Little marvels, and the not-so-marvelous

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Little Marvel peas forming on the vine

The pea pods are beginning to swell with their precious pearl-shaped orbs inside. I don't have many pea plants this year -- only about 7 or 8 plants grew from an older packet of Little Marvel peas I found in my seed stash. Numbers-wise, it's a less than marvelous crop. We'll most certainly have fewer peas than last year, hardly enough for a meal, but we'll at least have a few token ones to taste.

While it always helps to start with fresh seed, good soil helps too. The germination of our peas was probably hampered by our less-than-stellar soil. We planted in topsoil purchased from Home Depot last fall, and it really needs help. It's sandy, dry, and apparently lacking in nutrients.

A sure indicator of the soil's infertility is my radishes. They've been sputtering along for at least two months now, and all I have to show for it are these puny, thumbnail-size nubs. Radishes are said to be one of the fastest and easiest plants to grow, but mine are the most pathetic little radishes I've ever seen. Little marvels? Not so much.

Strawberries: One for you, one for me

Thursday, May 08, 2008

I wasn't kidding when I said we'd have our first pick of strawberries today. Here they are in all their glory -- the first two fruits from our new garden.

There are just two so far: one for Michael, one for me. It's only enough to whet our appetites for more. The next berries can't ripen soon enough.

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Related Post: Strawberry Shortcake

How it grows on May 7, 2008

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

In the garden today, my garlic and onions are about knee high, the radishes are plumping up, and we should have our first taste of this season's crop of strawberries on or about... tomorrow! My mouth waters at the mere thought of it.

The first edibles from this year's garden turned out to be chives and mustard greens. We've been making good use of the chives; I love them on a baked or grilled potato or mixed into a potato salad.

Mustard Greens, Red Giant

The mustard greens are another story; those are taking a bit of getting used to. Eaten raw, they're so sharp and peppery that I can just about feel the optical nerves of my eyeballs tying into a knot in the back of my head, just before my sinus cavities get blasted out. It sounds like I'm exaggerating, I know, but really, these greens pack a punch -- almost like horseradish -- and they have that kind of effect on me. I've found that cooking the leaves tames the spiciness, and that's the way I prefer to eat them. I usually chop a few leaves, boil them in water for a few minutes, and then stir them into pasta. They're good that way.


Culinary qualities aside, I've discovered that the Red Giant mustard greens make a beautiful visual addition to the garden in the early spring when not much else is going on. I planted these from seed in my community garden plot last July, transplanted them to our new home last October, and they really started taking off in February. Now they're bolting to seed, which I plan to collect for a new crop of mustards in the fall.