The Winter Garden February 2012

Winter Gardening Experiment
and the 52 Week Salad Challenge
 This is my first year to attempt growing a Fall/Winter garden. On August 31, September 13, and September 24, I planted radishes, onions and carrots in containers - just a small experimental garden.

Home-grown salad ingredients February 22, 2012

My harvest from October 2011 through February 2012
'Early Scarlet Globe' Radishes - 34 (they were ready to eat in 6  to 10 weeks).
'Little Fingers' Baby Carrots - 65 (with a few more still to be pulled).
'Evergreen Long White Bunching' Onions - 4 (The onions are just now getting big enough to eat.
                                                                      Many more to come).

Not a great total, but pretty good, I think, for a small experiment in winter gardening.

On November 24, I planted a container of potatoes. They have had a stuggle to survive. The foliage was frozen twice in January, despite being covered at night. (One night 22F, -5C, another night 19F, -7C). However, with warmer temperatures, they put up leaves again.

When, and if, I have new potatoes to eat, I'll have rosemary to season them with.

February 5, 2012 - The Rosemary seems to enjoy the winter weather!

On February 1, I planted more radishes in the container that has only onions left in it.

Of course, the weather immediately turned much colder!

They poked their little heads up on February 13 and seem to be growing well.

I sowed more radish seeds on February 20.

The first of March, I plan to plant more containers with lettuce, onions, carrots and radishes. It will be another two months before the weather is right to get started with tomatoes, peppers, and other warm season vegetables. But I may try to get an earlier start. We'll see how it goes! 

Veg Plotting has issued a challenge to grow our own salads all year round.

For more on the 52 Week Salad Challenge Click Here!