I think....I think I got a whiff of spring breeze on my commute to work this morning. I could have been hallucinating.
In any event, I'd like this move to be OVER NOW, so I can get on with the planting. The sugar snap peas, they're calling my name! In a language that only I (and centimeter long, gray-green shrivel-ly seeds) can hear. "Plllaaaaaannnnnnttt ussss! PllllAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAnnnnttt usssss!!!!"
It's actually a little creepy when I think about it.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
The seeds of spring
My package from Territorial Seeds arrived last week. I've been in packing HELL, so no chance to peek at the goodies just yet. However, I noted with a certain amount of glee that I could potentially plant my snap peas this week. THE GARDEN, SHE AWAKENS!!!
Ahem.
Ahem.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Romance, Garden-Style
Just the other day, I was reading Gayla Trail's blog entry about Valentine's Day gifts for gardeners, and thinking how sweet an idea it is to give such a gift. Practical (usually) and keyed toward a hobby that grows plants, which are the traditional Valentine's gift.
I asked my husband not to get me a gift, since we've got the Whole Big Move Thing going on, but last night "the cats" presented me with a card, and this handy tool, a Leatherman Pruners Hybrid. Before this, I didn't actually have garden snips, and had been thinking about that lack a whole lot. It's not something I ever, ever mentioned though, so it makes me love "the cats" even more to know "they" were thinking that much about what I like, and what I need, and what I struggle with buying for myself.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
The days grow not quite long enough
O, how I long for spring.
I have, as yet, been unable to retrieve my gardening containers from the outdoors. Since November, they've either been covered in snow or soaking wet. Or covered in snow AND soaking wet. Most of them are heavy duty plastic, so it shouldn't hurt them to be out there, but to be honest, they're a bit of an eyesore.
To pass the time, I've been considering how and where to set up my seedlings. I think we have only one room with enough sunshine for the task, and it's currently my husband's office. We're going to need to swap offices for a while. I could just make room enough for a small table, but...the cats. Husband likes having the cats in the room when he's working. The cats like to eat plants. You see where I'm going with this.
The blueberry plant order is on hold. My gardening consultant (also known as "Dad,") pointed out that most blueberries don't produce in Year 1. I called Spring Hill to confirm this. I'm sure the lady at the other end wanted to help me. But her answer was "I don't see that information here. I got one a few years ago, and I think it produced the first year. But they may not be selling the same thing now. So you may get them the first year. You may not." Yes, I feel so much more informed now than I did 4 minutes ago.
I know I could just get the foolish thing now and have blueberries next year if not this year, but there's that whole "We're moving, and we need the space to be less cluttered so lots of people will want to buy our house" issue. Plus, one of the main motivators to get the stupid thing was a sale that has now expired, so. Meh.
I have, as yet, been unable to retrieve my gardening containers from the outdoors. Since November, they've either been covered in snow or soaking wet. Or covered in snow AND soaking wet. Most of them are heavy duty plastic, so it shouldn't hurt them to be out there, but to be honest, they're a bit of an eyesore.
To pass the time, I've been considering how and where to set up my seedlings. I think we have only one room with enough sunshine for the task, and it's currently my husband's office. We're going to need to swap offices for a while. I could just make room enough for a small table, but...the cats. Husband likes having the cats in the room when he's working. The cats like to eat plants. You see where I'm going with this.
The blueberry plant order is on hold. My gardening consultant (also known as "Dad,") pointed out that most blueberries don't produce in Year 1. I called Spring Hill to confirm this. I'm sure the lady at the other end wanted to help me. But her answer was "I don't see that information here. I got one a few years ago, and I think it produced the first year. But they may not be selling the same thing now. So you may get them the first year. You may not." Yes, I feel so much more informed now than I did 4 minutes ago.
I know I could just get the foolish thing now and have blueberries next year if not this year, but there's that whole "We're moving, and we need the space to be less cluttered so lots of people will want to buy our house" issue. Plus, one of the main motivators to get the stupid thing was a sale that has now expired, so. Meh.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
I've ordered my first seeds!
I put an order in this week with Territorial Seed Company. Last year, I got several seed packets from them, and everything sprouted well. (Sadly, most didn't make it to maturity for one reason or another that had nothing to do with their seeds.) The hardest part was deciding what to get, as I don't want to use any more containers than last year. We hope to move mid growing season, so this all needs to stay fairly portable.
Here's what I got:
Basil - Aroma and Cinnamon. I should have the space for both, and basil did really well in the containers last year. I could have gotten away with just Aroma, but I'm curious about Cinnamon.
Squash - Cavili. I was very, very tempted by Eight Ball because c'mon, how cute is that? But Cavili is self-pollinating, and I had some pollination issues last year. Bees must not like the city.
Tomatoes - This was perhaps the hardest decision I've made so far this year. I originally had eight varieties of tomato seeds in my shopping cart, which I painfully (so painfully) whittled down to two: Super San Marzano for sauce, and Principe Borghese for eating and drying. I had one Principe Borghese last year that I bought as a plant from a local nursery, and I was really impressed with the output and flavor.
That may not be enough tomatoes, but if I'm really craving more variety, I'm sure I'll have no issues picking up another plant or two in the spring.
Peppers - Miniature Chocolate Bells and Cayenne. We mostly use bell peppers around here, and I was distracted by the chocolate color. I'd also like to dry more hot peppers this year, hence the Cayenne. I had good success with drying last year.
Root veggies - Kestrel baby beet, and Guardsman scallion. I should be able to drop both around the perimeters of my bigger containers. I am tempted by garlic and true onions, but I can order those later, after I see what sort of place we'll be living in next winter. I have Thumbelina carrot seeds and Easter Egg II radish seeds already, leftover from last year.
Greens - Violetta pac choi and Wild Garden Kale, a seed mix. I'd originally planned to get lettuce too, but the truth is that we don't really eat a lot of salads. I also have some leftover Golden Swiss Chard seeds that won't go to waste.
Beans and peas - I was ever so tempted by Etna beans for drying, because look how gorgeous they are. I'll save that experiment for next year, though, with such limited space this spring. My entire bean crop will be Romano Purpiat. The yellow Romano also looks lovely, but I decided to stay monochromatic this year. For peas, I elected to stick with Sugar Star. I grew them last year, and they were apparently very tasty, because some critter ate them all before they matured! This year's batch will be much better protected.
Eggplant - Twinkle, which may be the cutest, prettiest eggplant ever. I had great luck growing eggplant -plants- last year, but it was too late in the season and they never bore fruit. I'm hoping this year will see a more bountiful eggplant harvest.
That's it for seeds. A bit later in the season, I'm going order some herbs - Territorial ships these as a plant, not seeds. I need some Rosemary, Oregano, and Sage, at the very least. I am also planning to order a couple of blueberry plants, specifially Top Hat from Spring Hill Nurseries. I'll be honest, I'm really drooling over the idea of a citrus tree or more fruits (Figs!), but I'm trying to be spare, here.
Here's what I got:
Basil - Aroma and Cinnamon. I should have the space for both, and basil did really well in the containers last year. I could have gotten away with just Aroma, but I'm curious about Cinnamon.
Squash - Cavili. I was very, very tempted by Eight Ball because c'mon, how cute is that? But Cavili is self-pollinating, and I had some pollination issues last year. Bees must not like the city.
Tomatoes - This was perhaps the hardest decision I've made so far this year. I originally had eight varieties of tomato seeds in my shopping cart, which I painfully (so painfully) whittled down to two: Super San Marzano for sauce, and Principe Borghese for eating and drying. I had one Principe Borghese last year that I bought as a plant from a local nursery, and I was really impressed with the output and flavor.
That may not be enough tomatoes, but if I'm really craving more variety, I'm sure I'll have no issues picking up another plant or two in the spring.
Peppers - Miniature Chocolate Bells and Cayenne. We mostly use bell peppers around here, and I was distracted by the chocolate color. I'd also like to dry more hot peppers this year, hence the Cayenne. I had good success with drying last year.
Root veggies - Kestrel baby beet, and Guardsman scallion. I should be able to drop both around the perimeters of my bigger containers. I am tempted by garlic and true onions, but I can order those later, after I see what sort of place we'll be living in next winter. I have Thumbelina carrot seeds and Easter Egg II radish seeds already, leftover from last year.
Greens - Violetta pac choi and Wild Garden Kale, a seed mix. I'd originally planned to get lettuce too, but the truth is that we don't really eat a lot of salads. I also have some leftover Golden Swiss Chard seeds that won't go to waste.
Beans and peas - I was ever so tempted by Etna beans for drying, because look how gorgeous they are. I'll save that experiment for next year, though, with such limited space this spring. My entire bean crop will be Romano Purpiat. The yellow Romano also looks lovely, but I decided to stay monochromatic this year. For peas, I elected to stick with Sugar Star. I grew them last year, and they were apparently very tasty, because some critter ate them all before they matured! This year's batch will be much better protected.
Eggplant - Twinkle, which may be the cutest, prettiest eggplant ever. I had great luck growing eggplant -plants- last year, but it was too late in the season and they never bore fruit. I'm hoping this year will see a more bountiful eggplant harvest.
That's it for seeds. A bit later in the season, I'm going order some herbs - Territorial ships these as a plant, not seeds. I need some Rosemary, Oregano, and Sage, at the very least. I am also planning to order a couple of blueberry plants, specifially Top Hat from Spring Hill Nurseries. I'll be honest, I'm really drooling over the idea of a citrus tree or more fruits (Figs!), but I'm trying to be spare, here.
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