harvest time, urban farms

HARVEST TIME
one of the fun part of gardening is harvesting time
especially when the tomatoes start producing well

here is a picture of a sample of what we recently harvested
from our garden here at the country n

recently dug up our potatoes
we should have about 10 gallons of red potatoes
which we will store and eat on a regular basis until
sometime in the late fall

we also harvested a large bed of onions
those of you who saw the video from the
alzheimers research center
its the bed i was messing with in the video
we take all those onions and hang them in panty
hose on the rafters of a shed and cut them down
as we need them

the harvest was limited this year because i put
hairy vetch on my beds to act as a green manure
the problem was they over grew my onions and
the tops fell to the ground
this limited the onions growth
overall though we got a good harvest and should
have onions through the fall also
sure are good fresh

we are just now getting the beginnings of our tomato
crops
our vines are full of maters
some never make it to the house as i eat them right
off the vine

for memorial day meal we will have fresh potatoes from
the garden with fresh green beans from the garden

we also picked our peaches yesterday and got
4  5 gallon buckets

thats as much as we need
we will freeze them and use them in my wifes shes
peach cobbler
she promises one for the memorial day meal
they also are used to make a drink called the peach fuzz
it makes you feel fuzzy when you drink it

we planted also this year the three sisters
corn rattlesnake green beans and miniature pumpkins
which we will eat like a winter squash
the pumpkins shade the garden beds
the green beans grow up the corn stalks and fix
nitrogen into the soils
the corn grows up for the support of the beans
we get three veggies in one garden bed
those indians were smart werent they

after we harvested the onions and potatoes i overseeded the
beds with black eyed peas which we will eat from all summer
the peas also fix nitrogen in the soil
this fall ill turn the peas into the soil and they will act
like a green manure

this is so much fun
you should try it if you are not already

start with a square foot garden preferably a keyhole garden
good luck

URBAN FARMS
if you live in the austin area you are probably familiar with some of
its urban farms
theres several but the two weve visited more than once are
the boggy creek farm and the springdale farm
they ink out a living farming in town
great places to visit

all around texas people have ag exemptions which give you a break on
your property taxes if you have farms
heck we all know people who have bent the rules a lot and get
a big break on their taxes
two goats on a small acreage area and they are ag exempted

thank goodness those urban farmers get a tax break since we all
know what how high those taxes are in town
(my taxes are a fourth of what they were in town for the same
property value)

think again
those guys dont get an ag exemption
teach them to try to farm inside the city limits
the law was passed to help prevent urban sprawl from wiping out
farm land
so now heres a farm in the city that could be wiped out because of
the rising land values and taxes

now that just aint right is it

im on the urban farmers side of this arent you
hopefully the press coverage of this will help get something done
sure would hate to lose those urban farms
thery are a special feature to austin
helps keep it weird or at least different

the organicgreen doctor

simple quote, vetch, bluebonnets

QUOTE
life is really simple
but we insist on making it complicated
by confucius

so this is what our problem is
when you think it about it

as i sit here on my dell computer hooked up to a verizon card
writing this blog with my smart phone adroid attached to the
computer getting charged to be ready for the days activity
and im drinking my organically grown coffee that i ground and
made fresh today

ive also just reviewed my messages and facebook and responded to
people from across the us

lets not complicate our lives
lets keep them simply simple
its is hard to do

VETCH
although im a little late i will be planting some vetch
today in my dormant areas of my garden since we
will be having a week or more of warmer weather



vetch is an annual legume that fixes nitrogen in the soil
its called a green manure crop
it will grow until i get ready to plant my crops this spring
my beds are 4x12 ft raised beds
ill sow the seeds across the beds and let them grow
if they get too high ill mow them down to about 4-6 inches

when i get ready to plant for example my tomatoes i will
simply plant them in the middle of the vetch
as the vetch dies it leaves its nitrogen and nutrition in the soil
for the tomatoes to utilize
the vetch will also act as a mulch for the tomatoes

after the tomatoes are through producing this summer i will
plant a cover crop of black eyed peas which will do the same
as the vetch does in the fall and the winter
the black eyed peas will also be picked and eaten this summer
to go along with my other summer crops

then next fall ill replant the vetch again as i leave the area dormant
the cycle continues

this method of using cover crops provides a natural source of nutrition
and nitrogen to the soil

BLUEBONNETS
here is a picture of some baby bluebonnets

this is in an area of bare ground where the grass died from
the drought this year
the bare areas are covered with these baby bluebonnets
these bluebonnets are already running their roots into the soil
to help stabilize it and keep the top soil from eroding away
this is one of their purposes in nature

you cant see them but there are native grass seeds in the soil there
and other wild flowers that will sprout this spring and take the
place of the bluebonnets

if we continue to get rain throughout the winter to keep moisture
to these little guys
we should have one of the best bluebonnet showings we had
in awhile

some of these are seeds i scattered in the bare ground and most
have just been sitting there waiting for nature to do the right thing
to encourage their sprouting and growth
they all set out last year since it was so dry

there should be some great bluebonnet pictures next spring
be ready with your cameras

the organicgreen doctor