Cricket Song Farm

Cricket Song Farm

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Jerusalem Artichokes/Sunchokes




#note:  this post was written this past spring, but for some reason I didn't post it.  Jerusalem Artichokes can be dug this time of year.  Replant enough tubers to have a harvest for next year.  If your winters are extremely cold, I would suggest a covering of old hay or straw.


After harvesting a long 50 foot row of Jerusalem Artichokes this past fall, keeping enough to replant, the rest were taken to market.  Jerusalem Artichokes are one of the first vegetables to break ground in the spring, but not this year.  Apparently there WAS a well fed gopher that  munched on the tubers all winter.  Snug underground he found that by digging along in a straight line he would have plenty of food for the winter.
With spring well underway, I will not be ordering roots from a gardening catalog, or begging starts from a neighbor because they do not transplant as well after the stems are over 6-8 inches.  I will be off to the grocery store to buy several bags of the 
"Sunchoke" tubers you can purchase in the produce section.  Sometimes in the spring they are a little harder to find, but generally they are available.  This method also works in the fall.
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Freshly dug Tubers



Late in the fall the flowers will fade and the stalks will lose all their leaves and turn brown.  After several hard frost the tubers are ready to dig.  I generally dig enough to replant for the next season and the remaining are dug out as needed.  "This way they maintain their crispness.  Sunchokes will stay crisp in your fridge for only about 3-4-weeks.  Place bales of hay over your tubers that have been left in the ground.  This will keep the ground from freezing and allow for longer harvests.  


When they are mature, the tops will die back.



When the stalks have turned brown and become brittle is the time to dig.



 I replant the smaller tubers in the same spot and harvest the larger ones for market.

I prefer to eat these raw, thinly sliced in a salad, or lightly sauteed in a stir fry.  Try grating them and frying them on a hot cast iron skillet like hash browns.

Wednesday, September 23, 2015

GARDEN JOURNAL


Every Year I keep a journal of my Garden.  Sometimes it is an elaborate book filled with seed packets, the weather documented, how and when plants were harvest, etc. etc.



 This year, I glued an old painting that had a whole torn in it, onto a journal cover.


A piece of garden twine keeps the pages in.



Draw simple plans of the area so you have a record of what was planted, enabling you to keep track of crop rotation from year to year.



Make notes of the wonderful surprises you find.









Simple drawing, newspaper articles, seed packets. and pictures drawn by your children are easily glued onto a page.




Add pictures of crops you grew.  Record the planting date, how productive they were and make a note of any additional information that can help in the following years.





Keeping a garden journal and recording important information will help you have a better, more productive garden the following year!







Tuesday, September 1, 2015

A walk around the yard


After a long morning of weeding the garden, I needed a break. 
 I wandered around the yard with my camera and snapped a few pictures.


All work (and a little play) around this place.


A fancy, old glass chandelier hanging in the GARDEN SHED


Beautiful beet leaves just the right size for a salad.


Rain caught in small copper cups from a Tea-set I had inadvertently left outside sitting in a tiny child's  metal shopping cart.


Happy Marigolds planted along the walk-way.