Leave your parsnips in the ground overwinter and dig them in the Spring before they start to have green tops. They will be sweeter and soooo good. I garden in Minnesota in zone 3 so don’t think it will be too cold where you are. Marigolds, nasturtium and herbs deter insects. Also be careful with the bark you are using. It might harbor insects. Don’t plant all your radishes at one time. Instead succession planting would be better so you don’t have so many radishes at one time. The same goes for lettuce arugula and kale. Good luck and it was nice to be in your garden today!
You can donate food to a local food bank. You can set up an understanding with neighbors to help themselves when you are away. You can freeze or can veggies. For over ripe veggies or seeded veggies, you can donate to pig farm or goat farm, etc…. Or you can plant less veggies and only veggies that you enjoy. You can use plants to dye yarn or fabric. Build a root cellar, root veggies last long in cool, dry storage. You can hang dry herbs. Collect the seeds for next year. Check out companion gardening, like basil helps tomato’s. I wish I could have a garden, I live in a condominium with a parking lot 😜.
You have lots of good suggestions about your garden, but a couple of things I didn't see (but I didn't read *all* the comments). Don't give up next year if results don't reach your expectations. I started a veggie garden after I retired about 10 years ago, and am finally getting half way decent at it. Veggie gardening takes skill, and you have to practice. In my case, a lot, lol! Also, plant lots so that you have enough to share with the bunnies and bugs. I also have good results splitting up what I plant. I'll plant beans in three different spots in the garden, and if the bugs find one patch, maybe they won't find the others. I know what you mean about not harvesting what you grow - I had to put my garden within eyesight of my kitchen, because if I didn't see it, I didn't go into to. It also helps if you included stopping in the garden when in another routine. In my case it's when I feed the chickens, for you it could be when you walk Freya. When I handed my husband his dinner plate last night, I told him the veggies on his plate had been still growing 30 minutes earlier. It makes me so happy to be able to give him such healthy, delicious food. love to you
This year I planted a border of nasturtium around my veg/herb garden. This year was the 1st time I didn’t have pests (other than one sweet bunny who lived under the tomatoes). The nasturtium are beautiful and edible - their bright orange blooms are so lovely in salad.
My marigolds all died until I dug up some semi wild ones from my back garden and grew them in the front garden. Now they're much more successful. The ones from the garden centre just write never happy, grow like weeds in my back garden.
I was reading through the comments. Lots of great suggestions! I got a small book on companion planting called, CARROTS LOVE TOMATOES. It was clear and simple. Companion planting is fun, too. I would always look forward to planning my raised beds during the cold, dark months...putting "companions" together and making sure to keep distance between bad pairings. Another great resource is Permaculture. My favorite is Gaia's Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture, by Toby Hemenway . These are in English but there must be resources for you locally. As a homesteader for 16 years, I learned that there aren't any failures, just many lessons to be learned! After the first,, and ten the second peach tree, died, I learned peach trees couldn't thrive in my habitat...so I moved on to a cherry tree.. And it does take years!! But they are years of joy. My biggest tip would be to take your mug of coffee or tea outside everyday, morning and evening, and slowly stroll through ALL the habitat you've created and quietly see what is happening. It will also help you remember what you have growing. On the Sunday when this episode arrived, I made a road trip to pass along the rest of my gardening stuff to my son. It was a bittersweet moment. I will be in Senior Housing soon where I won't be able to garden anymore. But how happy-fying to pass it on to the next generation!!
Lovely garden! A lot of herbs will keep away specific pests, like basil (flies), thyme (earworms), dill (aphids), lemongrass (mosquitos). Marigolds are a great start. Plus the petals are edible. For other insects and fungal diseases you can spray on Neem Oil, which comes from Neem Trees.
Those wooden bed frames are nifty! I love how they stack on top of each other. Looks like they are quite secure too. White cabbage butterfly is what eats brassicas like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, box choy. A net is the most effective way to keep them away. Other tip is to cut out butterfly wing shapes from white plastic (like from ice cream or food containers) and stick them on a stick of wire. Make them look quite realistic. The white butterflies think other white butterflies have “claimed” that spot so they will go elsewhere as they are territorial. I don’t know personally how successful this tip is but others have had success with it in Australia. I have a community garden plot and we use bark mulch to keep the weeds away. We also put cardboard down first, then the bark, as the cardboard kills any weeds. The cardboard eventually breaks down so it’s a good organic weed management solution. Other suggestion with crops is to succession plant… instead of planting a whole bed of broccoli at once, plant two then in two weeks another two etc and then you will have your crop ripen over a longer period instead of all at once. Trick is to time the succession plantings so you get a decent crop over each plants growing season. A glut of crops is a rite of passage for all gardeners! Trade them with neighbours for eggs or jams or other things you don’t grow or cook. Or given them away. Also it can be good to rest and rotate your beds so you don’t have the same crop each season in the same bed. During winter it can be good to rest a bed but plant a crop to cut nitrogen back into the soil… like a broad bean crop that you cut back at about 30cm and dig back into the soil. Let it rest over winter and then plant up in summer.
That garden looks great! Planting garlic and onions with them is supposed to help. My husband knew an old gardener who put pantyhose over the cabbage heads. It prevented bugs from getting in while still allowing the cabbage to grow. Good luck!!!
I love the set up of the individual beds and the wood chips to keep the weeds down. But I really like Arne’s journals. I want to try that. Great idea to keep notes on what works/doesn’t work. Useful in so many ways, not just gardening. It’s a work of art in itself. Looking forward to seeing the garden next year!
Something I find really helps with weeds on your paths - Put layers of cardboard below your bark to suppress the weeds on your paths. Also net your cabbages to stop the butterflies from laying eggs on them. Another thing is to succession sow your crops so they aren’t all ready at the same time. Xx love your kitchen garden
Best appetizers in summer are those you go outside and just pick and eat while enjoying the garden. I call it grazing. It reminds you to use what you have and to enjoy what you have. Each garden year is different.
We also grow Brussel Sprouts that tend to attract the same sort of insects as other cabbages. We make a spray of mild dish soap (Dawn or similar) and make sure to spray top and underside of foilage. This has worked very well in conjunction with planting marigolds as a garden perimeter :)
Arne love the sweater you have on. The clasps are awesome. I just love your garden. It reflects your love of nature and connection to your land. You put your heart in everything you do and it shows! Hugs to you both! 😊
Hello! After the radishes lose the flowers, the seed pods, which look a little like peas, are very delicious when eaten raw. They have a radishy flavor and are great in salads. So many more pods than actual radishes! Please try them! 🥰
My sister looked at her garden daily. Like you, I'd forget to eat it too! I think the solution is constant checking on the progress! But things sure do grow for you!!!
I think the small white plant is a parsnip. I love them. When they get large, I cut them into chunks and do the same with large carrotts and some quartered onions or shallots. Put small amount butter or olive oil oil, salt and papper on them and roast them in a hot oven 400 F. WONDERFUL deep flavor...
Brassicas such as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower are best grown under row covers to keep out the dreaded white moth. I’m glad you let things that you didn’t get around to eating go to flower so beneficial insects, birds, bees etc. can enjoy them. Parsnips and garlic are best planted in the fall and harvested the next spring or early summer. Half the fun of a garden is planning next years. Blessings.
In garden in Chicago. In the US we call them parsnips and we use them in soup. I enjoyed watching Carlos pick, dust, and eat straight from the garden. Best way ever! One for the basket, one for the gardener! Yummy 😋
As for the overgrown radishes - just wait until small husks develop from the flowers, they can be eaten. They are delicious, taste like radishes and there can be lots of them.
Parsnips are planted to close together. The problem for planting for just 2 its so hard. Our rule of thumb is one plant for each squash because they produce so much. We stagger our planting of broccoli and cauliflower. Plant like 3 of them then 2 werks later plant a couple more. We use egg shells in our strawberries to denture snails and slugs. Onion around some plant denture bugs but check what onions grow happily with. Oh and some stuff hates mulch basil, tomatoes. We put landscaping cloth down between raised beds then add the mulch. Good luck yall
Looking good chaps! We have an allotment so we grow a lot of veg. We bought a chest freezer so that we can freeze things as they come good and enjoy them later. We'd never get to eat everything otherwise! The English word for when things like radish and lettuce suddenly grow and go to seed is "bolting". It happens in hot weather - especially if things get dry. re: the insects - horticultural fleece (or old net curtains!) is a good option but I find that then the birds don't come in and eat the slugs. An old man at our allotments told me that you have to accept that you will get the second bite out of everything!
We have tried everything with our cabbages, and finally found that putting netting over them works best. You have to put it on early in the season. I purchased ours on Amazon and we have used it for three years now. I also use a homemade bug spray that insects despise. You put 1/2 head of garlic with 1 cup of water in a blender and blend until smooth. Put the mixture in a glass container and let it sit covered in a dark space for one day. Strain off the solids and dilute with enough water to get 8 cups of solution. Store in the fridge. I fill a plastic spray bottle with the strained solution and use it quite a bit in June and July. It works fantastic with cucumber beetles, aphids, and much more. Little insects attacked our turnips this year, and my spray saved them.
Wonderful video! The cabbage worms were horrible for me this year. I also need to figure it out. I think the insect netting is probably the way to keep them from destroying the plants. Love those frames! Can't wait to see how the garden evolves.
Loved your tour and update guys. We have raised beds and nets to go over them. I also spray around the garden with diluted washing up liquid on any flowers which look like the greenfly are having a feast. 🌻
Recommend a couple of cold frames to extend you season for lettuces, spinach, beets, radishes, etc. Always good for off-season harvest and little trouble with bugs.
Try staggering your plantings of seeds & then it all isn't ready at one time. Bark really helps with weeds & makes it easier to remove the ones that grow. Way to go gentlemen!
You are planting a huge amount of each vegetable; this is great for sharing with family, friends, and neighbors. Also, you could can some for eating over the winter. I think you could plant less, and still get a massive harvest. I planted five cucumber plants, and had them coming out of my ears by the end of Summer! LOL! Made many jars of pickles. Here in the states, we call the wood chips mulch which comes in bags or we can get it by the truckload, and it does work. Mulch around the veg to keep out weeds, pine needles work also. Have a great week. xoxo's Sandie🤗
I just love you both and your enthusiasm for so many things! Yes, plant your garden with as much diversity as you can, mix it up. There are lots of 'companion planting' charts online to tell you what things like each other, but planting as many different vegetables, herbs, and flowers near each other will help a lot with the pests.
My Great Grandmother used to spray the kitchen garden with a tea made with nettle. A bunch of nettles in boiling water and let it cool overnight. Apparently it scares away bugs and snails. :)
Put cardboard on the ground before you put down the wood chips. We do that at our local community gardens, this also helps with keeping weeds and and grass in check.
A hand to you for trying an organic garden. You can eat radish seed pods. Don't pull the plants. The pods are great as a cooked vegetable. Use them in a stir fry. They are very mild tasting. The vegetable that you are trying to identify is parsnips. You pulled it too young. They need to stay in the ground. They are very cold resistant. I leave them in the ground covered with straw over the winter in Pennsylvania. Other veggies that would be good for your area would be beets, carrots, swiss chard, and kale. Mostly bug resistant and can handle colder weather. Any cabbage family will get worms or bugs. There are little white moths that fly around. They lay eggs on the cabbages which hatch out to be worms that will totally eat the cabbages. You must cover the plants with a netting to prevent that. A natural thing that will discourage insects is Neem oil. It will kill the bugs but not hurt the plants or the environment . You can buy it in a spray bottle or a concentrate that you mix with water and put in a spray bottle. I can buy it in the US, I would guess it is available in other countries. You might ask around and see if there are any garden shops in your area. Usually the people there can advise you on the best crops to grow for your climate. Plan your garden this winter and you'll be ready for spring.
I learned this 2 years ago by accident. Plant dill with tomatoes. It keeps away a certain pest. I can't remember which now... But 2 years ago there was a tomato bug in my area... But I never had an issue . When I looked it up it said that planting Dill was a deterrent for the big... Of which I had plenty volunteer plants growing with my tomatoes.
Your space is gorgeous - lots ob books on companion planting but its always nice to talk to someone who has had success 🥰. Love these gardening episodes!
A mixture of water with wash up liquid in a mixture, spray on the insects that stops them. Alternative jet them once they are on plants with fast hose. But marigolds are very good. The white carrot you mention sounds like a parsnip. There is also a turnip and celeriac. Have a look at them all. Yes def a parsnip.
I used wood chips between my raised beds for the first time this summer. I lay cardboard down on the soil and then put the wood chips on top. I still had weeds come up. I guess I needed a thicker layer of wood chips.
Jerusalem artichoke is a type of sunflower. And once you have it in your garden, you’ve got a friend for life…I’ve heard they are prolific and keep coming back. Yum!
I think it’s wise to use raised beds because of the railroad bed history-it might have creosote in the soil but you could do a soil test to make sure. I have clay soil here in Minnesota so used raised beds for that reason.
Your garden looks great because plants are growing and they look healthy! It’s nice to forage through one’s own garden. Please continue to share updates.
I think your good smelling root vegetable is parsnip. I discovered how wonderful they are when we lived in England. Yum, yum! For my kitchen garden I mostly stick to herbs (oregano, mint, basil, parsley, dillm thyme) and tomatoes because tomatoes from the store are so terrible.
Your sweet peas sounded so wonderfully crunchy and good!! I enjoy gardening almost as much as knitting and really enjoy seeing you both in your gardens.
Just pick the broccoli whilst small, don't wait for large florets, and eat them and their flowers raw in salads. Delicious! Jerusalem artichokes have leaves like sunflowers (and also flowers like mini sunflowers) I think they might be parsnips. I'd love to see a video of Carlos making his jerusalem artichoke soup - that'd be interesting because I find them a little bit hard to make edible for most people's tastes.
Cabbage moths will lay their caterpillar eggs on the leaves. The caterpillars eat quickly. But I heard the moths are territorial. So this year I cut out little white moth shapes from hard white plastic and put them all over the cabbages and broccoli and on top of the soil. It worked!
I suggested that in a comment - to cut out white butterflies. Glad it worked for you! I’ll give it a go this summer. I’m in Australia… it is a tip from our Gardening Australia ABC TV gardening show.
To grow organically…anything in the cabbage family: includes kale, broccoli, brussels sprouts & cabbage should be covered with mesh netting when planted. those little whitish butterflies lay their eggs and when they hatch will have hundreds of little green worms on your plants. No flower will keep them away. you just have to prevent them from being able to lay their eggs on your plants. Since this plants don’t need to be pollinated it’s not a problem to cover them. i’m your climate i would also suggest growing, kale, spinach and beets. Also, lay down sheets of cardboard (from flattened boxes) under your wood chips to prevent weeds from sprouting underneath.
Mint keeps bugs away, also diatomaceous earth, sprinkled around plants, it is essentially from rocks and seashells in powder form, also used in swimming pools. DTE. Sluggo for slugs and snails.
I had some success with companion plantings when I had a garden. Bugs tend to not like mint. I planted marigolds with tomatoes and it was working; however, the deer don’t care! I never knew deer would eat tomatoes😕I planted mint around my apples trees and that was a wonderful match! Sometimes you can intermix the herbs with your veggies. Good companion planting of eatables will help fight bugs and disease so you have a more natural defense. Cheryl
I use a fine mesh cloth to cover all my cruciferous veggies to keep the insects away. I also use black planting fabric in between boxes to ensure weeds don't grow. Our plan is to also put wood chips on it.
Sometimes little nests for earwigs help to keep lies away and my sister plants here and there just some garlic between. That keeps also a lot of little ones away👍🏻
Many flowers are edible, but check first. You can clear an area of weeds and grass by covering with enough newspaper or cardboard (if inks are safe and remove tape).bark mulch like what you put in will keep weeds crowded out. Soapy water spray can be used to repell insects if you see them. Some veges are better winter's over like carrots to sweeten. You have many people suggesting good things. Mostly your garden looks great as is so enjoy the beauty and nibble.
Your garden is lovely. I use marigolds, geraniums, mint, and thyme to keep away chipmunks and gophers and bugs. Did ok this year but some new bug ate my basil. That was the bed without marigolds. Enjoy!
You can eat the radish seed pods when they develop, so your crop is not wasted. Eat them in salads, stirfries, steamed or pickle them! The broccoli flowers and seed pods can be eaten as well in salads or as a garnish. Pac choy seed pods too are edible when they are young. If you get the flower just before they are fully opened, they are a great garnish as well. Enjoy!
It's called ' Companion Gardening " and there are good articles online. a book I bought was called " Tomatoes love Marigolds " and it was good info. You could also use straw between rows as mulch, it stays dry. There is a lovely tale of the 'three sisters " in Native American planting with corn, beans and squash and how they support each other. Lovely garden, enjoy your week !
Congratulations on your garden. You should get lots of good food from it. You can put the radish flowers and seed pods in salads and eat them. You should put cardboard under your chips, it will deteriorate into the ground eventually (worms love it), and will aid in keeping the weeds and grass from coming up.
There is a material you should be able to buy in garden centre or do it yourself shops and it’s called fleece it looks like a piece of net curtain but stops things being able to fly in.. like another viewer says be aware of insects in your bark. This was my part two. I think you will both be just fine. Takes time for us all to learn new projects we take on. I think we all benefit even the more experienced people at picking up good tips from other people who have tried doing the same things. Some oare for the better some are not. Lots depends on soil and different areas we grow them in. I have full faith you will do it in time. The Pesci insects just love having a munch at our products we are growing. Or trying to grow. X
Parsnips, the long white root vegetable, are wonderful if you shred them into julienne strips with an equal amount of julienne carrots, then sauté them in butter and oil, and sprinkle with some brown sugar to caramelize them; similar to the wonderful caramelized potatoes the Danes serve with their roast pork. Tender and sweet and so yummy!
Sage, rosemary, basil, citronella grass, lemon grass, mint, catnip, petunia, lavender, chives, borage, mums, and marigold are good for planting with vegetables. Dill attracts predatory wasps that will kill insects. I’m not sure which of these will grow in your climate though. Mulch is great for controlling weeds and insects, but may affect the ph of your soil, in which case you may need to add lime to the soil to neutralize it. Good luck with your garden!
I think canning, pickling or freezing your surplus vegetables would help get the most out of your bounty. I have heard marigolds do keep bugs away. Lovely garden! I like the frames and bark around. Great job!❤
I think your parsnips need spacing out more to have room to bulk up. Both kinds of marigolds - calendula and tagetes - are good companion plants and limnanthes (poached egg plant) brings in some beneficial insects too. Radish pods can be pickled whilst still young and green. Sometimes you just need to have one sacrificial plant, probably cabbage, and keep the insects off the rest. Everything is growing so well. I admire your energy and ideas.
I plant a row of marigold flowers around all my plant beds for a ring of protection. Some are mixed with garlic (flowers are pretty) an lemongrass as they chase bugs away. I also have lavender planted in rows next to some veggies. The strong smell deter bugs. This also works in pots. You might wish to cycle your radishes as that will extend your produce thru the season.
To keep the bugs away you can sprinkle with cinnamon but you would need a lot of it. Or you can plant vegetables that repel insects. If bugs are on my plants I spray them with washing up liquid I mix a few drops in a spray bottle and shake and spray a garden your size will need a pump spray.
I had pumpkins and cantaloupe in a raised bed with green peppers, tomatoes, marigolds and zinnias: a vine borer (destructive insect) destroyed my melons & pumpkins. I had one other pumpkin growing at the back of a large flower bed: no bugs attacked it. So I would advise planting a lot of flowers around your cabbages etc (marigolds, nasturtium, echinacea) any strong scented flower will disguise your cabbage, cauliflower etc from insects.
Guys..maybe consider getting cloches otr a greenhouse? You would need to keep it warm in winter..but you could grow more vegetables..courgettes..tomatoes..my Dad used to grow melons and peppers from seeds I took him from Spain..He grew potatoes, cabbage, brussels sprouts, carrots and marrows..(he won prizes for thosebin local competitions..as well as for his sweet peas)...rhubarb in the open..and strawberries under frames..we also had raspberry bushes protected from birds by net curtains.He had green fingers!! And beautful flower beds..LOVE your videos..😀🤩
Put seats in your garden. You'll enjoy it more, tend to it more and enjoy the harvest. I grew a very small amount of rutabaga and had to hand pick a ton of caterpillars. Next year I will cover them. I'm leaning. Keep going guys. You learn every year.
The wood chips works. I use it to eliminate weeds from my vegetable garden. My garden needs a do over for spring also, and I will be on this journey with you. I've been advised to try ladybugs to eliminate garden pest.
Even though lots of your vegetables have gone to flower,the flowers are pretty! I like the raised bed idea and the bark between. Sounds like a good plan! Thanks for sharing!
Maybe you could enlist the help of a neighbor when you travel next summer. They can look after the garden and they keep whatever they are able to harvest at the time. That may help eliminate waste.
I assume the bug in the cabbage is cabbage moth? Its a pretty little white moth that lays its eggs on the cabbage leaves. When the little green caterpillars hatch, they can eat through almost all of the leaves in a surprisingly short time. The only success I've had against cabbage moth is covering the cabbage with tulle or garden mesh netting. Works like a charm! The birds do try to help. They think the caterpillars are delicious!
The bees will love all of your vegetable flowers! 🦋💚🐝
The bees think you were successful! You gave them so many wonderful flowers to dine one. 🙂
Leave your parsnips in the ground overwinter and dig them in the Spring before they start to have green tops. They will be sweeter and soooo good. I garden in Minnesota in zone 3 so don’t think it will be too cold where you are. Marigolds, nasturtium and herbs deter insects. Also be careful with the bark you are using. It might harbor insects. Don’t plant all your radishes at one time. Instead succession planting would be better so you don’t have so many radishes at one time. The same goes for lettuce arugula and kale. Good luck and it was nice to be in your garden today!
That is such good advice! 😊
I love nasturtium flowers in salad too!
Hi Jeanne. I live in Minnesota too! Fun to see another Minnesota comment 😊
You can donate food to a local food bank. You can set up an understanding with neighbors to help themselves when you are away. You can freeze or can veggies. For over ripe veggies or seeded veggies, you can donate to pig farm or goat farm, etc…. Or you can plant less veggies and only veggies that you enjoy. You can use plants to dye yarn or fabric. Build a root cellar, root veggies last long in cool, dry storage. You can hang dry herbs. Collect the seeds for next year. Check out companion gardening, like basil helps tomato’s. I wish I could have a garden, I live in a condominium with a parking lot 😜.
You have lots of good suggestions about your garden, but a couple of things I didn't see (but I didn't read *all* the comments). Don't give up next year if results don't reach your expectations. I started a veggie garden after I retired about 10 years ago, and am finally getting half way decent at it. Veggie gardening takes skill, and you have to practice. In my case, a lot, lol! Also, plant lots so that you have enough to share with the bunnies and bugs. I also have good results splitting up what I plant. I'll plant beans in three different spots in the garden, and if the bugs find one patch, maybe they won't find the others. I know what you mean about not harvesting what you grow - I had to put my garden within eyesight of my kitchen, because if I didn't see it, I didn't go into to. It also helps if you included stopping in the garden when in another routine. In my case it's when I feed the chickens, for you it could be when you walk Freya. When I handed my husband his dinner plate last night, I told him the veggies on his plate had been still growing 30 minutes earlier. It makes me so happy to be able to give him such healthy, delicious food. love to you
This year I planted a border of nasturtium around my veg/herb garden. This year was the 1st time I didn’t have pests (other than one sweet bunny who lived under the tomatoes). The nasturtium are beautiful and edible - their bright orange blooms are so lovely in salad.
My mother always planted marigolds around her vegetable gardens. They looked pretty and kept the insects away. (Or so she always said)
My marigolds all died until I dug up some semi wild ones from my back garden and grew them in the front garden. Now they're much more successful. The ones from the garden centre just write never happy, grow like weeds in my back garden.
Marigold leaves can be eaten too! I like them in salads for a bit of colour.
And you can dye with marigold flowers. Bonus!
I was reading through the comments. Lots of great suggestions! I got a small book on companion planting called, CARROTS LOVE TOMATOES. It was clear and simple. Companion planting is fun, too. I would always look forward to planning my raised beds during the cold, dark months...putting "companions" together and making sure to keep distance between bad pairings.
Another great resource is Permaculture. My favorite is Gaia's Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture,
by Toby Hemenway .
These are in English but there must be resources for you locally.
As a homesteader for 16 years, I learned that there aren't any failures, just many lessons to be learned! After the first,, and ten the second peach tree, died, I learned peach trees couldn't thrive in my habitat...so I moved on to a cherry tree.. And it does take years!! But they are years of joy.
My biggest tip would be to take your mug of coffee or tea outside everyday, morning and evening, and slowly stroll through ALL the habitat you've created and quietly see what is happening. It will also help you remember what you have growing.
On the Sunday when this episode arrived, I made a road trip to pass along the rest of my gardening stuff to my son. It was a bittersweet moment. I will be in Senior Housing soon where I won't be able to garden anymore. But how happy-fying to pass it on to the next generation!!
Lovely garden! A lot of herbs will keep away specific pests, like basil (flies), thyme (earworms), dill (aphids), lemongrass (mosquitos). Marigolds are a great start. Plus the petals are edible. For other insects and fungal diseases you can spray on Neem Oil, which comes from Neem Trees.
Could it be a parsnip?
Those wooden bed frames are nifty! I love how they stack on top of each other. Looks like they are quite secure too. White cabbage butterfly is what eats brassicas like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, box choy. A net is the most effective way to keep them away. Other tip is to cut out butterfly wing shapes from white plastic (like from ice cream or food containers) and stick them on a stick of wire. Make them look quite realistic. The white butterflies think other white butterflies have “claimed” that spot so they will go elsewhere as they are territorial. I don’t know personally how successful this tip is but others have had success with it in Australia.
I have a community garden plot and we use bark mulch to keep the weeds away. We also put cardboard down first, then the bark, as the cardboard kills any weeds. The cardboard eventually breaks down so it’s a good organic weed management solution.
Other suggestion with crops is to succession plant… instead of planting a whole bed of broccoli at once, plant two then in two weeks another two etc and then you will have your crop ripen over a longer period instead of all at once. Trick is to time the succession plantings so you get a decent crop over each plants growing season. A glut of crops is a rite of passage for all gardeners! Trade them with neighbours for eggs or jams or other things you don’t grow or cook. Or given them away.
Also it can be good to rest and rotate your beds so you don’t have the same crop each season in the same bed. During winter it can be good to rest a bed but plant a crop to cut nitrogen back into the soil… like a broad bean crop that you cut back at about 30cm and dig back into the soil. Let it rest over winter and then plant up in summer.
That garden looks great! Planting garlic and onions with them is supposed to help. My husband knew an old gardener who put pantyhose over the cabbage heads. It prevented bugs from getting in while still allowing the cabbage to grow. Good luck!!!
Great idea with the pantyhose
I love the set up of the individual beds and the wood chips to keep the weeds down. But I really like Arne’s journals. I want to try that. Great idea to keep notes on what works/doesn’t work. Useful in so many ways, not just gardening. It’s a work of art in itself. Looking forward to seeing the garden next year!
Add Dill and potted mint around your brassicas. That really helps with their scent to confuse the bugs.
Something I find really helps with weeds on your paths - Put layers of cardboard below your bark to suppress the weeds on your paths. Also net your cabbages to stop the butterflies from laying eggs on them. Another thing is to succession sow your crops so they aren’t all ready at the same time. Xx love your kitchen garden
I echo the cardboard idea. Multiple layers of wet newspaper also works well.
Yes cardboard and/or newspaper is excellent for weed suppression.
Best appetizers in summer are those you go outside and just pick and eat while enjoying the garden. I call it grazing. It reminds you to use what you have and to enjoy what you have. Each garden year is different.
We also grow Brussel Sprouts that tend to attract the same sort of insects as other cabbages. We make a spray of mild dish soap (Dawn or similar) and make sure to spray top and underside of foilage. This has worked very well in conjunction with planting marigolds as a garden perimeter :)
NB Dish SOAP - not detergent!
Always a pleasant time visiting with you both😊
Arne love the sweater you have on. The clasps are awesome. I just love your garden. It reflects your love of nature and connection to your land. You put your heart in everything you do and it shows! Hugs to you both! 😊
Carlos I do the same thing..pick the peas and snap the ends and eat them right out the garden.
My dad always sliced his parsnips (white carrots) and sauteed them in butter with a pinch of salt. Yummy!!
I putter around gardening too. The whit carrots we call parsnips in PE, Canada. I love them in soups or boiled then fried in butter
You 2 I don’t know how you both find time to do everything.😍
Hello! After the radishes lose the flowers, the seed pods, which look a little like peas, are very delicious when eaten raw. They have a radishy flavor and are great in salads. So many more pods than actual radishes! Please try them! 🥰
Great tip! I’ll have to try that.
Afternoon Arne and Carlos.
I love work in progress … we can learn with you.
My gardening skills are very limited. Arne, your journal has inspired me to do better next year.
My sister looked at her garden daily. Like you, I'd forget to eat it too! I think the solution is constant checking on the progress! But things sure do grow for you!!!
I think the small white plant is a parsnip. I love them. When they get large, I cut them into chunks and do the same with large carrotts and some quartered onions or shallots. Put small amount butter or olive oil oil, salt and papper on them and roast them in a hot oven 400 F. WONDERFUL deep flavor...
Brassicas such as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower are best grown under row covers to keep out the dreaded white moth. I’m glad you let things that you didn’t get around to eating go to flower so beneficial insects, birds, bees etc. can enjoy them. Parsnips and garlic are best planted in the fall and harvested the next spring or early summer. Half the fun of a garden is planning next years. Blessings.
In garden in Chicago. In the US we call them parsnips and we use them in soup.
I enjoyed watching Carlos pick, dust, and eat straight from the garden. Best way ever! One for the basket, one for the gardener! Yummy 😋
As for the overgrown radishes - just wait until small husks develop from the flowers, they can be eaten. They are delicious, taste like radishes and there can be lots of them.
Parsnips are planted to close together. The problem for planting for just 2 its so hard. Our rule of thumb is one plant for each squash because they produce so much. We stagger our planting of broccoli and cauliflower. Plant like 3 of them then 2 werks later plant a couple more. We use egg shells in our strawberries to denture snails and slugs. Onion around some plant denture bugs but check what onions grow happily with. Oh and some stuff hates mulch basil, tomatoes. We put landscaping cloth down between raised beds then add the mulch. Good luck yall
Love that you have so much energy to do so many things! ❤
And here I am finding it very reassuring that some things fall by the wayside a bit. :D
Happy Sunday!
Happy Sunday to you too Blase!
You’re not alone. I also forget to eat the produce from my garden. Glad I’m not the only one! 😂
Looking good chaps! We have an allotment so we grow a lot of veg. We bought a chest freezer so that we can freeze things as they come good and enjoy them later. We'd never get to eat everything otherwise! The English word for when things like radish and lettuce suddenly grow and go to seed is "bolting". It happens in hot weather - especially if things get dry.
re: the insects - horticultural fleece (or old net curtains!) is a good option but I find that then the birds don't come in and eat the slugs. An old man at our allotments told me that you have to accept that you will get the second bite out of everything!
The flowers from the vegetables are very pretty in the garden as well. Just think of it as feeding the bees and butterflies this year.
We have tried everything with our cabbages, and finally found that putting netting over them works best. You have to put it on early in the season. I purchased ours on Amazon and we have used it for three years now. I also use a homemade bug spray that insects despise. You put 1/2 head of garlic with 1 cup of water in a blender and blend until smooth. Put the mixture in a glass container and let it sit covered in a dark space for one day. Strain off the solids and dilute with enough water to get 8 cups of solution. Store in the fridge. I fill a plastic spray bottle with the strained solution and use it quite a bit in June and July. It works fantastic with cucumber beetles, aphids, and much more. Little insects attacked our turnips this year, and my spray saved them.
Wonderful video! The cabbage worms were horrible for me this year. I also need to figure it out. I think the insect netting is probably the way to keep them from destroying the plants. Love those frames! Can't wait to see how the garden evolves.
Loved your tour and update guys. We have raised beds and nets to go over them. I also spray around the garden with diluted washing up liquid on any flowers which look like the greenfly are having a feast. 🌻
Recommend a couple of cold frames to extend you season for lettuces, spinach, beets, radishes, etc. Always good for off-season harvest and little trouble with bugs.
Try staggering your plantings of seeds & then it all isn't ready at one time. Bark really helps with weeds & makes it easier to remove the ones that grow. Way to go gentlemen!
You are planting a huge amount of each vegetable; this is great for sharing with family, friends, and neighbors. Also, you could can some for eating over the winter. I think you could plant less, and still get a massive harvest. I planted five cucumber plants, and had them coming out of my ears by the end of Summer! LOL! Made many jars of pickles. Here in the states, we call the wood chips mulch which comes in bags or we can get it by the truckload, and it does work. Mulch around the veg to keep out weeds, pine needles work also.
Have a great week.
xoxo's Sandie🤗
I just love you both and your enthusiasm for so many things! Yes, plant your garden with as much diversity as you can, mix it up. There are lots of 'companion planting' charts online to tell you what things like each other, but planting as many different vegetables, herbs, and flowers near each other will help a lot with the pests.
My Great Grandmother used to spray the kitchen garden with a tea made with nettle. A bunch of nettles in boiling water and let it cool overnight. Apparently it scares away bugs and snails. :)
Put cardboard on the ground before you put down the wood chips. We do that at our local community gardens, this also helps with keeping weeds and and grass in check.
A hand to you for trying an organic garden.
You can eat radish seed pods. Don't pull the plants. The pods are great as a cooked vegetable. Use them in a stir fry. They are very mild tasting.
The vegetable that you are trying to identify is parsnips. You pulled it too young. They need to stay in the ground. They are very cold resistant. I leave them in the ground covered with straw over the winter in Pennsylvania.
Other veggies that would be good for your area would be beets, carrots, swiss chard, and kale. Mostly bug resistant and can handle colder weather.
Any cabbage family will get worms or bugs. There are little white moths that fly around. They lay eggs on the cabbages which hatch out to be worms that will totally eat the cabbages. You must cover the plants with a netting to prevent that.
A natural thing that will discourage insects is Neem oil. It will kill the bugs but not hurt the plants or the environment . You can buy it in a spray bottle or a concentrate that you mix with water and put in a spray bottle. I can buy it in the US, I would guess it is available in other countries.
You might ask around and see if there are any garden shops in your area. Usually the people there can advise you on the best crops to grow for your climate.
Plan your garden this winter and you'll be ready for spring.
I learned this 2 years ago by accident.
Plant dill with tomatoes. It keeps away a certain pest. I can't remember which now... But 2 years ago there was a tomato bug in my area... But I never had an issue . When I looked it up it said that planting Dill was a deterrent for the big... Of which I had plenty volunteer plants growing with my tomatoes.
Your space is gorgeous - lots ob books on companion planting but its always nice to talk to someone who has had success 🥰. Love these gardening episodes!
Yes, books on Companion Planting would be a good technique to research.
A mixture of water with wash up liquid in a mixture, spray on the insects that stops them. Alternative jet them once they are on plants with fast hose. But marigolds are very good. The white carrot you mention sounds like a parsnip. There is also a turnip and celeriac. Have a look at them all. Yes def a parsnip.
I used wood chips between my raised beds for the first time this summer. I lay cardboard down on the soil and then put the wood chips on top. I still had weeds come up. I guess I needed a thicker layer of wood chips.
Jerusalem artichoke is a type of sunflower. And once you have it in your garden, you’ve got a friend for life…I’ve heard they are prolific and keep coming back. Yum!
I think it’s wise to use raised beds because of the railroad bed history-it might have creosote in the soil but you could do a soil test to make sure. I have clay soil here in Minnesota so used raised beds for that reason.
Good morning!
Your garden looks great because plants are growing and they look healthy!
It’s nice to forage through one’s own garden. Please continue to share updates.
I think your good smelling root vegetable is parsnip. I discovered how wonderful they are when we lived in England. Yum, yum! For my kitchen garden I mostly stick to herbs (oregano, mint, basil, parsley, dillm thyme) and tomatoes because tomatoes from the store are so terrible.
You two make me smile!
Your sweet peas sounded so wonderfully crunchy and good!! I enjoy gardening almost as much as knitting and really enjoy seeing you both in your gardens.
Just pick the broccoli whilst small, don't wait for large florets, and eat them and their flowers raw in salads. Delicious! Jerusalem artichokes have leaves like sunflowers (and also flowers like mini sunflowers) I think they might be parsnips. I'd love to see a video of Carlos making his jerusalem artichoke soup - that'd be interesting because I find them a little bit hard to make edible for most people's tastes.
Cabbage moths will lay their caterpillar eggs on the leaves. The caterpillars eat quickly. But I heard the moths are territorial. So this year I cut out little white moth shapes from hard white plastic and put them all over the cabbages and broccoli and on top of the soil. It worked!
I suggested that in a comment - to cut out white butterflies. Glad it worked for you! I’ll give it a go this summer. I’m in Australia… it is a tip from our Gardening Australia ABC TV gardening show.
To grow organically…anything in the cabbage family: includes kale, broccoli, brussels sprouts & cabbage should be covered with mesh netting when planted. those little whitish butterflies lay their eggs and when they hatch will have hundreds of little green worms on your plants. No flower will keep them away. you just have to prevent them from being able to lay their eggs on your plants. Since this plants don’t need to be pollinated it’s not a problem to cover them. i’m your climate i would also suggest growing, kale, spinach and beets.
Also, lay down sheets of cardboard (from flattened boxes) under your wood chips to prevent weeds from sprouting underneath.
Mint keeps bugs away, also diatomaceous earth, sprinkled around plants, it is essentially from rocks and seashells in powder form, also used in swimming pools. DTE. Sluggo for slugs and snails.
Thank you!
Love watching you two. I always leave with a smile. Peace, Love & Light!
I had some success with companion plantings when I had a garden. Bugs tend to not like mint. I planted marigolds with tomatoes and it was working; however, the deer don’t care! I never knew deer would eat tomatoes😕I planted mint around my apples trees and that was a wonderful match!
Sometimes you can intermix the herbs with your veggies. Good companion planting of eatables will help fight bugs and disease so you have a more natural defense.
Cheryl
When your radishes have finished flowering they will produce edible seed pods which are delicious.
Yes so delicious!!
I use a fine mesh cloth to cover all my cruciferous veggies to keep the insects away. I also use black planting fabric in between boxes to ensure weeds don't grow. Our plan is to also put wood chips on it.
Marigolds have always worked for us in our vegetable beds for keeping insects away.
Lovely raised beds garden.
Sometimes little nests for earwigs help to keep lies away and my sister plants here and there just some garlic between. That keeps also a lot of little ones away👍🏻
Thak you for sharing! Place a bench and enjoy a new knitting spot.
The radish flowers are so pretty.
😊
Many flowers are edible, but check first. You can clear an area of weeds and grass by covering with enough newspaper or cardboard (if inks are safe and remove tape).bark mulch like what you put in will keep weeds crowded out. Soapy water spray can be used to repell insects if you see them. Some veges are better winter's over like carrots to sweeten. You have many people suggesting good things. Mostly your garden looks great as is so enjoy the beauty and nibble.
Your garden is lovely. I use marigolds, geraniums, mint, and thyme to keep away chipmunks and gophers and bugs. Did ok this year but some new bug ate my basil. That was the bed without marigolds. Enjoy!
You can eat the radish seed pods when they develop, so your crop is not wasted. Eat them in salads, stirfries, steamed or pickle them! The broccoli flowers and seed pods can be eaten as well in salads or as a garnish. Pac choy seed pods too are edible when they are young. If you get the flower just before they are fully opened, they are a great garnish as well. Enjoy!
this is the dream life, love
It's called ' Companion Gardening " and there are good articles online. a book I bought was called " Tomatoes love Marigolds " and it was good info. You could also use straw between rows as mulch, it stays dry. There is a lovely tale of the 'three sisters " in Native American planting with corn, beans and squash and how they support each other. Lovely garden, enjoy your week !
Make tea with chrysanthemum flowers. All the flowers from edible plants are also edible in salads
Congratulations on your garden. You should get lots of good food from it. You can put the radish flowers and seed pods in salads and eat them. You should put cardboard under your chips, it will deteriorate into the ground eventually (worms love it), and will aid in keeping the weeds and grass from coming up.
You can eat the radish flowers and green seed heads they’re great in salads.
There is a material you should be able to buy in garden centre or do it yourself shops and it’s called fleece it looks like a piece of net curtain but stops things being able to fly in.. like another viewer says be aware of insects in your bark. This was my part two. I think you will both be just fine. Takes time for us all to learn new projects we take on. I think we all benefit even the more experienced people at picking up good tips from other people who have tried doing the same things. Some oare for the better some are not. Lots depends on soil and different areas we grow them in. I have full faith you will do it in time. The Pesci insects just love having a munch at our products we are growing. Or trying to grow. X
If I can be of use, I would recommend that you freeze your produce, like broccoli to use in the winter.
Parsnips, the long white root vegetable, are wonderful if you shred them into julienne strips with an equal amount of julienne carrots, then sauté them in butter and oil, and sprinkle with some brown sugar to caramelize them; similar to the wonderful caramelized potatoes the Danes serve with their roast pork. Tender and sweet and so yummy!
Sage, rosemary, basil, citronella grass, lemon grass, mint, catnip, petunia, lavender, chives, borage, mums, and marigold are good for planting with vegetables. Dill attracts predatory wasps that will kill insects. I’m not sure which of these will grow in your climate though. Mulch is great for controlling weeds and insects, but may affect the ph of your soil, in which case you may need to add lime to the soil to neutralize it. Good luck with your garden!
The peas look like Snow peas to me ... Sweet peas are flowers that grow the same but are all different colours and smell wonderful.
I think canning, pickling or freezing your surplus vegetables would help get the most out of your bounty. I have heard marigolds do keep bugs away. Lovely garden! I like the frames and bark around. Great job!❤
I think your parsnips need spacing out more to have room to bulk up. Both kinds of marigolds - calendula and tagetes - are good companion plants and limnanthes (poached egg plant) brings in some beneficial insects too. Radish pods can be pickled whilst still young and green. Sometimes you just need to have one sacrificial plant, probably cabbage, and keep the insects off the rest. Everything is growing so well. I admire your energy and ideas.
I plant a row of marigold flowers around all my plant beds for a ring of protection. Some are mixed with garlic (flowers are pretty) an lemongrass as they chase bugs away. I also have lavender planted in rows next to some veggies. The strong smell deter bugs. This also works in pots. You might wish to cycle your radishes as that will extend your produce thru the season.
To keep the bugs away you can sprinkle with cinnamon but you would need a lot of it. Or you can plant vegetables that repel insects. If bugs are on my plants I spray them with washing up liquid I mix a few drops in a spray bottle and shake and spray a garden your size will need a pump spray.
I plant sunflowers. The bugs eat the sunflowers and leave my other plants alone. Don't know if that will work where you are...
Denise from Texas
I had pumpkins and cantaloupe in a raised bed with green peppers, tomatoes, marigolds and zinnias: a vine borer (destructive insect) destroyed my melons & pumpkins. I had one other pumpkin growing at the back of a large flower bed: no bugs attacked it. So I would advise planting a lot of flowers around your cabbages etc (marigolds, nasturtium, echinacea) any strong scented flower will disguise your cabbage, cauliflower etc from insects.
Guys..maybe consider getting cloches otr a greenhouse? You would need to keep it warm in winter..but you could grow more vegetables..courgettes..tomatoes..my Dad used to grow melons and peppers from seeds I took him from Spain..He grew potatoes, cabbage, brussels sprouts, carrots and marrows..(he won prizes for thosebin local competitions..as well as for his sweet peas)...rhubarb in the open..and strawberries under frames..we also had raspberry bushes protected from birds by net curtains.He had green fingers!! And beautful flower beds..LOVE your videos..😀🤩
i had a bokashi bucket, once i used up the expensive starter, i used "Ridx", the dry no name version, much cheaper and did same thing
Radish flowers and seed pods are delicious.
👍🏻
Put seats in your garden. You'll enjoy it more, tend to it more and enjoy the harvest. I grew a very small amount of rutabaga and had to hand pick a ton of caterpillars. Next year I will cover them. I'm leaning. Keep going guys. You learn every year.
The wood chips works. I use it to eliminate weeds from my vegetable garden. My garden needs a do over for spring also, and I will be on this journey with you. I've been advised to try ladybugs to eliminate garden pest.
Parsnips, Arne! The cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower are all fall producing plants. If you plant them later, the bugs will be gone.
Even though lots of your vegetables have gone to flower,the flowers are pretty! I like the raised bed idea and the bark between. Sounds like a good plan! Thanks for sharing!
Maybe you could enlist the help of a neighbor when you travel next summer. They can look after the garden and they keep whatever they are able to harvest at the time. That may help eliminate waste.
Yes, that would be helpful
I assume the bug in the cabbage is cabbage moth? Its a pretty little white moth that lays its eggs on the cabbage leaves. When the little green caterpillars hatch, they can eat through almost all of the leaves in a surprisingly short time. The only success I've had against cabbage moth is covering the cabbage with tulle or garden mesh netting. Works like a charm! The birds do try to help. They think the caterpillars are delicious!