Red Onion crop from last season

Leave a reply

Last season we had a particularly good crop of Red Onions. The Red Onions grown and available at Chefs Garden Markets are less intense than Brown Onions and have a sweetish taste – ideal for eating raw with salads or adding sweetness to any dish that calls for onions.

Red Onions – Freshly pulled from the soil – a thing of true Delight & Beauty

One of the most pleasing aspects of Red Onions, because they are less intense than brown onions, is that when you chop them they don’t make your eyes water as much – making them easy to prepare and cook with.

Early in the season, the first Onions to bulb up are sold in bunches of “baby onions”, which include their green tops making it a two-in-one crop – the greens tops can be stir fried or chopped raw in salads and have a flavor much like Spring onions. These first Onions are particularly sweet and tender – making them special items that is sure to impress your dining guests.

Baby onion bunches that go to market – both greens and bulbs are edible – both can be chopped raw into salads to add some zing.

Onion seedlings are planted out in early spring, its hard to believe that these flimsy seedlings grow layer-by-layer into strong Onion plants.

Beds of Onion seedlings planted out in early Spring

Close up of Onion seedlings planted in early spring

The same Onion beds seen towards the end of October 2011 – now growing vigorously in the warmer weather.

When onions get to a certain stage in their growth they begin to swell and “bulb up” – forming the root part of the onion that we are all so familiar with. During this stage the onion beds are mulched with any extra straw that is available – the straw, coming from Horse stables, is saturated with urine that is high in Nitrogen.

During this stage the onions benefit from the extra source of Nitrogen and begin to swell and build up edging closer and closer to harvest time.

Straw laden with Horse Urine from stables is mulched over the crop to give it some extra goodness.

At this stage of the plants growth the bulbs begin to swell and the archetypal onion shape is formed by the many layers of the Onion plant. Seen here mulched with Straw rich in Nitrogen from Horse stables.

Once the onions have bulbed sufficiently and their green tops are still in healthy condition the harvested for the Market table begins. Harvesting Onions is a exciting and fulfilling activity – as one walks through the beds, pulls them from the soil and bunches them up.

Natures Gift – Red Onions with healthy green tops

The colours, shapes, smell and simplicity of the the onion harvest feeds body, mind and heals the weary soul. The Red Onion bunches that are sold at Chefs Garden Market are hearty, generous and fresh – and are “Food” in the true sense of the word.

The final stage, before the Market table, is manicuring the Onions – they are washed and their roots cut off.

A Picture of Health and Wealth – Red Onions presented on the Chefs Garden Market Table.

Cover Crops

Leave a reply

Chefs Garden, The Cape Farm House – Winter 2012

Cover crop on sunny winter day – Chefs Garden

An exciting part of the winter season is cover crops. A mixture of grass and wild legumes is sown in Autumn forming a dense field of green that protects the soil beneath it. While the Grass grows vertical and has a root system that “holds” the soil, the wild legume climbs up the grass with its tendrils and “fixes” nitrogen from the air in its roots and leaves.

The combination of these two plants, along with weeds protects the soil against the driving rains and cold wind. The cover crop is also home to many creatures and micro-organisms that keep the soil warm and alive – frogs take up shelter in the thick cover and porcupines move through the fields, leaving the grass compressed under their weight.

A Field at Chefs garden.

Cover crop that is sown at the right time can produce a tall field of grass with a bulky green mass that matches the root mass beneath. The wild legumes bulk out the green mass and are high in nitrogen – making the greens ideal for added to compost heaps or turning back into the soil.

But even cover crop that is planted a bit later will grown enough to provide protection – show here with late-plated cover crop next to a bed of Artichokes.

Cover Crops:

Protect the soil
Provide shelter for Wildlife
Produce Green mass for the compost heaps.
Enrich and improve soil structure

At some point in Winter the fields get weed-eaten and the cuttings placed on composts heaps or left on the side of the field. The remaining roots and plants are ploughed into the soil leaving a soil that has a good tilth – left exposed for the weeds to germinate and the roots to break-down.

Cover crop and turned in soil at the Chefs Garden

The field is ploughed once before spring and then the seasons crops are planted into the beds. Depending on the crop being planted compost is added and turned into the soil.