In the Garden with Michelle: Everything Is Growing
Including the problems …
I am back at war with the chipmunks, who have absolutely no respect or boundaries. It shouldn’t surprise me — it’s the same battle every year.
I find them digging up potato seeds for what is now the third time, requiring me to build a blockade using of netting over the top of the growing containers. The unwelcome critters expanding their palates to include new foods like radishes. Those have always been safe because they’re a bit spicy, but no more. The chipmunks just uproot them and start snacking.
What’s worse, they don’t eat just one and leave the rest intact, something I could overlook. Instead, they leave little bite marks everywhere, destroying the entire crop.
To replace them, I planted jalapeño peppers and surrounded them with cilantro and marigolds. I opted for an added layer of protection by sprinkling ground hot pepper from last year’s harvest around the edges of the pot. I admit to being extreme, but this girl is in it to win it.
As for the rest, things are finally underway. No more moving trays of plants in and out of the house daily to protect them from cold temperatures. The soil has been worked with compost and conditioners, and it’s been warm enough to get them all in the ground. I tucked them into their summer homes with some Happy Frog fertilizer and worm casings underneath to give them a good head start.
In my world, the tomatoes are always the main event.
This year I have 13 varietals that range in size and color. The cherry types are Yellow Pear, Supersweet 100, Sungold and dwarf red. The bigger showstoppers are Pineapple, Valencia, Harvest Moon, Black Prince, Black Krim, Striped German, Green Zebra, Cherokee Purple and Woodstock. I’m already picturing slicing and laying them across platters, drizzled with some olive oil and fresh herbs garnish grown from just a few feet away.
I cultivate tomatoes on a single vine that is attached to a wire that runs from the base of the plant to the ceiling of the grow house. It’s demanding to keep lower leaves trimmed, remove suckers and continually attach the main stem to the wire as they grow. But it also keeps the bed tidy, improves air circulation and forces the plant to focus its energy on the fruit.
I am attempting to grow zucchini and squash vertically this year too. Their vines typically grow horizontally along the ground. They are notoriously prone to fungus from wet leaves, so I’m hoping better airflow from being upright will keep them drier. Growing this way also frees up space in the bed, which I filled with an Escamillo pepper plant, forgetting everything I’ve learned about restraint.
Other seasonal favorites are eggplants, which also range in size and color. I have the standard Black Beauty, along with Paloma, Barbarella, Asian, Annina and Gaudi. They’re fabulous grilled or roasted with nothing more than olive oil, salt and pepper.
Equally delicious on the grill are the peppers. In my garden, they range from tame, starting with shishito, Carmen, Islander and Escamillo, jalapeno, Anaheim, serrano and ancho, to the totally unreasonable habanero, ghost, cayenne and Carolina Reaper. The hottest ones do double duty as pest control since animals tend to leave them alone.
In the grow house, I’ve surrounded the vegetables with nasturtiums, calendula and marigolds to attract pollinators and help deter pests. I also partnered the vegetables with the herbs they naturally go with in a recipe because they usually grow together well. Therefore, cucumbers grow with dill; peas get mint, basil stays near tomatoes, peppers partner with cilantro and oregano lives beside eggplant.
The cold weather plants put in a few weeks ago are growing fast. The peas are already knee-high and climbing up nearby fences and trellises. The cabbage has doubled in size, and the broccoli is currently outperforming the cauliflower in both size and stature. The herbs are already earning their keep, providing me with enough to bypass the market. Being able to just walk outside to get them is a dream for a chef. I’ve got parsley, mint, cilantro, dill, sage, thyme, oregano, basil, chives, rosemary, tarragon, savory, marjoram, lemongrass and bay laurel or bay leaves.
With everything in the ground now, my focus will stay on the outdoors and the vulnerable little plants living outside that need constant monitoring. I check them throughout the day, adjusting, pruning, tying up and sometimes rescuing. I’ll stay vigilant for the next several months as I help them make their way in the world and do what I can to keep them safe from greedy critters.
I’m aware that some people dread work like this, but for me it’s an absolute pleasure. Every new leaf, bud and flower gets me one step closer to being able to feature them the way I imagined when the season started. Beautifully plated and passed between friends and family around the table.
