What will your garden ring in NEW this year?

So as I continue to find the tried and true seeds that I will stick with I also still let the curiosity get the best of me as well! I am getting better at saving more room for the crops I find that do best in my neck of the woods but I still like to experiment with new seeds to see what I can discover! This year I have decided to plant Kale. I know it's not that exciting but I never liked kale before but I can now tolerate it in soups and I got a juicer that I would like to have some super greens of my own to juice and some salsify because I seem to have a fondness for all root veggies so far!

Mine aren't as out there as I have been before but they will be new and exciting to me! Anybody else trying something new this year!?!

Happy New Year Everybody!!   

I tend to stick to the tried and true also.

But I ate this for the first time a couple months ago, so I thought I'd grow some-strictly for the visual appeal!

Romanesco broccoli

To me, it tastes like cauliflower.

Cheyanne, I am going to grow some rainbow swiss chard this year.  Not very fond of leafy greens but fixed some organic a couple of weeks ago that wasn't too bad.  Maybe fresh picked will be better.  Happy New Year!!!!!!!!

Oh yum!  Broccoli that tastes like cauliflower!!  Wow, I might have to look into that!  I love both of those, that sounds fabulous!  3 years ago I went wild trying new things, since then I have learned to do just a few a year.

I still have some rainbow swiss chard seeds from last year. The deer ate it all before I could get my hands on it though! This year I am going to move some boxes and try to make a fence to protect a few boxes!

2013 was my first year gardening so everything was an experiment.  I have a better idea what I want more of, and what varieties I want to try, what is not worth the effort or space in my small backyard, and what I will never again grow (beets).  As far as varieties, some of the ideas came from reading what other folks have liked.

I know I recently posted this but here it is again.  I will also plant some left over 2013 seeds of more common, off the rack, veggies.

Cole crops and leaf crops, mostly. Maybe a couple of new tomatoes. I grew tomatoes almost everywhere last year, so I will have almost no space to grow them this year. Oh well, I still like things like lettuce and love things like brussels sprouts and spinach and, now that I've tried it a bit more, kale. Also peas! I'm really hoping I do great with them, because snow peas are probably my favorite vegetable.

Some of the more interesting things I will be trying are New Zealand Spinach, Malabar spinach, and borage. Never eaten any of the three, but read so many good things about them!

Planted lambs quarters/corn salad months ago (like my spinach), but it's not doing anything but sitting there with tiny seedling leaves. Never eaten that either, but I'm really hoping it turns out to work well, as it is supposedly incredibly cold-hardy, and I need a crop like that since everything else has been a bust this winter and I need something reliable for cool and cold seasons.

Oh, and I'm hoping my compost will turn out well too; if so, it will be my first year using my own compost.

Plus, I think I'll try some more self-watering buckets.

Last season was my first for SFG.
It was nothing really but a test season for me, while I was continuing to convert my beds I missed some item and started others I never planted before..
This season I am planting for effect.
My garlic and shallots are in , with more shallots being planted in the spring.
I have a 5 X 5 bed that will be dedicated to herbs alone.
kohlrabi, romaine, tomato's will make up most of the rest with a few extra's thrown in...
 
2 middle beds last summer

As of right now I might not get a garden this year...might be moving 

mschaef wrote:As of right now I might not get a garden this year...might be moving 

Any idea where to? and when?

boffer wrote:I tend to stick to the tried and true also.

But I ate this for the first time a couple months ago, so I thought I'd grow some-strictly for the visual appeal!

Romanesco broccoli

To me, it tastes like cauliflower.

It is a type of cauli Boffer  . It doesn't do well in very wet conditions if they persist for weeks at a time like here in my home 20 this last year.

boffer wrote:

Romanesco broccoli

Fractal!

Daikon radishes, shallots, parsnips and returning to winter squash after a year hiatus.

Not planning so much with new things but generally planning for lots of extras to freeze from this summer's 2014 harvest.  I want to make good use of the brand new chest freezer being delivered next week.  And continue learning the art of canning different things and begin pickling strong NY style garlic dill pickles, while keepng the dehydrator busy too.

llama momma wrote:Not planning so much with new things but generally planning for lots of extras to freeze from this summer's 2014 harvest.  I want to make good use of the brand new chest freezer being delivered next week.  And continue learning the art of canning different things and begin pickling strong NY style garlic dill pickles, while keepng the dehydrator busy too.

Congrats on the freezer LM!

Not sure what new things I may try this year; carrots, beets and kohlrabi were new for me in 2013.

Thanks a bunch Herblover.  When I saw your freezer I knew one day I had to get one too.  Did my homework on choosing a model with good reviews that would serve a  2 person household.  I think this will be everything we need and room to spare.

lm, which freezer did you end up with?  I may need one also.

My new crop this year will be arugula.  I decided I finally like it after years of not.  It's even good in smoothies.

CC

camprn wrote:

mschaef wrote:As of right now I might not get a garden this year...might be moving 

Any idea where to? and when?

That is the problem we don't know when or where yet. The military is "kicking" (retiring/ medically discharging) my hubby out. We are not sure when that will happen but it will be sometime this year. So we are trying to figure out where we want to go/ do with our lives. And my hubby said no garden until we move  

CapeCoddess wrote:lm, which freezer did you end up with?  I may need one also.

My new crop this year will be arugula.  I decided I finally like it after years of not.  It's even good in smoothies.

CC

CC
I went with a G.E. 7 cu.ft. manual defrost from Home Depot.  There were very nice reviews and many questions with answers about this product on the Home Depot site.

mschaef wrote:

camprn wrote:

mschaef wrote:As of right now I might not get a garden this year...might be moving 

Any idea where to? and when?

That is the problem we don't know when or where yet. The military is "kicking" (retiring/ medically discharging) my hubby out. We are not sure when that will happen but it will be sometime this year. So we are trying to figure out where we want to go/ do with our lives. And my hubby said no garden until we move  

I see a pot of tomatoes in your future...

This will be my first square foot gardening year.  cheyannarach it's interesting you mentioned kale and juicing.  I started juicing in August and having hated all things green I've come to love it so I'll be converting space to SFG for all sorts of veggies and if it works out I'll expand.

Wow, this thread is hopping!  I am really excited and nervous about the garlic and shallots I planted this fall!  I am hoping these very unusually freezing temps don't kill them all off.  With my luck I am pretty much banking that they don't come up   .  Then the optimist in me says well if they don't come up you have two new beds to plant other stuff in and you get to try again next year  

camprn wrote:

mschaef wrote:

camprn wrote:

mschaef wrote:As of right now I might not get a garden this year...might be moving 

Any idea where to? and when?

That is the problem we don't know when or where yet. The military is "kicking" (retiring/ medically discharging) my hubby out. We are not sure when that will happen but it will be sometime this year. So we are trying to figure out where we want to go/ do with our lives. And my hubby said no garden until we move  

I see a pot of tomatoes in your future...

So right about the "kicking". So many are being kicked to the curb these days. Get with every military help line, veteran service you can find and make sure you get ALL that you are entitled to.

Where is home to your families? And what employment field(s) are you trying for?
Kay

cheyannarach wrote:Wow, this thread is hopping!  I am really excited and nervous about the garlic and shallots I planted this fall!  I am hoping these very unusually freezing temps don't kill them all off.  With my luck I am pretty much banking that they don't come up   .  Then the optimist in me says well if they don't come up you have two new beds to plant other stuff in and you get to try again next year  

I'm having a garlic dilemma as well, since I did NOT get mine in before the ground froze (new job, total exhaustion - it just didn't happen!). I am hoping after this brutal winter we will have an early enough spring that I can plant them and hope for a fall crop.

GG

cheyannarach wrote:Wow, this thread is hopping!  I am really excited and nervous about the garlic and shallots I planted this fall!  I am hoping these very unusually freezing temps don't kill them all off.  With my luck I am pretty much banking that they don't come up   .  Then the optimist in me says well if they don't come up you have two new beds to plant other stuff in and you get to try again next year  

If they are buried in the snow they are probably basking in the warmth of 20-25F soil and will likely be fine, especially if they are a more cold hardy variety. I always mulch my garlic with 4-6" of straw once the soil starts to freeze solid, usually late November/early December here, might not help you now but for future reference. I pull most off in the spring once it thaws.