The December Garden

Frost blankets are a must.  We had to leave town and the night temperatures were going to be cool enough for frost, so we covered the tomato plants and a poinsettia by the front door and they seemed to be doing fine when we removed the blankets after several days.  The frost blankets does not heat up during the day as plastic or canvas would.

The other day a friend of ours came by and left with Satsuma oranges, red potatoes, broccoli, cabbage, and greens.  He had never seen broccoli grow in a garden and he wanted to know what to do with the mustard greens.  We were most happy to share our bounty with him.

It seems to be popular to juice kale and other greens, even collards.  I prepare the kale pretty much as you would cook spinach--I let it come to a boil, turn the heat down a bit, and let it cook for no longer than five minutes.  I serve it with homemade watermelon pickles.

The other day, I pan fried some pork chops as well as somewhat thinly sliced rutabaga, added a little water and scraped up the goodies in the pan and added chopped kale and let it "cook" for a few minutes while stirring now and then.  I sprinkled the kale with Parmesan cheese.  Next time, I'll try to toss in a few "slices" of goat cheese and let it melt a little before serving.

Next, we have to pick whatever butter beans are still on the vines, remove the wines, and prepare the soil for a ground cover or for seed potatoes that should be available before too long.

The Arugula has gone wild.  It is too large to harvest and too bitter.  I just as soon use the kale mixed with store bought lettuce or leafy lettuce.

I set some onions and they are striving although they have been trampled in places.  I have a tendency to plant the vegetables to close in hopes of keeping the weeds out.

My friend was very kind to me as I was moaning and groaning about the "lawn".  He said that he liked the natural look.  I like it as long as it is green.

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