Mid-March 2015
Mark Cullen e-newsletter
Food Gardening with Mark
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Mark's

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Welcome!

 

Welcome to the first edition of the new Mark Cullen Food Gardening newsletter.  Halfway through each month you will receive this message in your inbox with timely tips on how to grow fruits, herbs, vegetables and berries.  Just like my monthly newsletter [which covers the gamut of gardening topics] this newsletter will be personal, punchy and useful. 

 

I am, of course, interested in what you think of it.  Is it pertinent to you?  How can it be better? 

 

Each month, I will include a recipe that is provided by a reader, based on the results of an ongoing competition for recipes that feature food that we grow seasonally in our gardens.  Asparagus and rhubarb are two of the earlier perennial crops in Canadian gardens, thus the rhubarb recipe below.

Early Rhubarb 
  

Speaking of rhubarb, did you know that the Victorians had a very clever low-tech method for forcing rhubarb in the garden early?  

 

They placed a solid clay 'cloche' over the rhubarb clump in the garden early in the season.  As the sun beat down on the inverted clay container, solar heat radiated into the soil around the rhubarb and voila, the plant erupted out of the ground a couple of weeks earlier than normal.

  

You can do this with a large clay pot, placed upside-down over your rhubarb after the snow has melted away.  Plug the hole with a cork or newspaper [anything that works] and you will get the same results that the Victorians did over a hundred years ago.

Cold Frames 

Cold frames are really 'hot' frames as they protect early crops from frost and intensify the energy of the sun to speed germination of seeds. 

 

I use 4 cold frames around my one acre veggie garden.  

This time of year [mid March] I start mesclun mix, leaf lettuce and spinach in them.  By mid to late April I am harvesting my own lettuce for use on the table.  It is easy and fun.  

Seeds to Start Early:

 

My late friend Lois Hole was a great garden communicator and farmer.  The same Lois Hole who became the much loved Lieutenant Governor of Alberta would implore me to tell Canadians each year to sow their carrots early in April.

 

And that was in St. Albert [Edmonton]!  So here I am, with the suggestion that you sow your first crop of carrots just as soon as the snow is off the ground.  Dig in generous quantities of sharp builders sand to open up clay based soil, at least 30 cm [12 inches] deep. 

 

Continue to sow carrots every 3 weeks until mid June for fresh carrots from early summer through late fall. 

 

Soon after the frost is out of the ground you can sow peas, onions and radishes as well.  As they germinate and mature they will tolerate moderate frost. 

 

Indoors I sow my 'gassy' vegetables from seed: broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, kale and the like.  Late March I will sow my leeks indoors and line them out of doors in early May in the garden. 

 

Watch the video 

Tomatoes

  

Many readers get anxious to start their tomatoes, but I discourage the idea until April.  Count back from the planting date in your growing zone by 6 weeks [or 5] and sow your tomatoes then.  

For my zone 5 garden [between Ottawa and Toronto] I start my tomatoes the second week of April.  Magic! 

 

Buy seeds now

 

It is true that there are lots of seeds to be had on the seed racks come May.  The point is that many of the most popular varieties and some of the new ones are hard to find when demand is high.

  

This is the perfect time of year to go to your favourite seed retailer and take your time perusing and buying while you can.  Come May I find my time is very short for such things, while now it is a fun way to while away some late winter weather!  

Mark's Choice Veggie Seeds 

Vegetable seeds

Did you know that I have a line of 8 different vegetable seeds at Home Hardware under my name, 'Mark's Choice'?  

These are named varieties that I have tested extensively in my own garden and recommend for flavour and garden performance.  Mark's Choice garden seeds are produced by Ontario Seed Co. which has been a trusted name in seed production for many years. 

 

This is the third season that we have sold this exceptional selection of seeds.  All of the feedback that I have received from purchasers of the seeds is positive, so consider this family of veggies well-tested from coast to coast to coast. 

 

If you can think of any way that I can improve the line, I would be pleased to hear from you.

and overall garden performance.


 

Dusky Green Beans 5063-161

Slenderwax Yellow Bean 5063-162

Kestrel Beet 5063-163

Juno Hybrid Carrot 5063-164

Fanfare Cucumber 5063-165

Lollo Rossa Lettuce 5063-166

Tango Green Leaf Lettuce 5063-167

Simply Salad Blend 5063-168

Early Frost Pea 5063-169

Samich Spinach 5063-170

Golden Delight Yellow Zucchini 5063-171

Blue Spice Basil 5063-172

Win! 

Speaking of Mark's Choice seeds, check out the contests below for your chance to win 4 packets [$8 worth!] 

  

One contest is no contest at all, as everyone who submits a photo of a Mark's Choice product wins.  Wow.  Who came up with that idea? I will have to talk with my people....

 

Have fun!  

Food-Things To Do:
 

1. Start veggies indoors:broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, kale and the like

2. Buy your veggie/herb seeds now.

3. Prune your apple tree[s]. See Youtube video link below.

4. Grow herbs indoors on your kitchen window sill.  Come early May plant them outdoors in containers or in the garden. In the meantime, trim them for use in the kitchen and they will grow more densely.

5. Sharpen, oil and clean your garden tools.  Come spring you will be glad that you did!

 

Keep an eye out for my April newsletter, coming to your inbox, for more timely and fun gardening information, events and contests.

 

See you on Facebook

Read my weekly blog.

Follow me on twitter.

Look for my weekly newspaper column at www.markcullen.com

 

With thanks,

Mark Cullen

Merchant of Beauty   

Contest 

We're giving away Mark's Choice vegetable seeds!

 

I have 10 sets of Mark's Choice vegetable seeds to give away.  Each set contains 4 packets of Mark's Choice vegetable seeds ($8 value).

 

Submit your favourite rhubarb and/or asparagus recipe for a chance to win. Email your recipe to [email protected].

 

You will find my favourite rhubarb recipe featured below.  I can't take credit for the recipe; I found it online many years ago.  I can tell you that this rhubarb coffee cake is always a hit and I look forward to it every spring.

 

I will share all submitted recipes on my facebook page.


 

10 winners will be randomly selected from all entries.   

Enter today!

Deadline for contest entries is March 20, 2015.

My Favourite Rhubarb Cake Recipe

Cake ingredients:

2 cups   flour

1 cup     sugar

4 tsp      baking powder

� tsp     salt

1 large   egg

1 cup     yogurt

� cup    unsalted butter, melted

2 tsp      pure vanilla extract

8 oz. rhubarb, cut into 1" pieces

 

Topping ingredients:

� cup    brown sugar

1 tbsp    flour

� tsp     cinnamon

1 tbsp    unsalted butter at room temperature

 

Method:

  • Preheat the oven to 350oF. Butter and flour an 8" pan.
  • Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together.  Beat the egg, yogurt, melted butter and vanilla together. Whisk into the flour mixture until just blended. Fold in the rhubarb.  Spread into the prepared pan.
  • Combine the brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Work in the butter with your fingertips until crumbly.  Sprinkler over the cake.
  • Bake for 45-50 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.
  • Cool on a wire rack and serve warm, until vanilla ice cream.

Contest #2 

 

A chance to win $200 in Mark's Choice items

 

I launched this contest at Canada Blooms on Friday, March 13.  As a newsletter subscriber you also have access to the contest.

 

To enter, email one photo of a Mark's Choice product (at home or in your local Home Hardware store).  If you are submitting a photo from a Home Hardware store, please identify which store you visited.

 

Email to [email protected]

 

All entries will receive 3 packs of Mark's Choice vegetable seeds.  Please include your mailing address with your photo entry.

 

I will post all of the photos on my Facebook page.  The grand prize winner will receive $200 in Mark's Choice garden tools, accessories & signed gardening books.  

 

I will select the winner randomly from all entries.

Deadline for entry: March 23, 2015.  

How To Prune an Apple Fence 


It is time to prune fruit trees.

 

This annual event should be completed before fruit tree buds begin to swell. 

 

Watch my video for my tips on pruning an apple fence.

Product of the Month
Mark's Choice Aluminum Planting Guide

Take the guesswork out of seed spacing with this aluminum planting stick. 

Each stick comes with my Veggie Planting Guide.

Exclusive to Home Hardware (item#5010-125)

The 14th Annual Great Pumpkin Growing Contest

 

As a participant in this year's contest, you will join an enthusiastic and growing crowd of composters whose objective is to Grow 'em Big with Compost! 

 

The heaviest pumpkin at the time of weigh-in will be this year's national champion of the pumpkin patch!

As the winner, you will receive bragging rights as well as $500 to donate to a horticultural initiative in your area. You will also receive a complementary registration to The Compost Council of Canada's National Conference in 2015.

Click here for more info and to register