Garden Guide For June/July 1999

Enlarge Image Image Gallery Photos: KATRIN BODYIKOGLU

SEASONS OF EARTH AND SKY

Just when you thought the planting was done...

Ah, summertime, "when the livin' is easy." Time to kick back and relax, right? No! Not this year. Y2K is coming, or haven't you heard? Even if the computers cause no trouble at all, people panicking at the thought of it are liable to buy up all the canned goods in sight. So get out of that armchair and get going on that fall-harvest garden you've always talked about but have never worked up the energy to plant. Polish up the pressure-canner and get in a supply of canning jars and lids before the Y2Kers get 'em all. And plan to dry, cold-store or can the fall harvest in case the electric grid does go down for whatever reason taking your freezer with it.

Get out your little Mantis tiller or wheel hoe and dig up and plant soil between the rows in the garden you sowed this spring. As summer crops come in, prepare the land immedi ately for a fall crop. Till in compost or organic fertilizers and get in the new seed.

With the growing popularity of four-season gardening, seed retailers are bringing out varieties especially for late planting. Below is a two-climate list to consider, with varieties selected from the catalogs of Johnny's Selected Seeds (JSS) of Maine and South Carolina's RH Schumway's (RHS).

COLLARDS

Georgia Southern (RHS), 75 days. This kale-like loose-headed cooking green is a favorite southern "fried green" but worth trying in the north (where it's called a "stir-fry'). Best after light frost. Pick outer leaves, and it keeps on coming.

GREEN KALE

Winterbore (JSS), 28/60 days. An F1 hybrid that will regrow after outer leaves are pulled. Coldhardy, its flavor is actually improved by frost. I pick frozen kale out of the snow until a thaw wilts it.

SWISS CHARD

Ruby Red (JSS and RHS), 59 days. Bred for late sowing. Frost-tolerant, and winter-hardy in the south.

WINTER RADISH

China Rose (RHSi, 50 to 60 days. Tolerant of light frost, these delicious 5"-long oriental radishes won't survive hard frost, but can be dug and stored in a cold cellar or moist sand.

CABBAGE

Charleston Wakefield (RHS), 70 days. Start seeds in a cool place. Will overwinter in the south.

BEET

Lutz Green Leaf or Winter Keeper(RHS), 80 days. An old-timer that I've grown for 30 years. Big, gnarly surfaced and ugly, but tender. Keeps well and has succulent greens. Sow before the end of July. If you lack a cold cellar, store in containers of moist sand in the cellar or in a hay-lined pit outside near the house foundation. Or put up in a tangy vinegar syrup as pickled beets to retain color and reduce the possibility of spoilage.