Warming up for Winter

Week 43	October 20, 2014	October 26, 2014

1.     Preamble:

On sharing of experiences and observations and not giving up at any stage in life:

"It seems more or less impossible but if you're just determined to keep going, you don't need to give up. Because if your subject is your own experience, then as long as you're having an experience you've got a subject," - Painter Sargy Mann, who has been blind for 25 years.

The flowering plant of the week is none other than Purple Queen' bougainvillea (Bougainvillea "Moneth purple queen"), which is the latest addition to our farmhouse. It is a stunning evergreen vine with papery, deep purple flowers that contrast with attractive dark green foliage. It is presently blooming with most attractive flowers and is planted in a large clay pot, placed aside a pillar at the entrance of our farmhouse. 

Although the signs or indications of autumn are there, effects are not visible yet. The nights are cool and the days are bright and warm but the tree leaves are not falling yet. Although we don't have the trees the likes of 'Sugar', Red' or the Japanese Maples neither do we have the Aspen or Bald Cypresses, none of our own trees be they the Silver Maple or Silver Oak are changing colours or shedding leaves. I quite know, they don't and therefore won't. Fall is not therefore as colourful here in Khanpur as it may be at several places along the Margallas in Islamabad. Some of our trees such as the Cassia Nodosa, Cassia Fistula and the Rangoon Vine get barren of leaves at the fag end of winter just before spring, they maintain their green dresses even though visibly worn out, all through the coldest of winters. Our Lychee and Citrus fruit trees never show any effects of autumn but Apricot, Plum and Peach trees do shed leaves in Fall, which they haven't as yet. The Grape Arbor too is still wearing its green canopy and until it gets bare of leaves, the fall for us may not be considered to have set in. This blog will keep a record of the visible effects and keep its readers informed as and when it happens but not as yet.

Since the sowing season has started and we accordingly have already sown garlic, our traditional main crop  and other winter season vegetables such as radishes, turnips, broad beans, sugar snap peas and spinach, some of which such as red radishes have already started producing, we will devote this edition of our blog to the peas. We have planted both the ornamental i.e., the Sweet Pea (Lathyrus odoratus) and the edible (Pisum Savitum) varieties, as we normally do. As the seedlings have already started coming out, we will talk about our past experience with them and the new heirloom variety, the seeds of which we had received from our well wishers earlier this year.

2.     Sowing and Propagating Peas:

Peas are a cool-season crop. They come in three different varieties. They are: Pisum sativum which includes both garden peas (sweet pea, inedible pod) and snow peas (edible flat pod with small peas inside) and Pisum macrocarpon, snap peas (edible pod with full-size peas). This year we have planted both the edible and inedible peas at our farm both occupying sunny locations, facing the sun all the day long. However, here we will only talk about the cooking (edible) peas.

Except for the first year some four years earlier, our green peas have never done well. Although, we always used seeds from reputable foreign suppliers, our entire crop used to develop the Powdery Mildew fungus (Erysiphe Polygoni). The initial symptoms consist of tiny slightly discoloured spots on the upper surface of leaves. The fungus is seed-borne. It is recommended too use certified disease free seeds and sow them early. This year we got the seeds from two different foreign suppliers and planted them at locations, which receive direct sunlight.

2.1.   Edible Green Peas (Pisum Sativum):

During this season we have sown green pea seeds of three different varieties. These are:  Sugar Snap Peas, Pea Shelling (Dwarf Green Pea) and Fothergill's Lincoln Homestead. All the three happen to be Heirlooms (cultivar of special value handed on from one generation to another).

The Snap peas may grow to two metres (6.5 feet) or more, but more typically are about 1.3 metres 

(about four feet). They have a vining habit and require a trellis or similar support structure. The seedlings have just appeared. The Dwarf variety is an English heirloom. It is a favorite variety for home gardeners and promises to produce loads of 4-5" pods full of plump, sweet, dark green peas on 30" plants. Double pods set heavily at the top of the plant for easy picking. Let's look forward to it!

Read more : 

http://www.ehow.com/list_6076378_diseases-pea-plants.html

http://m.almanac.com/plant/peas

http://www.lowes.ca/seeding/mr-fothergills-peas-lincoln-homesteader-seed-packet_g1451426.html

3.     Citrus Musambi (Sweet Orange):

We have previously described in this blog various citruses e.g., Grape Fruit, Redblood Oranges and Kinow. This week we will talk about another citrus 'Musambi' a couple of trees of which too exist at our farm. Mosambi has a sweeter taste similar to orange. It is not acidic in spite of belonging to the citrus family. Mosambi or sweet lime can be easily recognised from a circular signature on the lower portion of each fruit.

4.     New Addition Around Farmhouse:

4.1.  The Tandoor:

One of the new items that has been installed only this week around our farmhouse is a Tandoor (clay
cylindrical oven) out in the open near the barbecue stand. Besides the flat bread that is traditionally prepared in Tandoors, it can be used for a variety of other allied purposes such as preparing chicken tikka and Sajji but more so for family gatherings, listening and telling tales of the old, around it during the cold winter evenings.

Note: This week's blog has unduly been delayed. I must therefore wind it up wishing the readers Godspeed.