Gardens Archives - A Country Girl's Heart -Beats that Matter

October 10, 2024October 10, 2024

How to Raise Garlic: Production and Storage

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As garlic planting time rapidly approaches, I want to share an update on the 2023- 2024 garlic growing season here at CG Heartbeats Farm. I tried a couple different ideas to hopefully improve the growing process.

The plot I planted in has not been as fertile and high producing as other garden areas in the past. I chose to still plant here in the interest of rotating ground where I plant garlic. To compensate I added compost from a mix of chicken and goat manure with fallen leaves which had been setting for around 3 years.

I tried a different format in the garden to hopefully add watering ease. This particular area has a slight slope, and I was excited to add trenches in between the various plots of garlic. Each contained a specific variety, most varieties had more than one plot. I carefully mapped out where each variety was planted.

Lessons Learned from 2023-2024 Growing Season

I pulled some of the weeds which inevitably appeared in the trenches, but I did not get them all pulled out. when I placed the garden hose at the highest point water did not flow as well as I had hoped. Potentially the ground was too wet higher on the hill because as I harvested those varieties presented a higher percentage of stem rot.

Overall, the harvest seemed to produce smaller bulbs this year. I question if the reason is linked to how close I planted the cloves or if it is related to soil fertility.

For 2024-2025 I plan to incorporate trenches again where I can and plant the cloves a little farther apart.

A Quick Look Back…

I am cheering for the completed garlic harvest. 2023 marks the 7th year I harvested this nutritious and easy grow food. For several years I planted 2 to 3 times more than the previous year bringing the total to around 600 bulbs of 7 varieties of hard neck garlic in 2022. This post will focus on hard neck garlic.

Read about my first year growing experience below:

Garlic

2022-2023 Planting Improvements

After attending the Indiana Homesteaders Conference in the fall of 2022, I put together information gathered at a couple of the sessions and came up with a couple new ideas to try on the garlic project. The following is what I did and the results. I planted between 700 and 800 cloves of 7 varieties.

First, I planted the garlic in plots or groups by variety instead of planting in rows. I used the hand cultivator to work up the soil. Next in 3 of the plots I added compost from our farm compost pile. This has been aging several years with no fancy process. (I did not turn it.) It is basically a manure pile that has broken down over time. It does get a good helping of leaves dumped on it each fall via the trees around it.

Compost added before planting garlic.

After garlic was planted

I found by planting in plots I used less garden space and since the bulbs were in close proximity there was less space for weeds. Notice I said less space, the weeds still appeared. I considered this a win and plan to continue growing garlic in such fashion.

The 3 plots I added garlic to were Spanish Rojo, Metechi and Majestic. Keep in mind we had a rather dry start the end of May and June seen only a small amount of rainfall. I did a better job watering the Spanish Rojo of the 3 plots I added compost to when planting.

The Results

Spanish Rojo turned out amazing. They are typically a smaller bulb to begin with but in the 22-23 season I grew the biggest Spanish Rojo bulbs I have ever grown. The other 2, Majestic and Metechi were at least average if not an improvement over last year. I did not water them as much and suspect our dry spell made the difference. I definitely plan to add compost to all the garlic plots when I plant again this fall.

Pictured here I added hay chaff after the garlic was planted as I have every year.

A spring view of 2 garlic plots the separation space is visible.

Keep in mind your soil may or may not need compost or other additions to produce a better garlic. I am not examining all soil needs in this post. Rather I am sharing my personal garlic growing experience. I do discuss farther on in the post general soil requirements for optimal garlic production.

Soft Neck Garlic?

I gave soft neck garlic a try for the first time in 2023. when I get a post written I will link it here.

How much does it cost to grow?

I get excited for ways to grow food for little to no out of pocket cost. Growing your own garlic becomes a sustainable process costing $0 after you purchase your initial start if you select and save a part of your harvest for next years crop. I go over what to look for as you select cloves for planting from your harvest and best places to find your original seed to begin planting.

How to Plant Garlic

Best practice for acquiring seed.

Did you know much of the garlic purchased in a local grocery came from China or other counties? Little is documented as to how it was raised, potentially with chemicals or other impure methods. Local farmers markets are a great source for purchasing to begin growing your own.

Another reason to find a local source allows you to choose from different varieties. Here at CG Heartbeats Farm, I am raising Metechi, Majestic, Music, Montana, German, Spanish Rojo, and Elephant.

If you are not happy with your local options, search online for garlic raised locally in the United States. CG Heartbeats Farm offers an online purchasing option and at local farmer’s markets. In the past I utilized both online and local buying options for my first crop and to add new varieties.

Spanish Rojo Garlic smaller in size has an earthy flavor.

Metechi produces slightly more oil when pressed.

Montana Garlic has a mild flavor and 6 cloves per bulb.

Majestic

Click on the garlic of your choice to pre-order your selection.

Music Garlic is mild similar to Montana in flavor.

Elephant is known for its mild flavor as it is actually from the leek family.

German Garlic provides a strong flavor for stews and other cooking projects.

Limited availability of all varieties

When to plant hard neck garlic?

As a general rule, plant hard neck garlic before the ground freezes. As I recently finished up my 6th growing season, I want to share an observation from my 2020 harvest.

Our 2019 fall stretched long into a late ground freeze. Hence, the timing of when I planted the cloves occurred later than previous years. I will need to check the dates to know exactly how much later.

Trouble Shooting My 2020 Harvest

I found as I harvested many of the bulbs were not as large as previous years. Why were the bulbs smaller? One reason may be a shorter growing season, brought about by the late planting. I did not harvest any later, if anything some I harvested earlier. The condition of the stalks strongly indicated even when I did harvest, I was late in harvesting. No opportunity on the harvest end to lengthen the growing season.

An earlier planting provides space for a longer growing season. By earlier in northern Indiana, I am talking mid to late October vs. late November to early December. I want to begin planting garlic by mid October and be finished in the first week of November.

Factors I consider as to why the bulbs were smaller this year

Shorter growing season (late plant)
Late freeze and multiple dips in spring temps late into spring
High moisture both in the chaff (ground cover) and in the soil itself.
Soil not draining as well as often due to our wet spring.

How to Plant Hard Neck Garlic?

I trench rows with a hoe. Set 1 clove 3 to 4 inches apart down the trench and cover with soil. I push each clove down into the soil a little to keep it standing upright. I cover the cloves with around 1 -2 inches of soil.

Where to plant?

Garlic does best in well-drained soil which still contains decent fertile matter. Too much moisture in the soil seems to discourage larger bulbs from developing.

The Growing Process

After planting, I cover the ground with hay chaff left over from where the hay is stored. As much as I have available, I put wood chips on top of the hay chaff.

A challenge of growing a greater number of bulbs this year was not having enough wood chips to cover all the planted cloves. Instead I added additional chaff and by happenstance it also had a bit of shavings and chicken manure mixed in. I am going to make sure I stick closer to 100% chaff next season.

The wood chips and chicken manure trapped too much moisture in our wetter than usual spring. I found too many stalks had started to rot, while the soil below where the bulb sat was completely dry. Chaff alone seems less likely to create this problem.

Like I said, we had an unusually wet spring and I am certain this fact influenced the stalk decay as well. On a dry year trapping the moisture benefits the plant.

Once planted, the only other important chore is keeping any weeds at bay.

In the spring the green leaves appear as early as February. If you wonder as I did will a frost or freeze damage the growing plants? The answer is no. The tops may brown, but the growth continues.

The garlic reached above my knees in May. We had a freeze warning. We did cover the plants with plastic propped up with portable fence posts, tomato cages, and driveway markers. Pretty much anything we had around that would prop the plastic up over the green plants. I did not loose any from the weather, but it is another factor I consider when I wonder why the bulbs were smaller in general this year.

Scapes

If you like garlic, there is nothing quite like a freshly picked scape. In season for only a week or two, I ate one almost daily for a week. I also enjoyed them on chili. Other years I have make a delicious garlic scape pesto (see this post for ingredients)

What is a garlic scape?

The top of a hard neck garlic plant will produce a flower if not removed. At first, it appears to curl around completely, but over time it will straighten and produce a flower.

Scapes are removed to allow a plant to put its energy into growing a larger bulb. If left alone, the flower will produce seed and it is another way to start garlic. Growing from seed involves 2 growing seasons instead of one. I have not tried producing garlic form seed instead of cloves, but I am saving seeds from Elephant garlic this year to experiment with.

Exactly when a scape is removed influences the size of a bulb and impacts the storage life of a bulb. A scape removed later promotes longer storage. If you do not remove the scape at all a flower will appear and eventually seeds.

Be aware you will likely grow smaller garlic bulbs, but the seeds can be used in cooking too. The size of the flowers and seeds vary depending on the variety.

Order Garlic

Grown with no chemicals at CG Heartbeats Farm

Excited to offer shipped garlic.
Now order and pay for online.
Ships in September and October
Limited to the lower 48 states in the US.

Order Today

Harvest and Storage

Garlic can be harvested, eaten immediately, or cured before eating.

When is the best time to harvest?

In northern Indiana harvest usually happens in July when the bottom 3 or 4 leaves turn brown.

How to harvest?

When I can, I simply tug upward on the stalk. If the ground is dry or the stalks wet, I use a shovel to carefully loosen the soil around each bulb.

A word of caution! Be careful to leave enough space between the bulb and the shovel to refrain from damaging a bulb with the shovel. Ask me how I know? Experience! Last year for some reason I damaged quite a few. This year only one I can recall.

Sorting Garlic

How do I choose the best cloves for seed?

The largest cloves will produce the biggest bulbs so these are the ones I save back to plant next years crop with.

I also do not use any bulbs which are blotted by spots of any kind. While it grows without many issues, I want to use the healthiest cloves for planting.

The Curing Process

I try to hang garlic for around 4 weeks before I consider it completely cured. However, there is nothing wrong with eating some as soon as it is harvested. I may lay it flat, bulbs and stacks, for a day or two prior to hanging it depending on my schedule.

Garlic can be laid out to dry, too. I prefer to hang it by the stalks to allow any oil in the stalk to run down into the bulb. Inevitably, each year I end up with bulbs and no stalks, due to harvest error or late harvest. These I lay out to dry, but if I am going to consume garlic after harvest, it will be the stalkless bulbs,

Storing Garlic

Best places to store your harvested bulbs? Place in dry, dark areas with good air circulation such as paper bags or wire baskets. Keeping it in a refrigerator creates a moisture rich environment causing garlic to sprout and soften faster. I do NOT recommend storing it in a refrigerator.

Braids

Braids provide a gorgeous storage option. I have yet to try my hand at braiding it. The soft neck variety is the best choice for braiding. However, it is on my bucket list along with growing from seed (instead of cloves), fermenting, and pickling garlic.

Spanish Rojo Garlic smaller in size has an earthy flavor.

Metechi produces slightly more oil when pressed.

Montana Garlic has a mild flavor and 6 cloves per bulb.

Majestic

Click on the garlic of your choice to pre-order your selection.

Music Garlic is mild similar to Montana in flavor.

Elephant is known for its mild flavor as it is actually from the leek family.

German Garlic provides a strong flavor for stews and other cooking projects.

Limited availability of all varieties

2023 -2024 Goals

There are a few ideas for creating trenches to help with watering plots in case of a drought for future growing seasons simmering in my head.

I grew soft neck garlic for the first time in 2023. Now, I hope with some modification my crop will yield larger bulbs.

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February 22, 2022February 23, 2022

Put Your Chickens to Work on the Homestead

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Chickens offer two readily known assets to a homestead in producing eggs and meat. I have found a third use for chickens here on CG Heartbeats Farm. While I am likely not the first to do so, in this post I share how I have put chickens to work on the homestead.

Humble Beginnings

One of my frustrations early on in this journey was a desire to garden, but no good way to bust up the sod which has a fantastic root system. I wanted to turn parts of the yard into garden space as long as 2 or 3 years. I started looking for little ways to begin producing some of my own food and here is where that journey has taken me so far.

Originally, I used broken buckets to grow sweet potatoes and pots to grow peppers, and tomatoes. The first year I had the best success with the sweet potatoes and from that soil, created a small container garden. I also utilized a part of one the flower beds which for years, I hardly kept the grass at bay. My garlic journey began with 18 cloves of garlic in 2016 with 3 varieties. Fast forward 5 years later, I have around 600 cloves planted in 8 varieties. I no longer use the flower garden. Now I am able to use other areas, thanks to the work of chickens.

Looking Back

As a part of using what I had in the form of dog kennel panels, I set up first one 10 x 10 and an additional 5 x 5 off the side of the 10 x10 pen. These were covered in a netting that we had purchased in a roll and a part of that roll remains. These pens were placed in an area where I wanted to create garden space. In the fall of 2018, the chickens had sufficiently killed off the sod in the 5 x 5 pen.

How did I know this you might wonder? There was almost no visible grass or roots sticking up in this pen. A few stray root tops near the surface along a piece of wood was about all I could see from the surface. Simply put, it had a look of bare ground.

I moved the 3 panels to a different side of the 10 x 10 pen. In this new location, more sod could be removed by the chickens.

Back to the spot where the pen had been. My next step was to take a spade to this area and turn the dirt over. At this time, I also found and removed any remaining roots I could find. There were a few, but certainly not the number that would have been present had I randomly picked this spot in the yard and tried to start digging up the grass. I have done that before when planning grapes and black raspberries and it proved to be a bit difficult for my current physical state.

Sustainable Gardening Ideas

With the ground prepared, I used this area to plant the Music garlic variety and has a mild, sweet flavor that I find pleasing. It has been a bit of a trial for me being the first time I had planted garlic in this area of the farm. Knowing this spot also contained a sandy subsoil same as where I planted garlic before in a garden near the house, I felt confident planting one variety in this location. Adding hay chaff and eventually wood chips are a practice for garlic I am raising. Both could be considered a waste product, but not if I am looking for ways to be sustainable. Since I don’t like weeding and I love the benefits of chaff and woodchips as a method to cover the soil.

Early Spring 2019 the garlic garden in the flower bed

Early spring 2019 the Music variety of garlic is growing nicely in the new bed

Recalling the Spring of 2019

Spring of 2019 rolled around and proved it was indeed excellent for garlic. It is doing every bit as well as in the other location where it is planted on CG Heartbeats Farm.

Here the chicken pens are moved to a new location. The patch of dirt is where the pens were previously located.

In March I was itching for the 3^rd week of April to arrive for that was the week I planned to move all the current panels to a new nearby location. Here the chickens would have fresh ground and I would have another garden plot. I am finding I like the idea of having different plots around on the farm instead of one large garden area. I think it adds character, reduces wind and water erosion, and in time with some flowers mixed in, beauty. It may provide a way to rotate crops in different areas, a sustainable practice.

Julie is running the roto tiller. She has a growing flower business, Blooms on 800.

I had started heritage tomato seeds indoors and looked forward to planning them outside in this new garden space. My excitement helped energize me for the task. No sooner than the new pens set up we had 5 inches of rain in about a week’s time. That put a damper on the progress.

Help from a Friend

I learned to know Julie last year at while attending the markets. She has proved to be a continued encouragement to me. She had earlier offered to bring her tiller over and work the ground for me, saving me the work with a spade. This past Monday that day finally arrived.

Feeling excited to see the progress made, I proceeded to plant the tomatoes that day. What I cannot share in a picture or quite in words was the smell. I will only say that ground did NOT smell like roses. Julie, in her encouraging way, said, “You will have the biggest tomatoes around.” This in response to my comment about the bad smell.

Now that tomatoes are planted and covered due to the forecasted temps in the low thirties and I will continue to leave the cover on until the weather has warmed. These ‘covers’ are the tops of apple cider vinegar and milk jugs, an example of ways to re-propose materials otherwise considered trash. (#usewhatyouhave) This project has cost me little to nothing. Perhaps even saved me a small amount as it provided a natural food source for the chickens while they lived outside. I did, of course, feed them additional food.

Tomatoes planted with room for additional plants, perhaps corn and beans? Notice in this picture I have already added hay chaff to cover the ground. Wood chips will be added, also.

Continuing the Progress

Over the last 2.5 years I have continued putting the chickens to work on the homestead creating additional garden space. I am getting close to creating a garden entrance and fencing a portion of the garden.

Garlic and onions are currently planted in a 10 foot by 36-foot garden where chicken pens sat in 2020. Eventually a portion of this space will be home to an additional row of grape vines.

The garlic and onion garden for the 2022 harvest. Pictured here in the fall of 2021 shortly after
planting. This is one of several current garden spaces. Notice I had just started to put hay chaff on.

The vision of the gardens I am creating has developed slowly over the last few years. To be honest, it will likely continue to be modified as time goes by.

I am looking forward to adding flower bulbs against a fence line. Last fall I planted 2 Dwarf Alberta Spruce trees, one in each outside corner of where the fence will be. How are you using what you have?

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November 14, 2020November 14, 2020

Tokiwa Tokyo Green: How to Raise Abundant, Heirloom Cucumbers

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Tokiwa Tokyo Green Cucumbers were one of the 10 seed packets I picked as a gift from Baker Creek Seeds in the Fall of 2019. I really wanted a different cucumber variety, but this one was the only available. I felt disappointed at the time.

Based on the information on the package Tokyo Green Cucumbers grow in partial shade and…. I decided to plant in what I called the Niederrheiner Garden (because it is near the Lemon Cuckoo Niederrheiner outdoor pen). As a side note, the Niederrheiner pen sat exactly where the garden currently is.

I use my flock to kill off the sod as preparation for garden space. You can read how I use Chickens on the Homestead by clicking below.

Planting Tokiwa Tokyo Green Seeds

I planted every seed I had of the Tokiwa Tokyo Green Cucumbers in a 10 foot row about 4 inches apart. If it was a lack of water or other reason, only 4 or 5 ever sprouted.

I left for a week and came home to find weeds had choked out all but 2 of my seedlings, one growing on each end of my 10 foot row.

Trust

My desire to be positive produced my honest thought, maybe God know something I did not. To be clear, I do not always think this way. But in this instance, this was on my mind with peace in my heart. ‘Trust me’, seemed to be the answer to my disappointment with the lack of sprouting and development.

As a bigger picture the Quinoa did not sprout at all. In this instance I needed to learn my mistake of not planting it early enough. I had no such indication I needed to trust God’s sovereignty about the Quinoa.

Are you familiar with the passage in Matthew 13? Sowing seeds reminds me how Jesus shares the parable of the sower and the various reasons seeds may not produce a harvest. Beyond the garden these truths hold a lesson for how we invest into the lives of others.
~ Maria Graber

Setting up the Trellis

I drove T posts on each end of my row. Repurposing twine from opened hay bales I strung a single string from one post to the other. Tokiwa Tokyo Green Cucumbers vine well.

I planted them close to the Lincoln Peas intending to vine both. The plants will grow and the unwanted vegetation will be choked out by the vegetables. But when the plants are young, those weeds need to be removed.

Weeds

Before leaving I left one string for the cucumbers to vine on. Check out the changes I found when I returned. I quickly added a second twine for the plants to continue vining upward.

These cucumbers really do great in the vining category. Several times a week I would remove them from the Lincoln pea trellis and put them back in their own space. Toward the end of the summer I let them go where they pleased.

Plant Development

The young plants grew rapidly and I found myself adding addition levels of twine 2 or 3 times in the next 5 to 6 weeks.

Flowers

Flowers appeared and my anticipation grew. I did not know what to expect in terms of shape, size and flavor.

Tokiwa Tokyo Green Cucumbers

Finally, I spotted tiny cucumbers growing on the vines. I noted some flowers did not produce cucumbers. . Both male and female flowers grow on one vine. One plant will pollinate itself.

I watched as the cucumbers grew, undecided when I should pick them. I learned they can be eaten at various sizes. The larger the cucumber the larger the seeds inside. (Sometimes) The weather impacted the seed development inside too.

There is a correlation between the bumpy or smoothness of the outer skin and the ripeness of the cucumber.

The bumpy exterior indicates a crisper cucumber with less developed seeds. The smoother skin and often larger cucumber indicates a softer, riper cucumber with larger, (and more developed) seeds.

Uses for Tokiwa Tokyo Green Cucumbers

Dill Pickles
Bread and Butter Pickles
Sweet Relish
Dill Relish
Cucumber Salad

How to Can Dill Pickles

How to Process Bread and Butter Pickles

The Process of Saving Tokiwa Seeds

There are a few different ways to go about saving seeds. I saved seeds 3 different ways from the Tokyo Green Cucumbers this year.

Saving Seeds in Mid-Summer

As I was processing cucumbers into pickles I took a few minuets to save seeds from one of the riper cucumbers. I did not want to miss an opportunity to save seeds in case circumstances prevented any further saving.

I kept back seeds from a riper cucumber and allowed them to dry on a paper plate. Here is what I had this fall.

The Last Cucumber of the Season

I left the last developed Tokiwa Tokyo Green cucumber on the vine well after the fall freeze killed the plant. I removed the seeds before the cucumber had completely dried.

Cutting into the cucumber with a knife, I picked the seeds out.

Saving Seeds from an Over Ripe Cucumber

I choose one of the larger cucumbers in August and allowed it to develop especially large. It was one I missed as I picked about 3 times a week. I wanted this cucumber to select seeds from for next years crop.

I allowed to it to sit and age for 3 months outside on a metal rack exposed to the elements. The ‘rack’ was the top of a wire dog kennel. The cucumber dried up as pictured below.

The cucumber had completely dried. I spent around 30 minutes extracting the seeds for future use. I became apparent despite the fact I had allowed the cucumber to grow large, some of the seeds had not developed enough to be used for planting.

Difference Between a Developed Seed and an Undeveloped Seed

A seed with the potential to sprout and grow a new plant is full, rounded on both sides.

An undeveloped seed will be flat, even pitted in the center and feels empty.

I found the largest number of developed seeds in the rear or larger half of the cucumber.

The front or skinnier portion of the cucumber contained many undeveloped seeds as pictured below.

Storing Tokiwa Tokyo Green Heirloom Seeds

I will store any seeds I have saved in a paper envelope labeled with the name of the seeds and year I saved them. Heirloom seeds often germinate and produce plants beyond the year after they were saved.

Seeds need some air and darkness. I have been advised to not store them in an air tight container such as glass or plastic. However, I am learning on this topic. Do you have any advice for me? Please leave a comment below if you do.

I intend to use these seeds and the produce of these seeds for years to come.

The Abundant Part

I was impressed by how the 2 plants continued to grow and produce up until a killing frost.

I canned 12 cups of relish, and around 32 pints of Dill pickles, and 34 pints of Bread and Butter Pickles from 2 plants. Not to mention all I fed the chickens and shared with friends and family. All. From. Two. Plants.

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August 31, 2020August 31, 2020

How to Process Bread and Butter Pickles

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My grandma used to make Bread and Butter Pickles. They were my favorite over dill pickles. I recall an open jar of bread and butter pickles on many a Sunday dinner table. I usually ate a few with whatever what served that day. We did not need to be eating sandwiches to eat bread and butter pickles. We ate them for the flavor.

Memories

I reached out to my aunts to find out if they had a recipe passed down by my grandma to them. A few hours later, I had a picture of a hand written recipe card text to me from an aunt.

A warm feeling flooded my heart remembering my grandma as I looked at the familiar handwriting which had filled letters, cards and notes sent or given to me over the 34 years I was blessed to have this particular grandma in my life.

Bread and butter pickles, tasting like hers were not easy to find. Now, given the opportunity to create my own, I could hardly sleep. my excitement building. The 2 Tokyo Green variety plants produced 50 plus cucumbers in a week. I had plenty to work with, eat and share with family.

In years gone by, pickles were soaked, prior to canning, in either alum or lime to promote a crisper pickle. For myself, I choose my health over a crisp pickle and opted to leave out the soaking process.

Her recipe written for a batch of 6 lbs. of cucumbers required a bit of math on my part. Instead of combining all of the spice and seeds, I would be placing a specific amount in each jar similar to the way I prepared the Dill Pickles.

Here is my version of my grandma’s Bread and Butter Pickle Recipe. Spoiler alert: Yes, they do taste like my grandma’s, despite skipping the unhealthy step of soaking in alum and adding less sugar. And no, I did not open a jar I canned. Keep reading to learn more.

NOTE: This page or post contains affiliate links. When you click and make a purchase I earn a portion of the money you spend at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Thank you for your support.

Ingredients

2 T Tumeric
Large Onion Chopped
2 T Celery Seed
2 & 1/2 T Mustard Seed
7 lbs. Cucumbers
3 cups Apple Cider Vinegar
3 cups Water
Redmond Sea Salt
2 – 4.5 cups of Sugar (amount is optional)

Tools

Water Bath Canner
7-pint jars
Lids
Rings
Pot
Jar lifter
Plastic Spoon
Towels

The Preparation

I sterilized the jars by boiling 10 min in the water bath canner prior to filling the jars.

Filling a pot with 3 cups water, 3 cups apple cider vinegar and 2 ¼ cups Evaporated Cane power as a sugar substitute, I started these heating on the stove while I filled the jars.

Preparing Jars

Add 1/3 T of Turmeric

Next, 1/2 T of Celery Seed

The third ingredient to go into the jar is 1/2 T of Mustard Seed

I grabbed a handful of chopped onions and placed into the jar. Since a handful is subjective a better description would be just enough to cover the bottom of the jar.

I measured between a 1/2 and 1/3 T of Redmond Sea Salt. This salt has a flavor all its own. It has not been processed like many other sea salt options on the market.

My last step before adding the brine to the jars was to slice the cucumbers and stuff as many as I could into each jar. I strived to keep the level of cucumbers below the threads of the jar.

By the time I had the jars ready the brine was boiling on the stove. It had reached a boil before I was ready for it so I turned it way down. Also, I stirred it a couple times until I knew the sugar had dissolved.

I filled the jars to a ½ inch below the top of the jar or just below the threads.

After using the plastic spoon to push any air bubbles to the top and squashing most of them, I cleaned the rims. I placed lids on the jars and rings.

Processing in Water Bath

Off I went to the water bath canner a few jars at a time. When the water reached a heavy rolling boil, I noted the time. After 10 min, had past, I removed the processed jars setting them on a towel.

I love hearing the pop of sealing canned goods. And yes, again I covered the jars with a towel too. If you did not read my post on How to Can Dill Pickles, you might not know I picked up this habit from canning with my grandma as a child.

I will say the workflow is a bit different because of heating the brine, but still an easy process, this thing of canning bread and butter pickles.

I mean it simply isn’t on the same level of needing to dodge a stallion about to plow me over or standing my ground when a wild mustang stallion charged my direction with his ears pinned. Ah, the quiet life I lead these days.

Completed

I canned a total of 15 pints and 2 quarts. The quart jars I processed for an extra 5 minutes, a total of 15 minutes.

Since I had extra brine left over and hated to waste it, I put it in a glass jar with all the other ingredients except chopped onion as I was out. Covering the jar with a lid and rim I placed in the refrigerator. I sampled the next morning, evening and morning of day 2. The flavor continues to improve. These ingredients seem to work for refrigerator pickles too.

Tips

Wash Cucumbers and remove both ends before slicing. I keep a pan of water close as I slice.
Have the water in Canning pot hot and close to boiling as possible before placing the fill jars into process. It is important to fill hot jars and add a hot brine so the jars are not cold going into the almost boiling water. The glass may break if you place a cold glass jar in boiling hot water.

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August 6, 2020August 6, 2020

Plant Trials on a Homestead

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Trying New Garden Plants 2020

I continue to research, conducting unofficial plant trials, as I look for the best producing plants which also market and provide value to local and online customers.

Late last year, Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds donated 10 seed packages of my choice as way to support both this website and homestead. Check them out using the link: https://www.rareseeds.com

I took this exciting opportunity to choose new plants to try here on CG Heartbeats Farm. I want to update the progress on a few of the different seeds I choose and other plant trials from other sources. Our growing season rolls into August and here in northern Indiana and zone 5 we are about halfway through a normal season.

An Overview

I had a few preconceived ideas about certain plants I tried out this year. But first, these plants trials are a part of my research to find the best types of products to raise here at CG Heartbeats Farm and meet the needs of local customers while working to create a sustainable income from 11.7 acres.

My biggest surprise has been how well the peanuts sprouted and grew. My biggest disappointment? The Quinoa did not even sprout.

I thought long and hard about the location of where I wanted to try these new seeds. Soil type and drainage plays a huge part in the success of any plant production. Currently all of the garden space sits high on the property with a sandy subsoil providing a well-drained soil. The fertility of the soil varies slightly, as the does the topsoil construction. Sandy loam to varying degrees of clay would describe it best.

Almost all of my garden space once provided a place for the chickens to live outdoors (see Chickens on the Homestead). Thus, chicken manure has been added naturally to the existing soil composition. In the new garden space this year, the soil is actually to over laden with manure.

One are of the 10 ft. by 20 ft. garden has not sprouted a single seed. I think by next year it will be ready to produce wonderfully. There manure deposited there was too much for the seeds to develop.

Mid-Season Update for Plant Trials

Sorghum

After deep thought, I decided to plant the Sorghum south of the Glass Gem Popcorn mounds with beans and squash. Going into August, I clearly see the Sorghum needed to be on the north end of the garden space.

It is towering over the glass Gem Popcorn. I planed them the same day. I did later reseed sorghum, popcorn, and beans in spots they did not sprout the first time.

Flax

I learned I need to to use Flax seeds abundantly. Not every seed sprouted or 50% fed the birds. In one area I accidently dropped quite a few seeds. As pictured below these group of seeds I dropped produced a nice grouping.

Next year I will plant seeds closer together in groupings. So, the seeds are plants are slightly closer to each other.

Quinoa

Quinoa as a part of CG Heartbeats Farm plant trials, taught me I needed to plant these earlier. They like cool soil. I planted them in warm soil. I will try Quinoa in 2021, but none of the quinoa sprouted in 2020

Tokyo Green Cucumbers

I planted all the seeds I had in a 10-foot row. At first, I had 4 to 5 growing. Three of the plants that sprouted were choked out by grass when I was gone for a week. You would not know it now looking at the tremendous growth of only 2 plants.

I am impressed with the number of cucumbers I have already from 2 plants. I have harvested almost 20 in the last two weeks since they started producing.

Peanuts

Oh, these Kentucky Red Peanuts are fun. I am learning as I go and hoping to pull peanuts out of the ground. To date, I am impressed with how well the plants sprouted and grew.

I have begun to see flowers, but now waiting to see them bury down into the soil to grow peanuts. Just today I found where a flower has buried itself in the ground. This is how peanuts grow and develop. Simply fun, I think!

Lincoln Peas

I do not think I choose the best location to plant the peas. Why? I am not certain the peas receive enough sun through out the day. The part of the row where the sun shines the longest is growing tallest and producing the most peas.

I reseeded around a month ago at the end of June. Thankfully, the second planting has sprouted better than the first. I am waiting for them to grow and produce peas. I intend to plant more plants next year.

Herbs

Dill

Four Dill plants are growing nicely in a pot.

I will transplant them to my future herb garden I am working on creating this summer.

Lemon Balm

To date even my second planting as not sprouted.

Sage

The Sage seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds have sprouted producing several plants.

I will be adding them to the herb garden this month. I might add, after I weed the herb garden. The weeds or grass as it actually is has the upper hand at the moment.

Additional New Plant Trials

Elephant garlic

Last fall I ordered and planted Elephant garlic. I expected a larger bulb, but went ahead and planted what I had received. The plants did not get as tall as I thought. You see, I expected 6 to 8 feet instead of 3 to 4 feet. The bulbs I harvested were not exceptionally large. In fact, they are smaller than other varieties I raise. The cloves themselves in some of the bulbs are larger.

I will plant the largest Elephant garlic cloves I have this fall and see what next year’s harvest looks like. If I am still getting small bulbs, I may find a new source and try again.

Egyptian Walking Onion

I am excited for this variety of onion here on CG Heartbeats Farm. Unfortunately, the moles decided to tunnel right where I had planted them. Either, the moles ate or disrupted them over the winter. There was only one spouting this spring.

To date no bulbs have appeared at the tops of the onion stems. I am waiting and checking weekly or signs. Egyptian Walking Onions, a fun, sustainable plant, produces a top bulb which falls to the ground and creates a new onion plant. All parts of the plant are edible.

In Conclusion

It is fun watching the development of new produce. I think, my favorite to watch is the Kentucky Red Peanut plants. The trial and error of finding out the best way to create sustainable income is an ongoing process for which I am thankful to be a living part.

I get excited thinking about what plant trials 2021 may bring. Time to go shopping! Look for posts this fall sharing the details of how each variety I tried for the first time grew and produced.

Leave a comment sharing any new plants you have tried this year and how they are growing and producing.

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July 31, 2020July 31, 2020

5 Ways to Use Garlic

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Here are 5 ways to use garlic in your kitchen. I have included recipes I created over the last few years.

One might need a bit of bravery to pop a whole clove of garlic in their mouth and start chewing. I have been known to do just that.

5 Ways to Use Garlic

Scrambled eggs
Goulash
Garlic tea
Bake
Sauté

Scrambled Eggs

Minced or pressed garlic is a favorite of mine when cooking scrambled eggs. I use a garlic press to create little pieces and press directly into a hot cast iron skillet after adding coconut oil.

Often, I add an extra clove or two for my own eating pleasure. After it caramelizes, but before it burns, I use a spatula to scoop the cooked pieces out on a plate to cool. Oh, the delicious taste! Of course, I only recommend if you actually like the taste of it. I will add heating the it takes the sting out. You know the burn you get eating it raw.

When I add garlic to scrambled eggs, I use a Mexican flavored shredded Colby Jack cheese, onion (sometimes) and peppers if I have them. Any time I make scrambled eggs, I add whipping cream to the eggs along with salt and pepper before placing in the pan.

Scrambled Egg Ingredient List

eggs
1 large garlic clove
¼ cup whipping cream
Salt and pepper to taste
1 ½ cup shredded cheese
½ medium sized onion

Goulash

Another favorite dish of mine is a stovetop dish, I call goulash.

Ingredients:

1 lb. hamburger
½ to ¾ box of shell noodles
1 to 2 garlic cloves
a quart of V8 juice
1 pint of stewed tomatoes
1 medium onion chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions

Begin by heating water in a pot to cook the shell noodles. Start cooking the hamburger. Add the pressed pieces and chopped onion to the hamburger as it cooks. I add salt and pepper to the hamburger at this point.

Place the shell noodles in the boiling water.

When the hamburger has cooked thoroughly, I add a pint of stewed tomatoes, and a quart of V8 juice. Once this mixture begins steaming, I turn down the heat to a simmer.

As soon as the shell noodles are slightly soft, I drain the shell noodles and place them back into the pot I cooked them in. Next, I add the hamburger mixture. I continue to cook all the ingredients together until the shells are cook to desired softness.

After I dish out my portion, I top with Parmesan cheese.

Garlic Tea

I choose to drink garlic tea because mixing minced pieces with water removes the burning sensation I feel when eating it raw. But I am still getting the benefits of the raw product. I read waiting ½ hour after cutting or crushing enacts allicin.

Instructions

Heat water to boiling.
Place in cup.
Using a garlic press crush into pieces directly in a cup of boiling water (include the oil).
Cover and allow it to seep for 30 min.
Drink and if you desire eat the crushed garlic too.

Bake Garlic

Drizzle a whole clove with olive oil, coconut oil or other oil of your choice. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes covered to soften it. Uncover it, cooking for another 5 to 10 minutes to caramelize them.

Sauté

Using a skillet, place garlic cloves and oil of your choice. I like olive or coconut oil. Cook stirring often. When cloves are soft and caramelized remove skins. Eat as is or spread on bread.

Order garlic from CG Heartbeats Farm by clicking the link below.

CLick to order garlic

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June 17, 2020June 17, 2020

Sowing Seeds

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Last week I excitedly started my Monday morning. I determined I would be sowing or planting seeds. What is so fun and exhilarating about sticking tiny, often hard to see, little pieces of what looks like nothing, in soil? Potential. The prospect of all to be seen from a tiny start. Future hopes and plans lie in the planting of a seed.

I rejoiced. I sang hymns of old as they popped into my head. I knew I would be accomplishing a goal today. Today I celebrate planting seeds. Planting vegetable seeds on June 8 might be a week or two later compared to others in my area. I do not worry for the growing season in Zone 5 allows time for the plants to grow and produce.

The bright sun warmed my skin and a heavy breeze kept me from becoming too hot. The temperature, forecasted to be near 90 degrees continued to rise as I worked. I knew I needed singular focus to accomplish the days task of placing seeds beneath the fertile soil. I knew today required me to push beyond comfort.

Homesteading and farming brings joy, but discomfort too. On seed planting day I would choose to focus my thoughts on the future joys of seeing new life push through the soil, satisfaction in producing my own food, and ignore dwelling on thoughts pertaining to physical discomfort.

A little bit more of my dream happens today as I take another step toward producing my own food. Garden space is larger in 2020 allowing for a greater number of plants and varieties.

To read how I put the chickens to use preparing garden ground, click below.

Put Your Chickens to Work on the Homestead

The previous week, Julie from Blooms on 800, brought her tiller and worked the ground saving me the hard work of turning the dirt with a shovel. Before I started planting in the 10′ x 20′ garden, I used my ‘Maria’ powered hand pushed tiller to go over the ground one more time.

Heirloom Tomato seedlings grown from second generation seed saving. The same tomatoes I made tomato juice and stewed tomatoes from in 2019.

In 2020, I am trying new heirloom seeds. Peanuts, Quinoa, Sorghum, and Flax are 4 I feel super excited about. The grains will potentially help produce my own chicken feed in the future. I say this lightly as I am not exactly sure how the process will all play out. Grains also potentially provide flour when ground and would replace pasta in some dishes as healthier options.

Peas and cucumbers, also heirloom, make up the last of the new to CG Heartbeats Farm garden plants. Look for blog post in the fall and winter sharing my process for growing from seed and saving seeds for next year.

A favorite returning vegetable of mine is the heirloom tomato I grew last year. Peppers, sugar baby watermelon and butternut squash return also. I did not plant all the seeds today.

Herb seeds will be started in pots and planted near the house where garlic grows now. These include Sage, Thyme, Dill, Basil and Oregano.

Julie from Blooms on 800 generously shared a few herb plants with me. She started these from seeds in her green house. Now, I have a few plants I will be able to gather from right away. I plan to leave these as potted herbs for the summer.

While I worked, I imaged the futire fruits of my labor. I thought about how pretty the Flax Flowers would look. I considered how I would create places for the cucumbers and peas to vine. I wondered how I would stake the Quinoa if I needed to.

Before I planted any seeds, I considered my layout for the garden spaces. Where would I plant each variety to allow for maximum plant productivity? I read the seed packages. If the information I looked for was not listed, I searched google. Between the 2 sources I came up with a plan, a garden layout.

While the majority of the seed planting happened on Monday, I continued to plant through the next week. I planted carrots, sweet potato starts, romaine lettuce seeds, spinach, moss rose, and 5 herb varieties.

One of the first pea seedlings to appear

I intend to plant a few flower seeds and perhaps bulbs too. My heart is happy with the seed planting progress. I am even beginning to see seedlings appear through the soil one week later. The way a seed grows into a tiny plant which continues to develop until it produces its own seed amazes me. New life, sustainable, regenerative cycles and producing my own food bring satisfaction to my soul.

I may harvest and preserve a couple weeks later due to later seed planting, but harvest and preserve I intend to do. Today I planted. Tonight, I will water the seeds. After today, I wait for seedlings to appear.

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April 25, 2020April 25, 2020

5 Reasons to Shop Local Farmers Markets

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I recently learned of a story telling how a great uncle hauled cucumbers into a local town about 7 to 10 miles from the homestead. Here sat large wooden barrels where cucumbers soaked to be hauled off on the train as pickles.

A picture of the place my great uncle hauled pickles. I wonder if my Grandpa did too.

It must have taken an entire day to drive with horses pulling a wagon loaded with cucumbers almost 10 miles, unload the cucumbers and drive home. Imagine the time involved in hand picking all those cucumbers before somebody in the family needed to spend an entire day hauling a load to town. Yet, in those days it was worth it? Our American society needs were different during that time.

I heard my great uncle had the following to say about hauling pickles:

“He said his Dad was one best pickle sorter and the pickle factory knew it. They always had him unloaded ahead rest of the wagons they knew he always had the best sorted pickle.”

These ‘days gone by’ marked the beginning of the industrialized and global market we know today. While some changes are good, others sadden me. Why does a farmer today need money from the government to survive when he or she produces one of the most important commodities for human life: food?

In our current crisis why does a farmer find themselves reliant on a global economy for income when neighbors need to eat? These same neighbors purchase food that may or may not have even been produced in our own country.

Why Local Farmer’s Markets Today

CG Heartbeats Farm table at a 2019 Market

Here is where I see a huge value in a local farmers market, not only do you support families in the community where you live, you are also able to gain first hand knowledge of practices used to produce the food you eat.

I am not sure how you think about this, but I hate it when I read ingredients on a package to realize there are several that I do not know what they are or why I want to put that inside of myself.

Does it take longer to cook your own food? Maybe, but not always. It is rather, a mind set shift. I would like to use garlic as an example. Until I began raising my own garlic, I always used the dry stuff that came in a shake out container.

Fresh Garlic vs. Dried Store Garlic Powder

Easy to open the cupboard and dump. But not much more work to use real garlic once you have a process in place. Mine looks like this:

Granted this does involve a few additional steps. Key in this process is a good garlic press. I have tried a few different ones. I highly recommend a quality hand garlic press to help the process go smoothly. The whole process takes me less than 5 minutes.

We just decided that it takes about 5 minuets or less to use real garlic, so what is the motivation behind adding a few more minuets to cooking a meal?

Health Benefits and Flavor

Health benefits first prompted me to start growing my own garlic. I found that it grows well here at CG Heartbeats Farm and most varieties grow rather large.

Order Garlic

Grown with no chemicals at CG Heartbeats Farm

Excited to offer shipped garlic.
Now order and pay for online.
Garlic ships in September and October
Limited to the lower 48 states in the US.

**Click Here** or on **above picture** to order / pre-order garlic. 2020 garlic crop ships in September or October.

Order Today

Using fresh food enhances flavor dramatically. This applies anytime a person uses a fresh food, even home processed (frozen, canned, or dried) over some similar product processed in _______ (Who knows? Fill in the blank.)

These days I find it most unfortunate the difficulty of knowing truly where food came from. A label may only read a location in the United States where a package was distributed from. I feel a disappointed at the lack of disclosure on several different factors of many food options today.
~ M. Graber

5 Reasons for Shopping Local Farmers Market

Here are my top reasons for choosing to shop at local farmers market. We can all utilize our local markets as often as possible.

What reasons would you add to what I listed above? Leave a comment sharing why you find local farmers markets important.

Shop Online at Local Farmers Market

Relevant to our current call to social distance, a new way to shop at local farmers markets has emerged. Online shopping with local pick up. One market in Culver, Indiana uses a web company called Local Line. CG Heartbeats Farm now offers online ordering as a part of Culver Farmers Market. Check it out if you are in or near Marshall County Indiana as this site is for local sales ONLY! https://www.localline.ca/cg-heartbeats-farm

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December 22, 2019December 22, 2019

Winter Season ~ Goals

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Winter Solstice

The shortest day of the year has come and gone, Winter Solstice being yesterday. I do not mind the short amount of sunlight as much as I do the days of temperatures below 20 degrees (and lower) that often follows in January and February. Being honest I hope for one of those winters when the temps hit a high above 32 degrees at least once or twice a week. Life caring for animals becomes much easier when above freezing.

Christmas, only days away now, seems to fade quickly by mid-January. As I look ahead to the coming months of colder weather and snow, I think about what goals and plans provide growth on the homestead. I think of ideas that I can share here on the blog where we can grow our homesteads together.

If you have followed me here at CG Heartbeats Farm you know that 3 rare chicken breeds make up a part of the current focus. The prolific Swedish Flower Hens, unique Lemon Cuckoo Niederrheiners and beautiful Silver Gray Dorkings keep me hopping. In the last year I struggled to produce Silver Gray Dorkings (hatching 3) and Lemon Cuckoo Niederrheiners (hatching 0).

As I look to the coming months, improvements will be on my mind. I know this year I need to take a look at the 15 breeding pens of Swedish Flower Hens and make cuts. I am going into this winter with around 30 pens. That means 30 frozen water containers. Honestly the word that comes to mind with that fact is, YUK! I committed to telling myself that ‘there is no such thing as too cold, just not enough or warm enough clothes, for this winter’.

What to look for on the blog in the first 3 months of 2020:

1) Chick Hatching Practices, a course sharing the basics of how to hatch chicks, including preparing to hatch and brooder ideas and immediate care for the first week.
2) Info on the specific breeds I raise
3) General chicken info
4) Seeds selection and garden planning
5) Homestead planning in terms of layout and how I intend to put to use what I have. Perhaps even a quest post or two on how others use their land to the best of its ability. Do you want to share a post here telling how you have put your homestead to use? Shoot me an email at maria@dontclipmywings.com or use the form provided below.

Farmer’s Markets in the first quarter of 2020?

In the coming months I debate attending local farmers markets. I believe in their importance. I enjoy connecting with other vendors and customers. I met amazing folks when attending farmers markets. For now, I am taking a break to focus my attention on the homestead itself and this website. I look forward to attending at least 1 market on a regular basis in 2020. I may wait until summer to begin attending.

Winter Homestead Goals

I want to pick up where I left off, walking the property and giving thought to the best uses of the land. I came up with a few neat ideas last year, but as the markets went into full swing, I became distracted with the every day work. Those daily walks shorted into simple checks of all the current vegetables and chickens.

I hope to move cement blocks to provide a wall where I have already increased the level of the container garden I am building. 2019 marks the 3^rd year that I emptied buckets of sweet potatoes to create this raised bed.

Cleaning chicken pens (it is an ongoing thing around here)

Hatch Chicken Eggs

CG Heartbeats Farm now has three Janoel 12 incubators and an Incuview to hatch eggs. No bragging here, but it is a fun to have options to provide chicks for others who do not want to hatch their own. I would like to add the Nurture Right 360 in the coming months. This is how I provide chicks and fill orders for those shopping.

Read in this blog post about my go to incubator in 2019. I include tips I use with this incubator.

The Janoel 12 incubator with chicks I hatched from Pen # 7.

Click on either picture. Purchase your own.

I am excited for the Lemon Cuckoo Niederrheiners hens to start laying again. I picked up Cisco and Clinch last summer (2019). They were not mature enough to cover hens until November and by then the hens were in a molt. I am looking forward to hatching eggs with Cisco and Clinch covering the hens.

Clinch on the left and Cisco on the right.

For the first time CG Heartbeats Farm will offer crested Swedish Flower Hens from Apache and his hens. This pen currently consists of 2 hens from Pen 7 and a crested rooster (Apache) out of eggs I hatched from My Flower Farm (Lisa). The way the crested gene works eggs from this pen has a 50% chance of producing a crested chick. I plan to add additional hens to this pen in 2020 as I raise hens from Pen # 7. I would have more already, but I sold a few I raised.

Selling Eggs

Did you notice you can order and pay for eggs through the website now? I intend to set it up so that you are able to order eggs from each pen. At the moment it is only Swedish Flower Hen hatching eggs in general, but I want to make each pen available in quantities of 6, 12, 18, or 24. In this way a person can customize their order. Look for this feature coming soon. Until the other breeds are producing better, they will continue to be an unpaid wait list.

Starting Grape Plants

I have one grape plant needing to be pruned, with those cuttings I intend to start additional plants in the coming months. I want to produce Concord grapes for the simple fact, I like to eat them!! No marketing strategy in mind, just my taste buds driving my desire. I have fond memories of drinking homemade (and home canned) grape juice while eating popcorn at my grandma’s house on Sunday evening. Fond memories may drive my interest in producing Concord grapes.

I will continue with raising heirloom tomatoes, even though I do not know what variety they are. I like them too much to change to a different variety this year. My thoughts go like this: I may save seeds from the current variety (unknown) and in 2021 try a new variety, saving the seeds from 2020 to use in 2022.

Homestead in General

I have a few carryover projects from fall that if the ground doesn’t freeze, I would be trilled to finish.

Constructing support for the one grape plant that has flourished. The other ones are coming along slowly.
Fence work for horse pastures and cattle that I plan to purchase.
Work on the container garden area.
Set up additional outdoor pens for spring and the occasional nice winter day.
Condense indoor pens to make room for the extreme cold weather days.

I have 10 different seed packets donated by Baker Creek seeds. Three that I am excited to try are Flax, Sorghum, Peanuts. The fun part of this for me is that each of these have the potential to set me up for my own seeds as these are all heirloom plants. I can save seed and increase my crop in the coming years much in the same way I did with the 5 garlic varieties. Look for a blog post(s) in the fall of 2020 on these 10 different seeds I will be trying here at CG Heartbeats Farm. I will be starting these plants indoors in the coming months to give them a head start on the growing season.

What homestead expectations, goals, or dreams do have for the coming months? Leave a comment at the bottom or use this form to send an email.

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November 20, 2019July 22, 2020

Garlic ~ Year 4

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This fall marks the 4^th year I have planted garlic. I love thinking back to the first year. I planted about 6 cloves each of 3 varieties: Music, Montana, and German. I recall my Dad helped me prep the ground in a flower bed I was not using for anything.

Really, it was one of the easier spots to dig here on the farm. Despite my attempts of keeping the weeds out, the grass roots (unwanted growth = weeds) were well established. At one time a flower bed, I had in previous seasons dug up the grasses. The ground was rarely walked on and was soft here.

We dug with shovels and sifted through the soil to remove roots. The small amount of space we needed might have been 2 ½ ‘ x 2 ‘.

Each year since I have saved back a portion of the garlic I grew and used it to plant more the next year, growing in numbers. I will skip ahead here in the story to say this past week I planted around 350 cloves of 5 varieties.

I posted the last 2 years sharing the experience of planting garlic.

Garlic and Garlic Year 3

Spanish Rojo

I added a new variety last year, Spanish Rojo (or Spanish Red). This variety came up a few weeks later or even a month then the Music, Montana and German. Also it produced smaller greens from the beginning. No surprise really the bulbs were about half the size (or even smaller) compared to the other varieties.

Benefits of a smaller size: On several occasions I popped a clove in my mouth and ate it. These are the perfect size for that. Yes I had to pucker my face, but I knew my health would benefit. I found folks that might only be cooking for one or two people wanted to purchase a smaller bulb. Again the Spanish Rojo was a perfect fit.

New Ground

Garlic has done well here at CG Heartbeats Farm producing large cloves over all. Last year I out grew the flower bed. Rather, I had found a new way to remove sod. I share about that in Chickens on the Homestead. Briefly, I allowed the chickens to kill off sod and used that space for gardens. I did still turn over the soil and look for roots to remove.

While I planted Montana, German and the new Spanish Rojo garlic in the flower bed by the house. I moved a 5’ by 5’ chicken pen and planted around 34 cloves of Music garlic in that area

That ground produced the some of the largest bulbs harvested in 2019. I decided that this year the Spanish Rojo will be going in ground where a chicken pen had been. I want to see if the bulbs will grow bigger there. Not that it is all bad to offer a smaller size bulb. There did seem to be a demand for it.

Harvesting in 2019

We had an incredible wet spring in 2019. The grass and every thing grew like crazy. A rule of thumb I go by is to wait until the bottom 4 leaves have died off to harvest the bulbs. I guess I miss counted or the bottom leave left no trace of its existence? Anyway, some of the bulbs seemed like they should have been harvested earlier. No loss for me, they will still be good for planting and that is what I did with those bulbs.

Garlic and Farmer’s Markets

I felt happy to bring 4 healthy varieties of garlic to the 2 local markets I attended last summer. I enjoyed the conversations on the topic of garlic. I liked hearing others also grew garlic.

Next year I plant to offer an online buying options and you might find CG Heartbeats Farm garlic in a local store.

A new Variety

I choose Elephant as the new variety to plant this year, bringing the total varieties of garlic here at CG Heartbeats Farm to 5. I read they had a lighter sweeter taste and grow as large as softballs. Wow! Now the bulb I purchased ($10.95 + shipping) was not much larger than some of the music bulb I grew this year. A couple of the elephant cloves were definitely larger. I made sure to plant them in the new garden ground that had been a chicken pen.

Humm wonder how big they will get. I read that the tops grow 5 to 7 feet tall. In hindsight I needed to plant them on the north end of the garden not the south end. They may cast a shadow on the shorter garlic varieties. I am leaving room to improve it seems.

2020 Garlic Crop

Planting garlic this fall happened in shifts as it seems to each year. Every year I seem to fight the feeling as good as I want to when I go about this activity. And yet each year I am getting more planted. This gives me a satisfied feeling.

I did prep the ground and plant all the 340 + cloves with in one week. I will add this is all happening by hand, in its entirety. I started on a Tuesday removing the corn stalks and some bean plants. The next day I made it outside around dusk and worked by a flashlight for around 3 hours. I had removed all plants, worked the soil only to remove unwanted rooted green plants (mostly grass), and planted 97 cloves of German Garlic.

On Thursday I planted Spanish Rojo and Elephant in the rest of the garden I had cleared on Wednesday night.

On Friday my friend Beth came over to help me. We prepped ground and planted 77 cloves of Music garlic in the garden bed up by the house.

We spent a bit of time turning over the dirt where I had previously moved a chicken pen.

We have been trading work days or afternoons usually. It has been an encouragement to me and I always enjoy helping her. Not only did we get work done, we hung out, had lunch together, and chatted.

Beth and I harvested candy onions and a bit of mind. We even found a clove or two of garlic that i had missed earlier this year. I had planted the candy onions in between the rows of garlic last spring. When I harvested the garlic I gathered in the ones I could find. They never got real big so I will not do that next year.

I knew I had to get the Montana garlic and Egyptian walking onions in on Saturday. We were forecasted to have temps down around 6 degrees in the coming week. In hind sight, that week has passed and the ground has not frozen yet. No matter, I am trilled to have the garlic in.

That Saturday, I moved the last chicken pen, finished working the soil (slightly) in a 5’ by 10’ that had chickens on it since May, and planted around 80 Montana garlic varieties. I did get the Egyptian Walking onions planted, too. I will save that for a post next year.

Montana Garlic planted in this garden

The garlic is in for this fall. I will be adding hay chaff first and then wood chips as the become available this winter. The hay chaff comes from the barn and the wood chips from chopping wood here at CG Heartbeats Farm.

New in 2020

In 2020 there will be an online purchasing option on this website. A limited amount of garlic will be availbale to purchase online. That means even if you are not local to our area, you will be able to order our garlic and garlic scapes.

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