Dreaming of Spring Gardening in the middle of a Wisconsin winter

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Wow those raised beds and perennial beds look wonderful! I currently have 3 small raised beds but I'd like to add another 2 or 3. My current ones are just cheap kits from a home improvement store, but I can't decide if I should make the next set of beds or buy a higher quality kit (there's some really nice looking ones out there, in a variety of materials).

I just got a glossy color catalog of heirloom seeds in the mail a few days ago and now I can't stop planning my spring and summer veggie garden. Some seeds I'd like to try this upcoming year: green and wax beans, albino beets, mizuna, "spinach" chard, white cherry tomatoes.

I need to clean up the greenhouse too. It's not really that usable (it's a small walk-in kit type that the previous owners assembled it but stuffed it with junk and left it like that) but I need some place to get seedlings going in spring.

I have not heard or seen white beets and tomatoes. I will have to keep my eyes out on those seed catalogs to see what else is new. I had tried some black varieties of tomatoes and found them delicious.

My raised beds are definitely a luxury. I had one knee replaced and need the other one done, so my kneeling and squatting down days are over, and my back can only take so much bending.

There are a lot of nice kits out there. I enjoy my catalog from Gardeners Supply Company. I haven't ordered from them because of the prices, but I have gotten tons of inspiration from their catalog.

I have always wanted a greenhouse. You are lucky to have one.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I have not heard or seen white beets and tomatoes. I will have to keep my eyes out on those seed catalogs to see what else is new. I had tried some black varieties of tomatoes and found them delicious.

My raised beds are definitely a luxury. I had one knee replaced and need the other one done, so my kneeling and squatting down days are over, and my back can only take so much bending.

There are a lot of nice kits out there. I enjoy my catalog from Gardeners Supply Company. I haven't ordered from them because of the prices, but I have gotten tons of inspiration from their catalog.

I have always wanted a greenhouse. You are lucky to have one.

The seed catalog I got is from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds (their website is rareseeds.com) and it really is fun to look through the wild assortment of vegetables they carry.

I'd never heard of white beets either but my husband loves beets, so I'd like to try my hand at growing them. The staining from red beets is one of the things I don't like (along with the metallic taste they tend to have). Golden beets are much more to my taste but there's still a bit of staining, so if it's possible to have non-staining beets with similar flavor that would be fantastic.

Black tomatoes (along with orange and blush) are really delicious, but I can get those at the farmer's market. I've never seen white ones there, supposedly they have a sweeter flavor like the orange/gold ones, which would be nice for eating fresh out of hand.

Raised bed kits are expensive in comparison to build-your-own but some really are nice looking and well made, with a wider range of material options to choose from than what I could source myself from the home improvement store. Plus my husband isn't really a outdoorsy type so he'd rather just pay for something I can easily put together on my own.

My greenhouse is currently "leaves for chicken run" storage. In the future I'm hoping to have a mini barn where our old, unused shed is, and have a large chicken coop and a greenhouse built into that.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I have found the best way to cook beats is in a foil pouch in the oven with a pat of butter, or olive oil, and salt and pepper, roast till tender. We do most of our root vegetables this way, works on the grill too. You are making my mouth water. Beets,

 

[rosemarythyme]

I like golden beets in an orange sauce: boil 1 bunch sliced golden beets until tender (about 15 minutes), drain, and then add 1 Tbsp brown sugar, 2 Tbsp orange juice or orange marmalade, and 1/2 Tbsp butter. Cook another 5 minutes, and serve.

 

[lazy gardener]

My raised beds are definitely a luxury. I had one knee replaced and need the other one done, so my kneeling and squatting down days are over, and my back can only take so much bending.

Your raised beds are NOT a luxury. They are a NECESSITY! We should start a thread specifically for "Adaptive gardening".

My greenhouse is currently "leaves for chicken run" storage. In the future I'm hoping to have a mini barn where our old, unused shed is, and have a large chicken coop and a greenhouse built into that.

My green house is also being used as leaf storage right now. I had planted some kale and garlic in it, but... the leaves needed to be kept dry, so my winter garden is not going to happen any time soon.

 

[lazy gardener]

Fedco catalog came!!!

 

[CapricornFarm]

You have been very busy CF. I'm tired reading about it all. We used to have your energy.

You garden beds are adorable, we put in some of those retaining block stones too. They are pretty easy to work with.

Do you like the climate, or do you miss Florida?

I do miss my kids and grandkids but enjoying the weather here. Even with the snow we had recently, i don't mind it.

 

[CapricornFarm]

The seed catalog I got is from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds (their website is rareseeds.com) and it really is fun to look through the wild assortment of vegetables they carry.

I'd never heard of white beets either but my husband loves beets, so I'd like to try my hand at growing them. The staining from red beets is one of the things I don't like (along with the metallic taste they tend to have). Golden beets are much more to my taste but there's still a bit of staining, so if it's possible to have non-staining beets with similar flavor that would be fantastic.

Black tomatoes (along with orange and blush) are really delicious, but I can get those at the farmer's market. I've never seen white ones there, supposedly they have a sweeter flavor like the orange/gold ones, which would be nice for eating fresh out of hand.

Raised bed kits are expensive in comparison to build-your-own but some really are nice looking and well made, with a wider range of material options to choose from than what I could source myself from the home improvement store. Plus my husband isn't really a outdoorsy type so he'd rather just pay for something I can easily put together on my own.

My greenhouse is currently "leaves for chicken run" storage. In the future I'm hoping to have a mini barn where our old, unused shed is, and have a large chicken coop and a greenhouse built into that.

I have seen seeds offered for white beets! Sounds good to me, i want to try some.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Your raised beds are NOT a luxury. They are a NECESSITY! We should start a thread specifically for "Adaptive gardening".



My green house is also being used as leaf storage right now. I had planted some kale and garlic in it, but... the leaves needed to be kept dry, so my winter garden is not going to happen any time soon.

Gardening with joint problems and arthritis is definitely a challenge. My biggest tip is make the husband do it, but sometimes I still want to do some of it, so that would be a great thread.

 

[CapricornFarm]

Ok so, i made a thread! Yack away....