I harvested the last of the parsley and more kale, lettuce and choi. This should last into the middle of January. Now with temperatures in the teens forecast, we will see how well the remaining kale, lettuce and choi fare. I do need to get a second layer of plastic up if they are really going to survive the next two months. We are finding a taste for traditional Lebanese tabouli, so I will plant more parsley this spring.
The parsley that I picked would grow back and provide continuous harvests, but unfortunately the voles seem to like the taste of parsley roots. The voles have migrated to a second frame and parsley is the first thing that they attacked there. I set out snap traps based on Eliot Coleman's suggestion of no bait and placing them in tunnels. Since I didn't have time to put together a wooden box, I used a cardboard box. I am planning to put out traps by every garden frame until the population is under control.
We planted about 50 mache seeds, we will see how long it takes for them to sprout. It would have been better if they were planted in October. Have I mentioned that my goal for the coming year is to have the garden in constant production for an entire 12-month span beginning in April? This will require timing the succession planting better than ever. I also want to get an automatic watering system in place.
I made applesauce with the remaining apples in our refrigerator (about six cups). My daughter asks if I put sugar in the recipe but it is just peeled apples and a little cinnamon and filtered water. We lost more than a bushel due to spoilage in the garage earlier, one of the casualties of our mild autumn. [1 bushel apples = 48 pounds = 126 medium apples = 15 9-inch pies = 30-36 pints frozen = 16-19 quarts canned]
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