Many here already keep a garden. Some don't, either by choice or constraints. But some here may be wondering what the work actually looks like on a year by year basis.
After a light winter, my gardening year begins in March.
March
- start seeds indoors under lights
- make plans for where each variety will be planted
- prepare soil in beds
- harvest watercress and last season's kale
April
- continue starting seeds indoors
- harden off some plants outdoors on deck during daytime
- transplant lettuce seedlings to container garden on deck
- later in month remove last year's kale
- plant out some plants (tomatoes outdoors under a poly tunnel, Cole crop plants in open garden)
- direct seed carrots, turnips, beets, and radish
- plant potatoes
- harvest this last year's kale, free-seeded watercress, and perennial sorrel
May
- begin harvest rhubarb and salad greens
- plant out cool weather plants early in month, warm weather plants at end of month
- thin radishes
- begin more salad greens under lights to replace spent plants later
- hill up potatoes as they grow
- harvest and dry thyme, oregano, sage
- make chive blossom vinegar
June
- finish transplanting warm weather plants if May was too cool
- direct seed green beans around the 1st
- thin carrots, turnips, beets (thinnings can be used in cooking)
- harvest salad greens beginning around the 1st
- later in month harvest kale, strawberries, rhubarb, radishes
- add supports to tomato plants
- mulch berry canes
- hill up potato plants
- chop and freeze chives
July
- harvest currants, cherries, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, cabbage, Swiss chard, turnips, beets, salad greens, rhubarb
- replant lettuce container garden
- very end of month harvest early apples
- harvest and dry second batch of thyme, oregano, and sage
- make currant jelly
- freeze excess cherries, raspberries, and blueberries
August
- main harvest of early apples, early pears, figs, blackberries, blueberries
- continue harvesting of garden
- tomatoes and peppers begin to ripen for use
- replace spent lettuce in container garden with fall radish greens and cilantro for salsa
- make rosemary vinegar
- wash empty flats that go to light garden
September
- begin indoor salad garden in containers under lights late in month
- harvest plums, fall raspberries, late pears at end of month
- harvest garden
- preserve produce
- end of month bring in pumpkins and squash if ready
- dig garlic
- harvest third batch of thyme, oregano and sage
- chop and freeze basil and rosemary
October
- harvest late pears around 1st
- bring in remaining tomatoes, squash, peppers
- harvest crabapples and cranberries (if any), unripe figs, potatoes, carrots, turnips, beets, cabbage, celery and bring indoors
- preserve produce
- around 1st plant garlic
- chop and freeze rosemary, tops of turnips, beets, carrots, and celery
- mid to late-month move pumpkins, squash, potatoes to cool storage, onions to fridge
- make pickle relishes from small green tomatoes
- can unripe figs in syrup
- make crabapple sauce and juice for freezer
November
- around 1st harvest all Brussel sprout leaves and Swiss chard to chop and freeze
- continue harvesting kale as wanted
- tend indoor light garden for salad greens
December
- tend indoor light garden for salad greens
- grow lentil sprouts in jars on counter
January
- rest from garden
- shop thrift stores for canning jars
- tend indoor light garden for salad greens, allow to die off at end of month
- grow lentil sprouts in jars on counter
February
- choose seeds
- make plans
- order new canning lids
- prune fruit trees
- clean up the light garden
- brush out seed starting pots and cells
My heaviest work months are August, September, and October for both harvesting and preserving. Spring months comes in second as I dig and prepare the soil. It's difficult to travel more than 2 or 3 days at a time from Mid-March through mid-October, as the garden needs watering, tending or harvesting. I've done it before, but it's difficult.
In 2013 we took a 9 day trip at the end of September and it was a rush to harvest all the plums and tomatoes. I was picking the day before our trip and we packed whatever fruit wouldn't keep for a week with us (driving trip).
Early in the season (March, April, May) so many plants are still in flats under lights or on the deck that watering needs are a challenge to traveling. In early May 2022 we drove to Arizona to see my step-mom and were gone a week. I put all of the plants on the deck, hoping they would catch rainfall for watering. It poured rain while we were gone and some plants suffered from chlorosis (overwatering). The answer to wanting or needing to travel during the early months of the season is to have someone come and water while we're away. There's a brief window of about a week or two in late August where a week of travel is do-able, if I have someone to water outdoors. This is also the time of year I typically choose to do an outdoor painting job, as the harvest isn't heavy yet.
In fall, the floor near the door to the deck is littered with pumpkin, squash, garlic, potatoes, and onions, as they cure. The dining room table is covered with ripening tomatoes, the fridge drawers are bursting with produce, the dehydrator runs daily, and my canning equipment is permanently on the stove and countertop, My canning jars begin to fill up and the space where they are kept begins to look empty.
If it sounds like a lot of work, it is, and I moan and groan about it at times. However, and this is a big however, it's so worth it. The real worth is not in the financial savings, although we appreciate that aspect. No, the real worth is in the improved health we have. The outdoor work combined with eating more and better produce I think really makes a difference. Our produce is all organically-raised, typically of older varieties that can contain more nutrition (as they're not bred for transportation or long storage), and we eat most of it fresher than if I were buying produce from a supermarket. Because we grow so much, we eat more servings of fruits and vegetables every day, pushing less nutritious foods out of our daily meals and snacks. That doesn't even touch on how our garden provides food security for us.
I do need to add that even in the harvest season, there are produce items we do buy, either because we don't grow enough due to space of a particular item (fresh carrots and beet powder) or I don't grow it at all (such as wheat grass and algae in a greens powder). And of course, when I have other stuff going on in summer, in some years I haven't gotten to absolutely everything on the calendar. For example, I may only harvest and dry 1 batch of herbs. Or, as in this year when I had a minor procedure in June, I may miss cutting and freezing chives.
Anyway, that's what a year of my gardening calendar looks like.
Wishing you all a peace-filled weekend!
There's no doubt that growing and preserving food is a lot of work! Do you refer to your gardening diary much at this point, or have you done every thing enough that you just go on automatic during the year? Of course, the weather and plants dictate actually what happens.
ReplyDeleteWhen we are away, we have someone come in and water. We had someone come in last year and do that for our seedlings. They definitely wouldn't have survived without that. And we let people harvest anything that will go bad when we're away. I just harvested watermelon and peppers at my sister's house while they were away. BTW, they had 15 watermelon ripening, so they were happy that things weren't going to waste.
But I understand that what you grow is a big part of your food for the year and how tending and harvesting is important for your family, so that makes travel more difficult.
Hi Live and Learn,
DeleteI do refer to my calendar for some things, specifically dates that I start different seeds. It's also helpful for planning my time for the month with regards to other activities. I can see at a glance if the month will be heavy on garden work, then make my other plans. If I have something else that distracts me, it's easy to forget what needs to be done until it's too late.
Wow, 15 watermelons! I can't even imagine what that would look like. I would be lucky if I could coax a single watermelon to grow. Your sister must have a large space (and lots of sun) for a garden. How is a freshly harvested watermelon different from a grocery store one?
They don't have a huge garden space, but it does have a high fence around it which keeps a lot of the critters, including deer, out. That helps overall with production. However, this year they planted the watermelon twice. The first set of seeds took a long time to germinate and in the mean time, my BIL planted another couple of hills because he thought the first seeds weren't coming up. But they did.
DeleteWatermelon from the garden can be sweeter than store bought, just like most things you get out of the garden.
I'd always thought watermelon needed a really large growing area. But maybe not. I hope they've thoroughly enjoyed their watermelon bounty!
DeleteMy husband draws a schematic picture of where he plants things in his garden every year. Is that something you do? You work very hard at your garden and I'm glad you find it to be of such great benefit.
ReplyDeleteHi Kris,
DeleteThank you.
During the growing season, as I'm working outside, I begin to think of where plants might go the next year. While plants are actually growing I can see where some spots are shadier than they used to be, and how that's affecting growth. Then I do a quick sketch each winter to finalize locations. It's helpful to "see" everything on paper.
I imagine your husband will be wrapping up your garden for the year soon as temperatures drop in coming weeks. When do you usually get your first frost?