Spring Already?

A needed break from the heavy

It has been a strange winter here in Minnesota. Other than a week of cold in early December and another in the beginning of January, the weather has been very mild. Also have we had very little snow, and after the last week of high temps in the 40’s, what little snow we had is gone, the ice on the lakes is already “black” looking like it is ready to break up, the ground is no longer frozen in many places. It rained around Christmas time for three straight days, the longest stretch of rain for all of 2023. It feels like late March or early April. Early February around here is usually the depth of winter.

This was early Nov, looks pretty much the same now.

There are probably about 250 or so subscribers who weren’t here when I last posted about the garden. Here is a link to most of my 2023 garden posts if you have any interest.

The weather has me feeling like I need to get some plants started under the basement lights, but it is way too early. I am mindful, last winter lingered right up to the end of May, early June, and then it was summer - we had about five days of spring. I am not going to start anything until the 15th of Feb, brussel sprouts, which take the longest to mature of anything I grow. Summer veggies like cabbage, broccoli, tomatoes and peppers can probably wait until mid March. I started some tomatoes around March 01 last year but that was a little too early. Though, that notion is flawed maybe, because normally I would bring those veggies outside in late April, but last year it was too cold so the plants lingered under lights a lot longer than normal.

Mar 01 last year

I never did a real plant report after last season like I talked about. I ordered more seeds this year though I have quite a few left from last year and previous years. I always aim to have a good many seeds left over because most seeds if maintained cool and dry will last for a few years, and you never really truly know if seeds are going to be available widely the following season. I ordered seed this year from Johnnyseeds and Fedco.

I ordered 16 more fruit trees as well, to fill out holes in the orchard. It looks like everything survived the winter, though I am not certain about the apricots. About 8 of the trees I planted last spring did not survive to winter. The pears especially, about 80% died within weeks after being planted. Because of the late spring I asked Fedco not to send the trees in early April like they were planning, it was so cold, but that just meant the trees probably sat in bags too long. Whatever the reason, the apples, peaches and plums did not have that scale of a problem.

About half the plant seed I ordered I have ordered before, the other half, trying some new things always looking for gems that do well in this region. A few highlights from last year: Citrine cherry tomato, Hannah’s Choice muskmellon, Sora radish, Promise cabbage, Adam Gherkin cukes don’t last long on the shelf but taste great fresh and make excellent pickles. Katrina cukes were quite good too but the seed was too expensive this year.

The root cellar I built was a great success. Carrots, potatoes and cabbages I stored in late October are pretty much just as tasty in February. The damp sand in my old toy box really worked well for the carrots, much better than a refrigerator. I still have a lot of squash, I grew too much thinking my dad, who loves it, would eat more than he has. Instead we eat a lot of potatoes. I probably grew more potatoes than necessary too, but my feeling about that is you can’t really grow too many potatoes. Leftovers will make great seed potatoes for more than a few people.

Lots of food remaining. I will probably make another batch of sauerkraut soon.

This is a cabbage in storage for three months or so. Peel a few layers and the cabbage is in excellent shape, though the light makes it look yellow, it is white with a hint of green. Much better tasting than store-bought this time of year.

I’ve never stored veggies like this before. I had the idea that by this time everything would be dried out and limp, but for the most part everything is fine. There are apples and pears that will store like that too, trees I have planted. It is a good lesson, seasonal eating with preservation and storage done well is better in just about every way than buying whatever fruit and vegetables at any time, which product most of the year tastes like fiber.

For those readers who garden, happy gardening this year.