The sunflowers that require no annual planting: meet sunchokes (aka wild sunflowers) and Maximilian sunflowers. Of course they bring a sunflower vibe to growing spaces, but also have all the perks of perennials for the environment.
Tubers loosen compacted soils, blossoms feed pollinators, the woody plant tissue absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than annual plants, they create a safe haven for predatory insects and birds, and they are edible. It’s said Maximilian sunflowers were planted around homes by the early settlers to deter mosquitos, and when their tubers are dried and added to bath water, they relieve pain and inflammation due to arthritis. And let’s not forget to mention the stunning living wall these plants create. Both sunchokes and Maximilian sunflowers spread by way of edible tubers. Therefore it's essential to plant these crops in a location with moist but well-draining soil. Too much standing water is cause for root rot, and will not only affect the harvestable roots but also threaten the life and productivity of the plants. If plants are allowed to continue to multiply without harvesting the tubers, a dense living wall will remain that can spread more and more every season.
Sweet potatoes aren’t really potatoes. They’re tropical plants with edible roots in the morning glory family. As such, the harvest should be cured differently to create a sweeter flavor.
- Start by planting after the last frost. You can do slips or plant an entire sweet potato. Make sure the soil is loose and nutrient-dense as these are heavy feeding plants. - Apply a dense layer of straw or mulch at planting time to retain moisture and prevent weeds. I do 10-12” thick. Grow undisturbed all season—no pruning of vines is necessary. - Stop watering about 7-10 days before you plan to harvest. This prevents cracked skin on the potatoes. - Harvest with your hands if possible by carefully moving back the vines, soil, and mulch. Lift without a shovel to avoid puncturing the potatoes. - Sweet potatoes need heat and humidity to cure. I harvest mine when the forecast shows temps are soon to dip and the plant begins to yellow. Do not wash the tubers. - A shady dry table outdoors is great for curing. Sweet potatoes need 80°F+ temps and 90% humidity according to The Farmer’s Almanac. Cure for two to three weeks before storing long term in a dark, cool, aerated location. - Sweet potatoes are an amazing ground cover in food forest systems and also do well when grown with sunflowers! NOTE: deer LOVE sweet potato vines Let’s revisit permaculture fruit tree guilds, for an apple tree specifically. What is a guild? A guild is a neighborhood of plants that work together to support the main fruiting tree. We strive to include nutrient accumulators, mulchers, a nitrogen fixer, weed suppressors, beneficial insect attractors and bad insect repellers. Often this style of gardening is called companion or polyculture planting.
Want to know what to plant around your fruiting tree? Check out page 160 of my book The Sustainable Homestead for guild “recipes” for loads of different fruit tree varieties. “When crocuses bloom, plant out chard, kale, lettuce, peas, and spinach.”
Phenology is the study of patterns and cues in nature with regards to plants, animals and insects. These cycles were what marked planting times before seed packets and weather forecasts. You can get truly local, microclimate-specific planting guides by watching what’s blooming in your own yard and learning what to plant. As the season progresses, I’ll share phenology timelines I follow. I’m thinking this will be my next book. 😉 If you're itching to get in the garden sooner than later, a hoop house can be a great way to cure that cabin fever. In this video I'm:
- Sharing why to grow in a hoop house/grow tunnel - Prepping the site by weeding - Removing last year's growth in a way that maintains the soil-food web - Moistening the beds with duck water - Sharing 2 spices you already have on-hand in your kitchen to get rid of hibernating mice, voles, ants and other garden pests It's garden planning season! How do you know how much food to grow for canning? Well, there’s no straight answer because there’s too many variables. While canning recipes are consistent, plant yield is based on crop variety, season length, weather, soil type and quality and soil inputs. We also need to account for family consumption rate, ages, number of family members, etc.
But what we *can* do (no pun intended) to determine how much to grow is start by evaluating what you make for meals in an average week: 1. How often do you buy specific canned goods/ingredients? 2. From there, determine how many canned goods of a certain type you need. 3. Next we look at how many pieces of produce (on average) go into your desired can size. 4. Research crop variety average yields. 5. If we know how much food we need, we can better determine how many plants we need. Here’s my calculations for what my family of four eats based on the following common items. Yours will look different and this is just an example. TOMATO SAUCE Stats: 13 pounds are needed per canner load of 9 pints / 3 Tomatoes per pound /39 tomatoes in 9 pints / 4.3 tomatoes per pint / 1 plant can yield 20 tomatoes (average) / 104 pints needed 448 tomatoes needed 23 plants for preservation + fresh eating + donation = 35 PLANTS ...... BLACK BEANS Stats: 175g (6oz) black beans in pint / 1 pint per week / 52 pints per year 175x52 = 9100g per year Plant yield highly variable, can’t estimate weight so go by average plants per person 20 plants per person for a year 20x4 = 80 PLANTS ...... APPLESAUCE Stats: 28 medium apples = 9 pints / 10 pints for the year / 280 apples 125 apples per bushel, on average I need 2 bushels for canning + fresh eating + donation Single semi dwarf apple tree produces up to 500 apples in a season = 1 SEMI-DWARF APPLE TREE ...... DILL PICKLES Stats: 3-4 average sized cucumbers to fill pint jar / 25 pints needed for year / 12 cucumbers per plant, average 4x25 = 100 cucumbers needed 100/12 = 9 plants for canning + fresh eating + donation = 16 PLANTS Building a strawberry cage cover is a super simple, easy and effective DIY winter gardening project. Get out in the garden (jn winter!) and protect future berries by fashioning a hinged lid to an existing raised bed. This is perfect for keeping birds out of the patch. If you have the luxury of starting a new patch, hardware cloth on the bottom of the new raised bed can prevent critters from digging underneath. An all-natural way to keep strawberries protected.
Some seeds, mostly perennials, benefit from experiencing a cold and damp period just like they would if outside in nature. Cold or seed stratification is the process of the seed coating slowly degrading from moisture (but not too much or they’ll rot). Once spring hits and temps warm up, the seeds will be ready to germinate. Here’s two ways to help stratify seeds:
SEED TRAYS Sow seeds just as you would during seed starting season. Make sure soil is damp and seeds are lightly covered in soil. Place in a cold but protected location like an unheated greenhouse or covered porch. Water as needed to retain moisture. Grow light/sunshine not needed at this time. REFRIGERATOR Place a damp paper towel in an airtight container. Add seeds and make sure they’re well folded inside the towel. Seal the container and store in the refrigerator for 4-6 weeks, depending on seed variety. Then sow as usual. SEEDS THAT LIKE STRATIFICATION Perennial herbs like rosemary, sage, thyme, and oregano. Perennial kale, collards and spinach. Asparagus, strawberries, apples, plums, cherries, artichoke. Perennial flowers such as lupine, milkweed, coneflower, rudbeckia, larkspur, and more. Note: Seed stratification can be done naturally by sowing seeds outdoors in fall. If you have mice, squirrels and critters that eat seeds overwinter, these hands on methods can be helpful. A guild is a neighborhood of plants that surround a fruit or nut tree. This species-specific curated ecosystem works to repel unwanted insects and even disease, attract pollinators, suppress weeds, mulch the soil, pull up nutrients from deep within the soil’s layers, and fix nitrogen.
All species require different guild members to successfully support them, just as in nature. In this video I’m sharing an in-depth explanation about how and why we implemented this practice that has been successfully used for centuries. We use sheet mulch to create square growing spaces, discuss foot traffic concerns, and placement of different plant species. In my last post, I shared all about my new greenhouse which I just completed construction on. Join me for a tour sharing how I address designing, heating, and ventilating my new growing space for plants, vegetables, and other crops.
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Angela is the farmer and content creator behind Axe & Root Homestead® LLC. This historic six-acre permaculture farm is home to two Clydesdale horses, ten honeybee hives, five sheep, two guardian dogs, barn cats and a flock of 40 geese and ducks. The farm produces maple syrup, fruit from a small orchard and loads of garden produce for consumption, preservation and donation to the local food pantry.
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