It’s time for Harvest Monday, where we celebrate all things harvest related. It was a light harvest week here. I cut a couple of heads of Point One cabbage Monday before the rain turned to snow. They weren’t the biggest, but still big enough to eat. I cooked one up as a side dish, sauteed with a bit of garlic added.
Point One cabbage
Then an arctic blast of cold air came, bringing ice and snow along with record cold temperatures. The lows got down to 6°F on Tuesday and Wednesday morning, and both the garden and greenhouse were quite thoroughly frozen. Given the forecast I did have the space heater going inside the greenhouse to help out a bit. Everything in there survived the cold just fine.
first snow on the new greenhouse
And the winter greens planted outside are pretty hardy too, and I was able to make a cutting of kale after the thaw came later in the week. This is mostly White Russian with a little Wild Garden Mix in there also.
hardy kale
I took some of the collard green I harvested earlier and used them to make a pot of soup in the slow cooker. The collards were the main ingredient, along with aromatic vegetables and a few waxy potatoes I got from the grocery. This was inspired by Vivian Howard’s Healthy Soup in her book Deep Run Roots. The slow cooked collards turned out incredibly soft and tender. This may be my new favorite thing! This would also work with kale or any other sturdy greens, but at the moment we still have quite a bit of collards and it was a tasty way to use them. I used homemade chicken broth for this batch with a little chicken for protein but I think any broth would work. Lentils or beans would also make a nice addition for a vegetarian version.
collard soup
Harvest Monday is a day to show off your harvests, how you are saving your harvest, or how you are using your harvest. If you have a harvest you want to share, add your name and blog link to Mr Linky below. And be sure and check out what everyone is harvesting!
Hi Dave, until I started gardening and in particular making youtube videos that reached a global audience, I didn’t realise just how simillar and then different climate was around the world by the season. Some times of year your garden seems just like mine, then it’s much warmer and now it’s much colder. I don’t think we’ve ever been down as low as 6f here, we are about to have a -5c night and that’s cold for autumn! Are you living off your store now, or do you have to buy veg as well?
We do buy fruits and veggies most of the year. I’m no where near completely self-sufficient, though I am in certain veggies.
Oh my, you are already getting arctic blasts! The cold should make those greens extra tasty. This fall has been another unusual (new normal?) one here with absolutely zero rain so far and mostly warmer than “normal” temperatures. I’ve been spending much less time in my garden than I used to, it’s been nice to take something of a break from it.
I thought it was cold here but nothing like your temperature. That soup looks to be just what is needed. We didn’t go to the allotment last week so no harvest to report
One of the most beautiful sights of all….a sturdy working greenhouse in the snow!!! Love seeing that, Dave! 🙂
Size doesn’t matter -your Point One cabbage is still big enough eat. Your greens are marvellous. I always admire how free they are from the voracious appetite of pests!
Hello , I just popped over from Sue Garrett’s blog ! 🙂 brrrr snow already ! What do you grow in your greenhouse ? mmmmm that hot steaming soup does look rather good ! 🙂
In winter I’m growing hardy greens like kale, purple sprouting broccoli, lettuce, mizuna and arugula in there. In the hot summer months I grow cucumbers.