At this time in December, while the citrus ripens on the trees, colorful fruit hanging like ornaments, and we make our plans for Christmas and all other holiday gatherings, make some plans for planting and sowing.
Growing up back east, we had to wait until April or even later to even begin to think about in-ground planting/sowing. So while 4-season gardeners can only dream about the gardens, cruising through seed-catalogs, we can start, plant and sow NOW.
I like to plant my regular potatoes on January 1st, as a way to say goodbye to the holidays and hello to spring coming.
I have started my seeds in jiffy pellets for transplanting on or about February 1st - with Poor-Man's cloches as frost protection. I am setting them outside during the day and bringing them into our laundry shed with the hot water heater overnight. I had decided not to put up my greenhouse. Predicting this winter's weather is almost a dart game, so by putting the seedlings in near the water heater, I want to ensure my seedlings survive whatever mother nature throws my way.
While I am dreaming about starting tomatoes, peppers, eggplant and summer squash, I am enjoying good things from the garden right. I have two multi-year lived pepper plants and the harvesting is good. Lipstick on the left and Paradicsom on the right are very happy now with the extra rain (isn't that wonderful!!) and cooler temperatures. Paradicsom (a Hungarian thick-walled variety) is about 4+ years old and the Lipstick (sometimes called Lunch Box Peppers) is about 6+ years old. Pepper plants in the Valley tend to produce abundantly in the spring and fall/winter - sagging a bit during the hottest part of the summer.
Other harvests recently were ripe Pardiscsom peppers, Listarda Eggplant, radishes, young garlic, mixed greens and herbs. I used the herbs and greens in soup and roasted the eggplant with the garlic. I like to eat the radishes straight :-)
I have two pea varieties growing right now: Sugar Pea (Magnolia Blossom with those gorgeous purple/lilac colored flowers - and I ate the first pod yesterday), and Pigeon Pea. I plan on harvesting the Pigeon Peas as green rather than dried (except for saving for re-sowing).
I will decide which one is the strongest as they grow-along and snip the others out. I will also have to have the poor-man's cloche handy for frosty nights.
GARDEN TIPS for January
As we are nearing the end of the primary perennial planting season, I like to celebrate the start of the new year by planting at least one new plant on January 1st. I have not made my decision yet on which new-to-me plant.
Celebrate New Year’s Day by planting potatoes.
November through January can be a ‘rainy’ season for the desert. You can usually hold off on regular watering if you have received a half inch or more of rain within 2 days of normal watering days. Make good use of your water meter to determine soil moisture.
If rains are heavy this month, in addition to foregoing some water days, you may need to put down Ironite or green sand to compensate for mineral bonding (which makes iron unavailable to the plants) due to both the excess water and the cold soil.
Prune citrus and deciduous fruit trees no later than early January before flowering starts. We generally prune our trees mid-December. Shrub trees such as pineapple guava which bloom in late spring, need to be pruned later -- in April approximately.
Asparagus – Cut back to the ground - don’t go deeper than soil surface. The plants will begin re-sprouting by mid-to-late January, give or take depending on soil warmth.
WHY Edible Flowers? To attract pollinators to your fruit, herbs and veggies year round and to use as safe garnishes and additions to your dining table.
FROST damage: DO NOT prune until danger of frost is over - the damaged plant protects the lower growth.
FROST/FREEZE NOTE: Have protective covers ready anytime the overnight forecast is 40 or lower.
FORCING BRANCHES
One of the delights of spring is the peach and apricot bloom time - clouds of light to dark pink flowers cover the ends of the tree branches with the bees busily doing their work.
Just as the tree's flower buds are starting to open you can select a few branches to 'force' into bloom inside for a lovely arrangement. I emphasize 'a few' because you will loose that potential fruit.
Select a branch and clip off 12-18 inches - arrange in a vase of room temperature water or slightly warmer, after re-cutting the branches under water. You will be treated to a spring display as one each of the flower buds are 'forced' to open in the warmth of your home. Change or freshen the water each day - if you need to, re-cut the branch, under water, every several days to keep the moisture flowing up to the buds.
At the end of the display, add to the compost pile, or dry and use as kindling for the grill or firepit.
JANUARY PLANTING:
SEED Selection: Where possible choose short maturity (75 days or less) for maximum production. Plant short rows in succession of veggies like carrots ( 2 feet at a time) to provide continuous harvest potential (can you really use 12 feet of carrots all at once?). Also, start seeds like tomato, basil, eggplant and peppers indoors under lights or in a greenhouse to set out February 1st (with frost protection)
Anise
Asparagus
Beets
Bok Choy
Broccoli
Cabbage
Caraway
Carrots
Cauliflower
Chamomile
Chervil
Cilantro
Dill
Fennel, Leaf
Fruit, Bare Root
Fruit Trees
Garlic, Green (planting cloves for use as scallions through spring - they will NOT produce heads)
Greens (lettuce, kale, arugula, spinach etc.)
Kohlrabi
Lavender
Lettuce
Marjoram
Mustard
Myrtle
Onions, Green
Oregano, Greek
Ornamental Cabbage/Kale (Brassica Oleracea)
Parsley
Peppers (seed)
Potatoes
Radishes
Sage
Savory
Shungiku Chrysanthemum
Spinach
Strawberry
Thyme
Turnips
Watermelon
EDIBLE FLOWERS TO PLANT:
Carnation (Dianthus)
English Daisy
Jasmine Sambac (Arabian)
Nasturtiums
Pansies
Primrose
Scented Geraniums (with protection)
Snapdragons
Stocks (Matthiola)
Sweet William (Dianthus)
Sweet Alyssum
I wish you the happiest of holidays, whatever and how many you celebrate.
Be kind to all, and be patient with those who need a little more understanding,
-- Catherine, The Herb Lady
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