More Spring Flowers

Tulip

Daffodils

Ferns Unfolding

Hyacinths

For My Tomatoes

I installed 11 wall-o-waters around tomatoes, peppers and eggplants in hopes of a better harvest this year. So far so good.

Introducing...

Clematis Huldine - "Emma"

Clematis Montana Rubens - "Billy"

Clematis Montana Brewster - "Jennifer"

White Dawn Climbing Rose - "Betty"

Clematis Comtesse de Bouchaud - "Oscar"

Joseph's Coat Climbing Rose - "Romeo"

Dirt and Baby Onions

My delivery of dairy compost came today. I made more planting mix, filled some containers and the bed along the fence that I'm going to attempt a row of corn in. Composted all the existing beds and containers, fun fun fun!! Can't wait to get it all worked in and the beds cleaned up. I've been waiting on this to get going on planting salad greens, spinach, carrots, all my cool season plants. Now I have lots to do. Yay! I'm going to start some of my tomatoes, eggplants and peppers soon with wall o waters.

Planted some of my onion starts today in containers. Did not get big onions last year and am hoping to reverse that this year. More sunshine, early start. Hopefully it will work.

Images of Spring At My House

Photo 1: I need to look up what these bushes are, but I'm so glad to have them in front of our house. They flower in spring and summer and have a soft trailing branches in a pretty green yellow through the fall.

Photo 2: Fava Bean Survivors! These fava beans weathered our unusually snowy winter and are blossoming. Yay!!

Photo 3: Heal All. I used this medicinal herb as one of my winter ground covers and am now indecisive about what to do with it. It can be invasive in wet ground (which I have) so I should take it all out NOW but it's an amazingly useful herb to use. As a tea it can help with a range of internal ailments from sore throats to liver healing. You can apply a solution of it to clear up pink eye and irritated allergy eye problems and a paste to help wounds. I want to grow some of it. I'll probably choose one spot to grow it and take the rest out.

Photo 4: My first tulip!! The tulips are all very short so far. My daffodils are tall but the tulips are almost at ground level. Hmmm.. too much clay perhaps?

New Garage Lights Set Up

Patrick set up my shop grow lights in the garage. It turned out so well! I can adjust each light as I need to. My plants are very happy. Now I have room to start a new batch upstairs.

What a difference two weeks makes...

Today I transplanted my tomatos, eggplants, and most of my peppers, until I ran out of time and soil. Oops. I'll finish tomorrow and start round two in the Aerogarden. I love my little plants, so gorgeous and green! I am determined to pamper some sweet peppers into glorious production this year. Last year my peppers were overcrowded by squash and monster marigolds and produced all of one tiny bitter green fruit. This year I'm giving them their own pots and/or bed, starting them early with wall-o-waters and putting something behind them that will collect and hold the heat (like brick) to keep them nice and warm on chilly days. Still working on what that will look like, but I have some time.

Also this year I'm going to try out the upside down tomato planters. I have 8 varieties of heirloom tomatos I'm growing this year and am experimenting to see what works best. I LOVE my tomatos and eggplants. They are so beautiful and so much fun to watch growing.

This past week I planted peas in my front yard and out at the farm. We planted four different types of peas along a 30 (?) foot fence that will be a beautiful and delicious backdrop for flowers later. Yippee! It feels so good to be out working in the garden again. We had two fabulous sunny days and rain ever since: perfect for my new seeds. Tomorrow I'm going to be setting up 4 new grow lights and a work table in the garage with Patrick's technical assistance and then we're going to put up trellis', supports and wires for the 2 climbing roses and 4 clematis that will be arriving this week.

It Begins Again!

Above are broccoli (rapini), tomatos, eggplant (not sprouting yet) and lettuce. I started this broccoli under the lights from the beginning and the brocolli below I started on the kitchen counter for the first three days. Just three days and the second batch is taller and skinnier with much smaller leaves. I'm going to have to get a few more lights.

I had to start my AeroGarden seedstarter under flourescent lights (top) because there is a problem with the base of the aerogarden and it won't work. I didn't purchase it directly from AeroGarden but from an on-line store, but AeroGarden is sending me a replacement base quickly (fingers crossed). I purchased two 4ft shop lights and cool light bulbs for them at Lowe's for under $30. Patrick helped me set them up. I have a space for them in the garage but it's a touch too cold so I have them in my closet. This works well but it feels a little funny growing seedlings in an upstairs closet! What will the neighbors think? :-) This didn't occur to me until I was googling something for my AeroGarden and found some prominent marijuana references and then realized that from a distance down the alley, my grow lights could look funny. Yikes! Below is a picture of the closet set up.

End of Winter

My excitement for this upcoming years garden burst into bloom with an alarming intensity when I found my first crocus open and blooming in my planter box, along with the beautiful green tips of daffodils and tulips pushing up and out. Pictured above are some of my winter ground cover: clover, fava beans, and winter wheat (just a tiny corner showing). The wheat was green all winter. Next year I'll put it in the entire back yard. Not many fava beans made it through our uncommonly cold winter.

I have ordered many of my seeds for this year and realize that I need more space in which to plant them. It looks like I'm going to get to share a garden with a family who lives in the country about 3 miles from my house. I've been drawing up plans like crazy for our meeting on Monday to decide what size the garden will be, etc. Yay!!

My other big gardening development is the Aerogarden I purchased, an AeroGarden Pro200. It comes with a seed starter kit, so you can start up to 70 seedlings at a time. I also purchased some good flourescent lights and am setting up a seed starting station in the garage. Last year, Patrick and I moved all the baby plants by hand morning and night, to the sun-filled windows, then away from the cold drafts. They were also a little spindly, although they survived and then thrived outside later. I'm going to do an experiment this year and start the same seeds in a regular starter set that I start in my AeroGarden at the same time and see how they compare.

I'm all ready to go, just waiting for the seeds to arrive. I ordered them on February 4th, so it should be any day now.....