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| Chinese cabbage "Hilton" |
Saturday, January 30, 2021
In our Zone 6/7 garden, mustard greens, sage, sorrel, sage, cabbage, chard, carrots, thyme, oregano, garlic, chives, onions, lettuce, leeks, beets, parsley, sprouting broccoli and celery are all still green in our January garden with no protection. The peppers, basil, rosemary, stevia, moringa, lemon grass, eggplant, olive, bay and citrus plants over wintering in the unheated garage are also still green. Our kumquat is loaded with green and orange fruits.
To keep your cold hardy crops going as long as possible, be sure to apply a good layer of mulch in the fall. Frost forecasted? Here’s your to-do list Preparing for a hard freeze
Austrian peas are a great winter crop to grow for salad greens. I plant the seeds in the fall in pots. They stay green all winter long with no protection in the garden. You can plant peas for early spring eating next month, as soon as the soil can be worked. Time to plant peas!
Don't despair if your beet, leek, onion or carrot tops look a little worse for wear, the onion bulb and carrot under the ground are harvestable all winter. All you need to know about growing carrots Onions-everything you need to know to grow 'em All about beautiful beets
Mulch is not only good for retaining moisture and keeping the soil cooler in the summer, but does the same in winter, keeping the soil warmer. This lengthens the winter harvest and protects more tender crops so that they have a better chance of reviving in the spring to give an extra early spring harvest. As your mulch breaks down, it adds organic matter to the soil. Weed free, self fertilizing, till free garden beds
You can also use cloches, covers, and greenhouses to extend the harvest and get a jump on spring. Biggest watch out when using cloches and green houses is to open when the sun is shining and temps get above freezing. Temperatures can rise quickly inside the protection, killing the plant. A row cover has more breathability, but that also means it will not keep the plants as warm. See this blog for more on protecting plants Extend the season with protection for plants
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| Plastic row cover |
I use portable greenhouses to cover the pots that I grow salad greens in year round. This year, I also put in perennials that are hardy to Zone 8 to see if they survive our winter with cover. Right now, there is different lettuce, arugula, chard, Italian dandelion, celery, parsley, sprouting broccoli growing quite happily in the greenhouse. Even in the Midwest you can get fresh food year round by planting winter hardy varieties and/or using protective covers.
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| Salad greens inside a portable greenhouse cover |
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