2016 Growing Season Breaking Early!

Did you know that Edible Eden sources most of our beautiful organic veggie seedlings from one of our best farming mentors Jack Gurley of Calvert's Gift farm? Jack has been making a living growing organic produce for the past 20 years or so and if someone knows the answers to all those endless farming questions...it's him. He has also been mentoring young farmers through Chesapeake Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture for the past several years and Edible Eden founder Josh Rosenstein had the amazing opportunity to participate in that program back in 2012. Jack has been watching the weather and the paying attention to the nuances of the seasons in this area for many years so- when he says this season is starting early...we believe him.

What that means is that while usually we wait until at least May 15th to plant warm season crops outside, this season we can start by May 1st. It also means many of our early season crops should grow faster and get tired sooner so keep your eyes on your lettuces! On the down side, it means we'll most likely have less time to enjoy our tender spring greens before they will need to make way for the warm season crops like tomatoes and cucumbers.

One new thing we are trying out this year is planting spinach seedlings instead of direct seeding. Jack made us trays of densely planted and beautifully germinated spinach seedlings and we have been planting them out all over the place. This allows us to space the little spinach plants more uniformly and get more succulent, healthy spinach leaves from smaller spaces. It also allows us to get a two week jump on the season as the seedlings are already a couple weeks old when we plant them.

Make sure to notice your spinach this year and let's see if this new way of planting does well!

Read the rest of the April edition of the Gardener's Monthly Almanac here

Gardening Tips: Show Your Planter Boxes Some Love and Drain Them

As many gardening gurus, books and videos will tell you- there are lots of tips and tricks to growing food successfully. Choosing the right spot, planting the right crop for the right conditions at the right time, sun, water and nutrients are all important.

Maybe more then any other mistake however, Edible Eden is seemingly always fixing people's gardens and containers that have been built without adequate drainage. 
Whether we are talking about a raised bed built with heavy duty tarp material underneath it, planter boxes with no holes in the bottom, or decorative clay containers that have not been drilled through- people everywhere try to grow in containers that don't have enough drainage.

This is not rocket science folks- if the water cannot get out the bottom of whatever you are trying to grow in...the plant will not thrive. Plant roots need to be able to take up nutrients and water from the soil, but that same water becomes a killer if it can't move through the soil and drain away. Without drainage holes, that water sits in the container creating anaerobic conditions and rotting the plants' roots. Very few plants can survive such conditions and even if they don't die they will be stunted and weak.

Recently we re-did seven hefty deck boxes that had been built solidly with a complete lack of drainage holes. This means we had to remove anything planted there, take out all the soil, drill holes, lay in gravel and then replace all the soil. This is a big job and can get expensive if you are hiring someone else to do it! It's so much easier to make sure your containers and beds have appropriate drainage before filling them with soil and plants.

If you are planning a new garden or getting ready to plant some containers make sure to contact Edible Eden for an initial consultation so we can make sure it's done right the first time!

Stirrings of Spring

By Farmer Josh

With the snow coming down outside, huddled in front of the heater, you wouldn't think that spring was on its way. But while we are shoveling our sidewalks and staying home from work and school, nature is beginning to take the deep inhale that precedes the exhale of spring madness.

The light is growing. Starting at the winter solstice in December we have been gradually getting just a little bit more sunlight each day, and under the snow, under the frozen ground, the plants can feel it. It's time to tap maple trees because the sap is running. Likewise it's time to begin pruning some types of dormant fruit trees and grape vines in anticipation of their waking up. Vegetable farmers in our area are starting their first seeds beneath lights in basements and living rooms. The alliums: those straight early soldiers are beginning their long trek to April (when they finally get to go outside). For those with high tunnels, the first succession of tomatoes are sending up spunky cotyledons, rearing up their heads to the lights.

Here at Edible Eden we are also feeling the stirrings of the coming season. Josh Russakis joined the team as PR and Marketing strategist and now things that seemed to be forever on the “one day” pile, are actually happening. Check out our new online and social media presence: follow us on Twitter, see some sweet garden and produce shots on Instagram, and check out our blog to find some great farm-to-table recipes, gardening tips and produce porn.

We are also excited to be working with the St Paul Lower school on their school garden program. While the sleet and snow pile up outside we are working to design an amazing educational garden emphasizing experiential education opportunities across a spectrum of subject matters.

In other news we have begun working with Kitchen Table Consultants on our financial plan. KTC is a cool and innovative consultancy that works with small farmers and food entrepreneurs on their financial plans and business models.

Did you know that Edible Eden offers a whole series of wellness programs and workshops from fruit tree care to food preservation? If you'd like to see urban homestead style workshops at your senior center, community center, faith community, or place of work: feel free to put us in touch with your wellness director.

We'll also be offering some workshops around town this spring. Catch us on March 13 at Valley View farms for a free session on growing fruit trees and berries and don't miss the Grow Center program on April 9-10 through the Baltimore City Planning Department.

Edible Eden is growing into its mission and purpose, which is to support people in the Baltimore area in eating more sustainably raised, ultra local, healthy, organic, food. We believe that through doing this we can build soil tilth, support biodiversity, and help our customers live healthier, more sustainable, more delicious lives.

If you are ready to get started on your food journey in 2016: drop us a line to set up your initial consultation.

Read the rest of the March edition of the Gardener's Monthly Almanac here

Time to Prune the Grapes!

Now is a great time to prune your grape vines. While most fruit trees and vines need some pruning, in order to get healthy, abundant grapes: you actually have to remove between 70% and 90% of the plant every year!

Grapes fruit on one year old wood: which means, say a main trunk sprouts a vine in spring, that vine grows all summer and fall, and that winter it turns grey and smooth. The following year it sends out shoots which bear clusters of grapes. By the next year, it looks shaggy and has dark peeling bark on it and no longer bears fruit. So in pruning: keep that in mind and seek to “think like a grapevine”.

There are many methods and styles of pruning grapes which are more or less appropriate to different varieties, trellising styles and climates. In the MidAtlantic, we have three basic types of grapes we can grow.

• The Labrusca varieties are descended from an American grape and tend to produce fruit further along their vines, so they are ideally pruned in the Kniffen or Cane pruned style.

• Vinifera, decended from French grapes, and Muscadines, a southern variety, bear closer to their trunk and hence are better suited to the Spur pruning style.

If you are struggling with your vines, consider giving us a call. Edible Eden will beat any vine back into submission, no matter how grisly!

Fall Greens Container Garden

Different kinds of fall greens are good to grow together in a single container. Different varieties of kale along with tat soi, arugula, mizuna and mustard greens grow at similar paces in similar conditions and are easy to seed.

Taken together they create a container that is both aesthetic as well as delicious. Start planting in late August and early September for ongoing yields throughout the fall. Scatter mixed seeds into potting soil and clover with a very thin layer of soil. Water gently and keep moist as the seeds germinate. Clear-cut baby greens for a crisp fall salad and wait for regrowth or wait until the plants get a little bigger and harvest select leaves.

My favorites would be:

• Toscano Kale

• Red Russian kale

• Siberian kale

• Mizuna

• Tat soi

• Red Giant mustard

• Golden frills mustard

Fun with the neighbor kids!

Last Sunday, we had planned for a “preserving the harvest” workshop as one of Edible Eden's free series of sustainability workshops. I had krauting, lactofermenting and pickling projects planned and materials laid out. Teri and I were sitting in the living room making peace with the fact that no one was coming to the workshop and debating marketing strategies sullenly, when we heard an approaching tumult. Then... a neighbor family burst upon the scene with four girls between the ages of 8 and zero! Teri and I shifted gears and redefined the workshop on the fly...preserving the harvest you say, why no, how about... Farm Camp Extravaganza???

So we smelled fresh herbs and guessed their names, picked and ate cucumbers and cherry tomatoes, met the worms, and saw how figs and blueberries grow. Then we took apart the potato stack and harvested twenty lbs of papa sancho heirloom potatos. The girls dove for the potatos with shrieks of excitement and we remembered our own inspiration and excitement at discovering how food grows.

Then we came inside to the pickling table and actually made a half gallon of lactofermented dills, a quart of dilly beans, three jars of sliced jalepeno and carrot, two jars of whole pickled fish peppers and got started on a gallon of kraut... Elisheva, who is 3, carefully put all the hot peppers into the jars.

It was really uplifting to be around children who were genuinely enthusiastic about things that we care about and served as a solid reminder that no matter what you plan for...hashem invariably gives you what you need!

September weeknight dinner:

-Roasted Papa Sancho heirloom potatoes with fresh rosemary (garden),

-fresh lettuce and arugula salad (garden) with parmesan, avocado and honeycrisp,

-Sauteed baby onions (garden) and mushrooms with sour creme

Potatoes from the Earth with Love

I love growing potatoes! Maybe more then any other crop- digging up glowing gems from out of the soil that translate into real, belly filling food feels like magic. This year we planted three different kinds of potatoes and the Red Norlands rewarded us with this message from below...

Potatoes can be harvested starting in early July- and many farmers will start digging them early for market considerations. The best for home growers however is to wait until the plant starts to die in mid-late summer and then dig up its nest of starchy treasures. If you dig them before the plant starts to die you might be missing some additional tuber set.

Different varieties of potatoes have shorter and longer growing seasons so best to plant a few different varieties and have a long harvest window.

While theoretically any piece of potato with eyes planted in the early spring can generate a plant and create more tubers- supermarket potatoes are often treated with a chemical that inhibits sprouting and not the best idea for growing your own. Seed potatoes are available from most seed suppliers. I splurge on Maine Potato Lady as they have great organic varieties and you can get smaller and larger amounts of different kinds. Not cheap however!

In any case- the heart shaped potato played a starring role in this morning's garden produce hash served with fried eggs and feta.

Preserving the Harvest

With the Fall coming on quickly thoughts turn to preserving some of our harvest so we can enjoy local foods during the cold months when little is growing. We have multiple options available to us when it comes to putting up goodies for the off season. The simplest and quickest option is  blanching and freezing. Many vegetables lend themselves to blanching and freezing and hold up well in the freezer. Zukes and summer squash, beans, carrots, beets, turnips, peas, and kale are all good options for blanching and freezing. To do this, wash and chop them into suitable sizes, drop them in boiling water for three minutes, then into ice water until cool, then lay them out on a cookie sheet and freeze. The next day put them in clean, ziplock backs, label and forget about them until January!

Another great craft to explore is pickling. When creating pickled delights we can choose to lacto-ferment or vinegar pickle. Lacto-fermentation is an artisanal method of food preservation that has many heath benefits and creates amazing and unique flavors. It involves creating the right conditions for healthy microorganisms to come and do their work of breaking down sugars and releasing lactic acid which acts as a preservative. Old school sour or half-sour pickles, dilly beans, saurkraut, and kim chi are some great options for fermenting. Vinegar pickling involves making a boiling brine of vinegar and seasoning and pouring it over fresh vegetables. Cucumber, sliced beets, baby onions, asparagus and okra are great veggies to vinegar pickle. This method is the best way to get a shelf stable product that doesn't need to be kept in the fridge and can create some really fantastic flavors, although it has no health benefits.

Canning is the process of creating a shlef stable product by sealing mason jars using heat. With canning you really need to follow correct procedures to avoid food borne illness so best to do it according to concise directions- or better yet, do it with a friend or family member who has experience with canning. Pureed tomatoes, jams, and vinegar pickles are all good options for canning.

Dehydrating is also a good option for preserving veggies; if you have a dehydrator you can create the best backpacking foods ever!

Regardless of how you go about it, make sure to try out a food preservation technique this late summer as there is nothing so satisfying as eating homegrown produce from your MidAtlantic garden in the cold weeks of February.

To learn more join us at another free Edible Eden workshop on preserving the harvest Sunday afternoon, Sept 20, 4-6 pm.

Hot and Wet

When was the last time you watered your garden...? Oh, you say, not since May? That may be because it has been raining pretty consistently all summer long. While I have certainly enjoyed the might and glory of our Mid Atlantic thunder storms, and it's nice to never worry about watering... the ramifications for gardening are not so great.

You might have noticed most tomato plants wearing some forlorn yellow to brown leaves around their base- those are signs of Early Blight or Septoria, fungal diseases that get worse when the plants never get to fully dry out.

I've also seen different kinds of fungal diseases on everything from bush cherries and Monarda to Columbines and Lilac bushes. Earlier this season a fungal pepper disease came through that wreaked havoc with farmers. I heard of one well-known local organic farmer who lost their entire crop of specialty hot peppers they had been growing for a local restaurant. And hot peppers are really hard to kill! They never seem to suffer the way sweet peppers do...

I've also noticed mosaic virus and downy mildew on cucumber and squash plants- these fungal diseases usually take down your squash and cukes...but not until the end of the season. With so much rain they seem to be moving faster and earlier then usual.

All this to say, every season is different, sometimes it's dry and if your irrigation system is weak or faulty you start loosing plants. Some seasons it rains every day and while we never need to worry about watering...everything dies from a fungal disease.

Here are some things to consider:

-First of all, if you have an automatic irrigation system- make sure it is not adding insult to injury by watering when all your plants want is a chance to dry out.

-It's a good idea to remove the small branches and leaves around the bases of your tomato plants to create more airflow.

-Mulching with straw could help keep fungal spores from bouncing up from the soil to the lower leaves of plants.

-If you are only seeing the beginning of fungal disease on your plants you might consider spraying some Actinovate or another organic fungicide to try to beat back the progress of the disease.

Regardless, let's enjoy the moisture and warmth while it is here and hope for a crisp fall that is just a little bit dryer...

-- Josh Rosenstein 443.547.9268 www.EdibleEdenFoodscape http://www.EdibleEdenFoodscapes.coms.com http://www.EdibleEdenFoodscapes.com

And so we begin...

Well lookie here....an embedded, easy to use, blog feature... We'll definitely have to take advantage of that!

It's February and outside there's not much growing. Inside however, farmers have already started slow growing seedlings like alliums and early tomatoes, perennial cuttings are taking root and the last potatoes of the 2014 growing season are going into a hearty winter curry.

Thankfully we have some fresh high tunnel greens from Oak Spring Farm so fresh and crisp they make you want to bless the earth they grew in!

Come back soon to read about the adventures of growing and eating local in the Baltimore area. We'll explore current pests and challenges, document successes and most of all- post farm to table meal ideas, harvest preservation projects, recipes and more!