Showing posts with label Alaska Garden. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alaska Garden. Show all posts

Friday, August 8, 2014

August happenings...

Summer is humming along here at the farm! The geese and the chickens have gotten through their introductions without a single feather plucked, but there are feathers EVERYWHERE as Herdie and Gerdie go through their annual molt. The gardens are doing wonderful, with lots of veggies being harvested, despite the onslaught of slugs that we are battling! The fall garden has been planted and the seedlings seem much happier than they did when planted in the wonky spring we had this year... here's hoping for a fantastic second harvest!

 Molting season makes for itchy new feathers!


Fall garden preparations!

Thursday, July 24, 2014

Thursday, May 29, 2014

Progress Photos...

The season is in full swing at Susitna Farm & Fiber, and I thought I would share some photos of what's growing!

Blue Potatoes and Horseradish ready to be planted.
 
 The Salad Garden

 The Herb Garden

 Pepper Plants

 Sunchokes (Jerusalem Artichoke)

 Perennial Flowers for Pollination

 Arugula

 Broccoli

 Gratuitous Compost Picture

 Blurry Picture of a Baby Asparagus

 Lavender

 French Tarragon

 Pumpkin

 Snap Peas

 Bleeding Heart and Volunteer Chives

 Marigolds Everywhere!

 Beautiful Lettuce

 Cucumber

What are YOU looking at?

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Dandelion Grapefruit Marmalade

The dandelions are out in full force, and Lily loves picking them... so I put her to work harvesting and I made Dandelion Grapefruit Marmalade!




Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Frost protection in the garden...

Spring appears to have arrived early this year, and although most of us have experienced snowfall in May, we all seem to be having a difficult time refraining from planting the entire garden by Mother's Day weekend! Honestly, in most of the Matanuska Valley and Anchorage area, your seeds can be safely planted now, if you take a few steps to warm the soil a bit.

Raised beds are a great way to maximize the heat from the sun. They tend to thaw faster, and if you cover them with black plastic or row cover until you are ready to plant, your soil should be plenty warm. Cold Frames are usually insulated on the bottom, and that, paired with the heat brought in through the glass, make a great place to keep starts, or to plant cold tolerant veggies such as lettuce and spinach a little earlier in the season. Hoop houses are essentially cold frames on a grand scale. They make great season extenders, and can be custom built over raised beds with the plastic removed once the danger of frost is past.

If you decide to brave the frost and plant out your starts, the first thing to consider is micro climates within your space. Generally the south facing side of your house will provide the best cold protection. Large rocks strategically placed amongst your starts will absorb heat during the day and release it at night, and a black garbage can or jugs full of water will retain a surprising amount of heat. For more active frost protection, some sort of nightly cover may be needed. You can buy specially designed fabric to cover your plants with, but an old bed sheet will do just as well.



In my garden, the best protection I have found is to cut the bottom inch off of a clear plastic milk jug and place it over the plant like a miniature greenhouse. You can remove the whole thing on nice days, or just the cap on colder days.

If you do decide to plant now, remember to harden off any starts for a few days before placing them in the dirt, and be sure to use air temperature water so you don't sent the roots into shock! Good luck, and happy planting!


Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Geese in an organic Alaskan garden.....

The weather has been warm and beautiful, the days are getting noticeably longer, and the snow is slowly melting.  These are all wonderful things, but this year the sure sign of spring at Woodside Gardens is goose eggs!  Gerdie has laid 3 eggs so far this season, and it has me excited for the year to come!  My geese are most definitely my pets, and I would keep them simply for the compost boost they give me, but I've decided to sell her eggs to cover the cost of their food (see the facebook page!), which really works out nicely!

 A goose egg compared to a large chicken egg from my Mother's flock.

I have been ridiculously impressed by how well these birds did over the winter.  Their coop is not heated or insulated (except lots of straw, of course), and I had no supplemental light other than a string of small white LED Christmas lights around part of the fence perimeter to help me see the MOOSE.  I kept a metal trash can in the coop for food storage, along with a heavy ceramic dish for them to eat from and an elevated (so they don't try to swim in it) heated dog dish for water.  That's all it took!  They have 24 hour access to their fenced run, and they actually chose to spend most of their time outdoors.  I filled the coop with a bale of straw last May, and added another this past January, stirring it a bit every month or so.

Having a permaculture-centered garden means that I don't purchase fertilizers, I make them myself.  My compost bucket in the kitchen doesn't fill up very fast anymore because I feed the geese all the edible scraps. Those scraps still make it to my garden soil, but first they provide free food for my birds!  They also eat all the weeds I pull out of the raised garden beds, and every dandelion they can get their beaks on!  After Gerdie is done laying eggs for the season, I'll pull all the straw out and throw it into the compost pile, and start the whole process over again.  The compost feeds the soil and also builds it up, so every year I have more soil to build more gardens, which feed my family and birds, and feed the compost pile!  It's a beautiful, never-ending cycle!

I do feel that it is important to note that geese are BIG birds, and they can be dangerous.  When I steal an egg, Herdie wants to kill me, no kidding.  I know how to handle them, and I'm not afraid of them, which helps, but they are NEVER near my children or visitors.  Geese are easy to care for, but I don't want anyone to think they are cute and friendly like chickens (which can be vicious also!).  Some geese are sweet as can be, but most are not, and you must realize this before you get them.  That being said, they have provided endless value to me, and I'm glad I have them!

Friday, February 28, 2014

I'm still here!

I just wanted to drop a line real quick, and let you all know that I'm still around! I don't have a lot to blog about this time of year, but if you visit on my facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/woodside.gardens, you will find lots of relevant articles I share, as well as random pictures of the geese and other wildlife that hangs out here! I'll be back with more blog posts here, as well, once I'm out in the garden again, and doing something worth talking about! And as always, if you have questions, or something specific you want to learn more about..... ask!

Friday, October 25, 2013

The last leg of the 2013 garden...

With all of the leaves gone, the weather is starting to feel less like fall and more like winter, and I'm somewhat surprised that there is no snow on the ground yet. I've been taking full advantage of the un-frozen earth, however, and am still enjoying the harvests from the garden. I'm eating broccoli, chard, bok choy and lettuce, having just finished the last of the turnips and beets last week. I'm not harvesting any more sunchokes, as I want to have a good crop next year.


Along with stretching the garden out, I've also managed to get an extra fence project started! I'm building a small wattle fence at the back of the herb garden, to protect the siding on the house from back splash and to keep the dirt from eroding toward the house as well. I love the look of this type of fencing, and with all the brush that grows up around here, I'll never run out of supplies! Wattle fencing is such an easy solution around the garden, and it's a great way to utilize the natural materials on your property!



The geese are doing well, although Gerdie is quite confused as to why the swimming pool is so hard and slick in the mornings! I've left it out for them up until now, but I'll be removing it this weekend and putting it into storage for the winter. We should HOPEFULLY be building the arctic entryway for the goose house this weekend also, so with any luck, I'll be able to get my projects finished and all of the tools put away before the snow decides to let loose!

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Sunchokes in Alaska...

For those of you who don't know, a Sunchoke, or Jerusalem Artichoke, is a perennial related to the sunflower with a tuberous root that is very edible and quite tasty.  I have been hearing about Sunchokes and their cold temperature hardiness for many years now, and they seem like a great perennial vegetable for Alaska, yet I've never seen them planted in the gardens around here.  Known for their pretty flowers as well as their plump roots, they seemed like the perfect fit for my permaculture aspirations!  I finally found them in the produce section of our local grocery store last fall, and I have been looking forward to testing out their potential all winter!


The package came with 10 roots, and I experimented with cooking 4 of them, using them raw in salads or roasted like a potato with a little olive oil.  The remaining 6 were wrapped in plastic wrap and put in the back of the refrigerator crisper drawer, where they remained until the end of May.  This spring, when the ground was ready to be worked, I simply opened the package up and let it sit on the counter for a few days, and then planted them about a foot apart and 6-8 inches down into the soil. I made sure to select an area where they can fill up the space over the years without bothering anything else in the garden.



They sprouted out of the ground within about two weeks, and a month later, they are growing beautifully and providing a shaded area for my geese as well!  They seem to be very tolerant of the heat we have been having, and don't seem to be bothered by any pests so far.  We'll see how they do as the season progresses, and hopefully they will become a permanent resident in the garden!

Sunday, May 12, 2013

It started as a greenhouse...

It started as a greenhouse that turned into a garden shed... but this year I have found a new, permanent use for the structure...


Moving the building to its new location, closer to the house...



Adding the new floor...


 Cutting the access door...


Framed in to protect from sharp metal edges... (the access ramp is temporary, we'll build a better one shortly!)


And Herdie and Gerdie have a new home!!!


The Geese have FINALLY moved in!  I'm ridiculously excited!  If you follow Woodside Gardens on facebook, you've seen me gushing about these critters all winter.  Herdie and Gerdie are a 1 year old mated pair of Toulouse Geese.  I fell in love with them as soon as I saw them, and I've been waiting for the snow to melt for MONTHS so that I could set up a proper shed and run for them.  The geese are beautiful and very friendly (toward me, not everyone...), but the best part is this...

Breakfast!

It's mating season in the goose world, and although she won't lay all year long, Gerdie is giving me one of these every 2 days right now!  Her eggs average 160 grams (she won't be fully mature until next spring at 2 years old) which is approximately the size of 3 chicken eggs!  Scrambled goose eggs with a little sea salt and dill make the best breakfast ever!  I have saved all her egg shells, by drilling a small hole at each end and blowing the egg out, and they will be used for some craft projects in the future.

I love this basket of egg shells sitting in my kitchen window!

Do you have geese or other poultry?  Come on over to the facebook page and talk about it!

Saturday, May 4, 2013

Still Here... Just Nothing To Say...

Today is May 4th. The temperature reached as high as 40F, and it snowed...

I have been delayed over a month now in getting the run and coop built for my geese because the snow hasn't all melted yet.

Some years, I already have things planted in the garden by this date.

My seedlings are dying to go outside!

Long story short, I'm still here, but I'm a grumpy gardener, and I have nothing to say!  Join me on facebook, however, as things are slightly more interesting over there!  And don't worry, I'll have more to write about eventually...

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

A Quick Update to Start Off the New Year...

We've had 4 days of temperatures above freezing now, and although it has been great to tend to the bird feeder and shovel some snow while wearing a t-shirt, I'm starting to worry about some of my more tender perennials, like the lavender, and the experimental garlic bulbs I planted this fall. A freeze/thaw cycle will heave the plants up to the surface of the soil where their roots can freeze. I did put a very thick layer of mulch over the lavender and the clematis, so hopefully that will make the difference.

So much snow has melted now that I put on my Sorels and stomped around the yard for a little while yesterday. I opened up the covered raised bed, and to my surprise, the top inch of dirt was completely thawed! Anything below that was frozen solid, of course, but that top inch really made me realize that there is plenty of potential for that structure! I can see my seedlings sleeping comfortably in there over night until the threat of frost is over, and if the whole thing thaws faster than the other raised beds, the potential for a pumpkin or two is a reality!

I really don't know what I'm going to do in my garden this year. I have a feeling that with the geese coming in the spring, and all the planning and building that that will entail, the garden isn't going to have much for experimentation! The garden fence is moving to the birds, so they have some predator protection, and this year will be my first non-enclosed gardening experience. I'm looking forward to moving the garden beyond the confines of that wall, but hopefully the Moose and the Rabbits will be nice to me!

I think that the chickens are going to end up on hold for another year now. The geese are a great start, and probably easier to care for also. Once my husband sees how they do this winter then maybe he wont worry so much about adding a few chickens, but for now, city-boy (and over-planner) that he is, he is extremely worried about how this is going to work. I've given up trying to explain that we don't need a $1000 coop... hopefully he'll figure it out!

Just out of curiosity, does anyone reading this post raise birds in cold climates? I'd love to hear about your experiences!




Monday, September 24, 2012

Fall Vegetables...

I just finished harvesting the last of the carrots from the garden. I got almost 10 pounds this year, and it really didn't take up that much space in the raised beds! I roasted a chicken the other night, and now I have leftover chicken, onions and fresh carrots simmering for chicken and dumplings tonight.

Homemade chicken stock smells AMAZING!!

I also have the carcass boiling away with the leftover onions and brussels sprouts from the first dinner, as well as the stems from the herbs I cut from the herb garden and added to the chicken and dumplings. This stock will go into the freezer to cook with later. I love that I can get 3 good meals (that serve 4 people!) from just 1 chicken and some veggies from the garden!

I also bought my first pumpkin of the season last weekend! I love pumpkin, and I hope that someday soon it will grow in my own garden, but for now I was just happy to see it on the grocery store shelf! There are so many ways to cook it, and the flavor is adaptable to most any dish or seasoning. This one will be roasted and pureed, most likely, and eaten with just a touch of salt and pepper.

Do you have a favorite fall vegetable that you look forward to all summer?


Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Today's Harvest...

Despite the mediocre harvest due to this year's wonky summer weather, there were plenty of successes as well! Today Lily and I decided to harvest the potatoes and the carrots...

From 4 seed potatoes and 1 garbage bag came this...
 3 pounds of perfect little potatoes!


Next we pulled the carrots... (well 2/3 of them, the rest we are saving for another day)
6 pounds of beautiful, sweet, crisp carrots!

Lily wanted to eat ALL of them!! I love teaching her where food comes from, and I really look forward to the day that she plans and plants her own garden!


Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Perennial Edibles in Alaska

There are a number of annual vegetables that do well in Alaska, but did you know that there are several perennial vegetables, herbs, and fruits that thrive here also? In my quest to make my property a major source of nutrition for my family, I have focused on bringing in only trees that will produce edible fruit (there's always the exception, of course!), and I am working on plans to create a perennial wing in my vegetable garden.

Here's a list of the Perennial Edibles that currently grow on my property:
Crab Apple
Choke Cherry
Raspberry
Black Currant
Red Currant
Gooseberry
Strawberry
High Bush Cranberry
Low Bush Cranberry
Rhubarb
Rosehip
French Tarragon
Sheep's Sorrel
Mint (Chocolate and Apple)
Lavendar
Chives

Here are a few I would like to add to my property:
Grafted Apple (Norland and Parkland)
Blueberry
Kiwi
Apricot
Indoor Citrus
Asparagus
Jerusalem Artichokes
Horseradish

Making space for perennials in your garden is an important part of any good permaculture plan. It is imperative that you plan for the long term when selecting a location and creating a space for the roots to thrive. Pay attention to not only the soil you nourish them with, but also the amount of sunlight they will receive, the space they will require when they are fully mature, and the amount of shade they will cast onto the surrounding areas. Just about anything can benefit from a fork full of compost at the bottom of the hole before planting, and plenty of loose soil beyond the edge of the root ball will give your plant room to wiggle its toes and settle happily into its new home. If you pay special attention to watering and pampering your plant for the first season or two, they will happily produce for you for years to come, with no more investment needed!

What types of perennial edibles do you have on your property? Do you have plans to integrate more in your garden?

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Because Pictures Speak So Much Louder Than Words...

I hate to even say it, but my garden is starting to wind down for the year. We have been enjoying fresh turnips all summer long, and they are wonderful, but I was looking to try something new with them. I had a few dozen still in the ground, so this morning the kids and I headed out to the garden for one final turnip harvest. We ate a bunch of them raw, and then I set about finding a good canning recipe for the rest. Below are photos of my newest creation... pickled turnips! It doesn't sound appetizing, but it is absolutely amazing!