Christmas Kale

The day after Christmas, and there is one plant in the miserable failure that was my vegetable garden this year that is still going strong: kale.

Earlier this year it was a constant battle with the caterpillars, who won by chewing so many holes in the leaves I had given up on these plants.

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Those critters are long-gone now, and the cold-hardiness of the kale has made it the star of the edibles now. Plus, it is just so beautiful!

These will most likely overwinter, regardless of how cold it gets, then will sprout from the thick, tuberous roots in the spring and then flower. That happened last year, and was a complete surprise to me.

I keep forgetting to harvest these leaves, but I will do so very soon. A nice plate of sauteed kale would be perfect about now, and would keep my faith in growing decent edibles going for next year.

Just in time to start picking through the seed catalogs...

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