Cold Frames Revisited

In case you missed them, find our previous posts about cold frames here and here.

Swiss chard growing in January

The straw bale cold frame has performed remarkably well.  With no supplemental heating, it has sustained the cold tolerant Swiss chard and the cold hardy Scotch kale quite well through overnight temperatures down to 5 degrees.  The cold intolerant sweet basil did not make it when temperatures got into the teens.  The thick bales provide a remarkable level of insulation.  The key is to grow cold tolerant crops and when the temperature is above 30-32 degrees, remove or prop open the cover to allow more sunlight in and more importantly, to not overheat the plants inside.  When temperatures are going to be lower than 30-32 degrees, cover them over for protection.  Simple.

Shadow cast by the southern wall of the cold frame

During the short days of winter, the sun sits very low in the southern horizon.  This creates a significant shadow effect from the southern straw bales as seen in the picture above.  The crops inside need as much solar exposure as they can get this time of year if they are going to not only survive, but produce a harvest of greens for you.  So this shadow was a real problem.  I thought and thought about what to do, thinking about translucent materials for the south wall such as a greenhouse panel or glass blocks.  Both of these were too expensive.

Straw bales on the southern side rolled down and away

So, I am standing there looking at the cold frame and had a Eureka! moment.  Why not just roll the two southern bales away on sunny days (as seen above) and replace them when it gets cold.  This allows full sunshine into the cold frame with no additional cost and minimal effort.  It has really worked out well.

Lettuce with freeze damage when covered by a 1 gallon glass jar

Lettuce with freeze damage when covered by a 10 gallon aquarium

The upturned glass aquarium and jars worked within their performance envelope, but didn't have nearly the insulating properties of the straw bale cold frame.  They seemed to protect the lettuce down to 25 degrees or so, but even then any lettuce that physically touched the glass at this temperature was ruined as seen above.

Have you been using a cold frame?  I'd love to hear your experiences and suggestions in the comment section below.

Making Jerky at Home

Common ingredients for jerky and marinating jerky in bags

For us jerky addicts, the expense and preservatives associated with store bought jerky make homemade jerky an economical and healthy choice.  The fact that it is a very simple process is icing on the cake.  

Neccesary items:

Dehydrator - It needs to be able to dehydrate between 145-155 degrees and an adjustable thermostat is nice.  We use the Excalibur 9 tray, but cheaper dehydrators like this, this, and this will work in smaller batches.  With the smaller dehydrators, you will have to lay the meat on the trays instead of hanging it.  

As an alternative, I have heard of people setting their ovens to the lowest setting (180-200 degrees usually), putting the meat on the oven racks, and cracking the door with good success.  I haven't done this, but would suggest putting a cookie sheet or foil below the meat to catch drippings.

Lean, fat free meat - Wild game meat like deer, elk, buffalo etc. has worked best for us, but we've also made good jerky by looking for sales on beef cuts like flank steak (best option) or eye of round.  The key is good, lean meat.  No fat or it will taste gross and turn rancid.  Avoid dehydrating fish or poultry.

Jerky can be made is several forms:

• Whole muscle strips no more than 1/4" thick at its thickest point are our preferred style.  We do make some batches thicker (1/2"), but due to high moisture content after drying they must be kept in the freezer until we are ready to eat them. 
• Whole muscle sheets no more than 1/4" thick at its thickest point.  These must dried on trays, but otherwise are prepared the same as strips.
• Strips made from ground meat with dry ingredients mixed in.  We have no experience with these.

Spices - Let your imagination go wild here.  Soy sauce serves as the base ingredient for most jerkies, but anything can be used.  Try different things that you like.  We like original, peppered, Cajun, and teriyaki, but we've tried crazy things like coconut milk and shredded coconut (it was awful).

Some various spice suggestions (not in any order):

• Soy sauce
• Worcestershire sauce
• Teriyaki sauce
• Liquid smoke (a little goes a long way)
• Frozen orange juice concentrate
• Louisiana hot sauce
• Garlic salt
• Onion salt
• Mrs. Dash (original yellow cap or spicy red cap)
• Coarse ground black pepper
• Red pepper flakes
• Cumin
• Honey
• Brown sugar
• Lemon or lime juice

A basic recipe:

• 3 pounds lean meat cut into 1/4" strips
• 1 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup soy sauce
• 2 cap fulls Mrs. Dash original (red lid if you want it spicier)
• 1 tablespoon garlic salt
• 1 cap full liquid smoke 

1. Put cut up meat into a 1 gallon zip-lock bag.  
2. Combine all other ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly.  
3. Pour the marinade in the bag with the meat and squeeze all air out before sealing.
4. Massage the bag with your fingers to ensure that all of the meat surfaces are in contact with the marinade and then put in in the refrigerator for 24 hours.  Massage it 2 or 3 more times during the marination period to ensure even coating.
5. After 24 hours, drain the meat and pat it somewhat dry with paper towels.  At this point, sprinkle with any dry ingredients if you choose (Coarse black pepper, red pepper flakes, etc.) then put it in your dehydrator and turn it to 145-155 degrees Fahrenheit.  We hang ours from metal skewers due to ease of clean up.  Don't let meat pieces touch each other in the dehydrator.  I come in after an hour of drying and run a knife between any pieces that have stuck together.
6. It takes 4-12 hours depending on your dehydrator.  Remove meat when it is as hard as you like.  A good general guideline is when it cracks when bent, but does not snap completely in two.
7. Place the jerky into plastic bags immediately or it will continue to dry out.  Unless you dry your meat to rock hard (which I happen to like), it's a good idea to store it in the freezer until you are ready to eat it to prevent molding.  Adding salt and nitrates to the marinade can make it shelf stable while moist if you want to do that.  We prefer not to add these.

Jerky hanging and ready to be dried

Jerky hanging in the dehydrator with paper towels below

Finished jerky original recipe

Finished jerky with added red pepper flakes

Shelling Beans

Our three-year-old working hard

Splitting the dried pod reveals the beans

Towards the end of the growing season, we began leaving the largest pods on our purple-podded pole bean vines (green beans) to mature into next season's seeds.  We left the beans on the vines until the pods were good and dry.  The pods should rattle like a maraca when shaken.  

After they were dry, we brought them in and split them with our fingers over a bowl and discarded any small, discolored, or damaged beans.  A cool, dry, dark storage environment is desirable to preserve viability.  We keep ours in a labeled ziplock in the freezer.

Next year's seed crop

Weekly Gardening Outlook

This will be a continuing series where we look ahead at the coming week in gardening for the Northwest Arkansas area.

The last of the tomatoes

About 1/4 of the tomatoes have ripened thus far.  I just finished turning them into salsa.  A few went bad and had to be thrown out before they turned red and we will see what happens with the remaining green ones.


This will be the last weekly gardening outlook until next spring.  I will post here and there over the winter, so sign up for the email subscription on the right or link in with an RSS reader.  I have an idea for an interesting series in January and February.  I can' talk about it right now, but it should be interesting if it works out.


We are still only getting 1-2 eggs a day.  It' enough for us, but we aren't having eggcentric meals like we used to.  It's part of the cycle of egg raising and we are grateful for what we are getting.

Weather outlook:

-Highs around 70 and lows around 50 until Saturday.  Perfect growing weather.  Saturday it will cool down and a freeze is expected.  Minimal chance of rain through the week, 

-Ten day forecast

What's being harvested:

-Green onions

-Lettuce

-Chard (still hanging in there)

-Mint (still hanging in there)

Building and Using a Cold Frame (Plus Some Alternatives)

See previous post about cold frames here.

Six bales of straw make up the walls of this cold frame

 We helped a customer construct a simple, straw bale cold frame a few weeks ago.  As seen above, an enclosure is made around the bed with the bales.  We pushed them together tightly and stuffed straw into any cracks to prevent drafts.  For the top, they covered two old screens from a sliding glass door with plastic.

Sliding screen doors covered with plastic serve as a cover

When an overnight freeze is expected, the tops are put in place a few hours before sundown to gather the sun's warmth.  In the picture above, only one screen is in place.  A second identical plastic covered screen will completely seal off the interior of the cold frame.  Swiss chard is visible growing in the lower right quadrant.

Young kale growing in the cold frame

Kale is quite cold hardy and with this cold frame in place, they should be able to grow it all winter long.  The green grass on the left are sprouts from wheat seed left in the straw bales.

Sweet basil growing next to kale

 Even after getting down to 22 degrees, this volunteer sweet basil plant is doing just fine.  Basil is notoriously intolerant of freezing temperatures, so it is a good sign that the cold frame has been effective.

How to use a cold frame:


Cold frames are not a "set it and forget it" tool.  They require the gardener to monitor the forecasted temperatures and the conditions of the plants inside.  If the temperature during the day is in the mid 60s, the temperature inside could easily climb into the 90s or higher, roasting the plants inside.  If it gets too hot inside, lettuces and other greens will think it's summer time and will bolt (send up flower stalks), which makes them bitter and inedible.  Control the temperature inside by propping open the top or removing it all together on warm days and sealing it up tightly on cold nights.

Don't let me discourage you though.  This time of year, the top stays off most most nights.  As an example, looking at the forecast ahead, our customers won't need to cover their cold frame again until Saturday night.  Today is Monday, so that's a pretty good stretch without having to do anything.  Early in the season, the cold frame is there to get you through the cold snaps here and there and allow your garden to enjoy the great growing weather in between.

Jugs of water inside the cold frame will absorb heat during the day and radiate it back out at night.  This can help keep the cold frame warm as we get farther into fall and winter.  When temperatures dip into the teens and lower, a heat source may be needed at night.  A 100 watt light bulb is simple and effective.  A small, electric heater with a thermostat can also be used.  Please exercise all due caution with electrical devices.

Here's a previous post on cold frames with more information.

Alternative uses of household items:

A cracked aquarium makes a great miniature greenhouse

The lettuce in the aquarium above had been harvested for last night's dinner.  Note that the plants were cut 1-2" off of the ground.  This allows it to regrow again and again without requiring replanting.

A fish bowl, a one gallon pickle jar, and a juice bottle with the bottom cut out

Many things around the house can be used to keep the cold out.  Ask around for old, unused fish aquariums.  If you cannot find any, Wal-Mart typically has small fish aquariums at a low cost and a few of those can keep fresh salads on your table well into the winter.  Treat these like cold frames and remove them on warm days.  Put them in place a few hours before dark when a freeze is expected.

An unused fish bowl keeps the cold at bay for this lettuce

Note the increased growth of the previously covered lettuce

Random thoughts:

• The straw bales will absorb water and begin to break down over the winter.  They should make a nice addition to the compost pile in the spring.
• I am contemplating replacing the straw bales on the south side with some transparent material to allow more sun into the cold frame.  As winter progresses and the sun sinks lower into the southern horizon, that southern wall will cast a longer and longer shadow into the growing area.  Perhaps a sheet of transparent corrugated siding used in green houses?
• Remember that with the top in place, rain fall is excluded.  Water as neccesary.
• The artificially warm environment can attract/house damaging insects, voles, and mice.  Keep an eye out.

UPDATE:  See updated results and experiences with cold frames and glass enclosures here.

Weekly Gardening Outlook (Summer is gone)

This will be a continuing series where we look ahead at the coming week in gardening for the Northwest Arkansas area.

The last tomatoes of the season

 We harvested all of the tomatoes ripe or not due to the impending freeze.  They have taken up residence on our kitchen counter in hopes that they will ripen up.  The one's that don't will be chicken food.

The freeze killed the tomato plants deader than a door nail

The garden, now just a salad garden

Chard not liking the freezing temperatures

 The chard can stand light to moderate frosts, but doesn't like freezes.  With it expected to get to 25 degrees later this week, we don't expect the chard to hang around much longer.

Lettuce

New lettuce coming up

 We are getting a couple of family sized salads a week from the garden.  We planted more a week ago and it's popping right up.  Our source for a glass door for the cold frame hasn't come through yet, so our cold frame plans are put on hold until spring.  Without a cold frame our lettuce growing season will be shortened.  We did build a cold frame at a customer's and promise a post about that this week.

Next year's strawberry plants are digging the cooler weather

 Towards the end of the season, we allow our strawberry plants to send out runners into the main garden bed.  This is a great source for free daughter plants next year.  They will overwinter here and be transplanted in the early spring.

The blueberry bush leaves are turning red

No eggs today

We're averaging about a half dozen eggs a week right now.

Weather outlook:

-Highs in the mid 60s to low 50s over the next week with a chance of rain today.  A freeze is expected Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night. 

-Ten day forecast

What's being harvested:

-Green onions

-Lettuce

-Chard (Probably the last week that this will be available)

-Mint (The only herb that has survived the first freeze)

Freeze Warning Tonight!

The weathermen are calling for a low of 26 degrees tonight in Northwest Arkansas.  Harvest all summer crops (tomatoes, beans, squash, peppers, etc.) and cover the more fragile fall crops (lettuces, chard, etc.).