Baby, it's cold outside

After so many warm weather autumns, this one has taken us by surprise.  It has been colder than normal and we even have some snow that fell three days ago and is still sticking to the grass.

I had sprayed my shrubs with rabbit repellent for the winter but hadn't put up the fencing around them or wrapped those in burlap that needed winter protection.  I bought three bales of straw and only had one down on the parsnips and carrots to try and keep the ground from freezing.  The potted shrubs just barely got dug in to the garden before the ground got to hard to get a shovel in.  I peeled apart the last two frozen straw bales to finish heeling the shrubs in.  The fence and burlap was a quick job before the snow fell.

There is a slight warm up coming in the next week in which I am hoping to dig up some of the parsnips and all of the carrots.  I also need to cut down my two story high sweet autumn clematis for the winter.  There just aren't enough hours in the day or energy in my system!

Fall vegetables...canning, freezing, or just keeping it cool

I have continued to keep putting up the harvest as long as it keeps coming in.  That includes the harvest that comes in from my local farmers as well.  There are so many crops that continue to produce after the first freeze.  Just because the weather changes at the end of September, it is still too early to write off the weekly farm market visits.  In Milwaukee there are several winter farm markets that have sprung up as well.

There are several crops that are better after the cold hits.  Kale, cabbage, brussel sprouts, late apples, parsnips, turnips, carrots, and several other root vegetables are a few of them.  I also wait for the fall to buy a bushel of potatoes, some storing onions (when I don't have enough of my own), and winter squash.  Many farmers have cold storage areas for items that they can continue to sell well after the last apple is picked and potato is dug.

Some crops require no preparation other than a quick cleaning before storing them in a cool, dark location.  Many of the root crops can be stored in the extra frig if you have it or layered in sand in an area that does not freeze.  Squash can be laid out on shelves or hung in nets to store until they start to lose their storage limits.  The better that the rind is cured in sun and kept dry, the longer it will store later.  Potatoes and onions as well as garlic just need some air circulation and a cool, dark space to keep for months.

Natural fermentation will also keep crops for a much longer time, sauerkraut being one of the most common in a town with a large population of German and Polish heritage.  Fermented foods do not end there.  Check out some of the old and new authors that devote their time to writing about some common and uncommon fermented food.  I had fun with a bag of "wind fall" apples and the cider project.  I made one gallon of some very nice hard cider with apples that my sister salvaged from their fallen tree.  Next year I will make twice as much.  The package of champagne yeast from the wine making store was a very small investment for my project.

You don't have to have a big canning set up or a large freezer to enjoy some of the local produce into the cold, winter months.  

Still gardening even after the first snow.

While the rest of the crew went hunting, my oldest sister and I set out with leaf blowers to clear off their lawn before the first snow.  It is a pretty big yard, so it was nice to do it together.  

My own yard is not such a monumental task, but there are the beds to clean up and all the corners to clean up.  I mulched the healthy leaves into my compost bin.  The tar spot on the maples, apple scab on the crabs, and black walnut leaves all went to the curb.  The weather forecast for this past week was not good.  My goal on Sunday was to get it all to the curb to make the November 15th cut off for city pick up.  I was so sore at the end that I had to push through.  A hot shower followed by ibuprofen and a heating pad were so welcome.

When we got our snow on 11/11, I was glad to have it done.  The rest of the week was pretty cold and windy.  The flowering kale pulled through but it was pretty frosty after the snow.

The leaves droop and sag with the cold, and perk up as the temperatures come above freezing.  It is fun to watch them come back each day as it warms up just enough.  I still have some edible kale in the garden.  This cold should add sweetness to the plants as they produce more sugars as anti-freeze.  There is also parsnips and carrots to dig up.  I need to get the garlic in the ground this weekend as well.  I regret that I did not get my pot washing done this fall.  It is time to put away the garden tools and make room for a car for the winter months.