This Bok Choy will have to last me

[digitS']

. . . until the fall season kicks in .

This was just before this bed was thinned a final time. Of course the thinnings were of very adequate size for use. When they are gone, the remainder in this bed will have to be harvested. They may even be bolting by that time but that's okay, or maybe even better!

The first thinnings from this bed were transplanted elsewhere. With more room, those plants quickly matured.

The flowering stalks are likely to show up within about 10 days. I guess I should learn food preservation techniques . But after a break of about 1 month, more bok choy seed will go in the garden so that by September, there will be more to harvest fresh . . .

. . . and, around. and, around. and, around (good thing there are other greens to break the terrible monotony of it all )

The other Asian greens and the mustards are fast running out. The last of the spinach is also at hand. The baby beets have already begun to be harvested and that will have to keep me happy for the greens hiatus in the other part of the garden.

Oh, and I had my photograph taken recently:

digitS'

 

[thistlebloom]

Steve -alias VEGGIE MAN!
....wonder what his super power is.....

 

[skeeter9]

Oh my gosh, those look wonderful! How in the world do you do it in that rocky gravel you garden in? How do you cook your bok choy? I've only ever had it in stir-fry.

 

[digitS']

An old farmer once told me that the best soil is in the rockiest ground. That may or may not be true. They sometimes have a lot of trouble dealing with the rocks even with big farm equipment. Personally, I have a line of credit for rototiller sheer pins at the hardware store. (And, I try to use that tiller as seldom as possible :/.)

I started to grow bok choy over 20 years ago and have experimented with many more Asian leafy greens. They are a little temperature sensitive so any of them may decide to bolt rather than grow but once I learned that the flowering stalks are the best part, it didn't hurt my feelings to just harvest that and call it good. At other times, the baby bok choy that I like best - will grow to be as heavy as a small head of cabbage. About the only time they can go completely wrong is if they bolt when only pencil-size. Yeah, that can happen, too .

I have found that Mei Qing Choi is the best variety in my garden. It is a hybrid and expensive. In the past, I've tried varieties that aren't hybrids and been disappointed in their performance. However, I bought a packet of LuLan bok choy from New Dimension Seed last year and it appears to be an open-pollinated variety and just as consistent, tender and nice as a hybrid !

I almost can't think of another way we eat them, than stir-fry. The other ingredients can change so there is variety. Oh yeah, they will appear in noodle soup, also. But, here is that other recent thread I had on this veggie with a Japanese Beef Stir-Fry recipe.

Everybody has eaten bok choy . . . at a Chinese restaurant . So, if you want to make chop suey or chow mein at home . . . Zhu ni hao yun! (Which means either "Good Luck" or "How's your dad and mom?"

Steve

 

[gardentoad]

Steve, after reading a lot of your post, you are just as I pictured...thanks for the photo



Don :watering

 

[skeeter9]

Thanks for linking to that thread, Steve. I missed that one. The stir-fry recipe sounds really good. Maybe I will try some Bok Choy in the fall??????

 

[vfem]