Winter Gardening

Outside the wind is howling fiercely, the sun is shining brightly, the temperature is hovering around 19 degrees fahrenheit, with a wind chill factor of 5 degrees, snow lies everywhere on the ground, just as it has since our big snow storm on February 1, 2021. Late winter is always tiresome, like a guest who has overstayed their welcome. The exuberance of the first snow, the anticipation of a white Christmas and fun winter activities, give way to exasperation – when will it end? I want to curl up in bed and hibernate until the sun warms the ground and the spring bulbs start to appear. Recognizing it is not possible for me to hibernate, I am being practical and thinking about the vegetable garden.

This year we are planning to grow some exciting vegetables. I must get 30 different seed catalogs each spring. I have only requested 3 or 4, but once you are on a list the catalogs start multiplying like rabbits preparing for Easter! One of the striking things about looking through the catalogs is the variety of vegetables available. Johnny’s seeds, for example, has 13 pages of tomato seeds covering more than 100 varieties. There are red tomatoes, yellow, purple, green, orange and bi-color. For varieties there are: heirloom, beefsteak, paste, cherry and small fruited. When I go to the nursery they might have a handful of choices. When I go to the grocery store I can buy red tomatoes, large medium and small – how boring! This year our garden will feature things we cannot buy at the grocery store.

Rather than buy nursery grown plants, we have purchased tomato seeds and will start the seeds indoors. From Park Seed we have Midnight Snack, San Morzano and Candyland Red tomatoes. From Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds we will try Thorburn’s Terra-Cotta tomato.

When you think of a carrot what comes to mind? The ubiquitous Bugs Bunny chewing away on an orange carrot? Rows of carrots at the grocery store, all matching in their orange color? Carrots can be grown in shades of white, red, purple, and yellow. This year we will plant three types of carrots. From Territorial Seeds we have Nutri-Red, Purple Sun and Candysnax. We may not have enough room in the vegetable garden, so I am planning to grow them among the perennial flowers by the pool, using their lacy foliage as an accent.

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I am looking forward to baking a carrot cake with red or purple carrots!

Last week I baked a Pithivier using leeks, mushrooms and home made puff pastry. It was delicious. What was not delicious was the price of leeks at the grocery store. Leeks will be something new in the garden this year. We will try to grow two varieties from seed, Botanical Interest Seeds, King Richard and NE Seeds, American Broad Flag leeks.

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Another new addition will be brussels sprouts. Not everyone like brussels sprouts, but I like their rich flavor and they are very healthy for you. The way the sprouts grow on the plant is fascinating and I am eagerly anticipating this unusual sight.

Last year, we planted green and red peppers including, at Andrew’s request, a spicy chili pepper. It was far to hot for me, but not hot enough for Andrew. On tap this year are Burpee Seed’s Big Thai Hybrid Red Pepper. They will be a success only if they produce a 5 alarm chili taste or more scientifically rated using the Scoville scale of 50,000 to 100, 000. In other words, too spicy for me!

Of course, we also plan to plant the usual: watermelons, cucumbers, summer squash, butternut squash, cantalope, sage, basil, cilantro, and green peppers.

Now, I need to get busy and start my seed flats. What will you grow in your garden? Have you ever eaten a purple or red carrot? What is the hottest chili you can eat?