Last Harvest

Monday we planted seven northern white cedars. This is one of my favourite trees and is also known as the Tree of Life. Most years, this is an ideal time for tree planting but this year winter is coming early. The ground is not frozen but cold and the wind fierce.

Today we travelled across town to the East End. Our mission was to put the large garden we designed last June, to bed for the Winter. We got a pleasant surprise. While hoeing the potato patch, we unearthed 15 lbs of potatoes. We had thought the patch had been pretty much picked. You see this garden feeds about five people, not completely but provides a supplement to their other food sources. We didn't expect to find anything left.

We also got about ten pounds of brussel sprouts, my favourite vegetable. Tonight's dinner is a steamed vegetable dish seasoned with sage which we also harvested today. All three provided an unanticipated last harvest. Nature can truly provide when we work with her and not against her.

When I designed the garden, as part of a workshop last June, I had to take into consideration the reality that it was generally going to be left unattended. The garden is situated in the backyard of a house that the owner rents out. None of the renters wanted to look after the garden or share in the produce. I live about a 20 minute drive away and knew that I'd not travel that far to pick a few vegetables, especially when I have other sources closer to home. The other gardeners lived out of the immediate neighbourhood and had other gardens to attend. This meant that this garden had to survive on its own.

My first task was to create a path through the garden. So I used a keyhole pattern to provide easy access to the rectangular space. This provided easy access to any spot in the garden and meant that no one had to step on the growing beds. This prevented the bed from becoming compacted. We then used straw to mulch the complete garden (except the paths) to a depth of one foot. The straw was watered throughly. We then planted through the straw and watered again.

That was the last time the garden was watered. The only water that it received for the rest of the Summer was rain and July was a dry month. The plants thrived. It wasn't perfect. There were a few weeds and because no one tended the garden throughout most of the Summer and Fall, we lost a few cucumbers and some chard.

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