I straightened up from the soothing task of weeding the rows of baby carrots, rubbing my back as I watched my daughter perched high in the peach tree across the yard. She was meticulous in easing the plump ripe fruit off the branches, gently shooing away the yellowjackets when necessary, obviously drawn to the sweet [...]
Our experiment to leave some crops in the ground failed pretty miserably so far. Just when we needed to feed the masses, I went out to the garden, dug down through the snow, then through the hay… and struck rock hard frozen soil. I actually pried out a carrot that was about 3 inches diameter, [...]
With the first frost comes the need to harvest most vegetables. Our cold room is stacked with fruit and vegetables chilling out till it’s time to be eaten. Some vegetables can be overwintered in the garden , but there are a few steps to managing the crops that are left out in the cold. This [...]
There’s snow on the mountains, about a foot or so on Kootenay Pass I hear, this feels early, but maybe I’m just not quite ready for the onslaught. We are in the midst of harvest here in the Kootenays. Our house is full of stored, canned, ready to can, and dehydrated fruit and vegetables. The dehydrator is running as I write, Italian plums at the moment.
Regular readers will know that here at UrbanWorkbench, we’ve dabbled in all sorts of crops that are not regularly associated with the Kootenays. Last year it was wheat, oats and amaranth, this year we had great success with a bed of pink popcorn. With around 80 cobs of corn husked and drying, the next task [...]