Turnip Update 2010

As you no doubt remember from the epic blog post last year about Turnips (see "Turnips" 2/3/09)...we are growing a mysterious variety of very large heirloom turnips in the garden.

Last season the turnips grew well and were delicious. I left about 6 plants in the ground over winter so that they would flower and set seed this year (a biennial cycle). It is early April and the plants have begun to push up their flower stalks. This is good. I just need to make sure that no other Brassicas in the garden (overwintered kale, etc.) are allowed to flower or they may cross-pollinate and then the resulting seeds won't breed true to the heirloom turnip variety....

Bees

There are a lot of things that can be said about bees...most of them are good things (unless one flies into your mouth)...here is an article from Take Part about the rise in city beekeeping. On the local front, we are working with Corky Luster at Ballard Bee Company getting hives set up this spring on the roof of Bastille restaurant and up at our headquarters...

I thought Seattle had "mild" winters...

Although this surely constitutes old news, I can't stop thinking about the two week cold snap that we had during December. As you probably remember, starting on 12/3 and lasting through 12/13, the nighttime temperatures were below freezing. A few nights saw temperatures in the low 20's and teens. 11 days in a row of below freezing nighttime temperatures completely wrecked our chances at having decent winter harvests. In a "typical" Seattle winter, cold spells would not last this long. Most "winter hardy" plants can easily recover from a night or two of freezing temperatures. 11 days of cold, dry winds effectively stripped all of the moisture from uncovered plants. Garden beds planted with winter crops like romaine lettuce and broccoli look like civil war battlefields. So much destruction, hardly anything has survived.
The amazing thing is that a simple row cover can make a big difference. Aside from the actual temperature, one of the principal reasons a crop will die in the winter is due to the desiccating effect of the wind


dead, uncovered "winter crops" (sprouting broccoli)

living, covered "winter crops" (scotch kale)


Of course some crops are just more hardy than others
and of course, there are many crops that simply won't tolerate freezing temperatures...

this used to be mizuna...