Carla’s 2017 Garden Look Book

Year Two in my Garden
Variety selections and infrastructure highlights

Contents
Location
Grow Food Northampton
Community Garden
Florence, MA
Plots: J31 & J32
Plots Established: 2016
Soil Series:Winooski silt loam
Garden Dimensions: 20’ x 40’
Total growing (bed) area: 500 ft2
Contents

1. Introduction
2. Summer Harvest Selections
- Tomato Project
- Eat-AllGreens Project
3. Winter Storage Selections
4. Fruit Selections
- Stepover Apple Project
5. Herbs & Accents
6. Cover Crop Selections
7. Infrastructure & Design
8. Reference
Table of Contents

Structural Design & Crop Units
I’ve divided the garden into standardized blocks that are mostly 2.5 foot by 5 foot rectangles. There are two
trellised entrances at either end with small adjacent blocks to accommodate climbing crops.This self-imposed
structure gives me a more or less fixed grid to conform to, and simplifies record keeping.
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The Main Season Plan
Here’s how the garden plan looks with the main season
crops filled in. Not all the blocks will be planted at once.
Succession crops, like Eat-All Greens, are staggered over
the summer, so short term cover crops will appear in those
blocks when they are not in use for food production.
The blocks that are tinted gray will be covered by small,
portable hoop structures for warmth or to protect from
harmful insects during critical periods of their lifecycles.
Click here for a flat image
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Setting My Intention
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How often cultural food photos are used to inspire "thankfulness" in our
privileged world ... a hollow, self-righteous thankfulness that has
nothing to do with the real thing. "There, but for the grace of God, go I,"
or inducing an epicurean desire for the experience of eating some exotic
dish, as if that, in itself, will bring enlightenment.
This photo, in contrast, exudes a thankfulness that draws me in,
speaking to my most fundamental relationship with food, and
illuminating the way to my own practice of thankfulness -- for
food, for the privilege of growing, preparing, eating, and sharing it.
It is so easy to reduce the term "food security" to data-induced
formulas for nutrition, access, economic status; but, for me, there is a
spiritual side to food security that is, perhaps, more important than
all of those things.
Today, I will employ my spade in the simple act of turning soil in a
20' x 40' plot in a public space. As I work, five or six people will stop
to ask what I am doing here. I will answer, this is what food security
looks like. Here, let me show you....“ – Facebook post, May 20, 2017
(Thanks to LaurieVasily, for sharing the photo!)

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2017 Objectives
1. Finish the initial double digging of all the beds to address the “plow
pan” (compaction) that resulted from many decades of conventional
plowing on this historic farm. (Four of 10 beds remain.)
2.Minimize tillage going forward, and keep soil covered at all times,
preferably with growing plants.
3. Maximize production using very small plantings over scheduled
successions to provide a steady supply of fresh produce, keeping a
record of all harvests by weight and calories.
4.Continue the work of establishing fertility management plans for each
crop using cover crops, crop rotation, under sowing and interplanting.
5. Expand winter staples, including roots, beans, corn flour, and wheat.
6.If budget allows, establish step-over apples along the outside edge of
the garden.
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Selecting Cultivars
I love perusing seed catalogs, but the space limits imposed by my tiny plot
mean I must choose carefully and keep a tight rein on my penchant for
experimentation. Here are some of the criteria that I apply to each
selection:
1. Will it add elements of taste, texture, color, or nutritional support that
will balance and add interest to my soup and salad menus?
2. Does it produce as much food as possible for the space it occupies?
Especially, is it compact, can it be grown vertically, or does it produce
high amounts of bio-mass?
3. What role does it play in the garden ecology? For example, is it food, a
soil building crop, or does it simply provide pure aesthetic joy? I try to
favor plants that meet more than one of these criteria.
4. Will it attract pollinators and birds to the garden?
5. Is it open pollinated, native to New England, or have a special story that
makes it interesting? Is it important that I help preserve its genetics for
future generations?
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SUMMER HARVEST
Variety Selections
Here are the main crop varieties chosen for summer eating
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Sugar Snap Pea: Magnolia Blossom
Pisum sativum
A new variety trial chosen for taste, duration of harvest, and because I
wanted a tall trellised variety to add spatial height to the garden
design. (Plus, that red strip that cues the harvest is just the coolest
thing!)
“Productive 8-foot vines yield light-green sweet pods with a purple stripe
down the side when mature.Very sweet just like a sugar snap should be
and the pods just keep coming for weeks and weeks and weeks.We find
the flavor peaks just prior to the darkening of the red stripe but after the
peas begin to get fat. Also has beautiful bicolor flowers and is rather cold
hardy. Bred by Dr. Alan Kapuler of Peace Seeds in Corvallis, Oregon.”
Source:A. P. Whaley Seed Company andAdaptive Seeds
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Peas: Penelope
This shorter height “understory” of shelling peas will
intensify the productivity of the pea block and
contribute to the freezer store for winter.
With 8-9 peas per pod in long pods (avg.4½"),
Penelope yields are high.They are also reported to be
very easy to shell and have very good eating quality.
I’ll provide support for the 34" vines with Florida weave
style wrap to keep them out of the pathway and away
from other crops in the block.
Propagation: DirectSow
Source:Johnny’s
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Lettuce: Salanova
Salanova is a trendy, proprietary, group of lettuce varieties popular with
market growers.These varieties feature a unique core structure that
allows fully mature, compact heads of lettuce to be easily cut into
individual uniform leaves once harvested.
I thought it would be useful in the plot because of its compact growth
and visual impact. Harvesting the small plants as full heads will also
provide a bit of aesthetic variety where most of the other greens in the
garden are cut loose-leaf style.
Johnny’s offers a small sampler package for home gardeners that I’ll test
in a couple of the lettuce successions this year.
Source:Johnny’s
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Cucumbers
I’ll grow two varieties of trellised cucumbers (one pickling
type and one slicing selection).There will be three
successive plantings—two plants of each variety—to
lengthen the harvest season and, hopefully, not overstock
the larder too much.
They will have an undersown companion crop of dill,
nasturtiums, petunias, marigolds, or PurpleTansy.
The cucumbers will be preventively sprayed for powdery
mildew once a week, and, like other large specimens in the
garden, drip watered on a weekly basis, as well.
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Cucumber:Vertina (F1)
Vertina is a dark-green, seedless European pickler offering high yields
and good flavor. It has intermediate resistance to cucumber mosaic virus
and powdery mildew. Bred for high tunnel production, it is also
parthenocarpic (meaning it doesn’t need pollination).
Each plant will be trained around an 8-foot bamboo stake, and
pruned vigorously to a single leader. I’m going to test growing in a
homemade frost cover bag that I can slip over the staked plant to
simulate a warmer high tunnel environment and protect the plant from
insect damage. I’ll compare the results on both labor and productivity
with the standard type that is traditional for outdoor growing.
Source:Johnny’s
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Cucumber: Marketmore 76
Dr. Henry Munger’s classic open-pollinated cucumber has long been the
leading slicing variety for outdoor cultivation in the Northeast. It bears
dark green 8–8½" fruits on vigorous vines throughout season. I want to
test two methods of vertical support on this variety to see which works
best.
Since there are two plants in each succession, I will do one that is pruned
to a single leader and trained to a bamboo pole.The second plant in each
case will be provided with an angled trellis that will also provide shade for
an understory of lettuce.The trellised cukes will be pinched out at the
main stem after 7 leaves have formed to encourage fruiting side shoots
to develop, and to keep them compact.
Source: Fedco
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Pepper: Marconi ‘Rosso’
Capsicum annuum
Marconi Rosso (aka Marconi Red) is an Italian bred sweet pepper. Since it
matures a little later than regular bell peppers, they produce much sweeter
and tastier fruits, but may also benefit from a mini hoop in our zone 5b
climate.
The vigorous, productive plants produce long and slender fruits have 2 lobes,
and are tapered to a blunt end. The fruits vary in size from 16 to 25 (7 to 10
inch) long and grow up to 6cm (2½ in) in diameter at the shoulder. Grows very
well in unheated greenhouses and polytunnels or in pots on a sunny patio.
The fruits look elegantly beautiful on the plant.
Incredibly sweet and beautiful, these long, slim sweet peppers are the
gourmet's choice.They have a wonderful taste and feature sweet skin,
medium thick flesh and a mild and juicy flavor.This variety is often used for
roasting and frying but also tastes wonderful when eaten fresh.
Source: Seed Savers Exchange
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Fish Pepper
I wanted to grow one hot pepper, and this one caught my attention. Its
unique variegated foliage will bring an entirely new dimension to the
garden aesthetic. And, there’s an amazing story to tell about its origin
and recent rediscovery.
Source:Seed Savers Exchange
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Carrot: Nelson/Yaya
Nelson is reliable and widely adapted.A
favorite for early sowing and harvest during
warm and hot weather, when growing sweet
carrots is most difficult.The 5½-6½",
cylindrical, blunt roots are very smooth,
brittle, tender, and crisp with deep orange
color. High yielding. Medium-short tops. Early
Nantes type.
Source:Johnny’s
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Potato: Red Gold
Space limitations prevent potatoes from playing a major
role in the garden this year. However, a small patch is
planned for one “new” potato crop during the summer.
Red Gold is an early variety with high yields of round
tubers with light-red skin and delicious, yellow flesh.
Excellent for roasting and boiling.
I grew this one in the market garden last year with great
success, and good appeal. It is definitely a staple I want
to include in the summer rotation.
To grow the earliest crop possible, I will “chit” the tubers
(a process that takes about a month), and plant in the
garden when the dandelions bloom and the soil
temperature is about 60* F.
Source: MooseTubers (early shipment option)
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Radish: Champion
Raphanus sativus
Champion is a uniform, large, round-oval radish with bright cherry-red
color.Vigorous, tall tops with strong attachments, along with roots which
are very late to become pithy, lead to greater flexibility for time of
harvest.Champion is a standard for short-day or cool-season bunching.
Source:Victory Seed
Radishes make an excellent filler crop for the shoulder seasons, and have a
role to play in fertility management (also see the “leaf” radish in the Eat-All
Greens section).The 2017 season will be an opportunity to explore some of
the less conventional ways that radishes can be eaten, and to trial a few
varieties preparatory to selecting long term favorites.
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Radish: Pink Beauty
Raphanus sativus
“Pink Beauty is all you could ever want in a
bunching radish. Round to slightly oval, crisp
roots are bright pink & not too spicy.We are not
normally impressed with bunching radishes, but
these are just darn good. An excellent market
farm variety, praised as being better than many
hybrids and we agree.Tops are strong for
bunching, roots resist cracking. Best when
succession planted in spring and fall, as radishes
get spicier and have more pest pressures in the
heat.”
Source: Adaptive Seeds
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Radish: D'avignon
Raphanus sativus
“The traditional French Breakfast radish with
rose-pink roots and mild flavor. Long
cylindrical pink roots with bright white tips are
eye-catching at early farmers markets.
Vigorous and fast-growing, performing best in
rich soil. Excellent for spring and fall crops of
delicious mild roots. Originally from the South
of France where they are traditionally eaten
fresh with butter..”
Source: High Mowing
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Radish: Saxa
Saxa is a super fast growing radish that can be harvested in about 18
days. It is perfectly round with bright scarlet skin and crisp, white interior.
To be used for a quick catch crop, or to fill in small spaces among larger
plants.
Source:Gurney’s
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Radish: Watermelon
Raphanus sativus acanthiformis
A winter radish (sown in August), also known as
Rooseheart or Red Meat. It is an heirloom Chinese Daikon.
The flesh is tender crisp, succulent and firm. Its flavor is
mild, only slightly peppery with some sweet notes.
Watermelon radishes can be served fresh or cooked, hot
or cold.They pair well with fennel, apple, cheeses such as
feta and chèvre, butter, creamy based dressings,
vinaigrettes, bacon, white fish, cucumbers, mild salad
greens, cooked eggs, noodles such as soba and udon,
citrus, cilantro, mint and tarragon.
Source:Gurney’s
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Summer Squash: Astia
Cucurbita pepo
Eager to produce, this compact, early variety
wastes no time bearing sleek, mouthwatering
fruit.While other squash are greedy with space,
Astia maintains a compact 30 inches across, so
it's well suited for my compact garden.With an
open habit, spotting the fruit is easy for quick
harvest. Unrivaled powdery mildew resistance
means the plants stay healthy and productive
late into the season.That, coupled with its
early ripening gives you a maximized harvest
window. –38 days
Source:Territorial Seed

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Summer Squash: Patio Golden
Cucurbita pepo
A glossy golden yellow zucchini with a compact bush
habit. –52 days
Source:Seedman

THETOMATO PROJECT
It’s been a special challenge for me to find a “method to my madness” when it comes to tomatoes.
2017 is the year I think I’m ready to narrow down and focus on varieties that meet a particular set of needs
and interests. A new tack on this theme is going to be learning how to graft so that I can achieve better yields
with heirloom varieties. Other considerations include looking for the best package of flavor plus disease
resistance — I’m especially interested in the JerseyTomato Project (Rutgers University) that is bringing back
some of the old, flavorful, commercial varieties.You’ll see two of these here; selecting a range of DTM (days
to maturity) — for both early harvests and later maturing (generally more flavorful) varieties, but still suitable
for growing in zone 5, and including both fresh and processing types.
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Tomato: Moreton F1
Purpose: Fresh (slicing)
Number of plants: 2
An early and flavorful slicing tomato, well suited to New England’s short
season. Although not a firm tomato, Moreton F1 is known as a tomato
connoisseur’s favorite. Its large, meaty, delicious fruit mature early. It has an
oblate shape and rich red color.
Rutgers University had interest in reintroducing old hybrid tomato varieties
known for their outstanding flavor, and after being off the market for several
years, it is now back through a cooperative agreement between Rutgers and
Harris Seeds. There is an interesting backstory about how the parent seed
stock was lost, and found again. Resistant toVerticillium.
70 days, indeterminate
Source: Harris Seeds
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Tomato: Brandywine OTV
Purpose: FreshSlicer (Freeze whole for winter confit)
Number of plants: 1
For a large beefsteak type, I have chosen Brandywine OTV, a
potato-leaf heirloom named and released by Carolyn Male and
Craig LeHoullier. In their words, it is "the best strain of Brandywine
set apart from others by its smooth, creamy, almost buttery
texture, and harmonious sweet flavor." The cultivar is not a strain
of Brandywine, but is the result of an accidental cross between
Yellow Brandywine and an unknown male parent.
A potato-leaf variety are rich red fruits that have a slight orange
undertone and weigh an average of 1 lb. It is known to set fruit
better than the Pink Brandywine."
72 days, mid-season indeterminate
Source: Baker Creek
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Tomato: Black Plum
Purpose: Fresh/Processing
Number of plants: 2
This plant offers a very heavy production of three inch
mahogany, plum-shaped, fruits that are sweet and
flavorful. It is outstanding eaten fresh, or sliced in a salad,
with a rich smoky sweetness and a delicate touch of
tartness to its creamy flesh, it makes a fabulous and
perfectly balanced sauce or paste and is becoming a great
favorite for canning. Also excellent fresh off the vine for
straight-up garden snacking.
75 Days, indeterminate
Source: Baker Creek
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Tomato: Campbell’s 146
Purpose: Processing
Number of plants: 2
Also known as KC-146, this variety was developed by
Campbell’s Soup Company as a processing tomato and
released in 1956. It was wilt and crack-resistant and better
flavored than other processing types. It was eventually
replaced with newer varieties with more disease resistance.
Campbell’s maintained the KC-146 stock as a flavor
standard. Even though it is a processing variety, it has
incredible flavor as a fresh tomato.
Mid to late season; resistant to Fusarium wilt; medium-large
sized fruit.
75 Days, semi-determinate, open-pollinated.
Source: Rutgers JerseyTomato Project
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Borage: Slender
Borago pygmaea
Borage is reputed to deterTomato Hornworm, as
well as offering edible leaves and flowers. It’s
cucumber-flavored leaves and beautiful blue
flowers are used for flavor in salads, cream
cheese, tall drinks, or may be cooked and eaten
like spinach.
Had a hard time sourcing this unusual variant of
Borage, but finally found a seedsman in the UK
willing to send me some seed. I’m hoping its low
growing trailing habit will provide better soil cover
under the tomatoes without the height of B.
Oficianalis.
Source: Special Plants Nursery

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Eat-All Greens
In TheTao ofVegetable Gardening, Carol Deppe introduces her
innovative “Eat-All Greens Garden” which could be the easiest, most
space-saving, and labor-efficient way of growing greens. With this
method, a family can raise all their summer greens as well as freeze
and dry enough for the winter months with even a tiny plot—a perfect
approach for small-scale and urban gardeners. Carol selected varieties
for compact growth, flavor, and biomass to maximize nutritional value
in a small space.
I purchased a sampler package of all the varieties grown by Deppe in
May of 2016. Some of the varieties are too big, or not suited to my
climate. I will pick and choose among them and see what works well in
my setting.
The following pages introduce all the varieties in my seed collection.
Source: FertileValley Seeds/Carol Deppe
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Leaf Radish: Shunkyo Semi-Long
Leaf-bred radish varieties have more and bigger leaves than root-bred
varieties, and the leaves are more upright, more succulent, and less prickly.
Radish leaves are widely used in China, Japan, and Korea for stir-fries,
soups, fermented greens, and kimchee.They’re also good in salads and as
micro and baby-leaf greens. Leaf radishes grow much faster and more
vigorously than any other greens. Shunkyo makes tasty 4-inch long 1-inch
wide red roots in about 40 days. (Roots are delicious raw, sweet and
pungent. But I usually cook them along with the greens.) Succession plant
about once/month from early spring through fall. Fall-planted plants should
overwinter under cover, and continue growing whenever the weather is
above freezing.
To grow Shunkyo as an eat-all crop, broadcast the seed in beds, thin to
about 3 inches apart in all directions, and harvest the top 8 inches of the
entire bed when plants are about 12 inches high, at roughly 6 –8 weeks. I
often harvest so as to leave some plants a little longer at a little wider
spacing, then harvest these for both greens and roots.Younger leaves have
a distinctly radishy flavor that is nice in salads.
(also Johnny’s)
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Pea: Oregon Giant Sugar
Vigor and large-sized leaves make this variety especially nice for pea
shoots.To use as an eat-all pea shoot crop, sow in a wide row or bed at
about 2” apart in all directions.When plants are about 6 inches high,
harvest the top 4 inches.
(also Johnny’s)
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Perpetual
Spinach
Beta vulgaris (cicla group)
Belongs to the same species as chard and
beets, but it has distinctive differences. The
taste is more like a true spinach than
ordinary chard, and the leaves look like
spinach too—flatter and more pointed than
chard, with slimmer stems.Very
longstanding in the garden, yielding from
late spring through autumn if planted early.
Seldom bolts during its first year.
Propagation: Winter Sow
Source: Fedco
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Broccoli: Spigariello Liscia
This variety is technically a leaf broccoli but it is grown
like broccoli raab. Harvest individual leaves for continual
harvest or whole plants for bunching. Sweet broccoli/kale
flavor. Popular in southern Italy.
Source: FertileValleySeeds/Carol Deppe
(alsoJohnny’s)
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Mustard: GreenWave
Very vigorous fast-growing mustard that is the best mustard for eat-all
growing. Erect plant form. Outgrows weeds. Firey hot raw; mild and
richly flavored when grown eat-all style and cooked briefly. Plant early
spring or fall.
Cook just a minute or two. Great in soups, stews, and messes of greens. A
favorite for drying for use in soups and stews in winter or as a delicious
herbal tea. (Drying also removes fiery flavor.) Can yield up to about a half
pound edible greens per square foot in six weeks.
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Collard Kale: Groninger Blue
Excellent flavor planted in spring and used in summer or in July for
harvest fall, winter, and spring.This is a Dutch heirloom that apparently
has been grown primarily using the eat-all style for centuries.All the best
characteristics of both a collard and a kale.
Groninger overwinters well. Deppe writes that in the three years she has
grown it, it overwintered with no damage at all and made huge 6 foot
high flowering bushes in spring.
Grow for eat-all in beds from mid-spring on. Can also be grown with the
same style as ordinary kale.
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Chinese Cabbage:Tokyo Bekana
Very vigorous, fast growing, unfussy loose leaf cabbage that is mostly
leaf instead of stem. Distinctive yellow-green color, great flavor, and
crunchy texture.Great in salads or as cooking greens. 30 days to eat-all
stage; 45 days to loose heads.
Possibly, the best Chinese cabbage for salads. It’s also great in stir-fries,
soups, and stews, and should be excellent for kimchee. I’m guessing that
Tokyo Bekana is more nutritious than most Chinese cabbage since it is
more leaf and less stem. Flower scapes are also edible.
Plant late spring through early fall.
(also Johnny’s)
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Choy:Yukina Savoy
This green is also calledAsian spinach, and you can use it in
any recipe that calls for regular spinach such as soups, pastas,
stir-fries, and salads. If you don’t like the slight bite of raw
yukina savoy, try cooking with it–the heat tames the flavor
and you’re left with a very mild-tasting green.Yukina savoy is
full of vitamins A and C as well as fiber. Similar toTatsoi but
has more erect leaves, so is more suitable as an eat-all green.
Source: FertileValleySeeds/Carol Deppe
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Amaranth: Burgundy
Dual purpose amaranth. Leaves are great for stir-
fries, soups, stews, and messes of greens. Also
can be used in salads and makes great baby leaf
greens and microgreens.
Plant late spring through late summer. Broadcast
so plants will end up at about 4 inches apart, and
cut and use the top 6 inches when 10 inches high.
Eat-all bed ready in 2 - 3 months. Can harvest/thin
eat - all bed to leave plants at 1’ apart for grain.
Leaves blanch and freeze well.
Source: Fertile Valley Seeds/Carol Deppe
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Indian Spinach: Red Aztec Huazontle
Chenopodium nuttalliae
This is a relative of lambsquarters and quinoa, but has bigger
leaves, grows faster, and bolts much slower, so has plants
that stay succulent and prime longer for use as greens.The
word ‘huazontle’ (pronounced “wuh zont lay” refers to a
traditional use of the flower buds for stir-fries. Deppe uses the
variety as an eat-all greens crop for soups, stews, mess of
greens, blanching and freezing, or drying. Makes especially
delicious dry greens and herbal tea. Also makes great baby
leaf greens and microgreens.
Plant late spring to early fall. Broadcast in beds, thin to about
4” apart, and grow to about 12” high, then harvest the entire
top 8 inches, which is all succulent stalk and leaves.About 8
weeks for eat-all crop. One can pull all the plant stumps or
debris and replant the bed. However, I prefer to leave a few
plant stumps spaced at about 12” apart to make nice bushes
that produce tender shoots for greens all the rest of the
season.
Source: Fertile Valley Seeds/Carol Deppe
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Amara
Brassica carinata
Technically a mustard,Amara is known by several
different names including Ethiopian kale, highland kale,
Abyssinian mustard, andTexsel greens.The attractive,
dark-green leaves are tender, slightly savoyed with a wavy
margin, and have an excellent rich flavor.
Good in salads or as a cooked green.
(See BountifulGardens for intensive spacing.)
(alsoJohnny’s)
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WINTER STORAGE
Variety Selections
These crops take up space in the garden during the summer growing
season, but are harvested for root cellar storage or
left in the ground for winter harvests
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Celeriac: Mars
Apium graveolens
• Large, uniform roots with big, healthy plants.
• Interiors stay firm, even when roots are large.
• Holds well in the field.
Celeriac holds the key to flavor for winter soups.
Propogation:WinterSow
Source:Johnny’s
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Salsify: Fiore Blu
Tragopogon porrifolius
A delicious root crop common in Europe but rarely grown here in the US.
Roots grow to the size and shape of imperator type carrots but with a
cream colored skin. Flavor is said to resemble oysters, and salsify is
sometimes known as “oyster plant.”
Fiore Blu has a good mild flavor, making it very versatile in the kitchen.
Young roots can be eaten raw, grated in salads. Full-sized roots are best
cooked. Flowering shoots can be eaten like asparagus, and flowers can
be eaten whole or used as garnish.
Unharvested roots bloom with vibrant purple flowers in the second year,
and have been planted for showy flowers alone. Known to be used
medicinally for liver and gall bladder support.
Produces best when direct sown April-May.
Source:Adaptive Seeds
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Leeks:Tadorna
Allium porrum
The most reliable open pollinated fall leek.A
vigorous grower producing a medium-length white
shank and contrasting, very dark blue-green foliage.
Holds in the field for fall into winter harvest, and
overwinters in moderate climates.
Will plant several in a perennial block to overwinter
and set seed in the second year.
Propagation: Winter Sow
Source: High Mowing
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Kale: Beedy’s Camden
Brassica napus pabularia
• Local heirloom (Camden, ME)
• “Last kale standing,” very hardy variety
• Slow to bolt (difficult to save seed)
As the story goes, back in the 1980’s Beedy Parker noticed a kale that
was overwintering in her Camden, Maine garden. She propagated the
kale, and made seeds available to other gardeners. Likely a relative of a
Siberian kale, Beedy’s selection has silvery, frilly leaves and a sweet,
delightful taste. And it is super hardy.
Seed for this variety is very hard to come by. (Fedco is selling only to co-
op members) I sourced mine via Etsy from an entrepreneurial home
grower in SouthernCalifornia!
Propagation: WinterSow
Source: Fedco
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Michihili Cabbage: Purple Strain
I obtained 5 seeds for this variety from a farmer in China via
Etsy, and am very excited to grow it, as I’ve never seen purple
Michihili before.
I have an article that I’ve kept for years, with instructions for
storing Michihili packed in sawdust in the root cellar for winter
use as a substitute for lettuce. I’ve always wanted to try this.
The common green variety makes a great Caesar salad in the
middle of winter.
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Uncle David’s
Dakota Dessert
Cucurbita maxima
Bred by David Podoll, this buttercup-type variety
was a cross between Hubbard,Gold Nugget and
other maximas. For over 40 years the Podoll
family has been selecting for deep orange color,
thick flesh, rich taste, sweetness, smooth
texture, vigor and hardiness in cold weather.The
vines root down at the nodes, providing extra
root mass and squash vine borer tolerance.
(However, I’ll be testing it as a trellised variety.)
This is a real work-horse variety with the ability
to produce solid yields in variable conditions.
Propogation: Direct Seed
Source: Fedco
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Christmas Pole Lima
Phaseolus vulgaris
Dual purpose lima can be used as either a
green shell bean or dry storage bean
Heirloom, dates back to the 1840s, and
has been a favorite for many generations.
Heavy yielding, vigorous, vines reach
heights up to ten feet.
Beans have butter-like texture and a
subtle chestnut-like flavor. and retain
their markings after being cooked.
Testing for climate and trellis suitability.
Propagation:WinterSow
Source:Victory Seeds
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Dry Bean: Rio Zape
Phaseolus vulgaris
Slow Food Ark ofTaste
Attractive pink flowers
Awesome flavor
Sprawling (semi-climbing) habit
The Rio Zape bean was unearthed in the ruins of theAnasazi cliff–
dwelling people in theAmerican southwest.This bean is similar in size
and shape to the popular pinto bean and is purple with dark burgundy
slashes.The Rio Zape, also known as the Hopi String Bean, has a creamy
texture and a complex flavor with a hint of chocolate.
Propagation: Direct Seed
Source:Victory Seeds
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Dry Bean:
Landrace Project
This bush bean project will establish a
genetically diverse foundation stock for a
dry bean soup mix. Each year, going
forward, seed will be hand selected from
each harvest for traits such as adaptation to
this garden, taste, cooking texture and
appearance, etc.
The foundation seed selection will focus on
varieties that originated in (or are well suited
to) New England, and will be sourced from
individual breeders and seed savers around
the country.
Contents

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Year One of the
Landrace Bean Project
• Boston Favorite
• Kenearly
• VermontAppaloosa
• HalfWhite Sugar
• Bizana
• Jacob’s Cattle Gasless
• Brown Star Gold Band

Contents
Flour Corn: Papa’s White
Zea mays
I had very good success with Carol Deppe’s Magic Manna flour corn in 2016,
grinding 7 ¼ lbs of flour from my 20-foot bed. I was going to plant saved seed this
year, but in a last minute change of heart, have ordered a new variety to test.
Bred by Ed Schultz outside of Bozeman, Montana, The Papa’s Series corns all
feature earliness and tolerance to cool conditions. Ed first began breeding his corns
about 1985. He started with all the really short-season flour types he could lay his
hands on: Mandan Red, Painted Mountain, Fiesta and others. Allowing these types
to cross freely, he simply selected the earliest and best each year, for planting the
next year.Then came the lengthy process of selecting single-colored ears out of the
mix. Some 30 years later, the result: short plants (only to about 4’ tall) that yield
very early. Surprisingly long ears—typically 8” long, running occasionally to 12”.
These slim, 8-row ears grow from a narrow cob, and are very graceful and beautiful.
All the Papa’s Series varieties feature a brilliantly colored exterior, enclosing a white
interior comprised of a soft, white flour-type starch.
Source: Baker Creek
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SpringWheat:White Sonora
Triticum aestivum
• Spring wheat selection
• Very easy to thresh
• Good baking qualities
White Sonora wheat is one of the oldest surviving wheat varieties
anywhere in NorthAmerica. Predating the Red Fife andTurkish Red
wheat,White Sonora is a soft, round-grained winter wheat with pale red
grains that grow on beardless heads. It is an early variety with 90 days to
maturity when planted in the spring
Primarily adapted to the American Southwest, this trial will indicate
whether the variety can do well in New England.
Propagation:WinterSow
Source:Terroir Seeds
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WinterWheat: Banatka
Triticum aestivum
• Local variety (developed nearby in Colrain, MA)
An elite winter wheat bred by Eli Rogosa from two superior heritage Eastern
European landraces: Ukrainka (originally from Banat, Hungary) described by
Russian plant explorer Nikolai Vavilov in the late 1930s as having “high
productivity, broad adaptability and excellent baking quality,” and Bankuti,
beloved for its rich flavor. Also decorative: “Weaves beautifully—isn’t wimpy
and works well for larger projects,” says Kathy Morris of Royalston, MA. Had
the highest yield in three years of SARE-funded organic wheat trials at U
Mass.
Will plant in early September. Wide (8-inch) spacing produces a deep root
system that brings up moisture during drought and anchors the plants during
torrential rains for better climate resilience. Undersow with clover to suppress
weeds. Harvest for flour when the chest-high plants are greenish-brown or for
seed when they are brown, dry and fully mature in mid-late July.
Propagation: Direct Seed
Source: Fedco
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Sunflower: Daytona
Helianthus annuus
SamYoder, of Green Alchemy Farm (Pennsylvania) very kindly replied to
my email inquiry and offered to supply seed for this variety that he uses to
commercially produce sunflower oil for cooking. Originally supplied by
Blue River Organics, the seed is no longer available. Sam recommends
going ahead and saving seed, even though it is an F1 hybrid.
Daytona is a medium-maturity, high-oleic oil variety.Very uniform, short-
statured, modified single-cross hybrid.
• High oil content
• Improved root and stalk strength results in less lodging.
• Improved tolerance to Phoma, Phomopsis and sclerotinia head rot
Propagation:Winter Sow
Source: Green Alchemy Farm/SamYoder
Contents

FRUITS & SWEETS
Variety Selections
Meeting the need for sweets is not an easy task in a micro-garden plot,
especially since most options are perennial varieties. Here are some
selections that will serve as the foundation for this pursuit.
Contents

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Strawberry: Fairfax
Six plants were set out in the Fall of 2016.These will be the foundation
for a growing strawberry program for years to come.
This famous heirloom variety was bred by Dr. George Darrow, the
acclaimed strawberry breeder. It was introduced in 1933 and became
an instant hit because of its mild flavor and low acidity. Many call it the
most flavorful strawberry ever bred. It became the parent of many
hybrids through the years.
It fell out of favor over the years because new more shippable (harder)
varieties were bred and introduced, and has been difficult, if not
impossible to source.
The plants are June bearing types, producing a spring crop over a few
weeks.They do not produce a lot of runners but enough to fill in beds
nicely. It has been said that this variety produces more pollen than any
other.Those who say this contend that fruit is larger with less defects
because of the excess pollen giving full pollination. Not a good freezer
because of the low acidity but excellent for fresh eating and for jams
and jellies.
Source:The Strawberry Store

Contents
Rhubarb: Chipman's Canada Red
Not technically a fruit, of course, but we all think of
it that way, as it is the first sweet thing to come out
of the garden in spring.
Chipman’s Canada Red is a fine northern variety
developed inWinnipeg, Canada. It produces long,
thick stalks that have a dark red color with a light
interior, and cooks up to a nice strawberry-red
colored sauce.
Its natural sweetness requires less sugar than most
varieties.
Source: Gurney’s
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Contents
The Stepover Apple Project
The stepover apple is a form of espalier using
apples that have been grafted onto mini-dwarf
rootstock (usually M27). Maiden trees are
pruned about 15-inches above the ground to
encourage two leaders to develop.The leaders
are trained along a wire about 18-inches high,
and must be pruned during the summer during a
mid-summer resting period. Stepover trees also
require extra fertilizer since the dwarf roots are
not effective feeders.
Selecting varieties is the tricky part, since early
and late maturing varieties bloom at different
times and there must be two varieties blooming
simultaneously to ensure pollination. I only have
space for six trees, total.These tentative
selections include early and late group trees.The
Queen Cox is self-pollinating.Will it work as a
companion for the William’s Pride (also an early
apple)?Companion for the Belmac ,TBD.

Contents
Apple: Belmac
Productive all purpose Canadian cultivar
combines flavor and keeping ability with
cold and disease resistance. The sweet,
medium to large deep red apples ripen in
late September/early October and keep
three months or more. Like its parent
Spartan, it has a delicious sweet/tart
McIntosh flavor. It resists scab, mildew, and
cedar apple rust. It thrives in eastern Canada
and has also proven a winner in Western
Washington. Bred by Dr. Shahrokh
Khanizadeh in Quebec and introduced in
1996. On mini-dwarf M27 rootstock.
Source: Raintree Nursury

Contents
Apple: William’s Pride
Highly rated for flavor. Ripens in early August
and is the best of the early apples.The large
red fruit has a sweet rich spicy flavor.The tree
is very productive with strong well angled
branches.
Immune to apple scab and resistant to
mildew, cedar rust and fireblight. It is an early
season bloomer with unusually long lasting
blossoms.On mini-dwarf EMLA 27 rootstock.

Contents
Apple: Queen Cox
This patented self fertile clone has the flavor, mellow
aftertaste and aroma of the famed Cox's Orange Pippin.
QueenCox sets bumper crops of delicious fruit each year,
without a pollinizer, even when fruit set is poor on other
apples, including other Cox type apples.
The fruit of QueenCox is larger and the tree more disease
resistant than Cox's Orange Pippin.The tree is 15% less
vigorous than other Cox varieties.
Fruit ripens in early September.The only reliably self
fertile apple suitable for most American gardeners. On
EMLA 27 rootstock, can be maintained at 4-5 feet.

HERBS & ACCENTS
Variety Selections
Here are the accents that add flavor and variety to meals and beauty to
the garden and home. Whenever possible, they will serve as companion
plants to improve the quality of the main produce crops. One or two
have been allowed just for the joy of it, because:
“If thou hast but three pence, spend one for food,
one for raiment, and one for Hyacinths for thy soul.”
Contents

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Summer Savory: Compact
Satureja hortensis
Summer Savory lends an aromatic peppery tang to soups.
It's mild flavor is useful as an alternative to sage or thyme,
and it is also used to aid digestion, reduce fever and
soothe bee stings. Grown next to broad beans it is reputed
to help repel black fly.
Gather Summer Savory when harvesting your broad
beans and cook them together - it does wonders for the
flavor.The secret is to have your Summer Savory 15cm
(6in) tall by early May to plant out amongst the beans!
Source: Johnny’s
Contents

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LeafCelery
Apium graveolens var. rapaceum
Closely related to wild celery, and also
known as smallage, cutting celery, or
Chinese celery. It looks like a larger
version of Italian parsley, and the thin
stalks are hollow. Has a stronger, more
herby and assertive flavor than stalk or
root varieties and is generally not eaten
raw. It gives more flavor to soups and
stews than does stalk celery.
Source:Johnny’s
Contents

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Dill: Fernleaf
Anethum graveolens
Dill, an essential for pickles and salads, is often quick to bolt and takes
space with its tall, rangy habit.The Fernleaf variety is an open pollinated,
compact, dwarf, plant that can be cut at 6-8 inches, and is slow to bolt.
Source: Johnny’s
Contents

Contents
BrusselsWinter Chervil
Anthriscus cerefolium
• Tolerates light shade
• Plants attract many beneficial insects
to the garden.
• Winter Sow (Fall/Winter/Spring crop)
• Warning: attracts slugs and may be
used as a lure
Source:Johnny’s

Contents
Cilantro: Santo
Coriandrum sativum
Santo is fast growing and one of the first slow-bolting varieties
introduced. It has broad celery-like leaves, which can be harvested two or
more times.This variety is very uniform and good for bunching. Santo is
a widely utilized herb variety with strong aroma.
Source:Johnny’s

Contents
Parsley, Extra Curled Dwarf
Petroselinum crispum
• Height: 6-12 inches
• Plant spacing: 6-9 inches
Produces finely-cut, curly leaves on very
compact plants.
Source: Burpee

Contents
Breadseed Poppy: Ziar
Papaver somniferum
Oh, this poppy! Originally from Slovakia, large
pastel petals of lavender and coral float on 2-3’
stalks topped by huge seedheads filled with
thousands of rich, delicious poppy seeds.
Introduced in Maine by Roberta Bailey (read the
story here).The variety has been selectively bred
for over 20 years to improve hardiness for New
England gardens.
Ziar is noted for especially sweet seeds, without
any bitterness. It is also unique in that the
seedheads have closed vents so the seeds stay in
the head.
Source: Fedco

Contents
Columbine: Blue Star
Aquilegia x caerulea
Columbine was recommended as a companion
plant for rhubarb, so I thought I’d try this heat
tolerant variety. It is also attractive to pollinators
and hummingbirds, and holds well as a cut flower.
This is a compact variety listed to grow to 24-inches
high.
Source: Burpee (local seed stand)
Contents

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Cosmos Double Click Rose
Bonbon
• Height: 24to 36", 24" spread
Double Click is well recognized in cut flower circles for it tall plants that
produce predominantly double flowers.Although they are late flowering
cosmos, the result is worth it.These beauties make lovely additions to
mixed arrangements.
Source: HarrisSeeds

COVER CROP
Variety Selections
Using “low-till” practices, I will endeavor to keep the soil covered at all
times. New protocol includes under sowing legumes in the grain plots,
and planting quick cover crops in any block that is not scheduled to be
used for 6 weeks or more.
Contents

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Buckwheat
Fagopyrum esculentum
• Quick cover (minimum 6 weeks)
• Bee forage
A quick crop that will be used to fill planting
blocks that are not scheduled to be used for
6 weeks or more during the main growing
season.
Source: Fedco

Contents
PurpleTansy
Phacelia tanacetifolia
• Quick growing cover crop (minimum 6 weeks)
• Adds nitrogen
• Extremely attractive to bees
A quick crop to fill planting blocks that are not
scheduled to be used for 6 weeks or more during the
main growing season.
Source:Wildseed Farms
.

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Annual Sweet Clover
Melilotus officinalis
• A tremendous green manure and bee plant.
• Has deep tap roots that mine soil nutrients and water from deep within
the soil.
• Better than many of the other clovers for nutrient recycling and
appears to have a greater capacity to extract potassium, phosphorus and
other soil nutrients from insoluble minerals.
This is the companion for the corn crop, to be undersown when the corn
is 4-6 inches high.
Source:Johnny’s

Contents
Medium Red Clover
Trifolium pratense
• Can fix up to 150 lb. of nitrogen per acre.
• Inoculate for best performance.
This cover crop will be under sown in the wheat to provide nitrogen and
prevent weeds.
Rate: 3.5 grams per 50 sq. ft. (based on 7 lbs per acre recommended for
Spring wheat) applied one week after transplanting.

INFRASTRUCTURE &
DESIGN
Contents

Contents
5’ Hoops fit standard
planting blocks
• Each basic planting block is mapped at 2.5’ x 5’ so that
these mini hoop houses can be installed as needed
throughout the garden
• Made out of ½” conduit using a purchased hoop
bender and hardware.The small hoop structures are
strong enough to withstand wind and snow
• Can be quickly covered with plastic, frost blanket, bug
netting, or shade cloth using fabric clips
Source:hoopbenders.net

Contents
Bucket Irrigation
Deep watering is a challenge since we are not allowed to
leave a hose connected to our shared spigots, and hand
watering is strongly encouraged. The result is that most
garden plots are chronically underwatered. I will test a
portable “slow watering” system comprised of a homemade
conduit tripod that suspends a 5-gallon bucket fitted with a
standard adjustable dripper.
The idea is to have two of these, and move them from plant
to plant each day, circulating through the larger plants
(tomatoes, summer squash, etc.) so that each plant gets a full
five gallon deep watering about once a week.
• http://bucketirrigation.blogspot.com/
• http://www.instructables.com/id/Camping-tripod-for-
cooking-over-fire/
• http://howtonaturalgardening.blogspot.com/2012/11/5-
gallon-bucket-drip-irrigation.html

Contents
I’ve been on the market for strong, sturdy tomato cages, and
these look worth a review. Can stack on extensions for added
height, and fold conveniently for storage.
Source: EZTomato Cages

Garden Map — Main Season 2017
Plot size: 20’ x 40’
Return to Intro

Contents
Intensive Plant Spacing
and number of plants per full- and half-block
Bio-intensive spacing
patterns offer the most
space efficient way to pack
plants into small areas.
Here are some of the
patterns you will see
throughout the garden,
depending on the
recommended spacing for
each crop.

Contents
Climate
My garden zone is listed as 5b (with an average low of -10 to -15
degrees F). An interesting note: a few blocks up the hill in
Florence is mapped 6a (average -5 to -10 degrees F).
My frost-free growing season is around 141 days. Each winter, on
average, our risk of frost is from September 28 through May 10.
Almost certainly, we will receive frost from October 9 through
April 26. It is almost guaranteed that we will not get frost from
May 24 through September 17. Frost calculations are based on
data from the U. Mass weather station in Amherst, MA.
Beyond temperature, the biggest threat in the garden is wind.
During the Spring and Fall seasons, there are high winds in the
15- to 30-mph range for days at a time.Winds of this intensity can
bend or break plants, and dry the soil quickly.

Carla’s 2017 Garden Look Book

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