Spring!

I only found out that I was a good part Irish a few years ago, but St. Patrick's Day has always been one of my favorite celebrations.  It is the time to plant peas on Martha's Vineyard.  It is also the time to start seedlings at the greenhouse.  In the germination box we have tomatoes, letttuce, basil and lobelia sprouting. Peppers have been planted and herb boxes are started.  I'm sure that it is no coincidence that the color of Saint Patrick's Day is green.  Soon the shelves in the greenhouse will be a river of green.

Planting Parties

       When you enter the greenhouse this Wednesday, you will hear a lively chatter. You will also smell the delicious odor of Thalia's homemade soup.  We are planting geranium plugs for our Spring Sale.  We have red, pink, orange and purple geraniums that need to be put in 4" pots.  We also need to start our herb boxes.  We have been collecting clementine boxes that we will fill with herbs.  We have thyme, sage, garlic chives and greek oregano planted.  Basil needs to be seeded.  Bring any other ideas to the planting party.
      Soon to follow will be heirloom tomatoes.  I met with Chuck and Thalia to discuss the varieties and my mouth couldn't stop watering from the descriptions Thalia gave us.  We truly have a spectacular selection coming and I can't wait to start planting.
     Speaking of planting, Thalia started the greenhouse tomatoes.  We have Arbason and Trust and the little babies are coming up nicely.  I transplanted some into 4" pots today.  It was so warm in the greenhouse that I was in a tank top.  If you need a taste of sunshine and warmth as well as home made soup come to the greenhouse.  There is still a lot of lettuce and the nasturtiums are going crazy.
      Only 11 days to pea planting!  Has anyone tried to turn the soil yet?

Fueled by a Dragon's Eye

Warning! These are the ramblings of an obsessed gardener fueled by the fire of a dragon’s eye.  The tatsoi and the pak choi are bolting.  These are my thoughts in the moonlight.  When does a seed germinate?  Have you ever noticed that you wake up to see those little sprouts in the morning?  Something is germinating in my mind.  This blog must emerge.  I look over at the profile of my sleeping husband. His eyes are open and I whisper, “It sure is bright.” And he says, “It’s the dragon’s eye outside the window.”  It’s 9 degrees outside and the sky is crystal clear and the moon that is not quite full is shining directly on our bed.  On the internet yesterday, someone asked have you ever thought about planting on a moonlight schedule?  Hogwash, I thought.  But indeed something is germinating by this moonlight, my husband’s poetic nighttime images and this blog! 

            Back to the bolting tatsoi and pak choi.  Things are happening in the greenhouse.  The winter over broccoli raab is finally flowering.  Chuck and I were trying to decide what had made it begin to flower.  Then I noticed the pak choi.  Some of them are still little, barely enough to eat and they are starting to bolt.  The tatsoi is lush and in its prime but I noticed a funny rosette in the center and know that I will soon see the bloom. I did some research.  Pak choi and tatsoi are from Thailand where they resist bolting because the days and nights are much more equal in length.  When the daylight hours lengthen, they will begin to flower.  Yes, despite this frigid air the days are getting noticeably longer and the plants in the greenhouse are beginning to awaken to the approaching spring.   Unfortunately, this means we must pick the tatsoi and pak choi before it becomes inedible and that we must wait until fall to plant and enjoy it again.

            There is another rustling in the greenhouse and that is the sound of seed catalogs.  We are ordering our seeds for the year.  If anyone has any suggestions please send a comment as soon as possible.  Planting parties will soon be happening again on Wednesdays.  Some herbs have been started but there is a lot of transplanting that also needs to be done.  The greenhouse is lovely on these cool clear days.

             I made a great stir fry of brocolli raab, pak choi, tatsoi and swiss chard.  Sauteed with 2 cloves of minced garlic, a splash of tamari and a spoon of tahini. 

             There is still a lot of mizuna and mesclun.    Have you tried mache.  It has 3 times the vitamin C of lettuce, omega 3, B vitamins and more iron than spinach.  Come get these vegetables they need picking.

I just visited the greenhouse and harvested mustard greens, kohlrabi, lettuce and arugula.  It was beautiful there today, warm and sunny and the nasturtiums are blooming.  The produce looks healthy and lush and shows no signs of stress from the frigid air that has hit us the last few weeks.  I got my electric bill and it said the average temperature from November 20 to December 20 was 39 degrees.  That was 6 degrees lower than last December.

The days are longer and I just saw the beginnings of  blossoms on the broccoli raab.  We are growing an overwinter variety and I’m not sure whether the cold or the longer days have triggered the buds.  We are also trying a purple sprouting broccoli this year.  It also winters over and we should have some small purple heads in the spring.

Right now there is plenty to pick including swiss chard and kale.  These seem to be favorites.  We have started new lettuce seedlings and there is red romaine and butterhead to be picked.

The salad shown is baby arugula, pear, and walnut.  The nasturtiums are edible and slightly spicy. Enjoy!

The annual Christmas party was at the Admiral Benbow Inn in Oak Bluffs.  It was a great success.  The present swap was as silly as ever and Betsy brought the cocoa she succeeded in securing to our membership meeting in mid December.  We are calling the new fund to reglaze the greenhouse the Top Hat fund.

Happy New Year!!  May 2011 be as green as this year.

Greens, Glorious Greens

After rereading the last two blogs, I couldn't decide if this blog was about gardening or cooking!  At least, until someone pointed out to me that if you love cooking and eating then you love fresh vegetables.  I truly think the love of gardening came first and that the need to be creative with the abundance brought out the cook.  At least that is the way it happened with the mustard greens last week.  I had never cooked mustard greens.  So I put mustard greens in the search engine and off I went eagerly reading through the many recipes that popped up.  I think I already mentioned that my husband is a meat eater and I had already made him a vegetable soup with the kohlrabi.  So I decided to try a stir fry with a little beef in it.  I went to Reliable and round steak was the best buy so that is what I used.  I'm sure it would be good with chicken or tofu.

Beef and Mustard Stir Fry
The important thing with a stir fry is to get all the food prepped first.

¾ pound thinly sliced beef
1 lb. mustard greens washed and torn into bite sized pieces, stems removed
2 thinly sliced green onions
2 cloves of garlic minced
1 tsp. mustard seeds

Mix.
1 cup of broth with
2 tbsp. cornstarch,
 2 tbsp. soy sauce and
1 tsp. of honey

Put 1 tbsp. of peanut or grapeseed oil in a frying pan with the mustard seed and heat until the seeds start to pop.  Add the mustard greens and fry until tender.  Remove to a bowl.

Put 1 more tsp of oil in the pan and stir fry the beef, onions and garlic until the beef is brown.  Put this in the bowl with the greens.

Restir the cornstarch mixture and put it in the frying pan and cook constantly stirring until it thickens.  Add the greens mixture back in a serve over hot cooked brown rice.

Look at the Streptacarpus now!  We are going to start leaf cuttings to make hanging baskets for the spring sale.  Come Monday around 10:00 AM.

The Lovely Purple Kohlrabi

     I had never eaten kohlrabi, but that picture in the seed catalog had me hooked, that funny bulbous stem of a luscious purple color.  Anything that beautiful had to taste good.  So I bought the seeds and they were surprisingly easy to grow, and they grow in the spring when we are anxiously awaiting our tomatoes and green beans and in the fall when the tomatoes and green beans have succumbed to the frost.  They don't like heat and they don't like those pretty little white butterflies or at least the caterpillars.  We had a difficult time in the greenhouse this fall.  Many seedlings were lost or seriously delayed due to the caterpillars.  Everyday when I came into the greenhouse I stared at the little seedlings trying to get them to tell me what was the matter.  Finally, one of the unfortunate caterpillars was large enough for me to see hiding on a vein.  Everyday there after, I was a voracious caterpillar picker and finally our seedlings made a come back and we are now getting some kohlrabi big enough to eat.

    Last year I grew kohlrabi but I didn't know how to eat it.  I tried it raw.  Delicious!  I tried it grated in a slaw.  Not bad!  I also tried it steamed with cheese sauce.  Also, quite good.  And then I visited my friend, Hannah.  Hannah was a math teacher at the high school with me.  She and her family have moved off-island and I don't get to see her very often, but when I do, what fun.  Hannah shares many of my passions, but especially math and gardening.  

     Recently, Hannah and Peter bought their first house in America.  Hannah and Peter were Hungarian; they have recently become American citizens after a very long process.  They told me about the beautiful ceremony that they participated in and it made me proud of this country. 

    Well, Hannah has turned her whole backyard into a vegetable garden.  Unusual in this country, but anyone who has traveled in Europe has seen those marvelous backyard gardens.  One day I was visiting Hannah and she decided to make me kohlrabi soup.  Kohlrabi soup is a staple in Hungary.  Peter remembered eating it at school everyday for lunch, (actually with not very fond memories as might be true with anything you eat everyday.)  I asked Hannah for her recipe.

Here it is. I don't the exact amounts of each ingredient, as I do it by feel.

3 - 4 small kohlrabi
2 carrots
oil
flour

sour cream (vegan)

vegetable broth
parsley.

Cut up the vegetables and fry them with a Tbs. or so of oil over medium heat. Sprinkle about a Tbs. of flour over them, stir, and fry for another 30 seconds. Add water or broth. Cook until vegetables are tender. Salt to taste. Add sour cream - how much depends on how creamy you want it. Mix in fresh parsley chopped into small pieces.

The soup was delicious when she made it and even Peter thought it was really good.

So I decided to make kohlrabi soup for my husband, Arthur and myself.  Hannah is a vegan.  Arthur is a meat lover, but even more important to him is onion and garlic so I added them to the recipe with a little celery.

Here is my recipe: 

1 T. butter

1 onion chopped fine

1 carrot chopped fine

heart of celery chopped fine

3 kohlrabi stems chopped- leaves removed

Sauté until limp.

Add 1 T. flour.  (I added gluten free garbanzo bean)

Sauté until the flour browns a little.  (I have read that this is important in Hungarian cooking as it also is in Cajun cooking.)

Add about 4 cups water or broth.

Cook until the vegetables are tender.

As the kohlrabi greens are also good to eat.  I removed the stems and cut them in ribbons and added them to the soup.  (I had to add more water when I added the tops.)

I then added parsley.

When I served the soup I put a dollop of sour cream on the top.

As this recipe may not be very Hungarian anymore, I have decided to call it American-Hungarian Friendship Soup in Hannah and Peter's honor and in honor of all they have accomplished in this country they love so dearly.  Thank you, Hannah, for being my friend.  Thank you, COMSOG, for letting me grow this beautiful and versatile vegetable.

 

Green Bean Eyes

Today in the greenhouse I was talking to Chuck McBride, the manager, and he said that he hadn't noticed how well the creeping phlox transplants were doing because he only looks to see if the soil is wet or dry.  I told him I know exactly what he means because I have "green bean eyes".  I can always find the beans that no none else sees, because I am looking for that specific shape.  I said, "That must mean you have "dry soil eyes".   Gee, "green bean eyes" sounds so much better. 
It made me start thinking about how much we miss in life if we put on our "green beans eyes".  Although I must admit they do serve a purpose, if you absolutely need to get a job done. 
Today I did some recycling.  It seems to be a job that nobody really enjoys doing.  Betsy Cabana is the group leader in this endeavor.  Many people now return their used 6 packs and 4 in. pots to the greenhouse.  If you do, we ask that you rinse them first.

There are some magnificant Streptocarpus baskets hanging.  So get on your "greenhouse eyes" and look at the beauty that surounds you at the greenhouse but don't forget to pick some heads of lettuce!