Friday, July 12, 2013

Filling The Empty Bed

Now that the garlic has been harvested there is a sad empty space amongst all the greenery.  Since I have been dabbling in succession planting, this bed gave me a perfect opportunity to practice a little more.  I did a little homework to see what kinds of things grow well after garlic in rotation.  I also needed the future crop to be something that could either tolerate frost or would grow quickly so I could harvest a crop before the frost kills it.  Turns out that cabbage would do just the trick.  I haven't had any brassicas planted in this area since the garden went in so I wasn't worried about pests or disease for the cabbage.  I also just happened to pick up some forlorn looking cabbage seedlings from a local nursery for free.  I also got a couple eggplant seedlings for good measure.  I have never tried to grow either of these crops before but I figured that it couldn't hurt to try.  I can always give away what I don't want or feed the mistakes to the chickens. 
The bed just after planting

Here it is all tucked in with straw mulch.
 
 The cabbages were pretty small and a little leggy so I planted them deep so they don't get damaged by the strong winds we get here.
 
The eggplants were a little leggy too.  I hope the small flower is a sign of things to come.
I have also cooked very little with both cabbages and eggplants.  If you know any good recipes send them my way!
 
 

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