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Re: Cindy Tx

>Cindy Meredith & Mike Szwarc wrote:
>>
>> >Hello All,
>> >
>> >After moderate success adapting my north-American gardening patterns to
>> >my new digs (excuse the pun) on the Mediterranean, I would like to
>> >explore the possibilities for the winter vegetable garden. Since winter
>> >is the rainy season here, I have long realized that I was not exploiting
>> >the better part of the gardening year here.
>> >
>> >I am on a mountainside with a distant view of the Mediterranean coast.
>> >Winter here is basically like a long, wet North American spring. Our
>> >CURRENT nightime lows are 13-14 Centigrade (equals about 55 Farenheit).
>> >That's just the low point. Days are balmy - in the 25-28 range (equals
>> >77-82). It rains off and on - sometimes over several days at a time -
>> >for the entire winter. We wake up to frost crystals on the ground a few
>> >days a year - two weeks in January/Feb, maybe a light snow that doesn't
>> >stick.
>> >
>> >So? What can I plant now in the kitchen garden? What will happen if I
>> >plant onions?
>> >
>> >What cottage flowers can I start now? I am especially interested in
>> >dianthus, godetia, and perenials.
>> >
>> >If I install those plastic-sheet hoop tunnels over my beds, what can I
>> >grow?
>> >
>> >Thank you warm-climate gardeners.
>> >
>> >Joshua
>>
>> Well, Joshua, you can have a great garden this winter with collard greens,
>> kale, lettuce, spinach, broccoli, cabbage, beets, onions (from starts, too
>> late for seeds), fava beans, carrots, radishes (if you have deep enough
>> soil for the root crops),mustard, pak choy, tatsoi, and herbs like chervil,
>> sorrel, fennel, dill, parsley and thymes. As for flowers, dianthus will do
>> well along with calendula, perennial salvias, petunias, pansies,
>> snapdragons. Also, you can seed things like poppies, larkspur, and lupines,
>> just to name a few.
>>
>> You also could try bush snap beans and sqash, too. And, as for plastic
>> tunnels, they'll work great. Just make sure if your crop needs pollinating,
>> you either open the tunnel or hand pollinate.
>>
>> Those are some of the things I grow in my winter South-Central Texas
>> garden, except for the beans and squash, it's too cool for those in our
>> winter.
>> Good luck,  Cindy in TX.
>Cindy: You mentioned Tatsoi, I have been toying with "Mesclun" type
>items. With respect to Tatsoi, do you direct seed or plug-tray then
>transplant? Also what about flea beatles, do you apply floating row
>cover, if so is it neccessary for (more or less) on a continuous basis
>after emergence? One last question about density, the typical 10 to 12
>inches between plants or is it much closer?
>                                                Best Regards Steve M

Steve,

I direct seed Tatsoi and other greens. I don't have problems with flea
beetles, but floating row covers would protect them. Once the plants get
big, maybe they'd be able to sustain some damage and still thrive, I don't
know. Since they don't need pollination for flowering you could just leave
the covering on them all the time. I thing 10-12 inches between plants is
good. That way you get full, large-leaved plants. Glad to be of help. Happy
Gardening, Cindy in TX
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