Spinach Archives - Page 8 of 9

I picked up a Territorial Seed catalog during yesterday’s trop to the local garden center. Based out of the Eugene, Oregon area, Territorial is often one of the main goto companies for varieties that do well in the PNW. I spent some time this afternoon going through the catalog and putting my order together. Each year I like to try a couple of new things, either new varieites or something I’ve never grown before. This year I am trying several.

Helda Bean
Historically I have grown bush beans as my main goal has been preserving them either by canning or freezing. I decided to try some pole beans this year. They generally produce over a longer season so there isn’t as much to deal with at once. This is good for spreading out the harvest to have fresh beans over a longer period but not necessarily good if you want to can a ‘mess’ of beans. I will also put in a row or two of bush beans so I can make a batch of dilly beans but the bulk of our beans will be pole beans this year.

I chose Helda (OP, BMV resistant) due to their short season (60 days), stringless nature and the fact that they are a romano bean. The vines get about 6-8′. Any higher would be a pain imo.

New Zealand Spinach
I’ve always been curious about New Zealand spinach. Related to the ubiquitous ice plant in CA, New Zealand spinach has been seen in Europe since the late 1700s. Some list it as a perennial that can be grown as an annual. I had always seen it as a heat loving spinach. Not sure we have enough of the heat it loves here but it is worth a try if it tastes like anything and won’t bolt as soon as the days start getting longer.

Palco Spinach Organic
Bloomsdale has been my go to spinach since I can remember. As I was browsing the catalog, I ran across Palco. It’s 38 days to maturity was a draw for me. It is listed as being slower to bolt and mildew resistant. Two issues I saw last year later on in the season. We shall see.

Kosmic Kale

The picture drew me to Kosmic Kale. The leaves are somewhat frilly, small and outlined in white. They are reminiscent of something we called ‘Bishop’s Weed’ in the Midwest at the leaf level. Unlike Bishop’s Weed, this perennial, bicolered kale boasts ‘cut-and-come-again’ harvests from this ‘highly-edible’ ornamental. “Highly-edible”…tastes good? Hmmm. Worth a try in either case. If it does turn out to taste good and hang out for an extended period of time I will be pleased and more than a little surprised. Aparently this one is propagated by root cuttings (hoping that doesn’t mean it can take over) I had to order a small seedling. The expected delivery is early April.

Sorrento Broccoli Raab
Again, a short time to harvest was the draw for me here. 40 days seems too good to be true. I was thinking that this abbreviated time to maturity might give me a Fall harvest that I didn’t end up getting with the broccoli I put in the ground last Summer. Broccoli-Raab is said to have a bit more bite than traditional broccoli which may or may not be a deal breaker when all is said and done.

Now that I have made my last seed order, my plan is to spend the next few days researching and putting together my garden chart. It won’t be too long before I’ll be planing some early Spring veggies and I want to be more organized this year. Since it appears that most of the kale I planted last Summer has overwintered I won’t be putting in any Spring kale. I’ll will end up starting some for next Fall come Summer like I did last year.

I had lived on Bainbridge Island, WA for about 3 months when I started looking around for a community garden spot. I love growing things and living in a condo severely limited my ability to garden. One can only fit so many pots on a balcony before it is either full or you or the people you live with start to complain. Though I had grown up in central CA, I learned most of what I know about gardening in the Midwest. Hot and humid Summers were the norm and watering was a must most years. I would have to relearn gardening here in the PNW. The climate was practically the exact opposite from where I had moved from. The pests I was used to dealing with were, for the most part, not an issue here.

After digging up some contact info for local community garden spots on the island, I sent out half a dozen or so emails in mid March of 2014. I had several responses offering to put me on a waiting list. Just when it started to look like any gardening I would be doing was on the condo’s tiny balcony, Anita of Rock Farm emailed me back to say that a spot or two was available at Rock Farm. Things were looking up.

A New Garden Spot - Rock Farm, Bainbridge Island, WA — A New Garden Spot – Rock Farm, Bainbridge Island, WA

I drove over to survey the garden plots and learn a little bit about Rock Farm, Anita and Phil Rockefeller’s gift to the community. An unbelievable amount of time, sweat and money have gone into providing a garden space for islanders that need one and providing food to the local food banks. When the economy tanked a few years back they wanted to do something to help local families and decided to devote some of their land to a community garden. They have built a beautiful garden with 12′ high deer fencing, wooden sides to contain the soil, running water, tables, a shaded spot to sit and enjoy the scenery and an herb garden for all. Each garden spot that is rented comes with an additional row that gardeners tend for the food bank. Anita orchestrates the planting and harvesting of the food bank rows so that the produce is staggered and arrives in a timely manner.

First Planting - Broccoli, Kale and Swiss Chard — First Planting – Broccoli, Kale and Swiss Chard

Fast forward a couple weeks after that first meeting and I was planting kale (Toscano and Red Russian), broccoli, Swiss chard, spinach, lettuce, peas, beets and radishes in my 10’x20′ garden spot.

Tag Archives: Spinach

Planning for 2015

A New Garden in the PNW