5 things to do in the garden this week:
Fruit trees. Most types of citrus ripen in the winter and you may be wondering as to when they should be picked. This is a personal decision, depending on how tart or sweet you like your fruit. The longer citrus fruit stays on the tree, the sweeter it gets. However, citrus will eventually lose its sweetness if allowed to overstay its welcome on the tree. That being said, Washington navel oranges have the longest period of ripeness, which lasts from January until April. Cara Cara navels, on the other hand, are best harvested in February and March.
Vegetables. Red cabbage, along with all the other brassicas (cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, bok choy, kohlrabi, and turnips), may be planted now. Red cabbage is more salubrious than green cabbage due to its pigmentation, indicating the presence of anthocyanins, which are present in all plant tissues in the red to purple spectrum. Anthocyanins promote cardiac health and one study showed that women whose diet is enriched with red-pigmented fruits and vegetables significantly reduced their risk for a heart attack. Speaking of overall nutrition, one cup of raw red cabbage contains 85% of our daily vitamin C requirement, as well as high levels of vitamins A and K.
Herbs. Thyme is a perennial, frost-tolerant herb and even where it dies back during extreme cold it will regrow when the weather warms. Thyme grows slowly from seed so it is best to purchase a containerized plant at the nursery. Thyme that grows upright is most commonly seen and is more robust than creeping thyme. Thyme is one of the easiest herbs to propagate. You place cuttings in a shallow cup of water, where they will root soon enough and may then be planted in the ground or in containers, the latter being well-suited to their shallow roots. You can also propagate thyme through division, a practice that involves cutting through the whole plant and moving the divisions to new pots or garden spots. There are more than two dozen varieties of thyme available in the nursery trade. Silver Queen is highly ornamental with its red stems and green leaves edged in silver.
Exotic perennials. If you live inland and are frustrated at the paucity of plants suitable for growing in the shade, you may wish to consider black mondo grass (Ophiopogon planiscapus var. Nigrescens). It will grow in the sun as well, but could burn in full-sun exposures where summers sizzle. It develops into a clump that is almost a foot high and a foot wide. Leaves are more than a foot long and a quarter inch wide. Black mondo grass is best appreciated in the company of low-growing plants with silver or golden foliage, such as that displayed by Silver Queen and Golden thyme varieties.
Consider planting peas at the base of your deciduous trees. Upon germinating, your pea plants will vine their way up the trunks of your trees with their pods ready to harvest prior to the trees leafing out. Keep in mind that there are three types of edible peas: shelling peas, whose peas are harvested for cooking; snow peas, whose flat pods are harvested for eating fresh or cooking, typically in stir-fry dishes; snap or sugar peas, whose swollen pods are harvested and eaten whole as you marvel at their sugary sweet taste.
