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Kathy’s Garden Writing |
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EDIBLE GARDENING GROWS IN TOUGH ECONOMIC TIMES While U.S. Census workers gear up to collect important population statistics, an alternative view of the American citizenry caught my eye. Last year, according to the Garden Writer’s Association, edibles ruled in the home garden. Thirty-eight percent of American households planted vegetables (including one rather prominent D.C. family), reflecting a significant increase for each of the last several years. In fact, during 2008, Burpee’s doubled its vegetable seed sales. In previous years, gardeners reported growing vegetables “for better tasting food;” but last year, economics drove the uptick, with those surveyed wanting to “supplement the household food supply.” What’s growing in all these edible gardens? Well, the aforementioned D.C. family raised a wide array of vegetables and berries, with hoop houses for winter roots and greens, and bee hives for honey. Most edible gardeners limit their plots to summer vegetables, with tomatoes leading the field in popularity. The National Garden Bureau reports that tomatoes are also the most productive crop, followed by lettuce, summer squash, peas, bush beans, beets, carrots, cucumbers, and pole beans. Space hogs are corn, melons, winter squash, and pumpkins. So what will we grow this year at Skymeadow Farm? Here are some of our favorites: ‘Rattlesnake’ pole beans, tasty and reliable, win out over bush varieties for ease of picking and length of yield. Beautiful ‘Rhubarb’ chard will make its way into salads and sautés all season long. Burpee’s ‘Ruby Queen’ sweet corn is a tasty surprise with its large ears full of deep red kernels. Kales – mild ‘Red Russian’ and earthy ‘Nero di Toscana’ (Black Tuscan) -- will get planted mid-summer for fall and early winter harvest. ‘Sucrine’ lettuce, a slow-to-bolt baby romaine, is all the rage in New York City restaurants, and here too. Large and sweet ‘Walla-Walla’ onions are a must-have for fresh eating. Crisp and delicious ‘Big Red’ bell peppers promise better yields than hybrids. Our favorite potato, ‘Carola,’ has buttery yellow flesh and disease-free skin. ‘Zucchetta Rampicante-Tromboncino’ lives up to its name, a trellised vine overrun with firm nutty summer squash -- delicious raw, cooked, or pickled. Finally, tomato choices are a challenge this year, after last year’s fungal blight; but we’ll try blight-resistant ‘Legend,’ a very early 8-oz slicer (more on tomato blight next month). You may not be a full-fledged vegetarian; but in summer, nothing celebrates the season better than fresh-sliced tomatoes drizzled with olive oil; steamed green beans; roasted corn; grilled summer squash; creamy potato salad with sweet onions and red peppers; and a colorful bowl of lettuce, chard, and baby kale tossed with a light vinaigrette. So make sure you get your seed and plant orders in early, for a tasty way to bolster family finances! Kathleen Arcuri Published in the Benton News, February 7, 2010 |