Pushin it on the Porch

      My porch / mud room / green house is like a life preserver to me during the dull, cold winter months.  Covered with only single pane glass, it does cost me a bit to heat.  But the oasis in the middle of the winter is worth it to keep some of my tender plants alive, and get a jump on spring with young starts you can't find at garden centers.  Several years ago my wife gave me an electric heater by DeLonghi, equipped with a thermostat.  I have it set at the lowest possible setting of 42 degrees, so the heat kicks on at that level.  Just don't bump the heater.  Knocks it off cycle.  Don't have a power outage.  Knocks it off cycle.  Other than those two potential freeze ups, everything is fine.  The porch usually stays 10 - 15 degrees warmer than ambient temperatures from the solar gain during the day.  So I will bear the cost of heating the porch to keep stuff alive.

        The two glass panels to the left are almost a direct southern exposure, with the ones to the right being western.  In December, we were lucky to top out the day temps of just over 40 on cold days.  A couple of days ago with it 30 outside but the sun bright, we hit 53 on the porch.  Heat wave!  I put the bamboo shades down at night, though that helps insulate just a tiny bit.  Also at night, I turn the paddle fan on at low speed to distribute the heat, figuring the cost of the fan to be lower than the cost of wasted heat rising to the ceiling.

     This shot is a flat with garlic starts in the front and 1/2 flat of arugula in the back.  Darn, now I will have to lock the door to keep daughter Barb from snitchin the arugula.  Grand son Wesley is known to eat his unfair share also.  The garlic cloves were from some plants thrown away on the communal compost heap.  They were too small to plant in the fall for a summer crop, so I figured I would try them inside.  Maybe eat them as green garlic.  Waste not.  There are little tiny garlic starts in the back ground cell pak that were from the teeny tiny bulblets at the top of one of the garlic scapes.  The literature says it will take 2 - 3 years for those plants to produce edible garlic.  I can wait.  Right now my time is cheaper than my money.  Those little seeds cost me absolutely nothing, but will yield the joy of watching them develop.  This particular arugula is "Ice Bred" from Fedco Seeds, though I just planted some more arugula from seed I saved from last year.

The flats on the upper shelf are mainly from the cole family, possibly kale, kohlrabi or broccoli.  Yes they are labeled, I just can't read them in this picture.  I start them in the basement where it is warmer, but then move them to the porch as soon as they get a couple of little leaves.  The cold temperatures on the porch seem to slow the rate of growth so the little plants don't get leggy.  At least that's my story and I am sticking to it.  There are two six packs of Giant Winter Spinach started.  Some time I am going to hit the 15 minute spinach window just right where it is not too early or too late to plant.  So far I am still waiting to hit that perfect time.  Spinach for me is a tough crop.  Maybe a couple of good days before Murphy appears in the garden to steal away the beautiful spinach before I get my merit badge.  On the lower shelf are a couple of flats of Walla Walla onions and red burgundy onions, both from seed.  This is the first year I have actually started onions by seed.  I think the packets were on clearance for 8 cents per pack at the Christmas Tree Shops.  A bargain if just a few come up.

      This container is filled with "round about" lettuce.  Round about in that Lou Gallo gave some extra Black Seeded Simpson plants to Bob King at the park.  Bob had a nice stand of lettuce in December before the predicted sub freezing weather, so I asked Bob if I could dig some for my cold frames.  Sure, no problem.  I actually intended to give them to daughters Barb and Em for their cold frames, but that was before the weather got "too".  Too cold, too wet, too snowy.  You got it, just plain "too" something or other.  They have sat quite happily on the porch for a month and a half.  I'm about ready to have a salad.  Barb and Em, it is much "too" snowy to worry about the lettuce now.  Maybe in a week or so.  Maybe not.  Maybe "too" bad. Next year there may be multiple tubs of lettuce on the porch.  For that matter, they could probably make it as mini cold frames, burying them a few inches in the garden, and just putting the lid on.

To the left is a Jade plant on the bottom of the picture, and artichokes at the top.  The Jade is a pretty tough customer, having survived on the porch over winter in prior years without heat or water.  Please don't send the plant police after me.  He revived just fine in the spring.  The artichokes though are trying my patience.  I have tried them several times.  I have given plants to other folks to try.  I WANT to taste a home grown artichoke.  They are supposed to, maybe are supposed to, or just maybe will over winter if you are very, very lucky.  I have not been so lucky.  They sulk, they rot, they die.  So this year a couple are being pampered on the porch.  And look great.  No problem, right?  Well maybe there is a problem.  I planted artichokes and a near relative called cardoon.  Labeled both, somehow lost the labels.  Does anyone on this side of the Atlantic even know what cardoon looks like?  Or how to cook it.  I have started both again from seed, and have a new labeling system.  If I don't lose the labels.  If the labels don't smudge.  If the birds don't take a liking to the labels.  If the fox babies don't like new shiny toys.  Cardoon anyone?
      Till next time, dreaming of spring  -  George