The Funny Farm is not so funny this December. Actually, it’s pretty sad. Not much going on. At least we’ve had lots of rain, but nothing seems to be growing. That’s why they say gardening teaches you patience, I guess.

Let’s start with the worst of the lot. And it used to be the best. Now it has now gone to meet it’s maker.

The Magic Eggplant Bush

I can’t bring myself to pull it out of the ground. Somehow I imagine a magical spring morning when I discover green leaves coming out of this stump. Snap out of it, Mikie!

Let’s go to the other end of the spectrum, shall we?

Blooming Arugula

Not only is it beautiful, it’s about to make lots more arugula. 24 degrees does not affect Arugula at all, though, if it gets down in the teens, I’ll cover it up. I need to make some Arugula Pesto. If you’ve got an abundance of Arugula (or you just want to plant some and watch it grow all winter), check out my Arugula Pesto recipe in my Recipes to Diet For category.

Now let’s check out the fall garden things I’ve planted.

Doesn’t look too impressive

This is my broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and Brussel sprout bed. Everything got hit hard when it was 24 and it wasn’t covered, but most of the plants have come back though a couple aren’t growing at all. Still the whole bed isn’t growing very well and I have no idea why. I’ve even hit them up with Hasta Gro. We’ll just see if they kick in after all the rain we’ve had.

An assortment of experimental stuff

This bed has toy choi, blue broccoli, orange cauliflower, lettuces and celery. It’s not doing bad, but the bugs are attacking. We will take a look at problematic winter bugs tomorrow. It’s doing better than my regular broccoli/cauliflower bed but still not as good as I’d like.

Purple Toy Choi

Very pretty. I need to make stir fry.

Climbing Roses

I knew nothing about roses when I planted this bush. You really can’t plant roses in the Hill Country unless they are protected from the deer. Deer love roses. I can’t imagine crunching down on a bunch of thorns, but the deer don’t mind. So back to roses. They stay green and keep growing most of the winter. I believe you’re supposed to cut them back severely in February. When I find out how and what to do, I’ll blog on that, too.

Tomorrow we’re going to discuss the problems are are going on in the garden and get on the bug trail. There aren’t many but there still are some.

Cold and dreary here. Time for some soup.

Spreading gardening tips throughout the world…one plant at a time.

Mikie Baker
www.mikiebaker. com