Kohlrabi is tasty, nutritious, and easy to grow, but it is definitely an odd member of the vegetable kingdom. For most vegetables we eat the leaves (lettuce, spinach, and kale), the flower buds (artichokes, broccoli, cauliflower), the fruit (squash, tomatoes, eggplant), or the roots (carrots, turnips, beets). Not so with Kohlrabi. Those crisp, sweet, knobby kohlrabies only resemble roots. They are really swollen above ground stems, and that makes them fairly unique among the vegetables we eat.
This versatile vegetable is delicious grated into coleslaw or salad, cut into sticks for dipping in ranch, cubed in soups and casseroles, or simple quartered and steamed. Its taste resembles a mild, sweet, crisp cabbage. It is interesting enough to serve on its own, and subtle enough to mix with other bold or quiet vegetables. While the swollen stems –are the part most often eaten, the leaves are also tasty in soups or stir fries.
Kohlrabi is great news for dieters. Low in carbs, high in fiber, and no fat or cholesterol gives it a place in almost any diet you could possibly be on. It is also a good source of Thiamin, Folate, Magnesium and Phosphorus, and a very good source for Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, Potassium, Copper, and Manganese. And a full cup only has 36 calories! Nutritious, tasty, and safe for most diets, who wouldn’t want to grow some of this unusual vegetable for themselves?
This Northern European vegetable was hand selected back in the 1600’s from a certain strain of cabbage that had swollen stems. It is still very popular in Germany, Hungary, and Russia, but around here the response is most commonly, “What’s that?” When you get some going in your garden you simply say: “It is the best kept weight loss secret to come along in four centuries. If you help me weed I just might have a few to share with you.”
Kohlrabi is easy to grow, and will produce nice “bulbs” (or swollen stems) from seed planted either in spring or fall. For a fall crop seeds can be started in six packs right now, as long as you keep them in a cool bright window, or on a shady porch. Young seedlings need protection from the scorching heat. But once they are big enough to plant out in the garden they should do fine, as long as they can get watered regularly. You can also wait and plant Kohlrabi out doors directly in the garden once the weather cools down. It normally takes about 3 months from seed until you can start pulling plants for the table. But winter grown Kohlrabi often takes longer to mature. Once you have Golf ball sized “bulbs” you will want to start harvesting. Except for the varieties that are bred to be gigantic, those over hard ball size will need to be peeled. And once that skin starts toughening up, the peeling is not so easy.
Beauty is only skin deep, they say, and that may be true for Kohlrabi too. You can order seeds for green, white, and purple varieties, in addition to the gigantic ones already mentioned. But the color affects the skin only. All kohlrabi is light ivory-green, crisp, sweet, and delicious on the inside. However, the variety in skin color does liven up the salad and the garden.
Kohlrabi suffers from the same pests as its close relatives, cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower. Those being our very favorites - cabbage worms and aphids. The best part about growing kohlrabi in the winter, is that once the weather cools down and the storms set in, the pest damage comes to a screeching halt. (Except for the dang slugs. But if you catch them snacking on your plants you can easily catch them and trap them in a zip lock bag. We will have more on slugs in a future column.) Mean while you can hand pick those green cabbage worms whenever you see that they have been munching holes in your kohlrabi leaves.
Kohlrabi does not need any special care, and will thrive in most ordinary garden soil. The only real trick to fall gardening is to choose or create a space that is not too hot during the initial growing period, but that will get plenty of sun (if we get any) over the winter. A spot shaded by deciduous trees for at least part of the day is ideal. However, use of row covers and shade cloth also works well. Not only do the row covers and shade cloth cool your plantings down, they also help eliminate pests, so that is a bonus. Another consideration for fall and winter gardens is drainage. My soil resembles a wet squishy sponge during the winter. If yours does too, a raised bed is ideal. In a raised bed you can hand build your soil, provide drainage, and protection from gophers too. Not that gophers have ever bothered my kohlrabi, but they might want yours.
Whether you plant in raised beds or in the ground, don’t forget to mulch. Mulch reduces soil temperature, helps the soil retain moisture and nutrients and feeds those oh so important earthworms and soil micro-organisms. All these factors will help your kohlrabi to get established and thrive. Once the weather cools and the rains begin the mulch isn’t nearly as important. But late summer and early fall mulch will give your plants a good start. Believe me, along about December or January you might just be grateful that the best kept weight loss secret in four centuries is growing right out in your garden, especially since it taste so good.
If you can’t find seeds at your local nursery or in your favorite catalog, here’s a great spot to order on-line or by mail. Reimer Seeds, PO Box 236, Mount Holly, NC 28120-0236, Fax: 704-644-3762 , http://www.ReimerSeeds.com They carry some nice purple, green and white kohlrabi, as well as a couple of the gigantic types.
* If you missed the articles on mulch (Nurture your Soil), earthworms, aphids, or gophers visit: http://harvestsgardeningsecrets.blogspot.com Use the search function on the page to pull up the archived articles. (If you have trouble finding any of the articles, let me know and I will find you a link.)
Next time, by special request, we will be featuring a number of ways to use all that summer squash you’ve been growing. Until then you can probably find me out in the garden, Digging the Dirt.
Copyright 2006 Harvest McCampbell, from my column "Digging the Dirt," published in The Hoopa Valley People Newspaper, August 8, 2006. Posted here with permission.
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Crimson Clover
Trifolium incarnatum (Fabaceae)
Crimson clover is a wonderfully versatile plant. It is grown for hay, silage, and pasture for animals; and as a winter cover crop for orchards and fallow fields. Early spring it graces road sides and pastures as a brilliant flame of a wildflower. And it adapts readily to the garden as a nitrogen fixer, a source of organic matter, and as a showy quick fill flower. Crimson clover is also much loved by bee keepers as it provides superior nectar that makes great tasting honey. And bees love it. If you grow fruit or vegetables that depend on insect pollination, successive plantings of Crimson clover will keep the little buzzing darlings visiting your yard or orchard. Crimson clover also has a nostalgic appeal. Tommy James and the Shondells made Crimson Clover famous with their 1968 song, “Crimson and Clover.”
Crimson clover is not too picky about how much sun it gets, but to be happy it does need at least 4 hours a day. It is not picky about soil either, in fact, it is often grown to improve poor soils. Crimson clover can be broadcast over fallow fields or garden beds in the fall and allowed to grow through the winter. Turning it under in spring will improve your soil for next summers garden or field crops. And if you can wait until it flowers before you turn it under, oh what a lovely show you will have.
In my yard and garden I primarily use Crimson clover as a filler flower in my borders and beds. It grows quickly, produces awesome flowers, and fixes nitrogen while it is making me smile. And nothing much could be easier. I purchase a quarter pound of seed at a time. (It’s less than a dollar at most feed stores.) And I simply broadcast the seed into empty spots in my borders and beds. Crimson Clover happily inter-grows with flowers, perennials, and vegetables. If it begins crowding it’s neighbors it is easy to pull or cut, and it makes an excellent addition to compost or mulch. (Crimson clover has a reputation for being invasive, however I have seen absolutely no sign of self sowing or spreading in my yard.) Warm weather sowings will require regular watering to get established, and will begin producing flowers in 45 to 60 days. Winter sowings won’t flower until early spring, but they require no irrigation or other fussing. Noting much could be easier. In the winter I even toss the seeds into bare spots in the lawn. Crimson clover will take some mowing, and I am rewarded with red blossoms amidst the grass, English daisies and white clover in the early spring.
There are more garden worthy clovers you can grow from seed, and some specialty ornamental clovers that you must seek out as nursery plants. First, here are the ones that you can grow from seed:
White Clover, Trifolium repens, is grown as a perennial used for orchard and garden ground cover, animal forage, winter cover, and as a nitrogen fixer and a source of organic matter. It spreads by runners and seeds. It can compete with Bermuda grass and win! Most of my side garden is inter-planted with white clover and it makes an excellent companion to my squash, tomatoes, and other plants. It improves the soil, provides good quality organic matter; acts as a living mulch - retaining moisture and keeping the soil cool in summer. During the winter the roots and leafy cover prevent the rain from compacting and eroding the soil. White clover is great for gardens, and it is edible and medicinal too. The flowers and leaves can be eaten raw or cooked. Consider adding them to soups, salads, or summer time sun-tea. There are several varieties of White Clover, ask at your local farm supply, nursery, or feed store to find which one is best suited for your needs and our site.
Red clover, Trifolium pratense, sports classic clover blooms in shades of pink and rose. These attractive perennial plants are grown for pasture, hay, as nitrogen fixing cover crops and as medicinal herbs. You can buy dried Red Clover flowers at most herb shops, they make a pleasant healthful tea. Or you can grow your own as easily as any other clovers. They need a bit of room to spread out. And they are happy in sun or part shade. There are also several varieties of Red Clover available, with a range of plant sizes and bloom colors.
Pink Clover, Trifolium rubens, is primarily an ornamental perennial. It grows from 18 to 24 inches tall and sports mauve to pink flowers similar to Crimson Clover. They look great in arrangements or in the flower bed.
Here are a couple of specialty ornamental clovers that must be sought out at the nursery:
Dark Dancer features deep purple leaflets edged in bright green. Instead of the normal three leaflets this lucky little guy often sports four, and is commonly sold as a Shamrock around St. Patrick’s Day.
Dragons Blood Clover is another little ground cover. This one has three leaflets each marked in cream, green, and red. It makes a great accent for a taller potted plant or a shady nook in the garden.
Sources:
If you can’t find the clovers your heart desires at local nurseries, feed stores, or farm supplies, you can order by mail, phone, or Internet:
Bountiful Gardens has seed for red, white, and crimson clovers. (707) 459-6410 http://BountifulGardens.org
Pink clover plants are carried by Digging Dog Nursery (707) 937-1130 http://www.diggingdog.com/ and the seeds can be ordered from: http://www.thompson-morgan.com
Dark Dancer and Dragons Blood clovers can be found at: Big Dipper Farm, (360) 886-8133 http://www.bigdipperfarm.com/
Crimson Clover Photos are available on line:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/wildseed/24/24.8.html
http://www.oregonclover.org/crimsonclover.html
Stay Tuned, next time we will be getting ready to grow some Kohlrabi, a very tasty treat. Meanwhile, when I am not hiding from the heat at the creek, you can find me out in the garden, Digging the Dirt.
Copyright 2006 Harvest McCampbell, from my column "Digging the Dirt," published in The Hoopa Valley People Newspaper, August 2, 2006. Posted here with permission.
Crimson clover is a wonderfully versatile plant. It is grown for hay, silage, and pasture for animals; and as a winter cover crop for orchards and fallow fields. Early spring it graces road sides and pastures as a brilliant flame of a wildflower. And it adapts readily to the garden as a nitrogen fixer, a source of organic matter, and as a showy quick fill flower. Crimson clover is also much loved by bee keepers as it provides superior nectar that makes great tasting honey. And bees love it. If you grow fruit or vegetables that depend on insect pollination, successive plantings of Crimson clover will keep the little buzzing darlings visiting your yard or orchard. Crimson clover also has a nostalgic appeal. Tommy James and the Shondells made Crimson Clover famous with their 1968 song, “Crimson and Clover.”
Crimson clover is not too picky about how much sun it gets, but to be happy it does need at least 4 hours a day. It is not picky about soil either, in fact, it is often grown to improve poor soils. Crimson clover can be broadcast over fallow fields or garden beds in the fall and allowed to grow through the winter. Turning it under in spring will improve your soil for next summers garden or field crops. And if you can wait until it flowers before you turn it under, oh what a lovely show you will have.
In my yard and garden I primarily use Crimson clover as a filler flower in my borders and beds. It grows quickly, produces awesome flowers, and fixes nitrogen while it is making me smile. And nothing much could be easier. I purchase a quarter pound of seed at a time. (It’s less than a dollar at most feed stores.) And I simply broadcast the seed into empty spots in my borders and beds. Crimson Clover happily inter-grows with flowers, perennials, and vegetables. If it begins crowding it’s neighbors it is easy to pull or cut, and it makes an excellent addition to compost or mulch. (Crimson clover has a reputation for being invasive, however I have seen absolutely no sign of self sowing or spreading in my yard.) Warm weather sowings will require regular watering to get established, and will begin producing flowers in 45 to 60 days. Winter sowings won’t flower until early spring, but they require no irrigation or other fussing. Noting much could be easier. In the winter I even toss the seeds into bare spots in the lawn. Crimson clover will take some mowing, and I am rewarded with red blossoms amidst the grass, English daisies and white clover in the early spring.
There are more garden worthy clovers you can grow from seed, and some specialty ornamental clovers that you must seek out as nursery plants. First, here are the ones that you can grow from seed:
White Clover, Trifolium repens, is grown as a perennial used for orchard and garden ground cover, animal forage, winter cover, and as a nitrogen fixer and a source of organic matter. It spreads by runners and seeds. It can compete with Bermuda grass and win! Most of my side garden is inter-planted with white clover and it makes an excellent companion to my squash, tomatoes, and other plants. It improves the soil, provides good quality organic matter; acts as a living mulch - retaining moisture and keeping the soil cool in summer. During the winter the roots and leafy cover prevent the rain from compacting and eroding the soil. White clover is great for gardens, and it is edible and medicinal too. The flowers and leaves can be eaten raw or cooked. Consider adding them to soups, salads, or summer time sun-tea. There are several varieties of White Clover, ask at your local farm supply, nursery, or feed store to find which one is best suited for your needs and our site.
Red clover, Trifolium pratense, sports classic clover blooms in shades of pink and rose. These attractive perennial plants are grown for pasture, hay, as nitrogen fixing cover crops and as medicinal herbs. You can buy dried Red Clover flowers at most herb shops, they make a pleasant healthful tea. Or you can grow your own as easily as any other clovers. They need a bit of room to spread out. And they are happy in sun or part shade. There are also several varieties of Red Clover available, with a range of plant sizes and bloom colors.
Pink Clover, Trifolium rubens, is primarily an ornamental perennial. It grows from 18 to 24 inches tall and sports mauve to pink flowers similar to Crimson Clover. They look great in arrangements or in the flower bed.
Here are a couple of specialty ornamental clovers that must be sought out at the nursery:
Dark Dancer features deep purple leaflets edged in bright green. Instead of the normal three leaflets this lucky little guy often sports four, and is commonly sold as a Shamrock around St. Patrick’s Day.
Dragons Blood Clover is another little ground cover. This one has three leaflets each marked in cream, green, and red. It makes a great accent for a taller potted plant or a shady nook in the garden.
Sources:
If you can’t find the clovers your heart desires at local nurseries, feed stores, or farm supplies, you can order by mail, phone, or Internet:
Bountiful Gardens has seed for red, white, and crimson clovers. (707) 459-6410 http://BountifulGardens.org
Pink clover plants are carried by Digging Dog Nursery (707) 937-1130 http://www.diggingdog.com/ and the seeds can be ordered from: http://www.thompson-morgan.com
Dark Dancer and Dragons Blood clovers can be found at: Big Dipper Farm, (360) 886-8133 http://www.bigdipperfarm.com/
Crimson Clover Photos are available on line:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/wildseed/24/24.8.html
http://www.oregonclover.org/crimsonclover.html
Stay Tuned, next time we will be getting ready to grow some Kohlrabi, a very tasty treat. Meanwhile, when I am not hiding from the heat at the creek, you can find me out in the garden, Digging the Dirt.
Copyright 2006 Harvest McCampbell, from my column "Digging the Dirt," published in The Hoopa Valley People Newspaper, August 2, 2006. Posted here with permission.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Chive Flavor, Chive Flare
This old fashioned garden and kitchen standby has found new life in today’s up scale cuisines. You know the food I am talking about. When you look at the photos in elegant magazines, or when it is presented to you in fancy restaurants you are confronted with something that looks more like art then something to eat. All those tiny colorful leaves, strange shaped and hued tomatoes, spikes, weaves, bundles and ties. And the price tag is likely to give you indigestion.
Chives are much esteemed in the new cuisine. Mature chive plants provide tasty long flexible narrow leaves. When slightly wilted they make perfect edible ties for lettuce or cabbage rolls and for weaving an edible mat or basket. When kept cool and crisp, they can add spiky sculptural appeal to savory dishes that include a thick sauce or a dab of sour cream to hold them in place. (And a dab is probably all you will get. This up scale cuisine tends to be heavy on presentation and low on calories.)If this all sounds like food from another planet, be sure to check out Bon Appetit, Gourmet, and Saveur magazines next time you are near a well stocked magazine rack. It is a rare day that you can thumb through an issue of any gourmet cooking magazine with out finding a recipe that showcases chive flare or flavor.
And chives are so easy to grow! While they are happiest in the ground, growing in at least part sun, they can be coaxed to make their homes in containers. They will grow in sunny windows, on porches, in full sun or part shade, and they can take some drought stress once established.
There are a number of varieties of chives available, from very fine leaved to the larger broader varieties. You can also find garlic chives in two different sizes, as well as a close chive relative called Chinese Leek Flower that I am dying to try. (It has small edible flower buds long narrow leaves.) Chives can be started any time of year, from seed or from young plants often available at nurseries. Plants started or purchased during the winter will need to be kept in a sunny window until spring. (Chives grown outside will normally go dormant in the winter, except in the very mildest of climates.)
Chives grown from seed are best started in a pot or other well drained container. The tiny seedlings resemble thin blades of grass and are easy to lose track of in the garden. Chives grow very slowly from seed. It may be a year or more before they have grown enough to withstand cutting for kitchen use. If you are impatient seek out plants at local nurseries. If you can find them in gallon sized containers, you can begin cutting your chives almost immediately.
Any ordinary garden soil will suit chives just fine. If you like the sharp tang of a spicy onion, hold back on the soil amendments, fertilizer, and be careful not to over water. For the strongest flavor chives need a lean soil and a bit of drought stress. Make sure the plants are well established before you experiment with holding back on the water. And keep a good eye on them, so they don’t actually wilt. If on the other hand you would prefer mild tasting extra large chives, grow them in rich well amended soil (add plenty of organic matter) and keep the soil evenly moist (but not wet).
Established chive plants are as ornamental as they are tasty. In early to mid spring they are festooned with cheerfully purple flowers that can be used in salads or even bouquets – if you don’t mind the scent of onions. The garlic flavored chives are not quite as ornamental, but their white flowers, which appear in mid to late summer, can be snipped and added to salad or floated on the top of hot or cold soups. Once they are done flowering you can collect the mature seed heads for dry arrangements, or to start new plants to share with your friends. Chive plants make a tidy spiky statement in the garden. It doesn’t hurt to have a few patches of chives. That way if you enjoy the flavor you can cut from those tucked into an herb bed or the vegetable garden while others are left to beautify the flower border.
In the kitchen, I must admit, I am a bit old fashioned when it comes to using chives. I like to dice them up with a sharp knife, much like the dehydrated chives you buy off the spice rack. However, fresh from the garden they are really far superior. Fresh chives are great in anything that cooks fairly quickly, such as egg dishes, white fish, canned or frozen veggies, stews, or soups. If you like the taste of onions and garlic you will also enjoy them raw - tossed into green salads, mixed up with tuna or salmon for sandwiches, as a garnish for deviled eggs, potatoe and macaroni salad, and casseroles. As far as I am concerned, chives are great in just about any savory dish. When you want a little flavor, a little flare - not much beats garden fresh chives.
If you can’t find the chives your heart most desires at your local nursery, check out:
http://www.evergreenseeds.com/ They have the Chinese Leek Flowers, as well as two other varieties of garlic of Chinese chives. They are primarily an Internet business. (I have purchased lots of seed from them with no problem.) However you can also contact them at: Evergreen Y.H. Enterprises, P.O. Box 17538, Anaheim, CA 92817
http://www.Johnnyseeds.com They have chives in three different sizes, as well as two different types of garlic chives. You can also call to request a catalog (877) 564-6697. You will be glad you did.
Stay tuned, next time we will be taking a look at Crimson Clovers’ lovely flowers - made famous by that old tune . . . Until then, you can probably find me out in the garden, Digging the Dirt.
Copyright 2006 Harvest McCampbell, from my column "Digging the Dirt," published in The Hoopa Valley People Newspaper, July 25, 2006. Posted here with permission.
Added a photo on 11.13.16. Text and photo copyright 2016, Harvest McCampbell. Please feel free to share using the buttons below. All other rights reserved.
More herb articles:
Basil
Cilantro
Fennel
Parsley
Sweet Cecily will be covered before you know it, as well as lots of veggies, flowers and other good stuff for the garden.
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