The work done last fall has paid off in recent weeks. Because we planted and sowed many crops in a timely manner, we’ve been able to harvest quite a bit over the past few weeks, even though the vegetables aren’t growing any further right now due to a lack of daylight.
We harvest and deliver fresh salad mixes weekly to our two Feierabend restaurants, consisting of broad-leaved plantain, winter purslane, and various leaf lettuces. To add a little more flavor to the plate, we pair these with slightly spicy Asian salads, such as rosette tatsoi or wasabino. We stir-fry our fresh, crisp green pak choi. As a final, delicate flavor element, we pick the slightly sweet parsley, chervil, and cilantro from our plastic tunnel. Out in the field, we were able to harvest the last of the radicchio and fresh pea shoots at the end of the year.
The edible ornamental cabbage, which we planted back in August 2024, is also showing some flowers again. In November and December, the large heads were harvested and cooked; this is also called “pinzieren.” This gives the plant the energy it needs to form new buds on the sides, in the leaf axils, allowing you to achieve a higher yield. These little roses have a delicate cabbage flavor and add a touch of beauty to any plate. Our winter crops are also doing well, despite the very dry winter so far. Both the peas and the fava beans, which we planted back in October, have been sprouting from the ground for quite some time now. They’ll stay this size until the days are long enough again in the spring. By overwintering these crops, we can achieve an earlier harvest.
