I'm back to blogging again after a long break! Sorry about that. I have a lot of catching up to do and will try to get around to posting fall photos at some point. But here we are at winter already. Gifu has had two snowfalls already this year. One in December (the girls and I were in the US and missed it) and another at New Year. The New Year snow is almost gone but we are expecting more tomorrow. During the past 11 years I have lived in Gifu, it has rarely snowed more than once a winter, so this is unusual. Though it snows, the temperature rarely drops below freezing, so the winter veggies manage to hang in under the snow until it melts. Here is an update on how they survived the most recent snowfall.
Spinach. Oh spinach. We love to eat spinach. Good thing too. Boy do we ever have spinach. My husband and I disagree on what is a reasonable amount to plant in a given space. As of next year, he will be removed from seed sowing duties. Right now, he prepares the beds and sows the seeds. I thin, pick, and cook. This is a major problem, because he believes he must use all the seeds in the packet, no matter how many packets he buys or how much space is available, or how much spinach one family of four can reasonably be expected to consume. This is just one small bed of many. The spinach is hardy and got a bit flattened by the snow, but still tastes yummy.
Daikon. I told him not to plant daikon, as I am in charge of cooking and a few daikon go a long way. His father grows daikon and gives it to us. Does he listen to me? See above about finishing seed packets. Drowning in daikon are we. Anyone have any good daikon and/or spinach recipes to share?
Hakusai. The bugs got them at first, but they are doing better now that it is colder.
Lettuce from random left over seeds from last year (when I was in charge of seed sowing) doing well.
The broccoli is gorgeous and delicious. And in perfect moderation. Hooray!
Baby strawberries. These are new plants we bought in the fall that are in planters.
The strawberry plants that got accidently transplanted with the raspberries to the embankment are also starting to flower. This poor confused raspberry plant was actually raspberrying under the snow.
My husband built a reinforcement for the bottom of the north embankment and transplanted lots of his baby trees.
Including the red maple which was in middle of the back yard.
Today's harvest. I am off to cook it now.
This was our broccoli 2 weeks ago, just before the recent warm spell. For over a month it was in a holding pattern, not growing at all and we kept thinking we should wait for the heads to get a little bit bigger before picking. Now they are all on the verge of flowering, so after holding out for so long we have broccoli at least 2 meals a day (I would try broccoli bread, but L is allergic, so our breakfast is still spinach bread). Does anyone else have a really hard time spelling broccoli? I never seem to get it right. Perhaps if I keep writing about it, it will eventually sink in. My husband could never remember which was broccoli and which was cauliflower, but after 2 years of gardening he never gets them wrong. He still can't keep his left and right straight though :)
Last of the hakusai (nappa). The few that are left are ready to bolt. The bugs really got to them, even in the dead of winter (though this Connecticutie can't REALLY say that winter in Gifu gets dead, even this year which is the coldest since I've been here). I don't know what horrible chemicals they must use on the hakusai in the stores and farmers' market to have them looking so perfect. The bugs think they are the yummiest thing in the garden.
