- Kale
- Radicchio
- Romaine
- Bok Choy
- Radishes
- Peas
- Spinach
- Mesclun
Or I could try some new stuff....
- Carrots
- Broccoli
- Cauliflower
- Brussels Sprouts
If I am going to go for a Fall harvest, maybe I will try some of the longer Days to Maturity. Things like Brussels Sprouts or Cauliflower take 60-90 days, so if I plant them in August, they should be ready to pick in October and November, when it's nice and chilly and they'll be happy. I am worried that they would not get enough sun right there... It's not as big of a deal as the tomatoes and stuff, but something that puts on as much stuff as a Brussels Sprout plant would need a lot of energy. Same with Cauliflower and Broccoli, those are basically large flowers, so they would need a lot of sun. Maybe Carrots. They grow in nice rows, and they're just roots, so the light limitation wouldn't be as bad, right? But carrots have to be direct-sown, so I'm worried the seeds would get eaten by bugs or birds.
I'm leaning towards more Radicchio. They're actually pretty nice looking plants. And they take 90 days to reach maturity, and definitely need to be harvested when it's cold. Same with Kale, although I'm honestly kind of over Kale as a food. So yeah, I think I will start some Radicchio seeds inside here, and then I'll transplant them in like, mid August, and then in late October I will hopefully have some Radicchio to eat. And yeah, I'll start some Kale. I'm going to do all those in the plastic water bottles. Actually, I also want to start some Cilantro, maybe I'll do that first. If I start Kale now, it will be ready to transplant in mid August, which is maybe too early? I mean, go ahead and start whatever you want. If it starts to grow too fast, that's not really a big deal, I can just keep potting up larger as they get root bound.
So how many should I start? I mean, I only did 6 Radicchio last spring, and they were nice and they do get pretty big.
Ok, I just read the Burpee blurb about Radicchio and it says "For midsummer plantings, cut off all the leaves above the crown in early fall. New growth in early fall produces small, cabbage-like heads." So that's what I need to do! That's easy! I can start them now, and transplant them out there in like, mid August. Then in mid September, I can cut them back! By then they should be strong enough in their root system to continue to grow. I guess I don't cut back all the leaves. Hopefully, the new growth in the fall will grow the stuff I want. How did I not pick up on this before? I should really learn how to read.
I'll start 2 six-packs of Radicchio this weekend. And I'll start 8 Cilantro in the water bottles. I've got Drake's cactus starting mix, which is basically the same thing. I guess I could mix it with peat moss, and perlite and compost to make it more like regular seed starting mix. I might also start the Kale. I'm going to do those in the water bottles as well, but I could probably get away with starting them in six-packs first, like I did originally. Maybe by the time their roots reach the bottom, I'll have more water bottles and I'll have transplanted the Cilantro.
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