Cole Canyon Farm : Product Details : Vegetables

(A): Annual. Completes its life cycle in one year or less. Example: Basil and Chervil.

(B): Biannual. Completes its life cycle in two years. Example: Chard and parsley.

(TP): Tender Perennial, means it will live more than two years if protected from winter frost. Example: African Blue Basil should be well mulched in the winter garden or put into a pot and brought inside for winter.

(HP): Hardy Perennial, means it lives for more than two years and survives frost and some freeze. Example: Rosemary. Just plant it in the garden or container and forget about it in winter.

ARTICHOKE (P)
We start these plants from seed. We offer two types; Green Globe and Violetto. They should flower in March or April after fall planting. Both live 4 – 8 years and set side shoots each year. These plants are large, so give them about 18” in each direction. If you have a gopher problem, be sure to plant these in protective baskets. Ancient wisdom says the deep taproot is a favorite of the pregnant female rodent in spring.
Image: www.photolib.noaa.gov/ coastline/line3080.htm

BEETS (A)
Beets are best direct seeded but can be transplanted if done early. We offer three types; Bulls Blood, Golden and Chioggia. Bulls Blood is often grown for its intense red foliage, which can be harvested at about 35 days. The root is dark red with candy-stripe zoning. Golden beet is a little more delicate to start, but vigorous once established. Harvest in about 55 days for a sweet, juicy golden beet that doesn’t ‘bleed’. Chioggia is the classic candy-striped beet great eaten roasted. Try a few and you will soon forget every bad beet experience you had in 3rd grade.
Image: http://www.uga.edu/rootandtubercrops/photos/beet_plants.jpg

BROCCOLI RAAB (A)
We could list this as a green or a vegetable, since it is eaten raw in salads when young, or braised and served as a vegetable when a little more mature. We like to chop it into soups a few minutes before serving. The same is true of collards and kale. We sell this one in six packs because most of our customers use a lot of it, and often in the winter months.
Image: http://www.seedsofchange.com/garden_center/
product_details.asp?item_no=PS14357

BUSH BEANS
Fava Beans (A)
Plant in fall (October through December) for spring harvest. These ancient beans need no support. Plant more than you want to eat, though, so you can turn some back into the garden before they flower. If you haven’t eaten fava beans, you will find them to have a rich, creamy flavor that goes well with those gold beets you grew. Everything you would ever need to know about fava beans is included in the UC Davis pamphlet below:
For More Information: http://www.sfc.ucdavis.edu/pubs/brochures/favabean.html

Green or String Beans (A)
Unlike pole beans, bush beans are determinate plants that do not require a trellis and produce an abundant harvest for a longer period of time. If you want a continuous harvest, then you need to plant beans every two weeks or so after the soil warms up to 60 degrees. This is the bean that used to be called a string bean, but the strings are gone now, so we call them snap beans. We offer five varieties: the classic Blue Lake, a yellow wax Roc D’Or, the exotic purple Royal Burgundy, variegated Dragon’s Tongue, and the rich Italian flat Romano type.

Edamame (A)
This bush soybean plant needs a little more warmth than we have near the coast, but if you live inland and/or have a sunny, warm garden site, give these a try. Highly popular as a fresh bean, these are boiled and served warm in the pod, lightly salted.

CABBAGE (A)
In times past, cabbage was best grown by people in very cold climates with large gardens, root cellars, and a taste for sauerkraut. That is no longer the case. The cabbage plants that we sell are smaller than the typical plant, can be placed closer together, and the cabbages harvested when they are young and sweet. Cool weather and winter rains make the cabbages sweet and provide fewer opportunities for the cabbage worm that we hate because of its uncanny ability to hide from us. You can make sauerkraut or slaw from these cabbages, and you can eat them raw in salads as well.
Image: http://www.johnnyseeds.com/catalog/subcategory.aspx?
category=1&subcategory=14

CANTALOUPE (A)
We offer cool weather varieties that ripen in about 80 days. We suggest that you set them out in June or July for fall harvest during our warmer months of September and October.

CHARD (B)
We can’t resist the dramatic colors found in each tiny seed of Bright Lights, a type of Swiss Chard. We sell it in six packs or singles. If you have a small garden or are putting together a salad mix, try one or two chard plants of the color of your choice.
Image: http://www.johnnyseeds.com/catalog/product.aspx?
category=1&subcategory=52&item=703

CUCUMBER
Cucumbers (A)
It seams each culture has it’s favorite cucumber and we try to bring a wide variety. In general, all cucumbers want a rich, well-drained soil, room to sprawl or, even better, a trellis, and sunny days. The plants are a little fussy about being transplanted so select plants that have no more than one set of true leaves and transplant quickly and carefully. You will be rewarded. We offer Marketmore (slicing), Tasty Jade and Diva (seedless/slicing), Little Pickle (slicing and pickling), Striped Armenian (striped and curved), Lemon (looks like a lemon), and Suyo (a tasty Chinese variety).

Greenhouse Cucumbers (A)
We offer a specialty cucumber that grows readily, and bears fruit, in the protected conditions of the unheated greenhouse or cold frame. Contact us for specific growing instructions.

Mouse Melon (A)
This is not a true cucumber. Latin name is Melothria scabra; but it grows like a cucumber and tastes like a cucumber. Growing this would be a great project for the Young Gardener!
Check out the article in Mother Earth Magazine for more information about this little heirloom: http://www.motherearthnews.com/Whole_Foods_and_Cooking/
2005_June_July/Mouse-Melons

EGGPLANT (A)
Talk about your edible ornamental! The eggplant is a pretty plant with lovely flowers and makes a dramatic border plant in your landscape as well as in the garden. If you love olive oil and garlic, you will love the produce from the plant too. We offer the large Italian types, the smaller Japanese types, and a variety of colors and shapes.

FENNEL (A)
It’s an herb, it’s a vegetable, it’s an annual, it’s a perennial, it’s big, it’s small. What is it? It’s fennel! If you like fennel, the annual vegetable that you harvest for the bulb, then it’s Finocchio and we sell it in the spring in six packs. It does transplant if done early and it does not become a weed because you will harvest the whole thing. If you are interested in the leaf, then we sell the bronze variety as an herb. Makes a great butterfly habitat.

Arugula
Corn Salad/Mache
Cress, Persian
Dandelion, French
Lettuce, Romaine Type Parris Island Cos
Lettuce, Butterhead, Green
Lettuce, Leaf Type Black Seeded Simpson
Lettuce, Leaf Type Simpson Elite
Lettuce, Leaf type, Green Oakleaf
Lettuce, Leaf Type, Red Oakleaf
Lettuce, Leaf Type, Sanguine Ameliore
Lettuce, Lollo Type, Natividad
Lettuce, Romaine Type Little Gem
Lettuce, Romaine Type Ruben Green Leaf
Lettuce, Romaine Type Rubin
Lettuce, Romaine Type Flashy Trout’s Back
Mizuna, Japanese Mustard
Mustard, Hon Tsai Tai
Mustard, Osaka Purple
Mustard, Purple Wave
Mustard, Tsai Tai
Radicchio, Early Pallo Rossa
Sorrel, French type
Spinach, America

Kale & Collards (A)
These brassicas can be planted from late summer through late fall for winter harvest; again in late winter for spring harvest. In short, there are very few weeks in the year when you can’t plant or harvest kale and collards. Both can be harvested as baby greens and eaten raw or braised and served as a side dish. We offer Red Russian, White Russian, Winterbor, and Dino kales and two varieties of collards, both of which are cold hardy and slow to bolt.

LEEK (A)
This is a non-bulbing onion that benefits greatly from transplanting. The bigger the transplant the bigger the leak. You can plant these anytime late fall through mid-spring for harvest the following summer through fall. Plant a lot of them and harvest some when they are small and others when they are quite large. To blanch the stems (we usually eat the white part), pile soil up around the base as they grow.

ONIONS
Walla Walla (A)
These sweetly delicious bulbing onions are planted in the fall for summer harvest. Plant seedlings at least 4 inches apart to allow for mature growth. Don’t plant them in the same area where you will be wanting to plant tomatoes because they ripen about 6 weeks after tomatoes need to be planted. Walla Walla’s are easy to grow – they just need time. Some gardeners start them in early spring (April) but we find you get fuller growth by starting them in late fall.
Image: http://www.kunstdame.com/farm/spring/onion.jpg

Bunching/Scallions (A)
A summer garden would not be complete without a patch of ‘green onions’ for eating raw or chopping into salad. These are very easy to grow and you can harvest them whenever they reach a size that pleases you. We offer red and white ones.

PEAS (A)
If you have a warm sunny location in your garden then you may be able to grow snow and sugar snap peas all winter long. Others may find their peas just sit there til February. We offer three types: Sugar Snaps which require a trellis and may grow up to 8 feet, Snow Peas which don’t grow quite so tall, and; Shelling or English peas, which grow to about three feet and may do without a trellis. It’s always best to direct seed peas, so select six packs of seedlings that have just emerged and plant out within a few days.
For More Information: http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/veggies/peas1.html
Note: Sweet peas are a flowering variety that are NOT edible. We do not sell those.

CHILE PEPPERS (A/P) [See Peppers for more information]
In general, peppers are grown as annuals and come in sweet and hot (chile) varieties. In fact, many peppers can be grown as perennials in our mild coastal climate, and we offer a number of those types. Ideal seedlings for transplant will have sturdy stems and buds, but no open flowers. If you are planting in sandy soils, make sure you add calcium and phosphorus.
            Bell Peppers: These are grown as annuals. All varieties start green but ripen to a variety of colors including red, orange, yellow, purple and white. Begin harvest as soon as the pepper has matured to the size and color desired to insure more production. In general, the more color, the more food value.
            Ethnic Peppers, Sweet: Our favorite is the Italian type of pointed peppers that are grown like bells and produce great quantities of 4 – 8 inch long peppers. The plants are very vigorous and produce for months in protected areas of your garden. Italian in origin, these are named after the nose or horn of the bull!
            Hot Chiles: We offer a great assortment of hot chile seedlings and plants from April though early fall. Many of these plants are perennial in our climate if protected during the short days and cold winds of winter. Many do well in pots and can be brought in during winter months; others will survive in the garden if pruned and mulched heavily. So if you have a taste for the heat of exotic and hard to find chile, you should find old favorites and some terrific new varieties on our list. Please check “On The Truck” for new additions.

PUMPKIN (A)
Pumpkins are great fun for the whole family and useful as well as ornamental. We offer three types; a classic Jack O’Lantern for carving, Baby Bears because kids love them and they are great for pies, and the dramatic Rouge Vif D’Etampes or Cinderella pumpkin.

SQUASH (A)
Summer Squash: Most summer squashes can be planted in mid-spring after danger of frost. Plant out seedlings that have at least one set of true leaves and give them plenty of room – they get big and benefit from good air circulation. And remember, once they start to develop fruit, check often or expect to find a very large zucchini hiding amidst the leaves. We offer both heirloom and hybrid varieties of Zucchini, Yellow Summer and Patty Pans.
Winter Squash: When planning your summer garden, remember that winter squash needs to be planted at the same time as summer squash. If space is at a premium and you want a winter squash or two, consider a trellis. As large as they are, most winter squashes do well climbing up a fence or teepee. We offer Blue Ballet, Acorn, Butternut and Delicata.

TOMATOES (A) [Click for more information on our tomatoes]
Tomato plants are easy to grow and very rewarding in most growing conditions. Here are a few tips:
            Plant tomatoes in the sunniest and warmest part of your yard or garden.
            Select determinate types for container growing; indeterminate for rambling or staking. Indeterminates can grow quite large and provide you with fruit over a longer growing season. Determinates are bush type plants that fruit more over a shorter season. Heirlooms offer terrific taste and unique appearance but may not tolerate some diseases. Hybrids have been selected and bred to resist many diseases but may not deliver the flavor you want. If you have room, grow both!
            Tomatoes are also classed as Early, Mid-Season and Late. This refers to the length of time it takes to produce their fruit. Larger tomatoes usually take longer, though cherry tomatoes may not be your first to pick.
            Make sure your soil or growing medium has adequate potassium and calcium and some nitrogen. Too much nitrogen can promote lush leaf growth and less fruiting.
            Do not over water! Water when dry and water deep. Water in the morning if possible and avoid too much water on the foliage. The more tomatoes you pick, the more the plant will make. See planting calendar for the types of tomatoes we offer and On The Truck for availability.

WATERMELON (A)
Plant these seedlings in the warmest part of your garden or yard, using mulch if necessary to maintain soil heat. We offer varieties that promise the greatest chance for success with our cooler evening temperatures.