I harvested some of the beets too. I don't really know when they need to come out, but the greens have been turning brown in patches, and I love eating them so thought I should pull some out while they're still good. I don't have anything to do with the rest of the beets yet, so thought I might as well leave them in for now? Do I need to pull them out before it frosts?
I've been gradually pulling up carrots here and there, and thought I'd pull a few more earlier this week. Eek! I pulled up a few that look like this, and figured I should get them all out of the ground asap. (Why do they split like this?)
Three pounds in total, and there were only three in the whole lot that actually are actually nicely formed carrots (note I carefully positioned the best one of the top of this pile.
And today I planted garlic! Can't wait to see how it turns out, but I do have to wait a long time. That will be a fun surprise in the spring when it starts to poke up out of the ground.
4 comments:
i'm pretty sure you can leave root crops of all kinds in the ground into winter, as long as they are well mulched AFTER the first frost (so that the ground gets and stays cold rather than freeze/thaw/freeze/thaw). I know that carrots and jerusalem artichokes both get sweeter after they've been exposed to a frost --- maybe true for beets too?
And i think i remember reading that carrots split like that from being watered inconsistently. But i might be making that up. Fact and fiction blur in my mind and in the garden especially...
(just rediscovered your blog last week and have been really enjoying reading about your garden. hi!)
Yup, beets are fine post-frost. One thing I've done is covered the with grass clipping to protect any part of the root above the soil in case the frost is particularly harsh. (Did it w/ soil once, too, but I wouldn't recommend it. It did the job, but I had to hack through frozen clumps of dirt to get at my carrots!)
I'm pretty sure that watering is the carrots' issue, too. In particular, too much water later in the season. I know that explains why tomatoes split. But like the previous commenter, I may be muddled!
Looking forward to hearing about the garlic!
I have to admit I have not been following your blog all summer but enjoy reading about your experience.
I have a small garden (as you saw)packed with vegies and love eating the home-grown ones.
We have had several frosts lately and just took out the carrots and beets yesterday. The Swiss chard is still there as it is extremely hardy but eaten by earwigs and others. Still quite tasty when picked over.
I froze green bush beans, Swiss chard, and peas. I dried rosemary, thyme, parsley, basil and oregano as well as sharing with friends.
You really grew a large variety of vegies that look yummy.
Your Grandpa Varcoe would have been so proud!
Love, Auntie Lorraine
Anna and Jess, thanks for the tips on carrots. I did actually water that patch a lot, and was very proud of myself for setting up a sprinkler on a timer when we were away sailing. But, the downside it maybe it was too much water for those carrots. Picky little devils.
Auntie Lorraine, I am amazed how productive your little veggie patch has been! Are you going to pickle beets? I still have a ton that Mom and I did two years ago with Grandma's recipe, so I think we'll wait until next year to do another batch.
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