Studiology

Efforts

Three days have passed with family members gathering over the passing of my mother-in-law. The viewing, the funeral, the reuniting of family members that have moved to places unknown. I've often felt like an outsider, the observer, a person hesitant to speak after many years and a large divide. 

This was a big family with 6 children, 5 still alive. Tumultuous years have come and gone with no mediator or peace maker. Yet this death made remarkable things happen. The brave felt grateful they had come. The effort was worth it. They met the youngest great grandchild, my grandchild  Quinn. We all learned things from a eulogy that was well crafted, a beautiful thing. It spoke of doing that thing that's so often the hardest, of crossing the divide.  

May all of your efforts be worth it in 2015. Happy New Year!

 

Happy Holidays

I am so grateful for family, a new grand-baby and my dear, dear friends. This year had some dark moments with the loss of Mona which makes me realize that every moment of every day is a gift. In that spirit I would like to share with all of you the best in holiday wishes, may you find kind people around you and gratefulness in your heart.

Plant Highlights for December

With a week to go before Christmas, it's nice to think that the outdoor garden isn't finished. The winter rock star is Helleborus niger or the Christmas Rose. White flowers open wide and flat and  as helleborus go, it's an extremely elegant family member. There are a few requirements to grow Helleborus niger well, biggest of all is a neutral to high pH. Gardeners west of here, Winchester and Berryville area would find their naturally sweet soil perfect. The rest of us should plan ahead by altering our slightly acid soil with limestone, added over time with some regularity. Secondly, the soil needs to be rich and deep, a manure based compost makes for a fine planting hole.

Flowering for Christmas is hit and miss, growers time the bloom for the holidays, although it's not off by much when grown in the open garden. A native of cold climes, it's best in a deciduous tree mix so that winter sun will coax more flowers, summer shade will reduce high temperatures.

Another plant, actually hardy bulb, is one particular galanthus or snowdrop named 'Potter's Prelude'. I bought 5 bulbs three years ago and have my first flowers this week. It's sold as a fall flowering galanthus, versus February flowering, but little did I expect Christmas week flowers. My bulbs were bought from Carolyn of Carolyn's Shade Garden in Pennsylvania. Here's a link to a photograph of a mature clump. My little clump has 2 flowers and I can't wait for it to spread. The story goes that a Delaware gardener, named Jack Potter, bought a box of galanthus which contained this very special bulb which is likely a hybrid. 

Of course mistletoe plays an important role for Christmas. A parasite that attacks weak trees, it literally grows or attaches to the branch, causing it to swell as it supports the new alien life. 

The berries of white are poisonous, although not nearly as deadly as the European species Viscum album. Local supplies generally come from North and South Carolina where it grows abundantly. Here in its northern range, it's uncommon to find the green clumps growing on tree branches. I have yet to find one bit of mistletoe on our farm in Loudoun County.  

As odd plants go, it's one of the oddest, along with a couple others that bloom at a time that seems challenging. With the shortest day of the year about to arrive, it's nice to know that Mother Nature gave us a little somethin, somethin.

 

Turning my Anchor into a Grappling Hook

A series of unforeseen events came one after another and knocked me down a few notches. My truck spent a week with the mechanic, so I was driving my husbands 'farm tag' truck, which severely limited my excursions. To and from work at the Christmas shop at Merrifield Gardens was the sum of my driving. That with decreased sunlight even hampered the walking of my dog, Duke. Everyone is miserable when the dog doesn't get his 3 mile walk. My health insurance ends on December 31st, no longer available in my zip code and then I caught the nasty bronchial cough that completely stops you in your tracks. 

Now that I'm on the other side of the virus, I'm feeling human again. My wallet is thinner, but my truck is back and lastly, I think (fingers crossed), health insurance is much improved. But during that long period, I had no desirse to share my dropped anchor tales. Seems I was catching every rock that came by and my real desire was to propel myself forward, which seemed impossible at times. Now I know that everyone deals with these things and it's easy to get bogged down.

While I was treading water, I spent evenings (and some late nights), altering children's books into collage pages. The characters I created spoke to my frame of mind. I can say that now as I see happier folk in recent pages. 

There are many things in my life to be happy about. A new grandson, born healthy and cute as a button. Art sales have been excellent. More light bulb ornaments delivered and lastly, my anchor is lighter, I'm looking up, ready to climb heights. 

I'm looking forward to reading this at some future date, knowing that it seemed like a week of downhill turns without hope. My efforts have been rewarded. 

Cold Crop Time

The simplest cold frame structure can produce delicious lettuce, kale and spinach through winter in our climate. A little protection from wind and extreme cold is easily done. Even bales of straw and old windows will provide an ideal environment and high quality yield. Spinach is quick, tasty, almost buttery when harvested fresh. Seeds need to be sown prior to days shortening to less than 10 hours. If not done in early November, sow in spring as soon as days lengthen, by the 1st of February we will reach days that exceed 10 hours. When buying seed, look for slow bolt varieties, I particularly like the Japanese or Asian types, super cold hard, although earlier to bolt. The taste is incredibly smooth, a bit more so than standard spinach.

 Lettuce can be sown continually. Succession planting with short harvest varieties makes for incredible variability. In our climate, the highly divided leaves of mizuna are a quick harvest, so much so that bolting occurs by February with a November sowing. As plants begin to bolt or flower, the taste will decline, you will notice a bitterness. Once the greens are refrigerated, the bitterness tends to decline. Some of the best varieties for Virginia are the butterhead, romaine and buttercrunch. Standard head lettuce is not worth attempting in our shorter, milder winters. Leave those for more northern gardeners who don't have the ideal climate we have for so many others. 

For variability, consider red mustard, its got quite a bite. The darkest leaves deliver a potent snap or bite, great for clearing the sinuses. Viola flowers make for a beautiful salad, rich in vitamin C, I love to sprinkle them in with my greens.

 A good bed of clean compost makes for the best sowing and growing. Slugs tend to be a problem, both from their love of the environment you've created and their love for your greens. The compost should be laid down to cover the existing ground, 1 to 2 inches deep (this depth thwarts slug invasion). Sow in rows, mark your varieties and keep notes. As you nibble your way through winter and spring, you will want to know what varieties work best for your cold frame and your palate.