Oh, yeah, if I lived in your climate, I would grow cool-weather crops in the winter for sure.
Favas are tough here. Our seasonal transition tends to be rather abrupt.
I cut down the rest of my favas today, as the heat was making them look cruddy, and the newer pods were starting to shrivel and/or rot rather than mature.
I did get enough beans (I ate them at mature size but still green) to get a couple decent meals out of them (risotto, mashed favas on toast). Plus grilled fava pods with olive oil and garlic. Yum. They were really, really delicious. In addition, I hope that the plants in the beds where they grew will benefit from their soil-building activities and the "green manure" they made.
I may plant them this fall to see whether they'll overwinter until spring and get a head start. They really do mature a little too late and have pushed back my summer crops a little more that I want as a result.
Aquadulce was more productive, had larger beans, and was tastier than Extra Precoce a Grano Violetto. And it was only later by about a week and a half.
|