One of my favorite Thai dishes is ka prao gai (holy basil chicken.) I typically make this minced chicken with Thai basil. However, the authentic version is made with ‘Thai Holy Basil.’ Naturally, I prefer to grow my own. As it turned out, tracking down the exact seeds and germinating ka prao (Thai holy basil) ended up being an unexpected quest. In this quest, I learned that “Holy Basil” is as known as “Tulsi” in India. Holy basil or tulsi or sacred basil are general terms for four types of basil: Kapoor, Krishna, Rama, and Vana. The next part of the quest was to figure out which of those for is ka prao. The internet had limited information and I was not very good at decoding what is there. I then turned to the brut force method– grow them all out. Based on pictures, the one I sought has asymmetric leaves.
‘Rama’ aka’Ka Prao’ sprouts
I started on this quest last year and I finally found and successfully germinated the holy basil used in ka prao gai. The plants are still growing and I plan to do a post about it. Please stay tuned.
In the meantime, this post is about how it is neat to find that one of my favorite seed companies is now offering (as of the 2016 growing year) Holy Basil. Continue Reading
For this gardener, fall is a somber of time year. The season signals the end of the growing year. There are less flowers blooming and less fruits and vegetables to pick. Things appear to slow down a bit in the gardens. On the contrary, fall can be full of hustle and bustle. Fall is the season when bulbs are planted. It is also a great time to “spring clean.”
The Front Garden is a bit grown in and is in need of some landscaping.
The weather has warmed up for a couple of weeks now. Night temperatures have not fallen below 60 degrees. Now there is finally time to start more seeds. While it does not look time consuming, it was a bit of a surprise that this took a over an hour to do. One of the tasks was mixing up the 50/50 soil mixture of clay and peat moss. Then filling up the containers. Continue Reading
Bok choy and gai lan harvest. Incidentally, too much bok choy is potentially harmful.Robertson navel orange (Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck ) blossom.Peas have really pretty flowers. Heirloom snow pea (Pisum sativum) called, “Mammoth Melting Sugar Pea”‘Sharp blue’ blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum sp) blossom. A young plant I didnt expect to start setting fruit.Heirloom snow pea (Pisum sativum) called, “Mammoth Melting Sugar Pea”Bok choy (Brassica rapa Chinensis group) Ready for harvesting and thinning out.Water droplets from the evening’s dew on the gai lan (Brassica oleracea).Water droplets from the evening’s dew on the gai lan (Brassica oleracea).Fragrant hyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis). The first of the spring flower bulbs to bloom.Oriental poppy (Papaver orientale). I’ve been trying since 2010 to get a flower. The tiny seeds have high germination rates but once sprouted, they are super delicate. They are easily damage and uprooted by the terminal velocity of a droplet of water. Last year, I was able to nurse them to a good size– about an inch tall. Then one day to my horror, I found all ten or so of them chomped down to soil level by a single catepillar. Furious and devasted, I swiftly dealt with the problem and held out little hope that the plant would grow back. Grow back it did. I have two plants that have leaves about 6 inches long. Now that we’re in the clear, it is a waiting game.Freesia (Freesia) budOriental poppy (Papaver orientale)Gai lanSome softneck garlic variety that was available at the supermarket. The fine green strands are garlic chive spouts. I had a gazllion seeds to scatter with haste after the rain got to the container holding them.StrawberryShallots. These were first grown in the garden last year from shallots that sprouted before they could be cooked.African daisy (Osteospermum)This goji berry has been overwhelmed by the fugi that was triggered by the rain. The course now: strip the leaves.My first time growing celery. I use it in gumbo and chicken noodle soup; and that’s pretty much it.Bok choy grows quickly and will be my staple vegetable crop.Recieved fresh garlic in a Community Support Agriculture (CSA) box last year and decided to dry it out and grow it. I dont know what variety it is other than that it is a softneck.The kaffir lime air layered last year by John. http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/earthkind/landscape/air-layering/ This year, I hope to see more leaves on it. With the leaves, I use it for green curry.Carrots, celery, gai lanwood sorrel (Oxalis bowiei)‘Green Globe Improved’ artichokeElephant garlic with ‘Chesnok’ garlice (foreground)Elephant garlic‘Turkish Giant’ garlic. Appears to be slow growing.‘Turkish Giant’ garlic‘Chesnok’ garlicDillRecieved fresh garlic in a Community Support Agriculture (CSA) box last year and decided to dry it out and grow it. I dont know what variety it is other than that it is a softneck.Blueberry blossom. Blooming early this year. ‘Sunshine’ blueberryBlueberry fruiting early this year. ‘Sunshine’ blueberryGarlic chive winteringHeirloom snow pea (Pisum sativum) called, “Mammoth Melting Sugar Pea”DaikonBlueberry (Vaccinium x ‘Sunshine Blue’) The leaves have green from a rust color.Mystery plant. Very likely planted by a bird. I like the purple fringe. I am going to see if it’ll flower. A flower will certainly yield another clue.Roquette Arugula (Eruca sativa) Ready for making a Bollini’s Pizzeria Napolitana, Monterey Park arugula salad: roasted chicken, bacon, goat cheese, corn, & arugula.Tea (Camellia sinensis var. sinensis) seeds from Shenzhen, China. There is nothing particular about Shenzhen other than that this ebay seller had the lowest price. If I can get any of these tea seeds to germinate, I will have to wait three years before I can start making my own tea.Upon closer inspection they were indeed leaf buds (and not bugs). The is the Goji berry that had its leaves striped off because they were infested with fungi.Goji berry leaf budsWalking by this pot I spot what appears to be leaf buds.Walking by this pot I spot what appears to be leaf buds.Best I can do is to hope that these will still grow.I might be a bit late on getting these Ranunculus tubers back into the ground. There’s mold caused by the winter rain.There are a bunch of seeds attached to this Ranunculus floret. When loose, they resemble crushed red peppers. The germination rate is said to be very low. I have thousands. Surely one will grow.Ranunculus seed floretsGai lan
‘Green Globe Improved’ artichoke grown from seed last yearArugulaBiggest bok choy grown thus far. It is in the spot with the most amount of sun.The spot in the garden with the most sun.The mint are coming out of hibernation.Broad leaf parsleySpinach. Update: I planted these two into the ground and they were immediately gobbled up by the pill bugs.The garden’s second generation shallots. These were grown from the seeds of supermarket shallots.‘Turkish Giant’ garlic‘Stuttgarter’ onion‘Purplette’ onionI started some paprika peppers last fall and never got around to transplanting them.‘Anahiem’ peppers set and grew through winter.‘Fajita’ bell pepper‘Fajita’ bell pepper growing despite it being winter.‘Turkish Giant’ garlic slowly growing.Fennel pretty much seeds itself.Elephant garlic grown from the bulbils. Here the elephant garlic lifted its hard bulbil shell into the air. It is going to take at least a couple of years before they get softball sized.First time growing ‘Chesnok’ garlic. Thus far the quickest garlic (aside from Elephant garlic) in the garden.First time growing Daikon. It is a fast growing plant.Broccoli floret flowering.Broccoli. It produced only a bunch of tiny florets. Which made for a quick snack when I am outside checking on the plants.‘Mammoth Melting Sugar Pea’ heirloom snow peaBok choyThe bok choy grew faster than I can figure out what to do with them. I have to remember to thin them out more aggressively in the future. Otherwise, the slugs end up enjoying them.Bok choy flower‘Red Creole’ onion seedlings
The garden is still pretty dormant in January. There is not too much to do but to prune, plan, and pace hectically from the anticipation for the weather to warm up. When the pacing is not enough, the best part about January is that you can actually go outside and prune.
The best time in the year to prune is dependent on the climate and plant characteristics. Generally, pruning occurs after the threat of frost has past. Left alone, the plant will bud when the weather begins to warm. However, pruning stimulates the plant to bud. If there is frost, the buds will be damaged. Here in Zone 10, January is generally accepted as the ideal time to prune.
There is not a lot for me to prune this time around other than the roses. Upon the task, it was discovered that the roses had orange fungi (aka ‘rust’) on them. Since the roses were to be pruned all the way back to just the branches, I was not overly affected. As for how the fungi go on there, it was related to the week of down pour. Fungi spores are everywhere in the dirt. With the rain drops reaching the dirt at terminal velocity, the spores are sent upward by the resultant force. From the lower part of the plant, the fungi make their way upward. The best recourse is to spot the affected areas early and remove them with care.
The mold abatement process needs to be carefully handled. When not, the problem is actually exacerbated. Careful handling practices are mindful of mitigating spread of spores. These practices include:
Literally carefully handling. The affected area(s) needs to be disturbed as little as possible so as to prevent the spores from being dispersed. The same care is needed once the affected parts are cut from the plant.
Dispose of into the refuse container. The trimmed parts need to go into the refuse container; and not into a compost pile.
Wash: hands, any intermediate containers used, and cutting implements
Pruned ‘Mr. Lincoln’ rose
This Mr. Lincoln rose was received bare rooted last April. The plan was to put this Mr. Lincoln rose into the ground on this day. However, it was decided that it might be better to allow it to hang out in the pot for a bit longer.
Though I have found that roses are like weeds. As long as the root is present, it’ll grow.
February 7th, 2015 Update:
‘Mr. Lincoln’ hybrid tea rose grows in after a being pruned.
Pruning does not magically turn the weather warm so we impatiently wait some more. During this time we go over our seed inventory, check the plots in the garden, and plan out what we will be growing. All the while, we have our eyes out for new plants to try. This is the period when restraint is often times difficult to practice. Going over the many seed and plant catalogs while not wanting to purchase more than the dirt we have for them is difficult. There will always be a new plant to try to grow and each new season is an opportunity to satisfy that urge. The fun is in deciding on what new plant or plants to grow.
January 29th, 2015 Update:
Richter’s Herb seed packets: Holy Basil
Last year I learned of Holy Basil but also discovered later on that I was growing the wrong variety. Now I have the seeds of the variety basil that is also known as kra pao. It’s the variety of basil used in traditional Thai dishes.
This year I have many goals with the garden. One of them is to grow enough corn to last me through the year without having to buy corn from the supermarket. The other is to grow more of the ingredients that make green curry. With the corn, I am curious to know the yields and taste between heirloom and hybrid varieties. To maximize the growing season, I selected the ‘Dorinny Sweet’ heirloom corn for its cool climate characteristic.
