Zone 8, California - Winter Vegetables ... ???

[vja4Him]

Does anyone else grow winter vegetables in Zone 8? Near where I am located? We just moved to Ceres, California (between Modesto and Turlock, which is about half way between Sacramento and Fresno), at the northern tip of Zone 8, near the southern tip of Zone 14, where we used to live.

I want to get started planting some winter vegetables before it's too late!

I am also interested in summer vegetables, flowers (all year long!), cacti and succulents (outside).

My main planting area is in the front yard which will receive mostly the afternoon sun, both southern and northern exposure.

 

[theOEGBman]

Hellooooo Neighbor...


Literally, I live in Ceres too!

I was shocked when I read your post, I've never seen anyone else mention Ceres. No one knows where the heck it is.

I have cabbages, brussel sprouts and celery in the garden now. I planted them a few months ago though.

Going through my book I keep, I planted onions on Feb. 8th last year and they did amazing. Walmart here in Ceres has onion sets right now, I was checking them out the other day.

I planted potatoes at the end of the month and they did great too, but my ground hardened and some of them are still down there!

I'll have to check out the book again and let you know when I planted what, if you'd like. My garden did pretty well this past year.

Its nice to see someone so close, maybe we can share tips!

Are you new to gardening?

 

[vja4Him]

Wow! What a small world!!! I've been gardening for many years. Started gardening in Oregon, then Washington. I've been growing plants in Modesto for around 20 years.

I just bought a bunch of green onions at Cost Less. I'm going to cut off the greens (use them in salad or soup), and plant the bulbs in a few days. I've done this for many years and it works great!

I still have lots of seeds. I will try planting mustard greens, spinach, Swiss chard, beets, radishes, turnips (and the greens), collards, kale, Chinese cabbage, carrots, lettuce, kholrabi and maybe something else .... I'm afraid it's nearly too late for some winter vegetables, but I might as well give it a try and see what happens.

I've had excellent success with Chinese cabbage and Swiss chard in the very cold weather and even the very hot weather!

Last winter I had problems with kale and mustard greens infected with what looked like little bugs that destroyed the plants.

I wanted to try peas this year, but I'm afraid it might be too late. Maybe I'll give it a try anyway and see what happens.

I like to experiment with gardening. I don't have any shady areas to plant in the ground, but I can plant on the east or west end of the house, so plants will get either morning sun or afternoon sun.

I was going to start digging several days ago, but we had too much rain. Maybe tomorrow will be a good time to start digging and planting some seeds .....

The plants that I transplanted from our old house seem to be doing well so far ... Hopefully the neighbor's cat will keep the gophers under control ....

Hellooooo Neighbor...


Literally, I live in Ceres too!

I was shocked when I read your post, I've never seen anyone else mention Ceres. No one knows where the heck it is.

I have cabbages, brussel sprouts and celery in the garden now. I planted them a few months ago though.

Going through my book I keep, I planted onions on Feb. 8th last year and they did amazing. Walmart here in Ceres has onion sets right now, I was checking them out the other day.

I planted potatoes at the end of the month and they did great too, but my ground hardened and some of them are still down there!

I'll have to check out the book again and let you know when I planted what, if you'd like. My garden did pretty well this past year.

Its nice to see someone so close, maybe we can share tips!

Are you new to gardening?

 

[vja4Him]

Jordan -- How long have you been gardening in Ceres? What is the coldest you've seen in Ceres? I was reading in the New Western Garden Book and it says that the record lows are 13 F! Will any winter vegetables survive temperatures that low?

Hellooooo Neighbor...


Literally, I live in Ceres too!

I was shocked when I read your post, I've never seen anyone else mention Ceres. No one knows where the heck it is.

I have cabbages, brussel sprouts and celery in the garden now. I planted them a few months ago though.

Going through my book I keep, I planted onions on Feb. 8th last year and they did amazing. Walmart here in Ceres has onion sets right now, I was checking them out the other day.

I planted potatoes at the end of the month and they did great too, but my ground hardened and some of them are still down there!

I'll have to check out the book again and let you know when I planted what, if you'd like. My garden did pretty well this past year.

Its nice to see someone so close, maybe we can share tips!

Are you new to gardening?

 

[theOEGBman]

Very small world!

I've lived my whole *almost* 20 years here in Ceres. I just grew onions for the first time last year, so I bought sets and I figure for $1.50, that works for me.

Last year on Feb. 8th, I planted beets, radishes, turnips, lettuce, carrots and peas. They all did well, the lettuce did extremely well. Believe it or not, the peas did produce quite a bit before I pulled them up. The carrots though, were a little tiny when I harvested them. They would have gotten larger, Im sure, but I pulled them up to get my garden ready for my warmer crops.

We dont plant our swiss chard in cool weather, we always plant it along side our squash, tomatoes and whatever else we have growing in our warm weather crops. I've never eaten it, but others in the house do. I just grow it because it looks nice in the garden.

I experiment as well. I've been in the garden since I was 6 weeks of age, so I've been doing it for a while. I grow new things every year just to try them and see. My garden is out in the open so it gets all the sun it needs.

I've been putting off digging as well because I have so much school work right now. I did get out today and weed maybe 1/3rd of the garden. I would have continued but my hand started going numb. I dont know if I will plant anything at the moment other than my onions, or just wait for my warm weather crops. School is keeping me busy and I dont want to neglect my plants. We'll see.

As for the cats... beware. I thought I'd be happy with that as well, but we have probably 20+ feral cats here that now thing my nice big garden is also a nice big litter box.

Nothing is worse than grabbing a dirt clod, squeezing it and realizing it cat poop!

Anyways, Im rambling! Im glad to know someone else in Ceres uses the internet! Hopefully we can compare and see which plants grow best in our area! Have a great day.

 

[theOEGBman]

As for the coldest it has gotten... I really have no idea! I remember it getting down to the mid 20's in December... but that is all I can remember. We got snow which has never happened before that I can remember, so I know it was cold!

I've been gardening for probably 12-13 years but this past year was the first time I've grown cool weather crops. So, your guess is as good as mine.

 

[vja4Him]

This is somewhat ironic .... Today, the 8th of February, I planted my first winter vegetables at our new place, here in the little obscure town of Ceres ....

-- Spinach (Bloomsdale)
-- turnips (Purple top)
-- Swiss chard (large ribbed)
-- Swiss chard (Ford hook)
-- Mustard green (Southern Curled)
-- Radishes (Sparkler)
-- Radishes (Icicle)
-- Cilantro
-- Green onions
-- Japanese radishes (Daikon)
-- Chinese cabbage

I have some extra dirt already worked up. So, if it's not raining tomorrow after work, I'll continue planting. Probably carrots, more greens, beets and lettuce.

Still have plenty of ground to work up for more planting later this week. I'd like to plant more cilantro and greens.

I have some jiffy pots that I can use to get my tomatoes and peppers started early .... Lots of space in the back for those.

 

[theOEGBman]

Awesome, I hope it all goes well for you!

Isnt it funny how tiny Ceres feels next to Modesto?

I always tell everyone if you blink while on the freeway, you go from Turlock to Modesto without even seeing Ceres.

Sounds like you have a good batch going. I am just not a huge fan of most of the cool weather crops, but others in my family love them. I got out yesterday and cleaned a large portion of my garden but I still have quite a bit of work to do. How large of a lot do you get to work on?

Now I have yet to master starting my tomatoes and peppers inside! For some reason, Im terrible at it. If you have any extras, I'd be happy to take them off of your hands.

 

[vja4Him]

Awesome, I hope it all goes well for you!

Isnt it funny how tiny Ceres feels next to Modesto?

I always tell everyone if you blink while on the freeway, you go from Turlock to Modesto without even seeing Ceres.

Sounds like you have a good batch going. I am just not a huge fan of most of the cool weather crops, but others in my family love them. I got out yesterday and cleaned a large portion of my garden but I still have quite a bit of work to do. How large of a lot do you get to work on?

Now I have yet to master starting my tomatoes and peppers inside! For some reason, Im terrible at it. If you have any extras, I'd be happy to take them off of your hands.

Actually, I've never started anything inside! Last year I planted some seeds my dad gave me in left over six-packs from the nursery (outside). Less than half the seeds matured into plants that produced fruit (tomatoes and peppers). I think I started the seeds too late though. It was around the end of June, or beginning of July, and the weather was so hot, the soil kept drying out. I'll try setting thet plants out early this year, maybe around early April. If I start the seeds soon, the plants should be just about right ....

I have several nice plant racks in front of two windows in the living room, and a large plant rack outside on the front porch. I'm hoping for good luck starting plants inside this year. I'll try starting some basil, tomatoes, peppers, and something else ...

If I have enough extra plants, you are welcome to have some .... I realliy don't have that much space for gardening. We are still waiting for the landlord to pull out huge roots and stump (three of them!). So, I can't even plant in that bed until he gets those out. That will give me lots of garden space. Also, I can't plant in the back until he puts in the two fences.

I want to make sure and have plenty of zucchini squash this year! My oldest son likes zucchini squash (one of the few vegetables he will eat).

 

[ducks4you]

, vja4Him -- pretty awesome that Spring has arrived at YOUR backyard! :rose