http://statebystategardening.com/tn/blog_03_summary/ en jhtullock@frontiernet.net Copyright 2012 2012-05-18T15:05:45+00:00 http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/kitchen_garden_shines_at_ut_gardens/ http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/kitchen_garden_shines_at_ut_gardens/ Bloomsdays at UT Gardens last weekend was a great success despite the rainy weather on Sunday. Saturday morning saw crowds thronging around the many booths, with vendors offering plants, garden art, and much more. The annual event just gets better and better.  James Newburn, Assistant Director of UT Gardens, told me they have hired a part-time person whose efforts are devoted exclusively to the Kitchen Garden. As you can see from the image at left, this is a large area with raised beds and many other features that would be the envy of any dedicated veggie grower. The buildings visible at the far end include two storage sheds and a shaded spot planted with mints. A rain barrel catches water from the roofs in this area, and there is a weather station housed in one of the sheds. The entire space is enclosed in a picket fence, with compost bins built along one side. Outside the fence, on the left side in this view, the staff has planted blackberries, raspberries and elderberries. All the plantings integrate herbs, flowers and vegetables. Although it is mid-May, the beds were already hosting tomato, squash, cucumber and okra plants no doubt started in the greenhouses adjacent to the Gardens. The Kitchen Garden illustrates virtually all of the design techniques that one might want to use. If only we all had this much space! And not everyone I have talked to likes the purple paint, but each to his own tastes. At right is a shot of the raspberries outside the kitchen garden. UT Farmers Market Now Open On the Wednesday following Bloomsdays, May 16th, the UT Farmers' Market opened at UT Gardens. Complete with music from a banjo and guitar duo, the market offers produce from UT crop production classes, along with creations from the UT Culinary Institute and food and craft items from about a dozen local vendors. Some of these were familiar from other area farmers' markets, but not all. Besides fresh veggies and berries, baked goods, salsa, goat cheese and even soap were available for purchase. I went home with a head of cauliflower (Yes, it apparently can be done in east Tennessee.) along with some early raspberries from Mountain Meadows farm in Anderson County.  The market is held at the Gardens every Wednesday from 4:00-7:00 PM from now until October 24. If you live in the Knoxville area, why not stop in next week, stroll the gardens, and pick up some delicious local food and craft? 2012-05-18T14:05:45+00:00 http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/whippoorwill_winter_traditionally_ends_cold_weather/ http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/whippoorwill_winter_traditionally_ends_cold_weather/ My grandparents would characterize this week's spate of lows in the 40s as "Whipporrwill Winter." By traditional reckoning, this is the last cold snap of the season, and we should have uninterrupted warmth from now until autumn. For those unfamiliar with our local lore, the earliest cold snap is "Dogwood Winter," which arrives as the trees are in bloom. A few weeks later "Blackberry Winter" arrives, as the snow white blooms of wild blackberries appear. Finally, the current cool-down, when the whippoorwills can be heard in the evening, calling out for a mate, provided you live far enough out in the country. (A bigger challenge each year, it seems.) Tomato, pepper and eggplant plants can go into the ground now that we've passed this weather milestone. Many of us went ahead a planted tomatoes a couple of weeks ago, on the assumption that the season is running about a month early. Tomatoes don't seem much affected by a cool spell. They just sit there until things warm up. But peppers can be stunted by spending a night out in the cold, and eggplant is likely to develop an infestation of flea beetles. With these two, it is always better to wait than to rush the season. This is also the season for herbs. Even the specimens in the supermarket look fresh and flavorful. In the garden, oregano, French thyme (at left) and tarragon are going gangbusters, and it will not be long before we have plenty of parsley. (I was late getting plants started this year.) Chives are blooming, and the sage plants are rapidly adding new leaves. One of the best ways to preserve herb flavors is to make compound butter. Nothing could be simpler. Just soften a stick of butter, then use a fork to combine it with 1 tablespoon of minced fresh herbs. Turn the mixture out on to a piece of foil and shape into a log. Wrap in the foil and freeze. Tarragon butter makes a great topping for asparagus, also now in season. Another good preservation method is making herb vinegar. As a rule of thumb, use one ounce of fresh herb leaves for each pint of white wine vinegar. Combine the herbs and vinegar in a jar, making sure the herbs are well covered. Place in the refrigerator for two weeks. Strain. Combine the strained vinegar with another ounce of herbs and place in a clean jar for another two weeks. Strain and store in a sterilized bottle. Keep refriferated. The vinegar will keep six months. You can also use rice vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or a combination of vinegars in this recipe. As long as you maintain the herb to vinegar ratio, your creations should be delicious. Herb flowers, such as sprigs of the thyme shown in the photo, make beautiful garnishes and can be added to salads. Herb flowers generally taste like the herb and often are a bit more strongly flavored than the leaves.   2012-05-11T16:47:18+00:00 http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/three_cheers_for_farmers_markets/ http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/three_cheers_for_farmers_markets/ Farmers markets opening across the East Tennessee region are operated by various entities. The Farmer’s Association for Retail Marketing (FARM) operates markets in Knoxville and Oak Ridge. Learn more about them here.  The FARM market opens in Knoxville on Tuesdays and Fridays, at the Laurel Church of Christ on Kingston Pike, across from the entrance to Cherokee Boulevard. Hours are 3:00-6:00 PM. In Oak Ridge, FARM markets are 3:00-6:00 PM Wednesdays and 8:00 AM -12 noon on Saturdays. The Market Square District Farmers Market operates on Wednesdays 11:00 AM-2:00 PM and Saturdays 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM. Maryville also has Saturday and Wednesday markets. Last year, the Knoxville News-Sentinel published a list of area farmers markets. If you are traveling anywhere in East Tennessee, you can find a farmers market, depending upon when you travel. Oak Ridge and Norris are the only ones open on Mondays, and none are open on Sundays. Saturday is clearly the most popular market day in most communities. A visit to the Saturday market on Market Square in Knoxville is a trip back to a time when this was the thriving center of commerce for the city. I have made many pleasant food and gardening discoveries at each of the farmers markets I have visited. Extra-early Garnet Beauty peaches made the best jam I have ever tasted last season. I will be looking for them again. Wild blackberries, which may arrive prior to July 4 this year, are always worth bringing home. I admire anyone who endures the briars, bugs, hot sun and the occasional snake to pick wild blackberries. Furthermore, the flavor of wild berries is unmatched in the domesticated varieties. Arrive at any of the larger markets in late July and you may find more than two dozen varieties of tomatoes alone. Growers explore new varieties, hoping to find one that makes their booth a stand-out. This gentle competition among the vegetable growers is a bonanza for shoppers looking for something different to cook with. Vegetable, herb, fruit and flower plants also appear in abundance at the markets. Not only can you find new and interesting flowers, you can also locate old stand-by varieties of useful plants that people have grown in this region for generations. Novice gardeners take note: the old stand-bys achieved their status by not placing unreasonable demands upon the always-busy farm families of past generations. They will be equally forgiving in your suburban back yard. 2012-05-04T16:13:59+00:00 http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/bees_butterflies_and_pesticides/ http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/bees_butterflies_and_pesticides/ Evidence is mounting that widespread use of supposedly "safe" chemical pesticides may lie at the root of the problems currently being experienced by beekeepers. One report can be found here. The study mentioned in this report found that feeding bees artificial nectar spiked with the neonicotinid insecticide imidocloprid in tiny amounts resulted in bee behavior like that associated with colony collapse disorder. While the maker of the insecticide, Bayer, debunks the study, I cannot help but wonder if we are ingesting this pesticide any time we consume a product containing high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). Traces of imidocloprid can be found in commercial HFCS, according to the author of the study. Therefore, it is definitely "out there" in the environment.  Neonicotinid pesticides mimic the nicotine found in tobacco, a natural pesticide that affects a great many types of insects. Nicotine is particularly effective against the caterpillars of moths and butterflies, several of which feed on tobacco, tomatoes, potatoes and related crops. An anecdote from my garden a few years ago serves to demonstrate how effective nicotine is. During one particularly bad season for tomatoes, we inadvertently allowed a number of flowering tobacco plants (Nicotiana sylvestris) to grow too near the tomato patch. The sweet scented blooms of the tobacco attracted hornworm moths that laid eggs on both the tobacco and the tomatoes. The caterpillars started munching both types of plants, but those on the tobacco became stunted and died when they were about and inch and a half long, too small to do severe damage to the foliage. Those on the tomatoes, however, thrived, growing much larger and doing considerable damage before we could discover and remove them by hand.  One wonders, therefore, if the severe decline in butterfly abundance, observable to anyone who takes an interest in butterflies from one year to the next, might also be a result of chemicals in the environment. A decade-old report found, for example, that pollen from corn genetically engineered to contain a pest-killing substance was harmful to monarch butterflies. How many other products that are commonly applied to lawns, flowerbeds and farms contribute similar effects? No one knows. But everyone agrees that butterfly populations are declining, and last March, this report appeared, suggesting that glyphosate, the active ingredient in herbicides such as Roundup, is seriously affecting monarchs and is turning up in humans, too. There are a limited number of circumstances under which a home gardener might have to resort to chemical pesticide use. Situations involving noxious weeds already established on the property and ineracdicable by hand cultivation can be handled by spot treatment with glyphosate or triclopyr. Otherwise, I cannot think of a good excuse to use either herbicide.  I can think of NO circumstance under which I would resort to a chemical insecticide, with the possible exception of a termite infestation of my house. And then I would have the treatment done by a professional. In the garden, we have learned that proper husbandry and integrated pest management techniques suffice to protect our vegetable crops, and we only grow ornamental plants that are typically pest-free in our region when properly sited and maintained. Many of our plants are native to the southern Appalachians and have natural resistance to pests and disease. All home gardeners should follow similar guidelines. Chemical pesticides are both expensive and harmful to wildlife.   2012-04-27T14:17:59+00:00 http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/coldframe_pros_and_cons1/ http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/coldframe_pros_and_cons1/ I'll say up front that we love our walk-in cold frames. Winter gardening will just never be the same again. But in our Tennessee Valley climate, especially with the unusually warm weather this past March, they do have one big drawback. They get much too warm for good results with Brassicas. We have tried various methods to produce spring crops of broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage without having to resort to almost daily sprayings with Dipel to keep the cabbage butterfly larvae from ruining them. We were hoping that the cold frames, which physically prevent the butterfly from reaching the plants to lay its eggs, were the answer. Alas, no. Even with all the windows open, the temperature climbs into the upper 80s on sunny days. We may get some decent cabbage, but broccoli and cauliflower would not tolerate the heat. So instead of Brassicas, we have planted some early beans, and we will soon be replacing the cabbage with squash and cucumbers. We plan to try some fall-planted Brassicas, so the plants will be maturing during cooler weather in November and December. In the meantime, we may figure out some way to ventilate the cold frames better, while still screening out the cabbage butterfly. Stay tuned. Recycle Beer Cartons as Weed Blocker If you are planning on building a new raised bed and wondering how to deal with existing sod or weeds, you may have considered placing a weed blocker fabric over the undesired plants. This works great, and you can build a bed right on top, but there is a free alternative: beer cartons. Those trapezoidal-shaped twelve-packs that bottled beer comes in make great weed blocker. Separate the cardboard at the glue seams and fold the container out flat. You will see that the flattened cardboard pieces can be interlocked, owing to the way they are die cut. A single layer of these interlocked pieces stops even tough weeds like poke and dandelions. Hold the cardboard in place with a rock here and there, and then simply place your soil mixture on top. Or, if you are enclosing the bed in a frame, just set the frame on the cardboard and fill it with growing medium. It takes about 18 months for the cardboard to break down, which is plenty of time to eliminate all the weeds under the raised bed. Weedblock fabric, by contrast, does not break down at all. And it does not come packaged with a frosty beverage. You can also use newspaper and corrugated cardboard cartons for the same purpose. Gardeners have asked me about the potential harm from dyes and inks in these paper products. In my experience, the pigments appear to break down in the soil along with the cardboard, and in any event the amounts are minuscule in comparison to the volume of soil. Further, just because a substance is present, there is no reason to expect it to be absorbed by plants. If concerns remain, grow annual flowers on the site, then cut and discard them at the end of the season. This and rainfall should be sufficient to remove any soluble substance that might be associated with the cardboard. 2012-04-20T13:36:48+00:00 http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/lettuce_season/ http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/lettuce_season/ I have always thought of April as the best month for lettuce in the garden, and this year is no exception. We started some plants in January and transplanted them to one of the greenhouses. The resulting bed, shown at right, has been yielding delicious salads for a couple of weeks now. Lettuce is super-easy to grow, so we plant a lot more than we can use. This allows us to go out to the garden right before dinner and pick individual leaves for a perfect salad. It helps to have a lot of plants to select from. If you only take one leaf per plant, the plant hardly notices. They just keep on growing, providing a continuously available supply of tasty leaves. It is much easier to clean lettuce when harvested as individual leaves, rather than cutting the whole head. I try to select leaves that are not too close to the ground, avoiding both sand and insects. Slugs like to hide near the soil line, too. Further, removing a leaf here and a leaf there helps maintain the decorative look of the bed. Lettuce is one of the prettiest vegetables, and can be used to border a flower bed, for example. The two varieties in the picture are 'Red Sails' and 'Oakleaf.' Seeds for both came from Mayo's here in Knoxville. They look great together in the garden and on the plate. We started more lettuce on March 10. Those seedlings are now ready to be transplanted, which will take place this weekend. These plants will go into a raised bed without added protection, since the weather has warmed up enough that a hard freeze is unlikely. (I should not have written that. Now I have jinxed the whole Valley.) The varieties we chose for the second planting are 'Red Romaine', 'Freckles', 'Michelle', 'Rougette de Montpelier', and 'Deer Tongue.' Unfortunately, we had spotty germination, a common problem when seed for some varieties is stored for more than one season. Seeds either fail to germinate altogether, or the seedlings are deformed and sickly. I have learned that old-fashioned cultivars such as 'Black Seeded Simpson' and 'Buttercrunch' produce seed that retains viability longer than some of the newer ones. The diversity of leaf shape and color combinations in lettuces is enormous, another reason the plants can be used decoratively. And during April in East Tennessee, they all flourish. If I had to grow only one spring vegetable, it would be lettuce. Gardeners new to vegetable gardening should bear in mind that lettuce seeds require light to germinate. One of the main reasons for germination failure is covering them too deeply. This is particularly true of lettuces with white seeds. I usually just scratch the surface of the growing medium and scatter the seeds on top. Then I water them in and place them under strong fluorescent lighting. Seedlings typically appear within 48 hours. As soon as they have true leaves, thin the seedlings so they are separated by about two inches each way. If starting in cell trays, thin to one per cell. Feed lightly with soluble fertilizer and keep them as close to the lights as possible. They will be ready to transplant in 30 days. Before doing so, harden them off for a few days by gradually exposing them to outdoor conditions. I move my plants to dappled shade for a while, and I leave them out at night if the temperature is not predicted to go below 40. Once they are hardened off, lettuce plants will tolerate a light frost. Transplant them to a spot in full sun, in rich, well-drained garden soil. Most will be ready to pick after two to three weeks of growth outdoors. Lettuce is also an ideal plant for container growing. Five plants can be accommodated in a pot 12 inches in diameter. Put one plant in the center and surround it with the other four, evenly spaced. Make sure to keep the soil in the container evenly moist. 2012-04-13T13:04:49+00:00 http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/beautiful_useful_redbud/ http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/beautiful_useful_redbud/ Spring's arrival is always marked in the Tennessee Valley by the pink-magenta blooms of the redbud, Cercis canadensis. This spreading small tree is found from southern New England all the way to Mexico. In the west, the western redbud, C. occidentalis, is the equivalent species, though it is smaller and more tolerant of drought than its eastern cousin. Gardeners throughout much of North America, therefore, have access to a redbud tree that is native to their region. The most frequently seen alternate name is Judas tree. Rarely growing larger than 25-30 feet, the eastern redbud eventually develops an umbrella-like canopy 20 feet or more in width. It tolerates shade, and although it is abundant in the rich bottomlands of the Mississippi Valley, it grows very well on leaner soils of the Ridge and Valley region of East Tennessee. The interstates are lined with them. Because the tree is a legume and develops a deep tap root, it improves the soil in which it grows. Creating a flower bed underneath a redbud is typically successful, as long as the flowers will tolerate the dappled shade cast by the limbs. The symbiotic bacteria that live in nodules on the tree's roots add nitrogen to the soil, and the annual leaf fall provides minerals pumped up from deep in the subsoil through the tree's extensive root system. Several cultivated varieties of redbud species exist. All typically offer desirable features not always present in wild trees. The shade and intensity of coloration varies considerably from one tree to the next, for example. Nevertheless, I have produced some fine trees by selecting self-sown seedlings of the tree shown in the image at left, a mature specimen that was here long before the house was built. Seedlings are usually large enough to bloom by their fourth year of growth. They grow rapidly to about 15 feet, and then slow down and spread out. Careful pruning of young trees will yield the most attractive specimens. Once they are blooming size, little additional pruning is needed. Older trees will shed limbs, pruning themselves. Water stress can lead to browning of the leaves and premature leaf loss, but the redbud is remarkably tolerant of drought once established. It flourishes best, however, with an inch of water a week during the growing season. Fertilization is not needed, as a rule. Many gardeners are familiar with the redbud, but I am willing to bet that few know its culinary properties. Native Americans collected the flowers and ate them raw or cooked in water. The shiny, brown seeds were roasted and eaten. Modern analysis indicates the seeds contain healthy fatty acids, while the flowers contain anti-oxidant compounds. Green twigs of the eastern redbud were also used by Appalachian settlers to flavor game-based stews and roasts, earning the plant the colloquial name "spicewood." It would be worth trying with lamb, turkey or bison. (In case you are short on opossum or groundhog.) Redbuds can be propagated from both softwood and hardwood cuttings, and by seed. Freshly collected seed should be placed in hot (99ºF) water and allowed to cool overnight before sowing. They will germinate quickly. If you don't want to wait four years for blooms, most nurseries carry redbuds in spring. If you are looking for a small tree for your property, the redbud offers numerous advantages, and is a long-lived, trouble-free species. 2012-03-30T14:32:32+00:00 http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/growing_food_wherever_you_live/ http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/growing_food_wherever_you_live/ Whenever I talk about growing vegetables with my gardening friends, I hear the same three excuses: I don’t have enough room! I don't have enough sun! I don't have enough time! Here are some tips for dealing with each of those excuses. Not enough room? Containers--Gardening in containers means you can grow veggies almost anywhere. Just make sure to use pots at least 12 inches in diameter, fill them with a good, commercial potting mix, and pay attention to watering and feeding needs. Add organic fertilizers to the soil mix, or use a timed release chemical fertilizer like Osmocote. Trellises--When you can't spread out, grow up! Vertical gardening makes sense when your in-ground bed is long and narrow. Be cautious about trying to grow vining vegetables in containers, however. Large vines need large amounts of root space. Space-saving varieties--Select vegetable varieties bred for small spaces. Examples include Bushmaster cucumber, Patio tomato and Easy Peasy peas. Companion planting--Combine two or more plants in one container. Basil makes a great partner for tomatoes and peppers, for example. Succession planting--Follow an early crop of lettuce with beans, tomatoes or peppers. In fall, plant carrots and spinach where beans and squash grew during the summer. Not enough sun? Consider shade-tolerant food crops.                                 4 hours of sun: chervil, chives, cilantro, miner’s lettuce, mints                                 6 hour of sun: beans, lettuce, mustards, parsley, scallions, spinach Grow “early” cultivars that will mature a crop with less solar input. Early Girl tomatoes Early Wonder beets Early Jersey Wakefield cabbage Look at seed catalog maturity dates for other possibilities. Grown winter crops. They are bred to mature a crop with less sun: arugula, Brussels sprouts, carrots, chervil, cilantro, kale, lettuce (some), mache, radish (some), spinach                     You say, "I don’t have enough time!" If you garden at all, you do. Try perennial food crops that bear again and again: Asparagus Perennial onions Fruit bushes, vines and trees Saffron crocus (overplant with basil in summer) Perennial herb beds and borders Grow edible flowers: daylily, Dianthus, Monarda, nasturtium, rose, Viola Instead of petunias, grow strawberries and cherry tomatoes in hanging baskets. Integrate vegetables into ornamental plantings. Look for articles by Rosalind Creasy for lots of inspirational photos. Look for vegetable cultivars with ornamental value. See the list at the end of this post. Build attractive, permanent raised beds and trelliage so vegetable gardening is not an annual chore. Permanent beds that match the architecture of your home will repay their cost in food in a few years. They will also enhance the value of your property. With a little ingenuity, you can grow vegetables, fruits and herbs on even the tiniest porch or patio. You can overcome limited space, limited sunshine, and limited time simply by making the right plant and garden choices. So no more excuses, and happy gardening! A Short List of Ornamental Food Plants Lettuce—great for borders and pots Spinach, mustards, mache, chervil, parsley, and other leafy gree—attractive foliage Basil—containers, perennial beds, foliage colors and flowers Beets, kale—ornamental foliage “Bright Lights” Swiss chard—colorful stems and foliage Collards, broccoli and cabbages—structural elegance, like hostas Blood sorrel—red foliage venations Some herbs, most zucchini, even some peppers—variegated foliage Strawberries—attractive foliage, new cultivars with large flowers Peppers—almost all are ornamental, with glossy, dark green foliage and colorful fruits Eggplant—large purple flowers and colorful fruits on compact plants   2012-03-24T16:21:25+00:00 http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/herb_strategy/ http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/herb_strategy/ As if you did not already have enough to do as spring bursts on the scene, I remind you that now is the time to plan your herb garden for the next 12 months. If you carried herbs through the winter in pots as I did, you are a step ahead of the game, but you can also start now with purchased plants and assure yourself a supply of herbs throughout this year and early next. The "trick" is to have two plantings of herbs, one in the ground and one in containers. Last year, I grew herbs in containers on my front porch. I also have an outdoor herb garden. Because I am interested mostly in culinary herbs, I grow the Mediterranean perennials that many other cooks grow: bay, lavender (Munstead), marjoram, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage and thyme (French and lemon). All of these were either purchased at a local garden center or started from cuttings from the grocery store. I grew them in 10 or 12 inch pots in standard growing mix with added calcinated clay for drainage, and a little pelletized lime, perhaps a teaspoon per pot. These plants grew all summer and I harvested them only when pruning for shape. Otherwise, my kitchen supply of herbs came from the outdoor bed. When cold weather arrived last November, all the pots went into the cold frame (pictured at left), where they remained through the season. These plants are now ready to move into the outdoor bed, where they can replace older plants that have become woody and scrawny from repeated harvesting. While transplanting the potted herbs to the garden, I can also make divisions, of the tarragon, for example, which has lots of new shoots. These will go back into pots with fresh growing mix and will be pampered all summer. They will go into the cold frame to supply herbs for the kitchen next winter, while the outdoor bed lies dormant. Experience has taught that some of these plants are not reliably hardy in the Tennessee Valley, even with the added protection of the cold frame. Marjoram and bay both were killed by too-low temperatures. My replacement bay tree will spend next winter indoors. Marjoram I plan to enjoy during the summer only, as I do not use enough to merit the effort of keeping plants going through the winter. Parsley in outdoor growing beds did just fine, so I am not going to bother with it in containers, either. I was able to harvest parsley at all times last winter, except on those days when the temperture never rose above freezing. Oregano grown outdoors actually survived the winter in better shape than the potted plant in the cold frame. Again, why bother? My success at overwintering Munstead lavender (a cultivar usually regarded as one of the most fragrant) was mixed. Of three potted specimens placed in the cold frame, only one survived. It, however, is putting on vigorous new growth. During the winter, the plants did not make enough growth to be of use, but at least I do not have to pay to replace them this year. I also had good success carrying over a large lemon verbena plant in a pot. It will go into the ground this spring to supply both my needs in the kitchen and several rooted cuttings to carry through next winter. This semi-hardy shrub will survive most winters in east Tennessee if it is cut to the ground and carefully mulched each fall. If overwintered, however, it never goes dormant and is ready to put on vigorous growth in early spring. It looked somewhat ratty during the cold weather, but never lost all of its leaves. I recently pruned it back severly, and moved it to the cold frame to harden off. Already, new shoots are appearing. If you try herbs in containers this year, here are a few tips: Use a container at least 12 inches in diameter, holding about two gallons of potting mix. Smaller containers (like those little windowsill herb gardens) simply do not provide enough room for vigorous growth. Plant only one variety per container. Each plant needs its own space if you plan to harvest during the winter when growth is slowest. Give the plants every opportunity to thrive. During the growing season, container herbs benefit from light fertilization. Incorporating organic amendments, such as cottonseed and bone meals, into the growing mix provides continuous feeding all summer. I add two tablespoons of each product to a wheelbarrow load of growing mix. In the ground, herbs rarely need fertilization. I use Pro-Mix MPX or Fafard #2, which I can purchase in bales from a local supplier. These mixes are basically peat moss and perlite, screened for a uniform texture. The compressed bales are a good value if you use a lot of growing mix. To two parts mix I add one part calcinated clay. This mineral product can be purchased in 50 pound bags at farm and lawn supply centers. (Tennessee Farmers Co-Op was my source in Knoxville.) When added to growing mix, calcinated clay helps to prevent soggy roots that can lead to rot. Plan and plant your herbs now, and enjoy them fresh all year long. 2012-03-16T12:55:02+00:00 http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/leaf_by_leaf/ http://statebystategardening.com/state.php/tn/blog_03/leaf_by_leaf/ Among the nicest things about having an early spring vegetable garden are all the wonderful salads you can harvest from even a tiny patch of green crops. With a coldframe to protect your plants from the harshest weather, and a willingness to branch out from lettuce as a salad crop, you can enjoy delicious gourmet salads in February and March. Why not lettuce? Not all varieties withstand cold, for one thing. As a rule, the more deeply cut the leaves and the more red pigment, the better the cold tolerance of the lettuce cultivar. I have had good luck with Ashley, Lollo Rossa, and Red Sails. Nevertheless, the plants are prone to aphids when stressed by cold, and are a magnet for slugs and snails. Therefore, choose other crops to grow during the short, dark days between Christmas and President's Day. My favorites are spinach, corn salad, arugula, Asian mustards, and chervil. Spinach will germinate in cold soil and grows during freezing weather. For a winter crop, I started seeds in cell trays on October 10 and transplanted them to the coldframe on November 13. Last week I harvested about a pound of average-size plants. They grew a little too tough to be ideal for salad, but as a cooked green they were delicious. I noticed very little slug damage. The cultivar I planted, Bloomsdale, is a favorite in this area. I have looked for Winter Bloomsdale without success. This cultivar is supposedly much hardier due to its more deeply savoyed leaves. As with lettuce, curly leaves indicates a greater ability to grow in the winter, because the increased leaf surface area makes the most of available sunlight. Readers may tire of having me sing the praises of corn salad as a winter crop, but I have discovered another plus for this tasty winter green crop. While slugs were munching on the lettuce nearby, the corn salad had little or no damage. Corn salad 'Vit' is my first choice for a winter-adapted variety. If you are planning to grow corn salad as a spring crop, look for 'Salad Zing' or another cultivar recommended for spring sowing. The choice definitely makes a difference in performance. Sow seeds thinly in a flat or large pot and keep moist. They will germinate in a week or so, depending upon the temperature. When plants are about an inch and a half in diameter, dig them up with an old spoon or similar tool and transplant about four inches apart. When they are about six inches wide, you can begin harvesting. You can also extend the harvest period by transplanting only a few plants at a time. If left in the germination container, the plants will grow to a reasonable size and then stop. They will hold that way until you move them. Plants started in November, 2011 were not transplanted until January 15, 2012. They were ready to eat in three weeks. I could have begun transplanting around the middle of October, half a dozen seedlings at a time, for an earlier and longer harvest. Asian mustards, mizuna and tatsoi, have been reliable winter crops under cover. Either one adds a mild mustard flavor to salads. Like spinach, individual leaves can be harvested, allowing the plants to deliver multiple crops. Mizuna can be picked at least four times before it is finally exhausted. Tatsoi is less forgiving, allowing only two or three pickings before the plants show signs of stress. Both these greens can go from seed to harvest in six weeks, and they transplant well from cell-trays. The main problems are flea beetles and slugs. I love the peanut flavor of arugula, and this year I tried seeds labeled "Wild" by Burpee. The plants are much smaller than other arugula cultivars I have grown, and the leaves are more deeply cut. The flavor is excellent, with no trace of horseradish-like heat that arugula can sometimes develop. Planted both outdoors and in the coldframe, seeds germinated and the plants remained small all winter. Toward the end of February, slightly warmer, longer days provoked them into growth, and they have rapidly reached a harvestable size, with leaves about four inches in length. I harvest individual leaves, and I am interested to see how large the plants will get before they become strong flavored. Parsley, cilantro and chervil are all memebrs of the carrot family, and all grow just fine during cold weather. Chervil prefers it cool and shady, while the other two like as much sun as they can get. I observed no difference between plants grown outdoors versus those grown in the coldframe, and have harvested fresh herbs during all but the very coldest days in January. Interestingly, there was no difference in survival between flat-leafed Italian parsley and the deeply savoyed 'Moss Curled' cultivar I purchased from a local seed company. Next season, I won't take up space in the coldframes with any of these, since protection does not seem to be important. Speaking of the carrot family, I found 'Danvers 126' to be great for overwintering in one of my raised beds. I just went out and pulled a carrot or two whenever I needed them. Even without careful thinning, I had planety of six inch by one inch specimens, perfect for my needs. Last week, I harvested the remaining five pounds or so and stored them in the refrigerator to make room for spring planting. While you are out in the garden gathering fresh greens for tonight's salad, you might also want to harvest a few leaves of wild dandelions and onions. If your yard is free of these two weeds, you have my admiration and respect, but if you are like the rest of us, fight back by eating them. Because the plants infesting your lawn or flower beds are all seedlings, there will be wide variation in flavor. Choose young leaves that are tender when tested with your fingernail. Taste, then harvest from plants that are not too bitter for your preference. Similarly, wild onions can be piquant or overpowering. Taste carefully, and pick from plants that have a relatively mild flavor. A combination of early spring greens, mesclun has won over diners across America. This European staple was traditionally  created from plants growing wild in the Mediterranean region, which over the years have been shaped by plant breeders into the cultivars we have today. Dandelions, for example, were brought to North America by colonists who planned to grow them as food. Eating early greens was also believed to be beneficial to one's health. Modern nutritionists would agree. With a few add-ons, you can turn your early harvest into a complete lunch or first course for a dinner party with the following recipe. Mesclun with Garnishes (4 servings) Ingredients: 4 cups            freshly picked wild or cultivated greens, washed and spun dry 1 cup              pecans or walnuts, lightly toasted 4 slices           French bread, each about half an inch thick 1 tablespoon  olive oil 6 ounces        fresh goat cheese 1/4 cup           tomato basil jam or prepared bruschetta topping 12                   green olives, such as picholine Dressing: 1/4 cup           extra-virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon  wine vinegar 2 teaspoons   fresh lemon juice 1/8 teaspoon  prepared Dijon-style mustard Salt and freshly ground black pepper Preheat the broiler. Arrange the greens on four plates. Scatter the toasted nuts on top. Brush the bread rounds with the olive oil and toast, turning once, until light golden brown on both sides. Remove from the oven. Divide the goat cheese into four equal portions and spread on the prepared toast. Top with a dollop of tomato basil jam or bruschetta topping. Place one of the prepared toasts on each of the plates. Garnish each plate with the olives. Combine the dressing ingredients in a bowl, whisking well. Dress the salads just before serving.     2012-03-09T13:31:21+00:00