Chapter 6: Growing a Garden

While my prime motivation for growing a garden initially was cost savings, there were other benefits provided by this endeavor. By embarking on this adventure I knew I was reducing my carbon footprint and cutting back on the packaging and shipping waste that comes from buying off-the-rack vegetables. Many mass-produced vegetables travel thousands of miles before arriving at the grocery store, and must be packaged in man-made materials such as plastic and cardboard. While my fire making skill appreciated the additional cardboard stock, there was nothing I could do with the supply of packaging plastic other than collect it for recycling. 

Three other commonly overlooked benefits I noticed while growing this garden included improved produce taste, an increase in health, and an additional exercise outlet. Most any other domestic gardener I have encountered will confirm it: vegetables from a home garden unquestionably taste superior when compared to store bought. When you are able to pick vegetables out of your garden when you require them, they remain fresh, and there is zero chance for them to pick up a taste altering preservative. In addition, when you grow your own vegetables, you can control how much fertilizer, pesticide and herbicide you use on your plants, if any. This means you can have healthy, chemical-free vegetables right at your fingertips. Prepping your garden soil for use, and tending the plants is a physical task that burns calories and uses muscles. The majority of the physical work takes place when you initially till and plant the seedlings, but pulling weeds and hauling water are tasks that additionally work the muscles. With time and patience, one can come away with the satisfaction of having supplied yourself with means of survival in addition to the gratification of having taken care of other living things. 

A bountiful harvest occurs late summer and early fall.

I will be the first to admit that I should have paid my garden more attention than I did. I was distracted with Faire progress more than I was concerned with how my garden was maintained. At the close of last season I finally felt the Faire had achieved a “ground zero” position. Almost all things that were short-cutted, mismanaged, and left half-done, were refurbished and resolved. This meant that I could focus on fabricating complementary structures that would fit into the medieval setting and hypothetically arrange additional time to devote to my task of improved primitive living. The garden was to be doubled in size while herbs and flowers were going to be planted in boxes surrounding the tavern support posts. Another thing that was going to be altered with 2014’s version of the garden was the time seedlings were to be sewed into the ground thus producing an earlier harvest.

Anyone who has been following knows that I arrived to the Faire officially at the end of May. Knowing that the planting season for this hardiness zone was already over, I made it a point to pick up seedlings as soon as possible. Luckily the local greenhouse located in Malaga was still stocked with sprouts at the end of the second week in June. We were fortunate. Cabbage, Kohlrabi, Onions, Banana Peppers, Green Peppers, Ghost Chilies, Watermelon, Cucumber, Zucchini, and three types of Tomatoes were purchased for year one.

An area atop the hillside neighboring the Tavern was selected to accommodate this new endeavor. A tiller was rented from the hardware store downtown for a price of $50 per day. For the past two years, the management has tried and failed to grow grass in front of the Tavern bar. The attempt last year was to just buy a bunch of seed and spread it down upon the dirt. However, the soil in the area was heavily compacted by hard rains and heavy travel. Since we had the tiller all day, Anvil and I decided it best to use it as much as we could. As Anvil began to aerate the soil in the Tavern yard, I began to push mow the area selected for the garden; for at this time the hillside was covered in knee high weeds.

Once the weeds were trounced by the mower, Anvil and I would haul the tiller up to the second level and turn the soil with the blades. After the soil was turned over, the heavy clumps of grass needed to be removed as to help deter weeds from growing further along in the season. Given that this was the first time this soil was used for growing vegetation other than weeds and grass, I chose not to add fertilizer to the soil, as I assumed it would already contain all the nutrients that it required. This would also end up saving me money in the end.

Ideally, the soil should have been turned three more times to break it up, given that it was the first time this soil was turned for this purpose. However, we were nearing the end of the day and I didn’t fully think of the additional benefits retilling the soil would have until after we had already returned it to the hardware store. Lazy mistake; not that it affected the growing process all that much, merely the planting process as the dirt was still chunky and hard to break up in most spots. Following soil aeration, it was time to select which rows the plants would be sewn into. Each plant has a certain recommended spacing that is dependent on how hearty the plant most commonly grows. Once figured out, the dirt was pulled back to have left a big enough hole to cover the roots and some of the stem. Black cloth would be placed atop each group of seedlings to discourage weeds from taking over and a cross (X) would be cut in the fabric where the sprouts would fit through. The black cloth was secured with rocks rather than spending money on metal stakes and watered in well by hauled water from the stream.

Was able to cover most of the rows with black cloth to deter weeds, but I remember weeding the garden three times the entire season. Could have easily used more, but time did not present itself.

Stage one of garden fencing involved recycling the deadfall that used to surround the fight pit to form a ground barrier and the fence posts. Post holes were dug with a, get this: post hole digger, 16-20 inches down. This depth would ensure that the posts would remain stable after the holes were filled back in and the dirt tamped downward. 

Square plastic fencing mesh was stapled around the fence posts to ensure that small game like rabbits could not easily get into the garden parameter. Any additional deadfall that was not cut to size and used for fence posts were added to the barrier at the bottom to discourage any digging near the bottom of the fencing mesh. 

Slats of wood were harvested and recycled from Mac’s shack in the Back 40. They were nailed to the posts making sure to overlap where the plastic mesh ended to increase the height of the barricade.

Sadly, the garden stayed in this half completed state for almost another full month. When I would return to this project, I would spend almost a full Sunday afternoon weeding the soils and covering up the walkways with sawdust harvested from the Back 40 mound. The sawdust slowed the progress of additional weed growth in areas I did not install black cloth. 

This season tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, green peppers, watermelon, sweet potatoes, ghost chilies, and banana peppers all flourished, while the onions, cabbage, and kohlrabi were all decimated by the (assumed) rabbits before I could even get the fence up.

Minimal watering was needed due to this year’s rainy season, although the garden was weeded a total of three times. To replace the annihilated cabbage and kohlrabi plants, I went on to replant their row with the beginnings of an herb garden. All four clippings of Oregano, Nicotina, Chamomile, and Spearmint were donated by my uncle during my latest portal to New York. 

Vine plants fascinate me. Had I allotted more time for this project, I would have made sure to stake and tie each of the growing vine plants upwards rather than having them compete for space and entangle each other. A good gardener is out there every other day encouraging the location of each new shoot in attempt to keep the vegetation off the ground where the produce can begin to rot with too much moisture. I even had the workings of a trellis planned for the upcoming year. However, I as one person, was stretched too thin to warrant a commitment like that this season. Thus this whole project remained a hands off approach.

Somewhere at the very end of summer, most likely after Pennsic War and sometime before BoFA 2013, the garden achieved its final stage of completion. Three more rows of slats were weaved in and out of the posts and secured again with nails. Towards the far left front, I made sure to leave an opening to access the garden lands. 

I am unsure the exact timing, but during one of the events, I want to say BoFA, I went with Timmourne to run town errands and was away from the Tavern for the beginning of the day. I returned to find that individuals had volunteered their time and created what I call: Surprise Stairs. Although the steps are placed too close together for a comfortable stride, they are aesthetically pleasing and made my hike up the hill so much easier. Sir Dead, a Dragoon whose name I cannot remember for the life of me, and a few others were responsible for this awesome. If by chance they are following, another Thank You for your effort. I appreciated it.

Aside from my garden, the Faire had additional edible wild foods I made sure to exploit. Wild edibles exist almost everywhere and have naturally grown on our planet before the onset of mass urbanization; after all foraging for food used to be the way to survive. Edible weeds, flowers, and wild herbs can be used as food as well as medications; and they provide a plethora of the vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients required for the human body to maintain good health.

Long before my garden was ready for harvest, the Faire lands became full of wild bramble bushes. These varieties of wild berries did not require cooking and thus could be eaten fresh out of the hand. Berries provide a fair complement of vitamins and minerals along with the quick energy of natural sugar. Plus they were free for taking and required absolutely no help from me to populate in such an astounding quantity.

Although my crop of onions never came through, during the wet spring there were plenty of patches filled with wild scallions. All parts of this particular Wild Onion/Garlic are edible: the underground bulbs, the long, thin leaves, the blossoms, and the bulblets on top. The bulblets are small cloves located on the tippy top of the plant that sets when it blossoms. Harvesting them is easier than digging for bulbs but those are also easy to find. They’re usually four to six inches underground. The plant is referred to as both onion and garlic because while it is technically a wild onion it has a very strong garlic aroma.

When one has the knowledge, one can harvest many meals from the “weeds” and some flowers that come from the earth. There were many times that I made my lunch from the vegetation that I found simply by going on a hike and knowing where to look. Different seasons will yield different edibles. Wild Scallions, Trout Lilies, Violets, and Dandelions leaves (not pictured) made up a great variety for a spring harvested salad. A simple dressing can be made with equal parts oil to vinegar, olive oil is the best, some fresh ground pepper, a covering of garlic power, and a dash of salt. None of these things require refrigeration and adds very few additional calories to an already healthy naturally picked salad. 

While my mushroom lore leaves something to be desired, I did try two new types of mushrooms while out at the Faire, and not one of those were the psychedelic kinds. My first harvest was Chicken of the Wood. They are most likely to be found from August through October or later but are sometimes found as early as June. The Cap of the shroom can be 2-20” across from 1/8” – 1” thick colored bright orange/yellow to salmon on top with a bright yellow margin. Chicken of the wood is usually found with overlapping, fan-shaped flat caps, growing as a single shelf or in attached bunches or rosettes on wood. C of the W can be one of the most variable mushrooms in terms of edibility. Chickens can have a lemony, chicken-like taste and texture are good sautéed, deep fried, baked, and go well in soups. 

 

The second mushroom type I was exposed to was the Morel. I give credit to Adam Westby for introducing me to these little fun-guys. (Let us take a moment to appreciate that old pun). On our walks over the lands, it was him who honed my eye to the ground looking for this additional food group. Morels grow from as early as late April until about the middle of June. Black morels are likely to appear the earliest and are likely to be found under conifers, in the woods, or along woods edges. Late May is when yellow morels are likely to be found in numbers. Normal cap size is 1-2” wide and 1-4 tall. It looks a bit like honeycomb or sponge and is never wavy or brain-like. Beware the False Morel that can have this brain-like appearance for they are poisonous. Normal height is 2-5” tall, but there are always exceptions. All true morels are completely hollow in the interior. These must be cooked thoroughly; make sure to never ever eat morels raw! They are good sautéed, deep fried, or dried and reconstituted. One of the best ways to eat them is by themselves to appreciate the subtle morel flavor. Adam prepared our harvest in a soup and as a deep fried snack. Never harvest any mushroom unless you are completely positive it is safe to eat, as many can be deceivingly poisonous. 

Late August would see the first of the harvest. Tomatoes, Watermelon, and Zucchini were the first picked. I have never grown watermelon before. This season was a great opportunity to do such. I was very satisfied with how the melons tasted; very sweet, juicy, and with no shame, eaten directly with a spoon.

Zucchini is a common grow for me. They make a wonderful side dish if sliced, marinated in Italian dressing, and grilled over tinfoil until soft. When ovens are available, I also make various sweet breads. I use basically the same recipe as banana bread but with various fruits or zucchini as a substitute. One time I was using the shredding attachment on the food processor while preparing the zucchini for bread, but accidentally left the processing blade in the bottom. I completely over processed the zucchini, by far. Not wanting to waste the paste mixture, I squeezed out as much of the natural water as I could, combined them with whipped eggs, egg noodles, garlic, pepper, and a bit of flour and created an impromptu Zucchini Burger. They are now a common summer dish at my family home. 

During Labor Day weekend early September, my grandmother came to visit me out at the Faire. Yup she drove the 5.5 hours in her truck with my/our shared cat Mohinder. She stayed for the better half of three days to teach me a lesson in canning tomatoes. Zucchinis from the store can eat your heart out over the size mine grew that season. Grandma for scale. 

The tomato harvest completely surprised me and flourished. They took over the entire upper left hand side of the garden and then some.

My grandmother would go on to teach me how to heat, skin, plunge, and can tomatoes for use later as sauce or stew. There were so many tomatoes, that I went through a second round of canning after she left later on in the month of September. If I remember correctly, Lady Nightshade of Mirkwood helped me out with the skinning and plunging process. Her hands were much appreciated, for this time I was canning cherry tomatoes and skinning something that small was time consuming. She helped me cut the time in half. 

Anvil was the one that requested I purchase the Ghost Chilies Seedlings. I don’t have a taste for something that hot, but he does. The harvest was full and I made sure to see it to him when I portaled to visit him in Rochester, NY after the 2013 season ended. By the next time I saw him in May of 2014, he gifted me a mason jar of pickled ghost chilies mixed with banana peppers. I have to admit, over half of it still resides in the fridge, but they do add a good dose of spice to a fajita or omelet wrap.

Come Fall the harvest dies back and the sweet potatoes were ready for picking. The foliage was left untilled above the soil to naturally decompose into the ground at its own rate to be reprocessed in the upcoming spring. 

“The mornings remain cool as the songbirds wake later and later into the dawn. The trees begin to show signs of color as a slight chill makes it presence known in the air.
The time of summer is setting to welcome fall with bountiful harvests, so that things may die back into winters rest before new life can begin again. Don't fret; it’s all part of a beautiful cycle.” –Theowyndwood Keyote Journal entry Sept 4th 2013