Harvest Monday, January 21st, 2013

Wow this post almost didn't get out. I'm writing this on Friday and almost forgot to get it done before I left. I'll be back early Monday (today for all of you), but after I usually post. Hopefully I'll get a chance to clear the Linky before Monday. I usually travel with some way to connect to the net but sometimes it doesn't work out. I used to be able to create new empty Linkys every week, but now I have to reuse old ones and clear them which is a PITA since I HAVE to be connected to do it. Anyway if I don't get to it, just add your new links to the bottom and I'll get rid of the older ones as soon as I return.

No harvests this week. I should have gone out and harvested my spinach during the thaw, but I never got around to it and now it is covered in snow again. However I did get around to fixing up my sidebar tally. I'm now in 2013 mode. I've changed some of my categories. I split the greens into greens and Asian greens as greens is such a huge category. I also split the cucurbits into four different categories (melon, cukes, winter and summer squash). They were also a large group. As for the tally itself, you can see I'm already down by $361.93 in the veggie garden and $82.06 in the fruit garden. For the fruits it is larger than last year because I expect actual fruit from some of my trees this year which means more expenses to protect them. For the veggie garden the expenses are pretty normal maybe even a bit low. Here is how it breaks down so far.

My major expenses are my amortized costs at $321.28 this year. These contain things like my composters, wood, hardware, and dirt to get the garden up, supports for the plants like bamboo and cages. I usually buy my fertilizer in bulk from the Northeast Organic Farmers Association (NOFA), and I mailed in my order the other day. It also contains things like netting, sprays (dormant oil for the fruit trees and some soap spray since my aphids were so so bad last year) and potting mix. Fort V potting soil which is just the best. You don't have to be a member or a farmer to join the buy. You end up with discounts off the normal prices and no shipping costs. Though you do have to drive in to pick it up one day in March. There are lots of pick up places all over Massachusetts. I amortize these costs over two years since I buy at least enough fertilizer for that long.

I've also ordered from Fedco for my seeds at $42. I'll be ordering from Norse Farms for my fruit bushes. I want two blueberries to put in my freed up 4'x 8' bed plus I want to add some currents which I've never grown. I want two red ones and a pink one. I'm going to remove two plants from my border where I grow my chamomile and zinnias. I'm going to remove the anise hyssop. I haven't used it though I should. And the invasive seedlings are driving me crazy. And this is from someone that has lemon balm growing in her garden. The other plant I'm going to get rid of is my bleeding heart. I'm going to move it to a shadier spot where we need plants desperately. I'm hoping it can still bloom there as the shade is very very dark.

The third was inspired by a photo. I wish I could copy it but I don't have permission. So go to this page and scroll down to the bottom. I've never seen a current done as this kind of espalier. I've seen fans which are pretty. But this gives me space I hadn't had before. I want to plant my current basically under my compost pile area and train it along the top of my white picket fence. I want to use Rovada which has very large fruit and very long trains of fruit. It would be so pretty against the white. The question becomes can I keep the plant in check (I'm thinking it wants to spread more than be on single stem) and will it get long enough to cover the fence well? I hope so. It might totally clash on the other side with purple and orange flowers, but do I care? Oh I think not.

Update: I'm home and I have fixed the Linky so it only shows recent ones.

Harvest Monday is a day to show off your harvests, how you are saving your harvest, or how you are using your harvest. If you have a harvest you want to show off, add your name and link to Mr Linky below.