Phaedra's Garden 2022

[Phaedra]

@Phaedra Geiermann , I was thinking about you. I realized that I shouldn't grow leaf lettuce bc my family won't eat it. So, I am thinking about asian greens, like boy choy and others. It looks like you have grown them.
What can you tell me about them? Thx!!

I only eat leaf lettuce when I make myself some sandwiches, DH and DD also have no love. But I still grow them - 10% purple-color leaf lettuce and 90% Romaine lettuce. Romaine lettuce is more welcome, as I can always pan-fry them with high heat for 15-20 seconds.

Asian greens are my major leaf crops, but I grew up with them. If you want to try Asian greens, it might be an idea to get some from the store and try them with your family. If there is anything you all show the green light, you can find the seeds for planting.
Most of them can crop in a few weeks - either as salad greens or you harvest the outer leaves gradually.

They are pretty shade-tolerate, or I should say, they prefer staying where without high temperature. So, spring and autumn are the best timing for them.

 

[Dahlia]

@Dahlia Agreed with duck, it might be a good timing to check the root now. It might be the root or the crown rot.

Thank you for the helpful article! I think it might be getting too much water.

 

[baymule]

Do Asian greens have to be protected from frost or freeze?
I used to live in Livingston , 40 miles south of where I am now. I could grow greens, cole crops, lettuce and onions all winter. I had a brick house, with beds up against the house. I also had a concrete driveway and sidewalk with beds between then and brick walkways dividing the space into beds. It got below freezing and sometimes it snowed, but I seldom lost any of the plants. I figure the brick and concrete gave gf some radiant heat and that was enough to keep the plants alive.

In Lindale, north of here, I couldn’t grow anything in the winter, it all froze and turned to mush with the first freeze.

It will be interesting to see what I can grow here in the winter. I have the metal frame to a hoop style greenhouse that I hope to get put up some day. No room in the present yard, have lots of more pressing projects to do first, but getting it set up is on my radar. LOL

 

[baymule]

I found a thread from 2014 that shows snow on cabbage in a bed next to the house in Livingston.Tried to copy just the picture, but phone wouldn’t cooperate, so you got the whole thread, with my northern friends making fun of our southern snow storm. Hahaha

 

[Phaedra]

Do Asian greens have to be protected from frost or freeze?
I used to live in Livingston , 40 miles south of where I am now. I could grow greens, cole crops, lettuce and onions all winter. I had a brick house, with beds up against the house. I also had a concrete driveway and sidewalk with beds between then and brick walkways dividing the space into beds. It got below freezing and sometimes it snowed, but I seldom lost any of the plants. I figure the brick and concrete gave gf some radiant heat and that was enough to keep the plants alive.

I didn't protect them from frost most of the time. Unless it's a strong frost lasting four, five, or longer hours, they can usually tolerate the cold. A cold frame or hoop style greenhouse should be nice enough. They will grow slowly, but not a problem to survive.

We have again some frost recently, several nights. But it didn't last long anyway. The purple Pak Choy is so lovely.

In Lindale, north of here, I couldn’t grow anything in the winter, it all froze and turned to mush with the first freeze.

It will be interesting to see what I can grow here in the winter. I have the metal frame to a hoop style greenhouse that I hope to get put up some day. No room in the present yard, have lots of more pressing projects to do first, but getting it set up is on my radar. LOL

 

[Phaedra]

I tried making another Bonsai this morning from a cypress 'Goldcrest.'

If gardening is a universe, I explore the "bonsai galaxy."

I guess I might laugh at myself some years later for this very first practice on the conifer family.

And it won't look nice until next spring, or next next, or next next next spring.
But anyway, I accomplished my first adventure in the bonsai galaxy.

 

[baymule]

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Sometimes you just have to veer off the beaten trail and make your own.

 

[digitS']

Do Asian greens have to be protected from frost or freeze?

I am curious if there are gardeners beyond a USDA zone 8 who would like to explore this in the brassica galaxy .

Our Winters often amount to zone 5, -15°f (-26°C) and colder.

Bok Choy can survive but only a few damaged plants that immediately bolt to seed with warmer weather. Neighbors planted a kale garden for several years. Unlike us, they made little use of the Scotch and Italian kale through the growing season. Big plants, both would survive the Winters.

Italian kale won't do that for us ... @baymule , recent Winters have been milder than zone 5 and Collards survive. So, we start out with only our Scotch kale and Collards.

Steve

 

[Phaedra]

I am curious if there are gardeners beyond a USDA zone 8 who would like to explore this in the brassica galaxy .

Our Winters often amount to zone 5, -15°f (-26°C) and colder.

Bok Choy can survive but only a few damaged plants that immediately bolt to seed with warmer weather. Neighbors planted a kale garden for several years. Unlike us, they made little use of the Scotch and Italian kale through the growing season. Big plants, both would survive the Winters.

Italian kale won't do that for us ... @baymule , recent Winters have been milder than zone 5 and Collards survive. So, we start out with only our Scotch kale and Collards.

Steve

Hi Steve, do you try the savoy cabbages? I didn't try yet because they are extremely cheap during wintertime. However, it seems that they are much more frost-hardy than other varieties of cabbages.

In my garden, kales and Brussels Sprouts are for the winter, but the winter here isn't as harsh as where you are.

 

[digitS']

I have grown Savoy cabbage ..

. but didn't try to overwinter them.

I like them, a step up from dense heading types, IMHO .

Cabbage has a lot of trouble with aphids in my garden. I didn't know that Savoy was more hardy. Maybe that could make a difference in trying to dodge aphids as, for example, if Fall planting could allow for heading before those insects become such a pest.

Steve