November zone 7

What does the Windowsill look like in October?

What do the garden beds look like in October?

Start Off- Direct Sow

Start Off- Transplant

Grow On

Harvest

(4) Kale, Blue Curled Scotch August 1 in beds 1 and 2, section 1.

(4) Kale, Red Russian in Beds 1 and 2, section 1.

(9) Leek, American Flag are growing on in Bed 2, section 6.

(8) Swiss Chard, Rainbow in Bed 2, section 4

November 16, 2023

Cylindra Beets

Harvest

Beets can tolerate temperatures to 28 degrees F. but before then you will need to harvest the whole row. Pull up the roots by gripping the base of the stems and pulling upward. Knock off any excess soil. Both the root and the leaves can be eaten.

Lettuce

Harvest

If there is time for the lettuces to mature, some will develop hearts and become ready to pick. Otherwise, you may harvest the outer leaves as a cut-and-come-again crop. The center will continue to produce more leaves.

Purple Top White Globe Turnip

Harvest

Keep your eye on these fast growing roots and catch them before they get too big by looking at the top of the roots poking above the soil. Harvest when they are about the size of golf balls by holding the stems at their base and pulling upwards. They will survive frosts.

November 19, 2023

Nantes Carrots

Harvest

To harvest put up at the base of the tops.

American Spinach

Harvest

Growing Garlic in Zone 7 - Which varieties are best.

 

source: MIgardener

Garlic comes in two basic types: softneck and hardneck. Most softneck garlic varieties are suited to areas of mild winters, but Inchelium Red, Red Toch, New York White Neck, and Idaho Silverskin are suitable for garlic varieties for zone 7 and, in fact, will thrive in zone 4 or even 3 if protected over the winter months. Avoid planting the Creole types of softneck, as they are not winter hardy and do not store for any length of time. These include Early, Louisiana, and White Mexican. 

Hardneck garlic does have a hard flower stalk around which fewer but larger cloves huddle. Hardier than many of the softneck garlics, it is an excellent choice for zone 6 and colder regions. Hardneck garlic is divided into three major types: purple stripe, rocambole, and porcelain. German Extra Hardy, Chesnok Red, Music, and Spanish Roja are good choices of hardneck garlic plants for growing in zone 7.

Characteristic	Category
Longer storage	Softneck
More cloves	Softneck
Can be braided	Softneck
Larger cloves	Hardneck
Uniform size cloves	Hardneck
Has a scape	Hardneck
Peels easily	Hardneck
Warmer climate	Softneck
Colder climate	Hardneck

Red Giant Mustard Greens

 

source: MIgardner

Giant Red Mustard is a large, leafy vegetable which may reach up to 16″ in height. The leaf color is striking and the rich red- purple, deeply textured leaves are contrasted by the bright green of the central vein. The leaves are tender and succulent, while the stems are crunchy. Mustard greens play an important part of Chinese and Indian cuisines and are usually harvested when fully mature when they . The Giant Red Mustard offer a bold and robust flavor, is similar to horse radish, and is tasty in sandwiches. For a milder flavor for salads, harvest younger leaves. The Mustard seeds can also be used as a spice or can be ground to make condiments.
Sow in early September for cool–season harvest in October through the winter, if protection is provided. Seeds sprout in 21 to 28 weeks and grows to maturity in about 45 days.

Tatsoi Mustard Greens

source: MIgardener

Tatsoi (pronounced taht-SOY) is a non-heading mustard that is very similar in flavor to bok choi. Tatsoi plants tend to grow in a flatter rosette than bok choi, with long, spoon-shaped leaves.

 
If you'd like to try your hand at growing tatsoi, you'll be pleased to learn that it grows quickly and with few problems. For a fall crop, which will avoid the heat of the summer, as Tatsoi is not suited for warm conditions, you can start seed indoors early in September and transplant in late September to early October for a late October to early November harvest. It matures in 45-55 days.

Tatsoi grows best in partial sun; about three to five hours each day is ideal but it can handle full sun if it is kept well watered. If not well watered, it will bolt to seed in the heat. If your soil is rich, you should not need to feed the plants. Otherwise, use a fertilizer high in nitrogen. To harvest the whole head, slice the plants off about 1 inch above the ground, and they may re-sprout for you. The new plants will be smaller but still delicious. It is often found in salad mixes and can be cooked in any dish where you would use bok choy, such as stir-fries, soups, and side dishes. The mild and tender baby leaves taste very similar to spinach with a slight mustard green flavor and therefore are a good substitute in recipes calling for spinach.

Nantes Carrots

source

An early fall crop of carrots can be planted for a harvest about 75 days later, although it would be best to allow an extra week or two for ‘Nantes’ to reach maturity in the fall because their growth slows as the weather cools. For carrots their germination is unreliable so it is better to plant plenty and plan to thin your seedlings if too many germinate. Six seeds per inch is a good amount to plant. Space rows eight inches apart in the raised bed and cover the seeds with a quarter to half-inch of the light medium. Water the seeds in lightly with a spray bottle or a fine mist from the garden hose, and then keep the top two inches of that soil moist but not soggy until germination occurs, which can be anywhere from 10 to 21 days. Be careful to water at the soil line, not from overhead, to avoid waterborne pathogens. Keep the seedlings thinned properly so they have space to grow and ample air circulation.

-Phyllis

Purple and White Vienna Kohlrabi

source: MIgardener

Kohlrabi was first recorded around 1554 in Italy when the botanist Matthiolus spoke of the veggie as “having come lately into Italy.” Its name, however, translates to “cabbage turnip” in German and derives from idea that it may be a cross between cabbage and rape, and, like most heirlooms, came with immigrants to the U.S. The Purple Vienna, also known as Di Vienna Violetto, predates 1860 and is presumably from Austria. This old heirloom variety has purple skin covering a faintly greenish-white flesh that has superb flavor. The tops are small, and the leaves are both colorful and edible. Just treat them like you would kale. Harvest the attractive purple kohlrabi's at 2½" in diameter for the finest texture. You can direct sow in early spring for a summer harvest, or in August to harvest in the cool weather of the fall and winter. This is the most economical kohlrabi to use for microgreens, and their flavor is exceptional.

Read more at Gardening Know How: Learn About Purple Vienna Kohlrabi Plants   https://blog.gardeningknowhow.com/tbt/early-purple-vienna-kohlrabi/

source: MIgardner

White Vienna Kohlrabi is similar to Purple Vienna Kohlrabi, but with light green bulbs and green leaves. Give kohlrabi leaves a rinse and eat them raw in a salad, or cook them as you would any other leafy green

Red Russian Kale

Red Russian Kale, source: MIgardener

	Sow	Seed to Transplant	Transplant	Harvest
Ideal	May	8-10 weeks (56-70 days)	July	14-18 weeks, November to April
Red Russian Kale	Mid August- beginning of September	3-4 weeks	Beginning to Mid-September	October onward

 

American Spinach

source: MIgardener

Fall is the perfect time to grow spinach because the days are getting shorter and cooler. You can sow directly in the bed in September, but to get a longer harvest, you can start spinach seeds in flats indoors beginning in August so you can have a longer harvest. When starting spinach indoors, plant the seeds into a tray or pot at least 4 inches deep, because spinach seedlings develop a deep taproot and you want to give the roots plenty of room to grow.

When sowing seeds in a tray or directly into the garden, plant the seeds about ½ inch deep deep and 3 to 6 inches apart, and then press the soil firmly over the seeds and water them right away. Keep the soil continuously moist and germination will usually occur in 5 to 10 days. Spinach is a heavy-feeder, which means it likes an especially nitrogen-rich soil. Mix the fertilizer into the soil before planting, and then plant your seeds or transplant your spinach seedlings into the amended soil.

Once the seedlings have germinated and are about 3 to 4 inches tall, fertilize them once a week with dilute fish emulsion or another nitrogen fertilizer, and lush, dark green leaves will develop and quickly grow.

When the first frost day (October 23 in zone 7A) approaches, take measures to cover with protection from frosts. You may even be able to overwinter the spinach this way, if it is a mild winter.

Rainbow Swiss Chard and Viroflay Spinach

 

source: MIgardener

	Sow Directly in Bed	Seed to Harvest	Harvest	Second Sowing Indoors	Transplant	Transplant to Harvest
Rainbow Swiss Chard	Mid-May	8-16 weeks (56-112)	July to August	early August	4 weeks; September	4-12 weeks. October and November
Viroflay Spinach	Mid-May	50 days	Early July		Direct Sow  early September	October

Large American Flag Leeks

 

source: MIgardener

Sow inside in the first week of April, 2-3 seeds per cell, 1/4″ deep.
Seed to Transplant: 10-12 weeks
Transplant: In June, when approx. 8″ tall and pencil-thick, transplant outdoors 6″ apart, rows 24″ apart in holes dibbled about 6″ deep. Only 1-2″ of leaves need extend above the soil surface. Do not firm soil, allow irrigation or rain to fill in the dibble hole.

Before Planting: Leeks are heavy feeders and require fertile soil (pH of 6.2-6.8) for best results.
Watering: Since leeks have shallow roots, they require lots of water and a weed-free environment. Add mulch to retain moisture and deter weeds.
Fertilizer: A season prior to planting, add compost where the leeks will grow. After planting, feed the leeks every week with liquid fertilizer.
Transplant to Harvest: 100 days- September - until a freeze is suspected to hit.
Harvesting: To harvest, loosen the soil and then lift the leeks out be the roots so you don’t damage the plant. Pick what you need until a freeze is suspected to hit, then harvest all the leeks.

Pea Shoots and other Microgreens

source: MIgardener

Microgreens are essentially seedlings of edible vegetables and herbs. Possible seeds to sprout are Kohlrabi, Turnip, Radish, Pak Choi, Beet, Mustard, Chia, Kale, Basil, Peas, Beets, Spinach, Cilantro and Mung beans, to name a few. Just as they are concentrated in nutrients, they’re also packed with intense flavors, and provide a nice textural contrast, especially in the winter months when no other fresh vegetables are available to the home gardener. Most microgreens only take about a week—and at most two weeks—to grow, you can always have microgreens at your fingertips.

Since microgreens do not require a lot of medium to grow on flat trays are generally preferred over regular nursery pots. While microgreens planting trays of different sizes may be purchased from different sources, it is also possible to recycle containers deriving from food packaging. The main recommendation is to make sure you are using material that is suitable for food production, that is clean, and that the trays have drainage holes at the bottom, which will allow to water the trays from the bottom without letting the water get in contact with the greens while enabling the excess of water to drain. After filling or setting the trays with the growing medium, using a clean container without holes and filled with drinking water you can slowly wet the growing medium from the bottom, and once the medium is wet enough let the excess of water drain. The moisture of the medium will help small seeds to stick to the surface and will keep the seeds moist during the germination process. At this point, you can start seeding by evenly distributing the defined amount of microgreens seeds on the entire growing area of each tray. Most of the microgreen's seeds do not require any treatment. However, for some species characterized by larger seeds or by a hard seed shell the germination process may be accelerated if seeds are pre-soaked in water. Seeds can be soaked in water overnight for 8-12 hours. During this process it is beneficial to rinse the seeds in running water a couple of times to wash the seeds and let them get some oxygen.

After distributing the seeds on the growing medium surface, it is not necessary, and it could be better to not cover the seeds with soil so that the sprouts remain clean. After seeding It is enough to apply some water occasionally using a spray bottle just to keep the seed moist during the germination process. To facilitate the germination process and keep a good moisture level during the germination it is recommended to keep the seeds in a dark environment for a few days. This can be easily achieved covering the microgreens trays with something that can block the sunlight. After the germination process is complete and seedlings reach a certain height it is possible to uncover the trays and expose the sprouts to sunlight. In selecting a place to grow your microgreens, consider that like any other plant microgreens benefit from good exposure to sunlight, therefore place them where you have more light. Usually, a window on the south side of the house or apartment will receive more sunlight than one exposed north. As the microgreens start growing, if the light is limited you will see the shoots leaning toward the light. A good level of sunlight will assure optimal growth and a higher accumulation of antioxidants are produced by plants primarily in response to the solar radiation.

At this point, besides the light, the only thing to do is to check that the seedlings have enough water. Water should be provided only if necessary, avoiding excess moisture and allowing drainage to prevent the development of mold. To limit the contact between water and the greens it is recommended to water the trays from the bottom. Opening the window occasionally to enhance air circulation may be beneficial as well to avoid excess moisture. Depending on the species and the growing conditions microgreens may be ready to harvest in a few days or in a couple of weeks after germination is complete. Microgreens may be harvested using a clean sharp knife or a pair of scissors right before being used for any preparation. Washing microgreens in fresh drinking water before consuming them is always recommended, however, be aware that microgreens plant tissues are very gentle, and their shelf life may be substantially reduced after washing. An alternative could be to bag and store microgreens at low temperatures and wash them right before they are used.

Blue Curled Kale

source: MIgardener

Kale’s flavor will actually improve if exposed to cooler temperatures, so light frosts are your friend instead of foe. This curly leaf type of kale has a beautiful green-blue hue that makes it a popular addition to many fall gardens. This variety is considered to be particularly hardy and can be harvested in all climate zones until the ground freezes. Considering that it grows in a more compact fashion than other types of kale, it’s a great crop for space-challenged gardens.

The best time to plant kale for a fall crop is in early September. It can be harvested by late October and through the entire month of November.