I broke a digging fork this week. Its not that bad, these things happen – it was the double whammy of harvesting parsnips and salsify, and perhaps moving a little too quickly, rather than gently easing the roots out of the ground. Both of these roots stretch super deep into the soil and so I assume both are excellent at accumulating minerals, including those deep, hard to reach ones below the grasp of most vegetable roots systems.
The oats and fall rye have been quickly establishing themselves on the garden plots that I’ve had a chance to work up and prep for the winter. These crops will not only help hold the soil in place through the rains of fall as well as the thaw of spring, but they’ll shelter complex communities of life by keeping the soil from drying out rapidly. In the spring I’ll work their tissue into the soil and this will feed a vibrant bloom of soil life, helping things get off to a promising start. It may seem odd to plant crops solely for the purpose of tilling them into the soil, but this is one of the many tricks hidden up the sleeves of traditional and organic farmers that stand in opposition to the “take what you can as fast as possible” paradigm of modern industrial agriculture.
This weeks baskets are once again bountiful, colourful & include:
Carrots, turnips, parsnips, salsify, onions, garlic, celery, lettuce, spinach, winter squash, and a bouquet of fresh parsley, oregano & borage flowers.
My best guess at some of the highlights of next week is: Kale, beets, butternut squash & leeks
Kolapore Gardens 