Winter harvest, waiting for spring

In the name of Allah most gracious most merciful.

7 July 2014.
Alhamduliaah, the day greets us resplendid. The rains were leashed to day and inshaAllah maybe a few more days of sun. There is a chill to the bone though as the temperature plummets; alas many people have been affected with sore throats and heavy chests. It is so cold here we even make salaah on blankets and with blankets on.

new veggie beds

I refused to be deterred by the cold this morning and rebelliously booted up and buttoned up and set out to see how the plants were doing. The sun was out and welcoming - ‘n bietjie Vitamin D goes a long way. Abubakr had made some new beds to plant in, and I could not wait to get my hands in it.  But first throwing open every window; a load of washing on the line and a brisk walk around. I peep into the shed and to my surprise the lavender cuttings are green and lavish. All the rambling rose cuttings and Virginia creepers are not just rooting but also develop new leaves, way to go Abubakr.

The strawberry bushes are filled with blossoms that we pick off to have a better crop in spring. The irises stand elegant and proud against the cold; the poppies are filled with dew but do not waver. The foxglove blossoms are about to open and the ranunculi plants are growing thicker. The daisy bushes are dense preparing for a good flush of blooms and the groundcovers creep along all over the stepping stones. The new mints enjoy the damp ground and flourish and the wild garlic are recovering the planting out. The vitex red bushes stand their ground against the grey wall while the variegated ones love their place behind the shade cloth. All of the fruit trees are heavy with bud and the pomegranate trees sprout beautiful new red little leaves.

 The thing about a food garden is the thought that goes into the planning. Remember, unlike a farm when the crops are sowed and harvested and taken to market, the food garden has to offer vegetables all year round. So when we plant lettuce, we can start picking the outer leaves (though not too many) and have lettuce provision for a month, until we lift it completely, pop it in into a container in the fridge to use all week. We always leave one or two to sprout seed in order to store.  Therefore if one staggered the planting maybe every two or three weeks, planting maybe 10 new seedlings, it will be sufficient for the table and to share. If you seed them yourself it works out even cheaper than buying at the local nursery for R1 a seedling. But of course it takes a bit of effort and resources and some space and time. I am still trying to put together some good costing figures because we did not have a budget and I am completely whimsical in my choices of buying and planting and how do I factor in the gifts of seeds and plants and cuttings?

 

 

 

the spoils

We decided to lift out all of pea bushes and do a thorough harvest and give the carrots, turnips and kale a chance to get some sunlight. We seeded the peas on the 5^th of March and staked them to wigwams by the beginning of April. By June the bushes were voluptuous and blossoms formed. So essentially we started to pick handfuls of peas to use as side dishes, grilled on the roti pan or straight from the bushes into our mouths. I cooked meals at least thrice with this crop and when we harvested yesterday and sorted today there were at least 5 kg of podded peas and 2 kg of baby peas to use as mange tout, it was shared between four of us Alhamdulillah.

The rain was really harsh and some of the peas, right at the base of the bushes kind of ripened completely and turned brown, but when I opened the pods the peas were already sprouting. I immediate staked my claim on the new bed against the wall and planted them, marked them with stones so as to know where to put some stakes in.

So far what have we enjoyed from the food garden and are still enjoying? Tomatoes - both cherry and money spender, green peppers, brinjals, celery, spring onions and chives, leeks, red and brown onions, lettuce (butterhead, iceberg, cos, oakleaf, frilly green and red), rocket, red cabbages, chinese and green cabbages, beetroot, carrots, green beans and peas, broccoli, danya,  paprika and jalapeno chillis, turnips, dill, spinach, radish, fenugreek, basil, thyme, parsley,  three mints, origanum rosemary, yarrow, flax, lemon grass, gooseberries, black berries, blue berries and 200 strawberry plants.  All of this in about 6 metres by 15 metres and in 115 days, nogal!

What failed dismally? The butternut seedlings from the long twirly butternut I bought on the road. But on the bright side, we dug the plants in as green manure. Nothing actually goes to waste even the peas we lifted, when one looks between the roots there are some bulblets filled with nutrients and it goes into the compost heaps, having already enriched the soil where we will now plant leafy vegetables. Also the idea of creating a chamomile patch, too late the cold whacked them! And an almost flop was planting the ginger, it flourished well then just looked dead. So I took it inside to a warm dry spot. Phew, amper daar.

We had some visitors today two beautiful children stealing our hearts. Umm Kulthum with her husky voice from the cold and charmed Uncle Bakar to take out the paints and brushes after she was duk of the garden. "I need to paint!"

 Other beautiful visitors that charm us no end were small red and green chested sunbirds, darting from flower to flower chirping crazily at their stash of nectar. Flocks of birds pass over so low over our heads in vee formation and I am in awe, Subhaanallah!

Nature teaches us so much. With care, it is so giving and yields abundantly to sustain us. This giving that we are encouraged to do by our Rabb. To make sadaqah and zakaah, in order to purify our Ruh. It reminds us to first put aside our Fitrahs and Fidyahs for the end of Ramadhan. We just start fasting and we are already thinking about Labarang clothes, ha ha. Not that we should not. I encourage my daughter and son to think about what they would like to wear for Eid and to remember that it is winter - so think thick.  Their Dad shouts: “for goodness sake no black, it is morbid and depressing - choose colourful clothes”, says the man who loves his colourful African garb. And we want them to know that we honour their steadfastness of fasting and recitals of the Qur’an and helping with chores and just generally being so lekker. Maar ons sit maar eerste die Fitrahs weg – to give to those prescribed with enough time to spend and then roadtrip!

Plant food and be giving and enjoy the birds.

Yasmine