Garlic

Posted on July 28, 2015 by Dave

Garlic

The king of alliums… GARLIC! I know a lot of folks who just won’t grow garlic because they say it is too invasive, and costs next to nothing at the store. Once you plant it you can’t get the garlic out of that spot, and it will spread, it’s cheap to buy, and… Whatever! I say garlic is one of those garden giants that you just can’t do without on the homestead. I’ve never had a problem harvesting every last bit of garlic from my plantings, and so long as you do that it just will not come back unless you plant it in that spot next year. As an aside, I did leave some puny heads in my garlic planting area last fall and it has come back with a vengeance this year. I left them there on purpose though, and hopefully the heads will size up and I can use them as seed stock, or most likely food this year(don’t want to propagate puny clove genetics don’t you know!). As for the cost, I think the garlic you get from the store is a pale comparison to what you’ll be able to grow for yourself, plus you’re not depending on someone else to supply your nutrition for you. Who wouldn’t pay a little more for a better product and peace of mind? Most of the varieties of garlic you get from the supermarket are some cultivar of California White, a softneck garlic that keeps and ships well. While this may be a recipe for commodity success, the flavor profiles pale in comparison to the many cultivars of garlic available to the homestead gardener. Garlic comes in three basic varieties with many specific cultivars available within each type. Those types are hardneck, softneck, and rocambole. Each has specific characteristics attributed to that type, but they are all easy to grow and delicious.

Growing garlic is a relatively simple affair: plant a clove in the ground early to late fall, let it overwinter, water through the growing season, and harvest late summer. Garlic is hardy and will tolerate a wide range of soil conditions, but to grow truly great garlic you should have loose soil with plenty of organic matter

Keep your garlic patch well mulched. They don't like a lot of competition, and the organic matter is a boon! — Keep your garlic patch well mulched. They don’t like a lot of competition, and the organic matter is a boon to production!

worked in. You’ll want to ease off on the watering towards the end of the season to help the skins toughen up to reduce damage during harvest, but for the most part there aren’t any real tricky aspects to growing garlic. It’s easy, tough, and prolific… who wouldn’t want to grow something like that?!?! There can be a bit of an art to getting consistent crops of beautiful garlic year after year, but if you’re just interested in growing and keeping garlic for your own use, then there’s not a whole lot to it. I highly recommend the book: Growing Great Garlic written by the folks at Fillaree Farms in North-Central Washington state. The author provides a ton of history, growing, and marketing information. It’s a quick read, is well written, and packed full of illustrations, and useful tips. It’s the best source of knowledge that I’ve found on garlic growing, seed saving, and production. If you’re seriously considering growing garlic on any sort of scale you should purchase and read this book a couple times before starting out.

Garlic is not only a tasty addition to your recipes, it is a powerful medicinal. Garlic has been shown to improve cardiovascular health, is anti-bacterial, and anti-viral. It can be used to create a natural insecticide by steeping a couple crushed cloves in warm water, adding a couple tbs. of cayenne pepper, a drop or two of dish soap, and away you go. I’ve gone from planting my garlic in a block to spreading it around on the perimeter of my permanent growing beds. Garlic acts as a natural pest and deer deterrent, so I hope by having this garlic blockade surrounding my mainline garden crops I can reduce pest pressure.

I grow mostly hardneck garlic varieties which produce a flowerhead called a scape. Many gardeners will cut the scape off claiming that it takes energy away from developing large heads of garlic. I’ve never taken the scapes from my garlic and haven’t noticed any ill affects. Now if you decide to cut back the scape, they can be used as a zesty addition to stir fry, used like a pungent green onion, or made into a pickle(which sounds fantastic by the way… maybe I will harvest some this year just for this!). The scape makes a flower that attracts beneficial insects like predatory wasps, and native pollinators. After the plant matures a small bulbil that resembles a tiny garlic clove is formed at the end of the scape. These can be planted and in a few years will produce a decent head of garlic. The bulbil can also be used like the immature scape in a stir fry, or in pickles. On some varieties along with the bulbil, you may get a true garlic seed. This seed is tiny like an onion seed.

There is a movement to encourage this seed production to help preserve genetic diversity in garlic. You see while there are many cultivars of garlic available, there is very little genetic diversity. The problem with this is that while garlic is

Scape flowers, producing bulbils and hopefully a couple seeds.

highly disease and pest resistant, if something does come along that really likes to kill garlic, there is a chance that it could kill all of the garlic everywhere. Think potato famine on this one. Vegetative clones like garlic and potatoes are genetically identical to their mother plant, and as such are potentially susceptible to widespread failure.

One of the great things about garlic is that once you plant and grow some you automatically have seed stock for next season. After you harvest and dry/cure your garlic crop select the best heads with the largest cloves to plant for next season. It’s really that simple! Set aside your best stock and replant it for next year. Just remember the old adage Big Cloves Make Big Heads, and you will be set. I am currently growing the fourth generation of a Hardy German White garlic at our place, am on my second generation of several other cultivars, and just added a couple more to the mix last fall. As you can tell I really enjoy growing my own garlic! It’s fun and rewarding… try it I think you’ll really come to appreciate this Homestead Hero!

Our hero! Easy, prolific, and multi-talented! All hail the king...GARLIC! — Our hero! Easy, prolific, and multi-talented! All hail the king…GARLIC

Posted on July 10, 2015July 10, 2015 by Dave

Rhubarb

Rhubarb

Aside from asparagus, rhubarb is probably one of the most easily recognizable perennials on the homestead. This hardy garden standout is easily propagated, and will provide abundant harvest for years to come.

Propagating rhubarb is most commonly done through root division or crown cuttings. Less frequent is propagation through seed. I’ve planted both purchased crowns and splits from a friend. This method is easy and reliable… you know exactly what you are getting, a clone of the mother plant. Crowns should be separated from the mother plant periodically to ensure plant vitality. Growing rhubarb from seed can be a little more risky as many varieties now days are hybrids so you don’t know if you will end up with often times. I grew a batch of rhubarb from seed this season, and so far I’m pretty happy with the results. They are tiny versions of a full sized rhubarb, and have proven to be very hardy enduring marauding mice, and marble sized hail. Seed germination rates were in the 90%+ range as well. Cultivation is pretty simple as well. The plants prefer rich soil, plenty of nitrogen and organic matter, and thrive in cooler areas.

Uses range from the classic pie filling, either straight or mixed with strawberries. I like to plant rhubarb along with new trees. The large leaves shade the soil holding moisture in the root zone of the tree, and helping to keep grass at bay. Rhubarb is also a fine plant for chop and drop mulching by virtue of the incredible vegetative growth, especially in a mature plant. I’ve planted a dozen or so rhubarb crowns specifically for this purpose.

Most rhubarb is hardy to at least USDA zone 3 and generally has a useful life of 15 or more years. The edible portion of the plant is the meaty stalk, along with the flower buds. The leaves should not be eaten because of the high levels of oxalic acid. The stalks contain a bit as well so it would behoove you to not eat rhubarb on a daily basis. Large amounts of sugar are generally called for in most recipes to alleviate the bitterness inherent in the plant. Rhubarb is high in Magnesium, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Calcium, Potassium and Manganese.

With so many great uses and benefits it’s no wonder Rhubarb is so widely cultivated. Rhubarb another Homestead Hero!

Posted on June 6, 2015June 6, 2015 by Dave

Stinging Nettle

Stinging Nettles

The oft maligned stinging nettle is considered by many to be a weed at best. Something to be relegated to those wild parts of the homestead where it can’t cause any trouble, where you won’t have to see it or think about it. Not so in my garden! We embrace this dreaded weed as an ally in nutrition and fertility.

Nettles growing in the garden — Stinging Nettle in my Garden

I won’t go so far as to claim that I intentionally planted nettle in my garden, but when I brought in soil for my hugelkulture mounds there just so happened to be some in there. When I saw them start to come up I was quite excited, I knew what these little beauties could contribute to both my garden and my plate!

Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica) is a herbaceous perennial native to North America (and most of the world). To say that it is prolific would be an understatement, and as a “weed” they require little to no care. Nettles do get their “sting” from small hair like fibers on the leaf surface that have a reservoir of an irritating chemical attached. Caution should be taken not to contact these fibers to avoid the sting. The major use of nettles in my garden area is as a cut and come again, chop and drop mulch plant, or as an additive to the compost heap. The nettle provides a high nitrogen, nutrient dense boost to the soil or compost pile, and it keeps coming back for more (so long as you don’t over harvest). I prefer to grow my fertility where I need it, not importing it from off farm, or even twenty yards away… I guess I’m just lazy that way!

Stinging Nettles — Our Hero… the humble stinging nettle!

Nettles provide more than just food for the soil though, they provide sustenance for the farmer as well. The nutrient profile of this Homestead Hero quite literally blows nearly every other garden green out of the water. Nettles are high in protein and fiber, and low in calories. They are also an excellent source of both vitamin A and Calcium. Some sources list 42% of your daily calcium requirement from one cup of nettles. Try to get that from your spinach patch! Speaking of spinach, our nettles have been up and growing for three weeks while the earliest spinach in the garden is just barely getting its first set of true leaves. Now that is what I call early production.

The stinging nettle is considered by many to be the first green of spring. Around here they start coming on before even the daffodils make an appearance. With such early growth it seems like a shame to neglect this spring tonic for fear of the “sting”. Once cooked or dried the chemicals that make the stinging nettle sting are neutralized. Nettles can be used like cooked spinach or chard in the kitchen. You can steam or saute them, cook them with eggs, or use them in soups or stews. The taste is mild and the nutritional boost is significant. Either fresh or dried nettles make a fine tea as well. I use the leaves straight, mixed with green tea, or as an adjunct to my kombucha ferment. Nettle tea is said to help with seasonal allergies. I’ve notice a somewhat drying effect in my sinuses when I drink the tea, so I think this very well may be true.

Springtime Nettles — Nettles are one of the early spring champions on the homestead!

We wild craft most of the nettles that we use for food around here. They are most commonly found in moist areas with rich soil. It’s fun to go out with a paper bag and some scissors to search for nettles in the wild. You do want to make sure to wear some gloves and a long sleeved shirt… it just makes things go a lot faster when you are harvesting. That being said I usually conduct myself at a much more leisurely pace in the garden so I don’t bother with all of the precautions there. With care you can easily avoid the sting and I’ve even seen video of folks eating raw nettles with their bare hands… it can be done!

To recap: Stinging nettles are a great mulch plant, and compost activator. They are an early arriving nutritional powerhouse with medicinal value. Nettles grow in abundance and are perennial. They have a long harvest season, and… did I mention that dried nettles make a great fodder feed for livestock?!? I need to stop now because I could literally go on for pages about the different uses of the mighty stinging nettle, but I digress!

Posted on June 2, 2015 by Dave

Comfrey

Comfrey, Queen of the Homestead Garden!

Comfrey is a utilitarian crop on the homestead. We use it in companion planting as a support species, as a fodder crop to feed the chickens, hogs, and sheep, and as a powerful herbal remedy. Comfrey is a hardy perennial that is easily propagated. This multi-function plant is a champion on our homestead! Permaculturist celebrate comfrey for its utility on the farm, being a farm function stacking rockstar.

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEHc_UzeT9w]

Growing comfrey is a pretty strait forward affair. Comfrey likes rich soil that is well tilled with plenty of nitrogen. Many folks

Comfrey propagation — Root cuttings for comfrey propagation

describe it as a nitrogen pig, but truth be told comfrey will tolerate a wide range of soils. Like I said it is a hardy fast growing plant. You can put a root cutting half the size of your pinky finger in the ground and reasonably expect to have a thriving plant growing in that spot within a couple weeks. Comfrey sets a pretty deep tap root so it will not fair well in a pot. That being said I plant cuttings and crowns in large pots specifically to propagate more root cuttings. They only spend a couple months in the pots before I cut them back and take cuttings from the roots. If it isn’t clear yet root cuttings is the easiest and most effective means of propagation.

Simply planting comfrey next to your trees or shrubs has been proven to increase the nutrient levels of the soil. To get the quickest bang for your buck though you can make a rich comfrey tea as a natural fertilizer. You could simply cut the leaves off the plant about two inches above ground level and layer them on the ground as a mulch if you don’t want to go through the trouble of brewing the tea. The leaves break down quickly and enrich the surrounding soil. You can add the leaves to your compost pile to increase bacterial activity and give your compost a jump start in decomposition as well. Comfrey is a powerful ally in the quest to increase garden fertility.

In the herbal remedy pantry comfrey is said to be useful in treating ailments from bronchial problems, broken bones, sprains, arthritis, gastric and varicose ulcers, severe burns, acne and other skin ailments. Comfrey is most often used topically now days as a poultice for relief of external discomfort. Some studies have shown comfrey to be harmful if consumed at extreme levels. Comfrey can be brewed into a tea for human consumption, and is said to have healthful benefits. An herbal infusion of comfrey leaves and olive oil is a powerful healing addition to homemade skin salves and creams.

Chickens love comfrey, both for the leaves and insects they harbor.

Many livestock absolutely love to eat comfrey leaves. Comfrey contains in the neighborhood of 20% protein and a variety of trace minerals. Harvesting the leaves and feeding as a supplement to your normal rations is an effective way to reduce feed bills. Comfrey can be harvested and dried, then crumbled up and added to winter feed as well. Pigs, chickens, cattle, sheep, and goats all benefit from the added boost comfrey provides to their diet. Like all things comfrey should be fed in

Goats love comfrey to, but too much of a good thing could be bad!

moderation. A diet consisting of up to 20% comfrey has been shown to increase healthy weight gain in most livestock. Over 40% can prove to be toxic in some species, so don’t go overboard with it.

With so many uses on the homestead it is easy to see why comfrey is such an important addition to the plant line up. I’ve planted over fifty root cuttings on our farm this year alone. I can’t wait to start reaping the benefits of this homestead hero! Comfrey is truly a plant of promise and no homestead is complete without it!

Posted on June 1, 2015June 1, 2015 by Dave

Egyptian Walking Onion

Egyptian Walking Onions

Whether you call them walking onions, forever onions, tree onions, egyptian walking onions, or winter onions: these perennial alliums (latin name for onion family) are a winner in the homestead garden! They can provide delicious fresh onion flavor for whatever your recipes call for any time of the year, as long as the ground isn’t frozen.

The strange yet wonderful walking onion!

Many people consider the flavor of this relatively mild onion preferable to the bite of more strongly flavored traditional onion types. Walking onions can be used raw or cooked in most any recipe, and even make great pickles when used whole. You can get a triple harvest off of these prolific producers! Early on you can harvest the greens as a scallion. They produce a copious top-set of bulbils (like garlic only larger), or you can divide the bulbs in the ground to harvest a small onion(usually between a ping-pong and racquet ball sized bulb). If you separate the cluster of onions in the ground be sure to plant one back to keep the harvest going! They are perennial as long as you leave at least one bulb behind.

You can plant the bulbs or bulbils any time of the year as long as the ground isn’t frozen. Planting is simple you just bury them in the ground one to two inches deep, water them in, and mulch. They will propagate themselves pretty prolifically if you leave them to their own devices. The bulbs will multiply similar to a daffodil or iris bulb cluster.

Topset Walking Onion Bulbils. — Top-set of Walking Onion Bulbils.

The top-set will nod over onto the ground as the plant matures in the fall, and anywhere the bulbils contact the ground they will start a new plant. This is how the got the name walking onion, they will literally walk their way across your garden patch if you let them. Each bulbil will start to make its own cluster of bulbs, though you won’t get a sizable harvest for a couple of years planting this way. The bulbils are usually nickel sized or smaller so they take some time to get up to full size. Planting the bulbils this way you can grow and harvest them as an annual for scallions if you wish. Or if you snatch the top-set before it gets to the ground they make a fine pickle or can be added to stir fry whole.

I planted my bulbils last fall, and they are looking pretty good this spring. They even beat the garlic out of the ground, and that is saying something!

My egyptian walking onions going strong this spring, growing on a hugelkultur mound.

I would say it was even money on the daffodils, nettles, and walking onions on which one emerged first. I could harvest some now for scallions, but I want to really let these guys get some good growth and propagate them latter on. I got my initial seed stock through a seed exchange in the mail. It’s amazing the variety of plants you can get from folks if you just ask. I was able to source the walking onions, comfrey, nasturtium, burdock, blackberry, and mulberry cuttings all from the community at the forums on Permies.com. But I digress, this post is about the walking onions not the cool folks at Permies.

The egyptian walking onion is said to be a hybrid of a bunching onion and a bulb onion. If this is the case then it should be possible to breed your own unique variety specific to your locale. I’m going to try interplanting perennial Welsh Bunching onions alongside some red onions that I’ve got started, in hopes of cross pollination, and letting some go to seed. I figure it’s worth a try anyway. All walking onions that I am aware of are sterile clones of the mother plant. They produce no viable seed and are propagated via the methods mentioned above. Clones are convenient, but they pose some potential problems in that they may have no resistance to a specific disease or pest. If something comes along that really likes your plant there will be no good way of stopping it from being wiped out. Lack of genetic diversity in any population is a problem.

The egyptian walking onion, tree onion, forever onion, or just plain walking onion, whatever you want to call it, is an early prolific producer in the homestead garden. I believe this rare and almost forgotten heirloom vegetable deserves a place of honor in any garden.

Egyptian Walking Onion, Homestead Hero! — Egyptian Walking Onion

Posted on May 14, 2015May 31, 2015 by Dave

Homestead Horticulture

Welcome to homestead horticulture, your one stop shop for temperate climate homestead and permaculture plant resources. Everything we review here and write up is tested and evaluated here on our homestead in North Idaho. This is my pledge to you. I will not recommend anything here that I have no real world experience working with. Everything you find on this site will be proven in the field on a temperate climate homestead.