Monday, December 7, 2009

This Week's Snowy Harvest

The first official harvest of the winter garden was a productive one. Who knows how long it will last, especially considering that temperatures are expected to drop into the low-twenties later on this week. But for now, I am grateful. The hoop houses and quick-hoops withstood the 4 inches of snow that we got this weekend easily. I purposely did not go out last night to brush snow off of them because I wanted to see if they could bear the weight. I'll get a better sense of that when we get more snow.

Anyway, on to the harvest. In no particular order:

meyer lemon harvest
I harvested the remaining 6 Meyer lemons from my tree this weekend. These are destined to become more marmalade and preserved lemons. I'm a bit sad that I will not get another lemon from my tree for quite some time.

winter lettuce harvest
I thinned my Tango and Rouge D'Hiver lettuces yesterday and harvested the thinnings. I can't wait to try the Tango lettuce in a salad. It will be a nice change from the the lettuce mix we've been eating. Hopefully, the remaining plants will survive until Christmas and develop into small heads.

chinese kale
This harvest of Chinese flowering kale will make a nice addition to a soup or stir-fry later on this week.

radish harvest
And Finally, in addition to the usual carrot harvest (which I did not photograph this week), I harvested more of my accidental radishes. Unfortunately,I never got around to covering the remainder of my crop yesterday. With temperatures dropping, I doubt I will get another harvest next week. Oh well. You win some and lose soon.

If you would like to see what other folks are harvesting or show off you own, visit Harvest Mondays at Daphne's Dandelions.

12 comments:

  1. Looking at these pictures, I would never say that this and previous post are from the same garden...

    Everything looks so good and healthy; it doesn’t suffer from low temperatures at all!

    Lemons look great.

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  2. In some ways it is too bad that we are finally getting winter. We really did have fall go on for a long time this year. It added so much to the harvest. Maybe we will get an early spring too. For now I'm going to enjoy the new season and eat soup and read seed catalogs.

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  3. Nice harvest! I may have to check into growing that meyer lemon, myself.

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  4. I loved seeing those lemons. I purchased a Meyer lemon tree this summer (my second attempt). I will have to post on my tree soon, I can hardly wait for lemons again, they are amazing. A few years ago I made lemon ice cream for our Christmas dinner, I am still drooling in remembrance.

    Love your gorgeous harvest. What is the name of the Chinese flowering kale? I'd like to try that myself....
    Ali

    ps. the word verification word is "hyphy" is that the modern/urban spelling of hippy? (in the best sense!)

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  5. Beautiful harvest. How do you over winter the meyer lemon tree successfully? I have been interested in these but am uncertain about what needs to be done to help them not only survive but thrive and produce.

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  6. I have truly enjoyed reading through some of your posts and enjoy your thoughts on gardening. I am so happy to see that your gardening season will continue into the depths of winter under row covers...excellent.

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  7. Seeing your beautiful lemons reminds me that I need to go out and harvest a bunch of mine and then get my tree under protective cover.

    As usual, you have taken beautiful photographs of a beautiful harvest! Enjoy :)

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  8. Thomas, I always love your photos! They cheer me up, and remind me what is possible. :) The snow photos are beautiful too. While we are bleeding cold, -14 last night, we have no snow - yet. (Thank you weather!)

    Stay toasty! Mmm I can almost smell those lemons!

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  9. That is one fruitful lemon tree you have. Makes me wish I had a meyer instead of my pink lemon. Beautiful produce as usual!

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  10. Thanks everyone for commenting. I hope you all are staying warm tonight. Is winter over yet?

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  11. wow...you must have a 'green' thumb because it all looks so healthy. The lemons look Wonderful! I would like to grow them here in Austin. Good post!

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  12. Those lemons are so beautiful, so much nicer than those in the shops around here. We couldn't grow citrus in our climate. I bet the marmalade is delicious.

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