By Rebecca Kelly
 

The fact that we have been harvesting from the garden at the end of November, is an unexpected treat. There are many vegetables that seem to dissolve at the first sign of cold weather, leaving nasty melted piles for the gardener to gather up and put in the compost, but some vegetables just seem to get better with the cold.

Many root vegetables improve with the cold, which seems to concentrate their sugars, transforming them into sweet treats. Grocery store kindred seldom attain these heights, as they are often from the south, or are harvested before the ground freezes (making them easier to dig, but less tasty). So, next time you grow carrots, beets or parsnips, try leaving a few in the ground, mulching with straw to protect them, and you may be surprised at their transformation when you harvest them. Also part of the beet family, the Swiss chard pictured here is quite frost tolerant.

Kale is a famously cold hardy crop. There are many different kinds of kale, some hardier than others, so check the seed information if you want to grow some into the winter months. A layer of protection will also help them survive the winter. Again, winter kale is very sweet, if you don’t normally like kale, you may be converted.

The biggest surprise I had this year was how hardy arugula is. Usually, when I grow arugula in the spring, it starts to bolt as soon as it gets warm. I planted a few rows in September, and as the days shortened and got colder, the growth was very slow – no bolting. Last week, I harvested twice for salads. What a treat to get salad from the garden in winter. I didn’t know if they would still be good, as the stems seemed to be frozen. But once defrosted, they were fine.

Next year, I will try a few more winter hardy vegetables in the fall. Mache (or corn salad), Tatsoi, and New Zealand spinach are a few different greens that are purported to be cold tolerant. I’d love to hear some of your stories. What winter vegetables have you had success with?
Photos: Rebecca Kelly