Page 20 - Kwasind May 2020 issue

MAY 2020 SOCIAL & FAMILIES • 20
Chef’s Garden News Margaret Whitfield
Pam Bryant, Debra Appleton, Elaine Mason and Betsy McNaughton among the chives.
You may be wondering how our beautiful Chef’s Garden on the Island is doing in the days of COVID-19 restrictions. With no current access to the Island and probably limited access for quite some time it is not likely that we will be able to prepare the soil and plant the garden in May as we usually do. However, life goes on in the garden.
Our rhubarb will be poking it’s nose out of the ground soon and will grow unaided until it is ready for harvest in May and June. Many perennials will return including chives, tarragon, sage, oregano, borage, mint, lemon balm, hyssop, bee balm, lovage, summer savory and lavender. Other plants such as dill, cilantro and calendula tend to self seed and so return each year.
Garlic planted last fall will be sending up shoots and by mid-June the scapes will be ready for harvest. Garlic scapes are the tender stem and flower bud of a hardneck garlic plant, the kind of garlic that typically grows in Canada. Scapes first grow straight out of the garlic bulb, then coil. When harvested, they look like long, curly green beans.
If we are lucky enough to work our garden this summer, we will plant short turnover items like lettuce and radish. Of course the weeds will grow unaided as well. So there will be lots to do once we are allowed back onto the Island. Stay tuned.
Jo Tomsett Jones and Sandra Summers wearing garlic scape bracelets.