Other Greens Arugula: If the soil is fairly rich arugula will succeed both spring and fall in succession planting. Direct seed shallowly, eat the babies when thinning to two inches, then mow the larger leaves with scissors down to about an inch as many times as you can.

Kale: Fall [...]]]> by John Martin
Stonebridge Farm

Other Greens
Arugula: If the soil is fairly rich arugula will succeed both spring and fall in succession planting. Direct seed shallowly, eat the babies when thinning to two inches, then mow the larger leaves with scissors down to about an inch as many times as you can.

Kale: Fall plantings are always better for us but Kale will succeed in the spring if covered with remay. We like Red Russian best and plant the third week in July for a stand past the first frost. Direct seed, thin to four inches and eat the thinnings. Harvest mature leaves by snapping them where leaf stems emerge from the stalk. Sweeter after first frost and will stand a fairly hard frost. An easy one for seed saving.

Roots
Rutabaga: We grow rutabaga for late fall and winter shares. Sow in June when the soil is warm. Thin to 4-6 inches. These need all season to size up. A reliable root for hearty fall food.

Spring Radish: We like French Breakfast, Easter Egg, Champion, Plum Purple… Sow these as early as possible – the third week in March for us. We overseed parsnips with radish seed. Parsnips are notoriously slow and too weak to break heavy soils. The hardy radishes push out very rapidly even from cold soils and show the way for the parsnips. Seed both in the same line, cover with remay, then be careful not to weed out the parsnips when thinning radishes. If the radishes got seeded too thick, thin to about 1 inch. After that pull the ripe ones to give more room for those still sizing up. Leaving them thick at first forces an informal successioning. After the radishes are done in May, thin the parsnips to 4 inches and let them stand all season.

Turnip: Hakurei is the only really good tasting turnip we know. We also grow red ball for color. These will both yield ping pong ball size in the spring and softball size in the fall for us. Exclude flea beetles in spring plantings but it’s not necessary in fall. Seed thick, thin to one inch, then pull every other turnip in succession as they crowd until you get proper spacing for the biggest ones.

Fall Radish: We plant Daikon and Misato rose Radish only in the Fall – the third week of July here. Diakon is something of a measure of soil friability. In our soils it grows about a foot deep, hits a hard pan, then starts sending its shoulders upward. Misato rose is that large radish with green shoulders and a beautiful rose core surrounded by white flesh. Seed a half inch deep, thin to 1 per inch, then pull every other one for small radishes until proper spacing for the mature roots is achieved. Misato Rose will go softball size; daikon will go as big as my arm with half in the soil, half out. Be careful not to break daikon when pulling or digging. They will keep in the refrigerator for months.

Cabbage: At Stonebridge we start all the cabbages in the second week of May inside the greenhouse. Succession by variety works well for cabbages, in part because unlike broccoli and Cauliflower, cabbages will usually stand mature in the field for several weeks. We like, Melissa Savoy, Super Red 80, Ruby Red and are still trialing for an early green and a late green storage cabbage. We select for days to maturity so that we can give cabbage four or five times through the season. Germinate in the greenhouse just as described for broccoli and cabbage: 2”x2” soil blocks, germinate cold, keep moist with the mister. Also transplant at the same time and in the same way: third week in April; 18” in the row, 18” between rows; cover with remay until it gets too hot.

Brussels Sprouts: Grow Brussel Sprouts if you like fighting aphids. We’ve tried them twice here and both times after standing all season, those grey aphids just covered them. Maybe with broader spacing? Or attention with insecticidal soap? one could harvest nice sprouts. Ours developed nicely by late fall but were mostly ruined by the aphids.

As a general rule we read “Chinese, Japanese, or Asian” on greens to mean, “grow in the fall in Colorado.”  Direct seed shallowly into warm soil, keep beds moist and watch for emergence in 4-5 days.  We seed them all in the third week of July but up to a month later would be [...]]]> by John Martin
Stonebridge Farm

As a general rule we read “Chinese, Japanese, or Asian” on greens to mean, “grow in the fall in Colorado.”  Direct seed shallowly into warm soil, keep beds moist and watch for emergence in 4-5 days.  We seed them all in the third week of July but up to a month later would be fine too.  Every year I try them in the spring and every year they do poorly.  The bok choi sometimes makes but the others regularly fail. If you try in the spring, cover with remay against flea beetles.

Bok Choi/Joy Choi:  seed thick, thin to one plant per inch, then harvest in three or four successions taking every other plant each time until the last ones are enormous.  They will stand through a mild frost.

Tatsoi:  the favorite green of many of our members.  Seed thick, thin to one per two inches (these thinnings are very good in salads), again pick every other one until you get to the nice big rosettes.  When they are large they’ll stand quite a while and can take a fairly hard freeze.

Senposai:  Grow this with the same thought in mind as collards.  Huge production of leaves as large as tennis racquets.  Lots of food, but not much flavor.

Napa Cabbage:  We had poor germination on these last year but those that came were beautiful.  We will be much more careful with them this year to give as a fall cabbage.  Some of the heads went 5 pounds.

Fun Jen:  Very mild, very dependable crenellated green with pale loose leaves, sort of half way between lettuce and cabbage.  Too bland for our member”s tastes.

These two are very sensitive to weather conditions.  We can usually do well with them in the spring but have never been able to get them to settle down to consistently large heads and regular timing as one can do with some other vegetables.  The hot/cold wet/dry conditions here just push them [...]]]> by John Martin
Stonebridge Farm

These two are very sensitive to weather conditions.  We can usually do well with them in the spring but have never been able to get them to settle down to consistently large heads and regular timing as one can do with some other vegetables.  The hot/cold wet/dry conditions here just push them around too much.

We grow broccoli and Cauliflower only in the spring.  Others have success in the fall but at our CSA shares get too large in the fall so we don’t plant these late.

We’re still trialing broccolis. Green King and Premium Crop from Fedco are two we like.  We select for seedling vigor, a first large head, and most importantly good side shoots.  For Cauliflower, we like Snow Crown at 70 days and Candid Charm at 95 days.  Both are vigorous, Candid Charm is whiter and larger, but we want the 70 days on Snow Crown in hopes of succession.  (We’ve also had some success with that purple Graffiti – but it’s a novelty.)

However, we’ve been unable to regularize succession in either Broccoli or Cauliflower.  Seeding a couple weeks later doesn’t work for us.  The later ones just catch up, terrified of the coming heat I guess.  The only succession we’ve ever accomplished is varietal:  sometimes the two cauliflowers will come at three weeks apart as the package says, but some times not.  So we just plant them in the greenhouse all at one time and hope for some spread at ripening.  That’s why good side shoots are so important on the broccoli.  Cut the first head low to promote larger side shoot growth.

We seed Broccoli and Cauliflower the second week in March using the 2”x2” soil blocker in the greeehouse.  Any 2” cup will work, but it is important to press the soil very firmly into the cup or block before seeding.  The blocker dimples the blocks about 3/8” deep.  We seed one per block and then 2 per block on about 20% so that we can fill in gaps after germination by splitting the doubles.  A pinch of peat fills the dimple covering the seed.  If the soil mix was pretty wet to begin with, first watering from above with a soaker works.

Brassicas germinate cold so we just set them on tables in the unheated greenhouse with no heat mat.  Growing For Market described an inexpensive mister system that we installed in the greenhouse last year.  The brassicas really liked the regular watering and more humid conditions.

We transplant Broccoli and Cauliflower the third week in April spacing 18” in the row and 18” between rows.  They can manage the cold, but we cover all brassicas with remay in the spring to exclude flea beetles.  Water-in immediately after covering, then use short regular watering for the first few weeks.  Be careful, under the remay they can dry out rapidly and you can’t see it.

After about 3 weeks (or when it gets so hot you begin to worry about them) remove the remay and marvel at the weed competition under there.  These are very tender when first uncovered so if the hoe is handy, they’re pretty easy to clean up before they harden.  The stems of many brassicas spiral out of the ground so don’t get too close with the hoe, clean up around the stem by hand.

Received an email from Bunny Henderson re herbs: Mexican Mint Marigold (poor mans tarragon), salad burnet, and calendula.

She also [...]]]> Without regard to those who had issues with bugs, disease, etc., Tracey, the following are as discussed - a bit convoluted, and in some cases will need spelling adjustments, as I didn’t have a catalog for proper names!

Received an email from Bunny Henderson re herbs: Mexican Mint Marigold (poor mans tarragon), salad burnet, and calendula.

She also liked chocolate cherry tomatoes and Ananas Noire Tomato.

The group consensus on…

Tomatoes:

• Cosmic Bella
• Black Krim (harvest sooner than you might think)
• Black from Tula
• Kellogg’s breakfast
• Cherokee Purple
• Sun Gold (F1 hybrid, highly productive, early producer, very sweet, indeterminate)
• Yellow pear
• Costoluto Genovese
• Pineapple
• Jaune Flamme (heirloom), medium, orange, early maturing, productive and vigorous indeterminate grower

and for containers:

• Silvery Fir
• Siberian (compact)

Eggplant:

• Ichiban (prolific)
• Pingtung (smaller)

Greens:

• Greek cress (tastes and looks like watercress)
• Arugula (rustic perennial bees love – Rocket by Botanical Interests)
• Pala Rosa de Fiocco Radicchio (start early- heads in June)
• Pan de Sucero chicory
• Cardinale lettuce
• Pablo lettuce (red-tipped leaves from Cure Farm or Fedco – a batavian variety)
• Pirat butterhead lettuce (lovely, tender, speckled lettuce)
• Annenue lettuce (sweet, wonderful, takes the heat)
• Merlot (deep burgundy color, a leaf lettuce and quite beautiful and doesn’t bolt quickly)
• Michelle lettuce
• Winter Density lettuce (takes the cold)
• Forellenschluss lettuce (speckled lettuce)
• Webb’s Wonderful lettuce
• Gigante parsley (tall, flat, self-sows)
• Golden Purslane (tender source of omega 3′s; grow in summer – doesn’t like cold)
• Asian greens early and late  (they are so easy to grow.  They add flavor to salads and stir-frys)
• Tatsoi (easy to grow and can be used as a trap plant for those lovely flea beetles)

Bok Choy:

• Shuko  (wants to bolt; can pick early – should be grown in fall)

Kale:

• Narrow di toscana/lacinato/dinosaur  (a cross between Kale and cabbage)
• Red Russian (flat and hardy)
• Tuscan

Chard:

• Argentata (mild flavor and versatile as a spinach replacement in the hot months)
• Sea Foam(mild, tender)
• Ford Hook(giant)
• Ruby Red Rhubarb Chard (great grower – more nutritious than others noted by some to have tough stems and leathery leaves)
• Bright Lights (beautiful, prolific, and delicious)
• Lucullus (small but tasty, heirloom, 60days)

Spinach:

• Olympia (nonsavoid so less oxalic acid – slow bolting)
• Tyee
• Space

Broccoli:

• Diplomat (hybrid from Fedco – great initial heads, and then many side shoots until a really hard freeze)
• Tendergreen
• Arcadia
• Pirarcicaba (loose bud habit of the little heads, sweetest and tastiest of all broccoli – stems are even better non-heading large sprouts with superior flavor, 56 days, open-pollinated)
• Romanesco broccoli (cone-shaped whorled light green heading, long growing season)

rabe as fall crop and Riestia (??)

Snow peas:

• Oregon giant (blooms white – let grow until large)
• Sumo  (blooms purple    start about 3/17)

Cauliflower:

• Graffiti (purple stays purple when cooked – spring plant – harvest when head is tight)
• Plant white cauliflower in the fall

Garlic:

• Chesnok Red garlic (soft necks store well)
• Inchelium Red for storage (mild)

Onion:

• Copra Onion (104 days, hybrid, an excellent storing large yellow onion)
• Cortland (bigger and more uniform than Copra)
• Red bull (very large dependable, good storing onion)
• Sierra Blanca (Seminis/Monsanto seed - does quite well as a white onion, but not entirely uniform)
• Walla Walla Sweet (over-winters under remay for earlier big onions, can be planted close in September, then thin for replanting in the spring)
• Scallions (do well over winter even without the remay)

Leek:

• American Flag Leek (110, a thick leek with whites that can grow to 10 inches, heirloom)
• Blue de Solaize Leek (110, great leek for overwintering-leave in the ground surrounded by mulch and harvest throughout winter, French heirloom)
• King Richard (for a Fall leek)
• Lincoln Leek (75 days, can be harvest young as finger thick baby leeks or left to mature, long and slender, open-pollinated)

Celeriac (plant 8 inches apart; Fedco has sweet celeriac; Brilliant is also good)

Carrot:

• Kurota Chantenay
• Nantes (blunt tip), sweet and a bit easier if you have rocky soil

Potato:

• Peruvian Purple

Beets:

• Lutz Gold
• Detura
• Bull Blood (heirloom, known for delicious beet greens)

Turnips:

• Gold Ball (great as baby turnips, storage turnip, sweet, not too spicy and the greens are delicious sauteed with garlic)
• Oasis (from Fedco)
• Tokyo Cros (Japanese F1 hybrid)
• Oasis (Fedco)
• Gilfeather (wonderful heirloom)
• White Egg (heirloom, Fedco)
• Hakurei

Radishes:

• French Breakfast (heirloom, white shoulders with pink root — very pretty)

Bush beans:

• Masai (yields a lot of skinny beans)
• Jade, highly productive, good taste
• Provider highly productive, good taste

Pole beans:

• Northeaster or Quintas (adaptable, delicious, prolific early)
• Aunt Aidas (from Turtle Tree has short pods that should be harvested early; it’s an Italian hierloom with edible pod)
• Scarlet Runner Bean (gorgeous screening, attracts hummingbirds and gives you a nice bean to eat too)

Musk melons:

• Oka (stays green)
• Halona
• Hanna’s Choice
• Athena (winner by far – tastes like flower; orange flesh, loves s. facing sun)
• Collective farm woman (small dark green Russian melon)
• Noir de Carmes (aromatic, crisp white flesh)

Watermelon:

• Peace (petit yellow, sugary sweet; water every day; watermelon must feel like a water balloon when jiggled to be ripe)

Cukes:

• Super Zagros (prolific – pick before too large or will be all seeds)
• Puna Caras (crispy, Indian)
• Orient Express (may have tough skin)
• Shuko (long Japanese – great for juicing)

Summer squash:

• Tromboncino (climbing – harvest at 15 inches)
• Raven (dependable hybrid – pick small – zucchini)
• Costata Romanesco (giant plant – great for drying or stored for soup)
• Rondenese (straight neck yellow)
• Waltham (long storage – give more time than 105 days – may like heat if one puts a brick under it)
• Sunburst patty pan
• Fedco’s spaghetti squash
• Yellow Crookneck (heirloom, not frequently grown but flavorful)

Winter squash:

• Uncle David Dakota (delicious but not productive, needs room)
• Winter luxury pie pumpkin
• Simsjome tetsukaabuto (from Pine Tree – beautiful outside and in)
• Red Kuri (from Fedco – a red teardrop-shaped squash with dense red flesh, great for soup or pies or just roasting, huge plants that require room to roam)
• Sunshine
• Sweet Meat

Peppers:

• Alma Paprika (beautiful – goes from yellow to red – heirloom, prolific, for making paprika)
• Lanterna piquinte (mild heat, for greenhouse as needs long season – small bell shaped)
• Quadrato d’Asti Rosso or Giallo (red or yellow)
• Jimmy Nardello  (sweet, long red)
• Big Jim (mild – If you like green chili)
• Sandia Hot (very hot)
• Ancho (aka Pablano)
• Chocolate (Sweet pepper)
• Pinot Noir  (Sweet pepper)
• Flavorburst  (Sweet pepper)
• Yum Yum Gold (Sweet pepper)
• Gusto Purple (hot pepper)
• Cajun Belle (hot pepper)
• Czech Black (hot pepper)
• Anaheim (hot pepper for stuffing, highly productive, best for green chile)

NOTES: One person gets their seeds from Plants of the Southwest.  Start them early and put them in the hottest part of your garden. OR grow peepers in a pot, the extra warm soil is great for them!

Corn:

• Painted Mountain (beautiful colored ears for fall and then grind the corn for meal)

Fruit:

• Mara des Bois strawberries were an amazement
• Reliance peaches (banner crop after 6 years)
• Toka Plum
• Pipestone Plum
• Montmorency Cherry
• Meteor Sour Cherry
• Anjou pear
• Ambrosia pears
  • NOTES: order fruit trees from J E Miller, Raintree, St. Lawrence Nursery, Rainspot Treefarm, Ft. Collins Nursery, Harlequin’s Nursery
  • use CSU planting instructions
  • dwarf trees are shorter lived

I have read a lot of info about Codling Moth and have learned a lot from Forest Peterson, Martha young, and other BCG members.  I have been living at my home in Lafayette for 8 years now and finally got tired of bad apples on the two old trees [...]]]> by Frank @ Father Earth Organic Farm

I have read a lot of info about Codling Moth and have learned a lot from Forest Peterson, Martha young, and other BCG members.  I have been living at my home in Lafayette for 8 years now and finally got tired of bad apples on the two old trees by the side of the house.  The house was built in 1966, and I assume the apple trees were planted about the same time.  Although they have produced apples every year since I have lived here (some years more apples than others), they were 100% inedible.

Here is an account of my personal experience.  Three years ago I began learning about ways to increase my odds of being able to bite into an apple off my trees without biting into a worm. There is a lot to consider when dealing with any pest in your environment.  There are so many variables.  Even within a 10 mile radius of where I live, there must be at least 10 to 20 different microclimates that may require different control methods for the same pest.  On any given day, the wind, rain, temperature, clouds, and sun could very possibly be different for my garden than yours.  So, with that in mind, you may have to adjust whatever control methods you use to work with some of these variables.

The first thing I tried three years ago was the molasses. Being on a limited budget, this method seemed to be the least expensive.  I tried two kinds, a granular and a liquid, both mixed in a water solution.  The more concentrated the solution of molasses to water, the better the results.  By results, I mean that the jars, pots, jugs hanging in trees, or containers with the liquid molasses mix, caught the most codling moths.  So over a two week period from the last week of May thru the 1st week in June, I may have caught about 150 to 200 moths.  This may seem like a lot of moths, but by this time in the season, the apples had set, and upon inspecting the trees, I could see at least one – head of a pin sized clear jelly spot – on every apple I looked at.  So, yes, the molasses helped to keep a hundred or so moths from laying their eggs, but what about the other … thousand. or more?  My analysis of this season takes me back to the variables… and timing.  Maybe I missed the beginning of the moth cycle by a week or two. Either too soon, or too late.  That could have made a difference.  And missing the cycle could have been caused by the elements, too cool, too wet, and too dry, for the moth to lay eggs at a given time.  And so, another frustrating year of bad apples.

Back to the drawing board.  Wish it was that easy.  More research, and talking to Forest Peterson, leads me to the Kaolin Clay product.  Green Cypress kaolin Clay Crop Spray is from Peaceful Valley. You can get the same clay product under the name of “Surround” from Fedco, and Raintree nursery.  I’m sure there are other sources, but seeing that I already use these companies for other products, I didn’t see a need to research further.  A 50# bag of clay is $40 at Peaceful Valley.  It is twice as much or more at the other two places.  Then of course there is the shopping charge.

But wait a minute!!  Just because you have the clay, doesn’t mean your problems are solved.  PV doesn’t mention anything about applying the clay for the coddling moth.  Raintree says to apply the spray when the fruit is small.  Well we all have a different idea of what is small.  Is small, pea size, marble size, jawbreaker size, or golf ball size?  In my experience, by the time you see the form of an apple, it is usually too late and the worm has already entered the apple.  Fedco says to spray just before petal drop, or blossom drop.  And just what does “just before” mean?  Does it mean an hour before, two days before, or a week before? Who knows!! I haven’t seen any neon signs flashing in the trees saying “almost time for petal drop, get ready to apply spray”.  So I took an educated, or uneducated” guess to spray the trees when I physically saw the first petals fall from the tree.

So, on Tuesday May 19, 2009, I sprayed the apple trees.  Seems easy huh?  Although the petals began to drop a week earlier, I had to wait until the 19th for the conditions to be right.  Spring winds are always around and so you can’t spray during that time.  Then if it’s going to rain, it will wash off the clay film and you have to spray again.  At this point after spraying, all you can do is hope that you beat the coddling moth laying activity.  If the weather provided the right conditions, the moth could have laid her eggs three week prior to the tree being in full bloom.  In that case, the eggs could have hatched and the worm is now feeding on the leaves, waiting for the apple to form.  Even thought the worm will not eat the sprayed leaf, it is nearly impossible to spray every leaf.  So it is my suggestion to spray again as soon as you can tell that the apple is forming.  This should be when 80 to 90% of the petals have fallen, and the red/green apple is about the size of a pea.

The second cycle of laying came and I did not spray due to the weather.  Too windy two days, and rain three out of five days.  I figured it was too late to stop the damage, and so I didn’t spray.  At this time, the apples were almost golf ball size and looked pretty good as compared to the apples of the year before.  But by late July, and early August, when the tree begins to drop apples, there were quite a few apples with several holes in them.  I conclude that the weather must have provided the right conditions to allow a possible third laying cycle.  So, needless to say, the apples weren’t very good this year, but somewhat better than the year before.  Things will be better next year.

Fast forward to September and October, 2010.  The apples this year were much, much, much better than they have been the past 8 years combined.  Here is what I did to create this success.  Mother’s day came on May 9th this year and most of the apple trees were in full bloom by then.  I wanted to spray the clay the week before, but weather wouldn’t permit it.  On May 10th, it was foggy and cool at 6:00 in the morning and I thought it would be a good time to spray.  There was hardly any wind, and the bees were not out yet…. Probably because it was foggy.  I wanted to spray the day before, but by the time the winds died down about 9:00, the bees were all over the apple tree blossoms.  I don’t know what effect the clay film would have on the bees … or the honey, but didn’t want to take a chance.  I started spraying about 6:15 and finished all the trees by 7:45.

It turned cold on Tuesday the 11th and Wednesday the 12th, I woke up to 3” of snow.  I thought the snow might hurt all the flowering fruit trees, but the snow was all melted by Wednesday night, and the trees looked pretty good.  So with this added variable, snow, maybe that killed a lot of worms and moths, and maybe that is why the apples were much, much better this year.  Who knows??  One book I read said that the moth cycle was “about” 6 -7 weeks.  So I calculated that I would need to spray around the end of June or the first of July.  On June 23rd, the golf ball size apples looked great.  At least 80% of the apples I looked at were wormless. I delayed my spraying because of weather, until July 1st.  Some time between June 23rd and July 1st, there must have been a hatch of eggs that were laid a week or so earlier.  By July 4th, I noticed more worm holes in more apples.  So next year, I will make a note to spray “about” the 5th week, from the time of the apples set… or forming.

I just learned this year about a possible third cycle during the year… depending on the weather and climate conditions that would allow the moth to reproduce again.  I didn’t spray a third time this year.  Truth is, with so many other things to do on the farm, I just got tired of trying to schedule another spraying in between the unpredictable weather/climate conditions.

My plan for next year is to “fine tune” whatever I did this year and try to be more aware of what nature is doing in the spring especially.  During the winter, the Pupae of the moth are in hibernation somewhere.  These pupae could be in the ground, in dried apples lying under the apple tree, in the crevice of tree branches and bark, or any other place where they can make a cocoon and hide.  When the weather warms in the spring, the moth emerges and begins to lay eggs.  The fruit (apple) trees also begin to bud when the weather warms.  This would seem like a good time to spray.  The tree is usually in full bloom within 2 to 3 weeks after the buds open.  I had good results spraying at full bloom last year, and so will do the same thing again.  Then once the petals drop, I will schedule to spray again in 5 weeks, and then again 5 weeks after that.  The larvae that do make it into an apple will be coming out after about 3 weeks to enter into the hibernating larvae and pupae stage.  So here are some more things that can be done pretty easily.

The apple season is a peak time to work on your organic strategies for codling moth. Inspect the trees every 10 days, collect any fruit you find with small holes and destroy it by immersing it in water for several days. Alternatively place it in a sealed, black plastic bag in the sun, and then try feeding it to poultry.

Remove loose bark and leaf debris from the crotch of the tree, to reduce hiding places for cocoons. Corrugated cardboard bands can be placed around trunks and limbs to trap caterpillars looking for a place to pupate. Inspect every 3 weeks and destroy any cocooned caterpillars. The most important trapping time is winter and spring but for effective control inspect the bands all year round.

A horticultural glue such as Trappit Barrier Glue or Tanglefoot Glue around the trunk of the tree will prevent the movement of some of the female moths from the ground into the tree, as they tend to crawl and flutter up the branches. It should be in place from the first moth sighting until mid-winter. Using the glue below the corrugated cardboard bands will also help to force the larvae looking for a pupation site into the cardboard bands, as it will make it more difficult for them to reach the ground.

The first bullet above talks about collecting and destroying any fruit you find with holes, both on the tree AND on the ground.  I collected three wheelbarrow loads of apples that had fallen from the trees, but I failed to destroy them as recommended above.  And I also failed to collect apples with holes from the trees.  Right now, those apples that I collected are in my compost.  So there could be hundreds or thousands of hibernating pupae waiting to hatch in the spring as moths.  My compost is now a possible breeding ground for this moth.  Sometime during the winter, and before April, I will clean up the apples in my compost and destroy them as recommended above.  I also raked up all the apples that had fallen under all the trees.  That should help a lot.

I baked several pies using the apples off my trees.  I used the same recipe for all the pies.  The red delicious apples were firmer than the others and not as sweet.  The Macintosh was a bit sweeter, but not as firm as the red delicious.  The golden delicious were softer than the previous two pies and sweeter also.  The Jonagold (cross between a Jonathan and a golden delicious) was the sweetest and softest of all.

I wanted to make one last note about the codling moth AND her accomplice.  Yes, the codling moth is not working alone.  The EARWIG played a huge part in destroying some apples in my orchard this year.  There were a lot more earwigs on the farm this year than I have ever seen here in eight years.  They were everywhere!!!  They were in my apricots (at least 50% of them), the peaches (20 – 30%), plums (20 – 30%), and in the apples.  Sometime in late June thru August, the apple trees begin to drop apples.  Most of these apples are infested with worms.  I just happened to pick a couple of apples with worm holes off the tree and cut them open to see if I could see the worm (larvae).  I was surprised to see earwigs in them.  I cut open a couple dozen more apples off two trees, and all had earwigs in them.  There were no worms.  So here is a puzzle.  The worms could have left to find a place to hibernate and pupate.  There was worm excrement on these apples, so I know the worm was there.  Could the earwig have eaten the worm?  Did the earwig enter the apple before or after the worm entered?  I think the earwigs entered sometime after the worm entered.  When I checked the apples a month before, when they were golf ball size, there were no earwig size holes in them.  Earwigs are omnivores and so it is highly possible that they ate some of the larvae inside the apple.

The peaches and apricots did not have worm holes, so I can assume the earwigs were not after the larvae.  They just wanted to be a nuisance.  Although earwigs have wings, they do not use them very well for getting from place to place.  They transport themselves mostly by crawling.  So next year, I will be putting a band of Tanglefoot or trappit barrier around the trunk of all my fruit trees as soon as they begin to bud.  That should eliminate the destruction of a lot of fruit.

One more thing that may or may not be related to the codling moth.  My Yellow Egg plum tree has been producing for 4 years now.  I have never had worms in them.  This year there were worms in 90% of the plums on that tree.  I sprayed the kaolin clay on all the surrounding apple trees, but not on the peach and plum trees that were nearby.  Just a thought, but maybe because the codling moth couldn’t lay their eggs on the apple trees, they decided to lay their eggs on the plum tree instead. Everything gets sprayed next year.

For the 2011 growing season, I wish you all the best in this New Year to come.  Hope some of this info is helpful to you.

Each fall homeowners rake up garden leaves, bag them and then put them out for trash collection. However, leaves are a valuable organic resource to be treasured, not sent to the trash. BCG gardeners are making use of leaves in their winter culinary gardens in a number of ways.

Ducks have many great attributes for keeping as pets or garden workers. They are friendly, intelligent and companionable and are also great sluggers and bug eaters. They tend to be less destructive in the garden than chickens; they don’t scratch or defoliate most green things like chickens. However, I have to admit I [...]]]> by Tracey Parrish

Ducks have many great attributes for keeping as pets or garden workers. They are friendly, intelligent and companionable and are also great sluggers and bug eaters. They tend to be less destructive in the garden than chickens; they don’t scratch or defoliate most green things like chickens. However, I have to admit I only allow them access to my vegetable garden in the non-growing season (they love succulent greens and also tend to find favorite places to sit on things).

Before deciding to keep ducks you should consider their downsides. They are very messy and smelly compared to chickens, making prodigious amounts of wet poop and muddy areas around their water. You should consider how much space you have in your yard and how close you will be housing them to your and neighbors house.

Ducks are very social animals and form strong pair-bonds so I would recommend getting a pair or raising a duck with a companion chicken.

You can pick-up ducklings at feedstores like Murdochs in Longmont or through hatcheries (or you could keep an eye open on Craigslist)

Here are my list of pros and cons for keeping ducks 

Pros

1. Great sluggers and buggers.

2. Much cold-hardier than chickens

3. Lay first-thing in the morning (around sunrise), regularly throughout the first year and then more seasonally (spring and summer) in subsequent years.

4. Very companionable and intelligent

5. Dual purpose (good for eggs and meat)

6. Some people (about 20%) who are allergic to chicken eggs can eat duck eggs

7. Grow very quickly and need to be outside in a run much earlier than chickens

Cons

1. Phenomenally messy with water and feed (water is spoiled very quickly).

2. Poop a lot more than chickens and very wet (need to clean the coop/run more frequently)

3. Eat more than chickens

4. Female ducks tend to be quite vocal (compared to chickens) when upset (like, hey my water is frozen over and you need to come do something about it).

5. Ducklings are incredibly messy and smelly (compared to chicks) so you will need a run or a larger-brooder prepared (outside) within about 3-4 weeks and it will need to be cleaned more frequently.

6. If you get ducks that are mainly bred for meat you have to watch their weight gain if kept inactive and heat exposure in summer. Dual-purpose breeds such as peking-peking are great layers but also put on a lot of weight if not aloud to roam.

Brief Guide to Duck Care

Raising Ducklings and Feeding

• House in a water-proof cage with cleanable surfaces.
• Line with paper or shavings that can be cleaned daily
• Provide a heat source for warmth and room in the cage so they can move away if too hot.
• Provide water that is deep enough for the ducklings to duck their bill up to nostril level for cleaning. Must be shallow enough for the ducklings to exit. Replace twice daily.
• Ducklings are very active at night so keep them somewhere where they wont disturb household sleep patterns.
• Ducklings are quite fragile so supervise visits with small children
• Feed on a meet-bird starter then switch to a meat-bird growing ration around 6 weeks of age (higher protein content than chicken starters). At 15+ weeks switch to a standard layer feed
• Have an outside coop ready by the time they are 4 weeks (they grow very quickly)
• Ducks love greens and are very happy free-ranging for invertebrates in the garden

Coop & Run Design

• Ducks usually lay eggs on the ground so need a suitable bedding (such as straw or chip) to make a nest
• They usually sleep on the ground, though some breeds such as Muscovies roost.
• During the warmer months they are happy to sleep outside (in an enclosed run) but in winter will need some shelter.
• The coop will need an ‘easy-to-clean’ flooring (such as bark chip, earth or straw). Line the run with a deep layer or bark mulch to help reduce odor and aid in drainage
• Water must be deep enough to duck their heads, in order to keep their nostrils clear. Whatever water is provided will be fouled very quickly. You must consider how to keep water unfrozen in winter (an electric heated water bucket or daily top-ups). If the ducks have water in which they can swim, an exit ramp must be provided (after excess time in the water their feathers become waterlogged and they can drown. If you see your ducks swimming low in the water, this is the reason)
• Ducks and chickens can cohabit though you may have to separate them if the ducks pester the hens excessively. My drake beats-up the chickens if left in the same run throughout the ducks laying season but is very friendly for the rest of the year. Consider this when designing the coop and run.

Birds are fascinating to watch, and birding is the fastest-growing recreational activity in the U.S. Boulder County is no exception! Birds are also necessary components of balanced ecosystems, no matter if you live in the mountains or on the plains, in a suburban neighborhood, or in the foothills. More and more [...]]]> —by Mary Balzer

Birds are fascinating to watch, and birding is the fastest-growing recreational activity in the U.S. Boulder County is no exception! Birds are also necessary components of balanced ecosystems, no matter if you live in the mountains or on the plains, in a suburban neighborhood, or in the foothills. More and more gardeners are realizing the importance of attracting birds to their gardens.

Boulder County hosts more than 300 species of birds in its various habitats, including the migratory birds that call it home only in the spring and summer, such as the Western and Mountain Bluebird and the Green-tailed Towhee. The most common birds that thrive here are: Chickadees, Robins, Magpies, Northern Flickers, Sparrows, Nuthatches, Finches, House Wrens, Grackles, Jays, Red-winged Blackbirds, Mourning Doves, Crows and Ravens, some Owls, Hawks, Falcons, Eagles, and our resident Geese and Ducks.

Many birds species are insect or invertebrate-eaters, from flies, aphids and mosquitoes to caterpillars and worms, so the smart organic gardener will want to attract birds who will help keep the insect population down during the growing season. You will also enjoy being in your garden much more if flying insects are not “bugging” you! Birds are natural insect repellants.

If you want to make your garden attractive to birds, there are four resources that are essential that any habitat must supply for them: food, water, shelter and cover, and nesting sites.

Food: You will want plants, flowers, trees and shrubs that will supply the widest array of foods for the greatest diversity of birds. Plants that supply berries (sand cherry, currants, gooseberry, chokecherry), fruits (crabapple, cherry), nuts (acorns, pine nuts), nectar for hummingbirds (hyssop, penstemon, delphinium–particularly wildflowers with the red blossoms) and seeds (native grasses, native sunflowers) for the seed eaters such as sparrows and finches. Try to plant the widest variety of plants for the different things they produce at different seasons of the year, as some birds will eat different parts of a plant at different times. They depend on good food sources especially when they are building nests, producing eggs, feeding their young, and migrating. Note: bird feeders and store-bought birdfeed are okay, but consult a specialty bird retailer about the best products to buy. Supplemental feeding is most helpful to our resident birds in the winter and for the migratory birds that are passing through our area in the fall.

Water: If you can provide a source of water for drinking and bathing, you will see an increase in the number of birds in your garden. A birdbath is the easiest way to provide water, and it doesn’t have to be fancy. A simple terra cotta or plastic plant saucer will do the trick—just be sure to place it sheltered from strong winds, where it will not get too warm at midday and near shrubbery that will provide shelter from predators. Birds like the water depth at no more than 3”, and need a slightly rough surface to get a foothold when they land and wade. You can heat your birdbath during the winter with an electric, submersible rubber heater, and during the summer, change the water daily to avoid molds and bacteria build-up. Birds also love moving water, such as sprinklers, dripping faucets, and bubbling and re-circulating streams and fountains. Geese and ducks tend to like large bodies of water, but if you are lucky enough to have a pond or stream on your property you may have them visit once in a while

Shelter and Cover: Birds need plants to provide shelter from wind, sun and precipitation, and foliage cover to protect them from predators such as free-roaming cats and hawks, and to provide places to roost, and sleep. A tall canopy, mid-height shrubs, and smaller bushes and plants provide those things, depending on the birds’ needs at the time they visit your garden. It is also a good idea to leave snags and uprooted trees, wind blown leaves, and brush piles in your yard or around the garden, as they provide good shelter from sun and predators, and insects for food. If you feel that bare limbs and pruned brush are unsightly, consider planting vines to grow on them, such as Virginia creeper or clematis.

Nesting Sites: Different birds need different nesting places, and by providing a variety of locales in your garden, you will attract a bigger variety of birds. You can provide grasses and low foliage for ground nesters; some build their nests in shrubbery, others in tall tree limbs and cavities, and still others prefer tree trunks, ledges on buildings, walls, fence posts and hedgerows. The wider variety of plants you have, the easier it is for birds to find natural materials for building nests. Note: Only birds who normally use holes in trees for nesting, including chickadees, nuthatches, wrens, bluebirds and some swallows, will utilize a birdhouse, if you choose to erect one in your garden. Consult your local bird specialty retailer for the best kind for different species. Keep it away from the feeder, face it away from the prevailing wind, and hang it so that it is protected from predators, and the chain is short to prevent too much swinging.

So, think about attracting birds as you plan and plant your garden. You will reap the benefits as you enjoy their singing, their antics as they feed and bathe, their beauty as they fly in and out of your yard, their dedication as they sing for a mate, nest and raise their young. And you will share their joy in the return of spring each year!

Credits: Attracting Birds, Sunset Books, Menlo Park, CA, 2000.
Colorado Wildscapes, Bringing Conservation Home. Audubon At Home In Colorado, Westcliffe Publishers, 2005

December is a dreary month for many outdoor gardeners — time to huddle indoors, devour the seed catalogs and dream of spring. Of course there are a few devoted and well-organized souls who do not allow the cold season to dampen their passion. They keep the garden fever going throughout the [...]]]> By Roland Evans

December is a dreary month for many outdoor gardeners — time to huddle indoors, devour the seed catalogs and dream of spring. Of course there are a few devoted and well-organized souls who do not allow the cold season to dampen their passion. They keep the garden fever going throughout the darker days.

In our local gardening group, one of these winter heroines is Barbara Miller. Barbara bubbles with enthusiasm for all things organic, alive and growing. During the summer, her 4000 square feet garden overflows with every imaginable vegetable, enough to supply many neighbors as well as a local gourmet restaurant. The secret of all that fertility is mulch – lots of mulch.

For most of us, mulch means a layer of protective material a couple of inches deep. That is small potatoes for Barbara. Throughout the growing season she is always on the lookout for organic material to add to her garden beds and paths. Barbara is not too fussy. Sawdust and shavings from wood shops, spent hay and straw from the roadside or local farms, coffee grounds from coffee stores, grass clippings from the neighbor’s yards, even pine needles — all and everything is scavenged for her garden.

Barbara is a proponent of the “no-dig” school of organic gardening. Even when sowing seeds, she turns over only a few inches of soil and loosens it a little to allow the seeds to germinate. Planting vegetable starts is even simpler: she pushes aside the mulch, digs a hole and pops in the plant. Every seedling is surrounded and protected by layers of organic matter, growing deeper as the plant develops. After ten years of mulching with little or no soil disturbance, Barbara has generated over 12 inches of moist crumbly dark humus: all she needs to grow amazing amounts of organic produce.

After the fall harvest, as the garden is cleared, Barbara gets to work on her winter project – maxi mulching. From October onward, her mulch scavenging really takes off. Barbara puts a sign out on her street asking people to donate their plastic bags of dry leaves. Last year, over 600 bags of leaves were left outside her door. She takes the plastic bags and tightly packs and layers them on specific parts of her garden, without emptying the contents. As Barbara puts it, “When I say mulch, I mean layers of bags two or more feet deep.” By November, her garden begins to look a bit like a municipal dump.

She pays particular attention to all her roots crops planted in late spring – potatoes, rutabaga, turnips, carrots, celeriac, parsnips and beets. When the plant leaves die back, she covers the roots with the insulating bags. The ground does not freeze. Instead, the bags creates a virtual root cellar in which the damp soil keeps the roots crisp and fresh; the moderate cold makes sure the veggies taste sweet. To harvest her winter carrots for example, she digs through the snow, lifts her bags and pulls the roots straight out of the soft ground.

Her tender perennials are treated in a similar manner. Some she insulates where they grow. Others she moves from their summer home and buries in the ground on the north side of her garden shed, covered with her favorite leaf bags. The bags do double duty, protecting the plants from cold but also making sure the soil and roots do not dry out in Colorado’s winter sun and wind.

I asked Barbara what happens to all those bags of maxi mulch: “In February or March,” she informed me, “I open up the bags and spread the leaf mulch all over the garden. So it doesn’t blow away in the wind, I cover it with hay. That helps it compact down.” What happens next is one of nature’s miracles. In short order, the worms pull the leaves down into the ground, chew them up and create another layer of fertile leaf mold. By summer the leaves are all gone.

One question springs to mind about the effects of maxi mulching: does preventing soil from freezing foster more soil borne diseases? When I asked Barbara, she said she had never thought about it. In her vigorously growing garden, disease is not a problem. This may be because her soil ecology is so extraordinarily healthy.

As Barbara says, “When I lift the bags of mulch in the depths of winter, the earthworms are writhing under there.” Massive colonies of worms are a clear sign the soil food web is vibrant and whole. Keeping the soil cool but not frozen may generate a more consistent growth of microbial life. Many soil bacteria are vulnerable to freezing and take time to regenerate as the soil warms up in the spring. Barbara’s mulching protects these colonies and give her a jump-start to the growing season.

Talking to Barbara makes me rethink my meager mulching program. I am going to keep an eye out for free organic matter, start scavenging for more bags of leaves and pile that maxi mulch on deep for the winter. I am sure my soil will be grateful.