Winter Boxes

Cold Weather Planters

Having flowers on your stoop is necessary all year round, and in my opinion, ornamental cabbage and kale make excellent choices. There are many different kinds, and they pair well with evergreen grasses and winter pansies. Ivy adds a nice touch trailing over the edge.

Pictured here is an ornamental cabbage, variegated ivy 'Glacier',  winter pansies, and an ornamental grass Acornus* 'Ogon'.    

*Acorus is a neutral grass. Evergreen or neutral grasses are usually plants that look like grasses but aren't actually classified as grasses, they are generally called grass-like plants. Divide evergreen or neutral grasses and grass-like plants in spring only. Evergreen grasses don't ever go dormant. Dividing plants wounds them to some degree. For evergreen grasses this wounding will really affect their ability to live through the winter.

Pictured here is an ornamental purple kale, Acornus 'Ogon' grass, pansies, and ivy. I  threw a little Swiss Chard in this one hoping it makes it through some of the winter.

Gobble Gobble

On a side note....

The other day I was at Bartram's Garden staring out the window and two wild turkeys came up to the window. They were poking their beaks around at the plants pictured below. Their large size and  beautiful black and white feathers were truly a sight to see on a lazy Sunday afternoon!

Reap What You Have Sown

August is a great month for the garden. In my opinion, the best. After all that hard work planting, trellising, weeding, etc.,  by August, most people are ready to reap what they've sown.

Buttercup Squash, Fennel, Calendula,
 Victoria Blue Salvia, Nasturtium, Tomatoes

Nasturtium (EDIBLE!!) Flowers, Tomato Plant 'Black Prince',
Calendula in far back

Nasturium Flowers and Leaves, Plum Tomato 'San Marzano', Okra, 
Cherry Tomatoes, Tomatillos, Heirloom Tomatoes 'Ananas Noire,
 Heirloom Tomatoes 'Black Prince',
Pablano Peppers, Yellow Squash

Buttercup Squash 'Space Station', Yellow Squash 'Pic n Pic', Heirloom Tomatoes 'Ananas Noire ', Heirloom Tomatoes 'Hawaiian Pineapple', Tomato 'Black Prince',  Eggplant 'Rosa Bianca', Eggplant Purple Striped, (in the basket) Jalepeno Peppers, Serrano Peppers, Tomatillos, Okra,  Plum Tomato 'San Marzano', Tomatoes 'Moskovich'

Buttercup Squash

A Fruitful Harvest

Today's harvest from my suburban garden included.....

"Space Station" buttercup winter squash, "Giant Marconi" bell peppers, jalapeno and serrano chili peppers, yellow summer sqaush, Fennel bulbs, and one small Sweet 'n Heat pepper all on a bed of "Toscano" kale

Suburban Garden in Early July

The garden in July

I set up an "A" frame to stake the tomatoes

City Garden in June 2012

Tropical Hibiscus

Black Mission Fig tree in foreground

First Flowering of Hyacinth Bean Vine

Calendula- lady bugs love it!

Clockwise L to R......Pink Monarda (Bee Balm), Pink Sonata Cosmos (Lady bugs Love it!), Victoria Blue Salvia, Yellow Calendula, Cilantro, Chives, Arugala, more Victoria Blue Salvia

Vertical Lettuce Display

Vertical lettuce display for the Garden Terrace at the Belmont Stakes Horse race

 This lettuce display I made for the Belmont Stakes Horse Race. It served as a backdrop for the living salad at one of the catering stations of the horse race.

We didn't have enough time to make an actual living planted wall, so instead we inserted heads of lettuce to mimic what it would look like fully planted.

The boxes can be planted with seeds or starts and  grown in horizontally until the roots are established.

Tomato Trellises

From Left to Right.....Rosemary and Garlic in the foreground, "Black Prince" Tomato,  Cosmos, Achillea, "Moscovich" Tomato, and  Fennel (the cage is so the squirrels don't dig it up)

Achillea and Determinate tomato variety "Moskovich"

Here I've installed two tomato trellises in my raised beds. You can see I have reused some black wire fencing I had laying around and supported it with vertical wooden stakes. The tomato the to the right of the red flowering plant (Achillia  or Yarrow) is a  determinate variety called "Moskovich". Determinite tomatoes tend to be smaller plants than indeterminate varieties and produce all their tomatoes at once in a large batch and then they are done growing for the season. I used a smaller trellis for the Moskovich because a larger one will not be needed. However, in the back corner, I have an indetermintie variety named "Black Prince".  Here I have used a larger trellis structure because indeterminate varieties keep growing and producing the whole season usually until frost. So, indeterminte varieties get larger and need more support. I used generally the same set up as I did for the determinate one, however, I used a larger piece of fencing and more stakes becuase the plant will grow much larger. I also made sure there was a space of 6" between the trellis and the fence behind to insure good airflow. I used tomato ties to attach the tomato plant loosely to the trellis so the tie does not cut the plant and cause stress.

Here are some options for ties....

freshly planted

Is it time to plant Tomatoes yet?

These seedlings are hungry to get into the ground, and you are excited to put them there, but is it time to plant them outside? The most important thing to watch is the low nighttime temperatures.  Frost data tables for the Philadelphia region suggest that we can still get temperatures low enough to harm or kill tomato seedlings, even into May.  Fruiting plants in the Solanaceae family (tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers) really don't like to be subjected to temps below 50 degrees. Wide temperature fluctuations when plants are still seedlings causes stress to the plant which usually results in a slower growth rate.

Whether you decide to plant a little early or after the projected frost free date of May 15th, there is a process by which you should toughen a plant up to withstand low nighttime drops, called "hardening off."  This simply involves putting your plants outside while they are still seedlings in the sprouting container like the ones pictured above. At first, put the plants out for a few hours each day increasing the amount of time they are outside each successive day and after a few days they will be ready to be left out overnight.  Even the relatively small changes in temperature experienced this way should help to toughen up then new plants.  As long as the temperature stays above 55 at night its fine leave them out by their lonesome with no cover.  Once they are in the ground, they can still be protected from cooler temps (below 50) by covering them with a thin plastic tarp, paper bag, or upside down bucket.   Happy planting!

Freshly Tilled!

With all this nice weather I decided to expand my garden plot. It is now a whopping 17ft by 13ft.
This should be enough room to grow a decent crop without over crowding. Next step... an indestructible deer and rabbit fence! Then after that....lots of compost!!