I figure it’s high time to post some garden photos!
Here are some of my new perennial beds, built from reclaimed cinderblock taken from a demolition site:
The stick in the middle of the long bed to the left is an astringent Japanese persimmon tree. They really don’t get all that large so I figured why not include one in my garden?
Around it are various raspberry varieties I’m testing, along with some herbs, a perennial marigold, cutleaf coneflowers, and Lion’s ear plants for the pollinators.
In the long bed to the back is one of my moringa trees, a lemon balm, a variegated shell ginger and a Red Angel pomegranate tree with a birdhouse hanging askew in it. In the mulch of that bed I also planted a lot of turmeric roots which probably won’t pop up until May or so.
This piece of fence below will soon have a row of espaliered fruit trees planted in front of it, with perennial vegetables, berries and flowers interspersed beneath them:
You can just see the wire I strung earlier this week as a support for branches. The strip will be 4′ wide, with nitrogen fixers dotted amongst the other plants.
I think I’ll call it my Four-Foot Food Forest.
Very exciting. It’s going to be epic.
Now here’s a shot of my annual beds as seen from between the Red Angel pomegranate and the moringa tree:
Some of those beds contain turnips, cauliflower, collards, beets and daikons.
This is my main daikon/beet bed:
Here’s another angle:
Rachel has been using
the Whizbang Wheel hoe on the paths to keep them clear. I took photos right after she finished this section. It’s a seriously simple tool to use and makes hoeing a pleasure rather than a chore.
Speaking of things that aren’t chores… here’s a cauliflower we just harvested:
That clocked in at just under 2lbs and had a rich, nutty flavor that beats the tar out of anything I could buy at the store.
On the other side of the white fence where I keep some of my nursery stock, I have a couple of long beds I decided to create using plastic sheeting with holes cut for the transplants. They’ve done really, really well.
We have a lot of cabbages growing. They’re just so cool-looking in the garden I feel compelled to plant them over and over again.
Perhaps all the sauerkraut I make has changed the DNA of my brain, but isn’t this the most gorgeous thing you’ve ever seen?
I don’t know if I should say this… but my cabbage actually talks to me. In my mind.
Like… ALL THE TIME.
In fact… I think I can hear it talking to me right now…
CABBAGE: DAVID
Can you hear it? It’s… it’s…
CABBAGE: DAVID
I hear you, master.
CABBAGE: COME OUTSIDE AND FEED US
But… I’m working on my blog…!
CABBAGE: IRRELEVANT – YOU MUST OBEY
I…
CABBAGE: OBEY
Shop at Amazon and support Florida Survival Gardening
11 responses to “My gardens right now… and a mind-controlling cabbage”
Obey, David…Obey. :)
Resistance… is futile!
"I am cabbage of nine, Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix 1!"
Cabbages really do look beautiful. I stare at mine in the garden, too. Looks like you'll have some good eats this year, David.
Every year I marvel at the increase on our labor. I think my favorite cabbages are the savoy with the crinkly leaves. I didn't manage to get any of those this year.
Are the cauliflower leaves edible?
Yes. Sometimes a bit tough, but good. A lot like a collard.
how do you make your kraut?
My method is here:
http://thebrillianthomestead.com/rocket-stoves/recipes/making-homemade-sauerkraut-with-sandor-katz-plus-a-homemade-sauerkraut-recipe/
I'll often only let it sit on the counter for 3 days or so, then pop it in the fridge. Here in Florida I've noticed it sometimes develops off flavors with our warm climate. Chilling and waiting for a week or two after the initial 3-day makes for good kraut.
Do you ever plant anything in the holes of your cinder blocks? I have tried a few times, with limited success.
I have in the past… also with limited success.