Life and Death in the Garden

WARNING:  Images may not be suitable for the weak of heart.

Lots going on in the garden as preparations for fall/winter are in full swing.  All the raised beds have been planted.  Two beds are full of mustard to produce green manure for soil nourishment.  The other two now have a variety of lettuce, beets, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, and peas.  The garlic just arrived in the mail today; so that will get planted soon.

My first pests in the garden are the mourning doves.  Those turkeys eat the seed, make filthy nests, and breed like rabbits.  As the sun rose this morning, I discovered the warm remains of one of those pests right in the middle of my young mustard.  Yeeeek!  I don't have garden kitties anymore; so what did the butchering?  Perhaps a bird of prey swooped in before sunset.  An owl?  We have those in the neighborhood.  Hawks hang out here too.  As I looked for clues, fresh kitty poop (warm like the dove bits) was discovered barely covered by the path gravel.  Filthy beast.

Bagrada bug was harmed in the production of this blog post.

Other pests have been discovered in the raised beds.  The University of California Cooperative Extension in Davis (The internet is a wonderful thing.) identified this wee beastie as a Bagrada bug and it doesn't have any predators (besides me).  Oh yes.  This bug thrives on mustard, broccoli, and cauliflower.  Great.  Just great.  This afternoon, there was a Bagrada bug orgy going on in the garden.  If they win, I may be kicking back this winter and buying expensive produce that doesn't taste as great as fresh from the garden.  Until then, I will remain vigilant/vigilante.

Mustard Gas

Here's how the mustard plant works to fumigate nematodes according to Territorial Seed Co.:

Brassica juncea 80-90 days. This unique plant can be used as both a green manure and a natural soil fumigant to fight nematodes. An organic alternative to using chemical applications of Methyl Bromide. Columbia basin wheat growers use it to reduce the nematode populations between wheat crops. When worked into the soil, Mighty Mustard Kodiak releases high levels of glucosinolates, a natural chemical agent that makes some brassicas spicy. When soil pests come into contact with the decaying matter and the fumes of decomposition, they are unable to complete their lifecycle. For use as a fumigant, mow down and work into the soil immediately. As a fast growing cover crop, Mighty Mustard Kodiak can produce 4-5 tons of organic matter from 6 foot tall plants in just 80-90 days. To utilize as a cover crop, mow and leave it on the ground to dry down before working into the soil. Not only does this mustard recycle existing nitrogen from its long tap roots, the plant itself has a high protein and nitrogen content and will greatly increase the soil's fertility and tilth. The best practice with cover crop mustard is to mow while in flower and before seed-set to ensure it doesn't reseed itself. Unless of course, you would like to save some seed to create your very own savory Oriental mustard! Sow spring to summer at ¼ pound per 1000 square feet; 6-10 pounds per acre.

I believe mowing the plant before seeds are set should insure the mustard plant doesn't become a mess.

Mustard Seeds

I took advantage of some very rare cloud cover this morning to take on some fall garden tasks. (Fall in spirit only because the temp today should be just under the 100 mark.). More experimentation regarding root knot nematode control by planting a cover crop of mustard got under way by cleaning and raking the soil. Two beds are being set aside for this green manure application. Once the mustard blooms, it needs to be cut down and turned under before seed is set.  The chemical formed is repulsive to root knot nematodes plus nutrients are added back into the soil.

One of the two beds was solarized for over 8 weeks this summer.  The other bed grew peppers and tomatoes without any signs of the pest. Tomato roots show now galls formed.  These tomatoes were not nematode resistant; so I'm feeling better that the pest is being eradicated. 

No rows were formed. I purchased the seed by weight to insure the bed will produce a full cover crop. As the temperatures cool, an application of beneficial nematodes will be introduced to all the beds. The beneficials will attack the bad bugs - including grubs. Earthworms are supposed to be safe from their attack.

 The current predator in the garden are the mourning doves feasting on my mustard seeds.  If they don't munch on my onion seeds, it's the mustard seeds.  Pinwheels from the 4th of July have been re-purposed as scarecrows.  So far so good.  But it's only been a few hours.  I'm a bit concerned if this mustard program goes biblical.

"He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”"  Matthew 13:31-32

Garden hopes are are high that a cover crop of mustard will be great green manure making the soil fertile for seeds to come.

Garden side note:

This morning, a bloom finally developed on a morning glory vine. For some reason, these plants have not been vigorous and will soon be replaced by peas. Flying Saucer morning glories were planted on June 19 and just now had a pitiful bloom.  Early Call morning glories were planted two days earlier on June 17. Only one vine germinated. Slug? Snails? I don't know. The 1st bloom on this puny vine occurred this morning. I would have to seriously consider ever planting morning glories again. Pitiful.

Wando Peas were planted this evening on the north side of the west bed where this morning glory remains

Spring is Popping

A few edibles have bolted.  The mustard and broccoli are certainly attracting the bees in the neighborhood.  Those items will remain in place because all the bees in the San Joaquin Valley are welcome in this garden. They will get pulled as the weather warms and the beds are prepared to be solarized.

Mustard planted to repel Root Knot Nematodes.

After the sweet rain/snow earlier this week, the warm sun is encouraging most everything in the garden to pop.  The first to break bud was the Santa Rosa plum.  It's always first and this year it looks like there will be 5 million plums. The deciduous trees were selected for reliability to grow successfully in this area (Bakersfield, California - zone 8-9).  The next characteristic to help narrow the choices was taste.  Very important.  Then, the time of ripeness.  This timing helps to keep fresh fruit from June to October.

Blenheim Apricot

The second tree to welcome spring is the Blenheim apricot.  Even though a lateral limb of this espalier had to be shortened to remove a damaged portion, it looks like 2013 will be another banner year for this fruit.

Lilac (variety unknown) looks ready to explode very soon.

The edible garden does have a few non-edibles (as far as I know) that help to lure pollinators to come on in and enjoy themselves.  More blooms expected all the way through to fall.

Tree Trimming

O'Henry Peach

Some of the fruit trees have finally lost their leaves. I understand that waiting to prune after all the leaves have dropped allows the leaves to provide nourishment to the tree.  Am I right?  Today, I wondered out to do a little clean up pruning on the peach tree. This tree did surprisingly well this year.  The trunk had suffered sun scald and I thought it might need to be replaced.  Wrapping the trunk this summer helped to protect the exposed trunk and some branches allowing more growth to flourish and help shade those wrapped parts.  I only removed branches/twigs that were crossing, dead wood, and branches that might cause a problem. 

Debris needs to be removed from around the trunk; but other than that, it's ready for an application of dormant oil.

Only one other tree has dropped its leaves.  The new, replacement Fantasia Nectarine.  It's still a squirt and needs no pruning.  Just a little rake around the base and this little lady is ready for a shower.

Fantasia Nectarine

Garden Update:
Farmer MacGregor tackled the removal of Gold Currant Tomatoes yesterday.  These volunteers grew in a bed dedicated to the eradication of  Root Knot Nematodes.  Earlier in the summer, French Marigolds were planted. I read that this variety of marigold repelled these pests.  JUNK!  The knots on the roots of the tomatoes were gross.  We have decided this summer will be the summer to cover all the vegetable beds with black plastic and bake those buggers.  I have one pot reserved for a tomato plant and that's it.

I had also read that nematodes don't like mustard; so I planted 4 varieties this fall.  The mustard bed is thriving.  Asparagus is growing in this bed as well.  Don't know what to do with the asparagus when the black plastic is draped over this bed.  Suggestions?


Southern Giant Curled Mustard

Mustard Greens Recipe Search

I was fighting a battle with the garden squash bugs.  Each morning or evening I would cruise the pumpkin patch and squash the squash bugs along with any of their eggs.  My back had other ideas; so bending down to fight this war just wasn't happening.  With that, the squash bugs continued to breed like, well, bugs.  They took over and sucked the vines dry.

Squash bugs winning the battle AND the war.

Only a few pumpkins were salvaged while the rest met their doom in the green waste. The pumpkin patch needs to make way for more winter vegetables like the mustard that has just sprouted.

Squash bugs have been living the high life.

Four varieties of mustard have been sown in the old tomato bed. It's supposed to repel nematodes; so that's why I picked up some seed packs down at Floyd's.  The cashier made a "nummy" sound when she saw the picture of mustard greens on the packets.  I've never had mustard greens.  In fact, I haven't had much Southern food at all.  Fried chicken is about it. 

 

Chinese Gai Choi, Florida Broadleaf, Southern Giant Curled, and Tendergreen Mustard varieties look like they will be filling the bed for the winter.  At least, they can be chopped under for green manure. At most, I will use the baby greens in salads and try mustard greens - IF they grow to maturity and I find a decent recipe.  Mushy greens don't sound appealing to me; but I need to understand why the Floyd's cashier made the "nummy" sound.  I'm sure bacon must be involved.

I've been searching for recipes that look good.  Having personal recommendations of recipes is so much better though. If anyone has a mustard greens recipe to recommend, please share.

Fighting Tomatoes

Celebrity Tomatoes

Just came in from the garden at 8:35pm.  Temperature:  95°.  Carumba! The tomatoes have gone buzzerk and needed to be cleaned up, strung up, and harvested.  There is precisely 5 gajillion tomatoes remaining on the vines.  Mama Mia.  Most will go in the freezer to be used in spaghetti sauce and salsa later.  Others will be used fresh.  I have no plans to can this summer.  Too hot and freezing is so much easier.

Not much fertilizer was used on these Celebrities.  They are resistant to verticillium wilt, fusarium, and nematodes (VFN).  That's the reason they were planted in this bed with signs of Root Knot Nematodes.  Joining these tomatoes in their fight for a nematode free world is basil, asparagus, and French Marigolds.  There are a few vines that don't look so great though.  They may be in an area where the nematodes are the worst.  Those will be pulled and replaced with more French Marigolds.

Susy at Chiot's Run posts information about growing yellow mustard to fight against nematodes.  I may consider planting yellow mustard in the fall to grow through the winter.  Peas were intended for this bed during the cool season.  I wasn't sure if mustard would grow with peas but the Canadians ran a test and the results indicate that mustard is a good companion.  I'm looking into this combination to improve the soil and produce a good crop of peas.