inches deep. I strip off any branches on the tomatoe plant that are not part of the top most leaves. Then, the whole plant gets put into the ground, except for 1-2 inches of the top. Now all that plant will start a root system like none other. That's another trick my dad taught me early.

I will blog about more soon. If you would like to read more of these tricks, though, you can check out this article on Food Supply Gardening.com. It will take you further into the plan. Here is to having big tomatoes come from your Celtic Ozark Garden.

St. Patrick's Day Celebration Buffalo Missouri

Come enjoy some Irish Celtic food and entertainment at the St.
Patrick's Celebration being held on Friday evening, March 11th at the
O'Bannon Center on Ramsey St. in Buffalo, MO. The fundraiser is for
the ninth annual SW MO Celtic Heritage Festival and Highland Games.

Dinner begins at 5:00 PM with a dinner consisting of Corned Beef and
Cabbage, Bangers & Mash, Irish Stew, Irish Soda Bread, and an
assortment of Celtic desserts, coffee and tea for $7.00 per plate, or
advance tickets are $5.00 per plate. Following the dinner will be an
auction offering over 40 Branson show tickets and attractions and
round off the evening with Celtic entertainment beginning at 7:00PM
There will be music by Jon Reneu, Sarah Hook, Irish music by Nancy
Daily Green, Irish dancing; Bagpipes by Daryl Dickerson and an
appearance by the infamous, Scotty the Fox. All these entertainers
will be performing at the 9th annual Celtic Festival which will be
held here on Sept. 9th and 10th.

Broccoli in the Celtic Ozark Garden.

It is time to think about broccoli in the Celtic Ozark Garden. BROCCOLI (Brassica oleracea Cymosa) is a yummy vegetable that deserves a place in any Celtic Ozark Garden. I hope that you will consider adding it this spring. Here are the basics you need to know.

The big heads of broccoli you see in your store is of the 'Calabrese' type. By far, it is the most popular type of broccoli grown. Buy seedlings if you have never grown broccoli before, as you will have a better chance of good growth. If you want to get experimental, you will need to start your seeds soon. You can start the seeds 8 weeks before your last frost, to give them time to grow. You’ll need plenty of sun, as the shoots emerge. You can also plant the seeds a month before your last frost, and let them take in the garden. Sow the seeds directly into the soil about ¼”, and let them do their thing.

Modern hybrids are fast growing, and if they are subjected to prolonged stress of drying, they may form tiny heads prematurely, and the plants come to nothing. That is why I always recommend that you use an heirloom style seed. You may not get a head of broccoli the size of a football, but you stand a better chance of getting a nice overall crop.
You need to provide a fertile soil and don't let the soil become dry. You can look through the archives of my blog for my soil recipe for raised bed gardens. I touched on this subject in the last blog. Add plenty of lime for the broccoli, as they like a pH 6.5 to 7.5. That is their 'ideal' range.
Plants growing in Spring, especially late spring, are prime targets for the green caterpillars that come from the white butterflies in your garden. A light netting can help to keep the butterflies off your broccoli. In about 90-100 days, your crop should be ready to go.

Sprouting broccoli can also be a good alternative crop to grow. Not many people grow this heirloom variety. You can find green, purple and white varieties of the plant. We like the white variety, because it looks a bit like cauliflower.
Spring is the time to grow this one. Sow the seeds directly into the soil, as noted above. You will need to watch for insects. But here is the cool payoff: your crop should be ready to eat in around 45-60 days. The small heads of the sprouting broccoli plants make it easy to go and pick just a portion for supper. You’ll have to grow plenty for freezing, as this crops is easy to use every day, leaving less for real food supply type considerations. Ah, but what a feast in the meantime.

Spring is the time people in cooler areas should sow sprouting broccoli. It is grown through the summer and carried over winter, for an early spring production the year following sowing. The advantage of sprouting broccoli is that, while it is not cauliflower, the white forms produce cauliflower like curds more easily than growing cauliflower itself, and the multiple small heads means that the serving sizes are right, with no waste. The disadvantage is the long time it sits around in the garden before it does anything.

There are a couple of other varieties of broccoli, but I will confine this installment of my blog to the two types I use. Good luck with your broccoli crop, and I will blog more soon from the Celtic Ozark Garden.

slainte,
Ray Province
The Celtic Ozark Garden
www.celticozarkian.com
www.celticozarkgarden.blogspot.com

January in the Celtic Ozark Garden

It is well into January in the Celtic Ozark Garden. Yet, spring seems like it will never arrive. I am ready for the Spring Gardening season to begin. Luckily, there is something I can do to help soothe this itch to garden. Now is the best time to get ready for your Spring season vegetable garden.

Spring vegetables are those that can thrive during the shorter days and cooler temperatures of spring, Lettuce, collards, snow peas, cabbage and broccoli are a few examples of Spring vegetables. The Celtic Ozark Garden will also include onions, carrots and potatoes, because they can grow underground.

As a general thought, vegetables need around seven to eight hours of sunlight to get going. Spring vegetables will even do okay with just 6 hours of light. If you are planting in partial shade, take this into account.

Make sure your soil is ready to go also. If you are a fan of raised bed gardens, as I am, have your frame ready to go with half of your old soil, 25% manure and 25% compost. The leavy vegetables of the Spring Celtic Garden will love the manure. Be careful with too much manure, though, around your carrots, onions, and potatoes. You want roots, not leaves.

In my area, it can take as long as April 30th to get past the last frost. Until then, I have to really watch my garden. I plant anyway around St. Patrick’s Day with root vegetables. Here is a breakdown of some last frost dates. Zone 3 – May 31, Zone 4 May 30, Zone 5 April 30, Zone 6 April 30, Zone 7 April 30, Zone 8 March 30, Zone 9 February 28, Zone 10 Jan or before. Zone 11 are the lucky bugs, they are frost free throughout the year. A good additional source of local, reliable advice is your area's County Cooperative Extension Service or check with knowledgeable members of local gardening clubs

I will write again soon on when to plant the vegetables. Until then, happy gardening, and don’t forget your seed order!

Spiced Peach Cobbler

Today we have decided to use up a quart of the wonderful spiced peaches we canned last summer, in the form of a spiced peach cobbler. The peaches were really meant for Celtic Christmas dinner, but we forgot to set them out. I guess it is a curse of getting older.

Canning fruit from the summer is a great way to enjoy the tastes of summer all year long. We put away a bushel of peaches last July. That has given us a dozen wonderful quarts of product. Fruit is very easy to can, because you do not have to own a pressure cooker to do it. The natural sugars help to create an envirnoment that keeps out bacteria.

My favorite cobbler is the dump cobbler recipe that my father used to make. I have seen his cobblers go for $10 a piece a church bake sales, and he died in 1989. So, that should give you an idea of how popular they are. The recipe can be found at the Celtic Ozarkian.