Despite my lack of any substantial cooking in the past week or two, (Daniel has been helping with my New Year's pledge of one new meal a week) I thought I would share some pics of my garden now that it is up and running.
Last week I recieved my seeds in the mail! This year I decided to order them from Seed Savers Exchange. The online store carries heirloom seeds and you can feel safe since they store all the varieties in a bunker in Sweden in case of a nuclear war (really!). I went out on a limb this year and decided to try to grow my own tomato starts. After last year's planting disaster (#cherry tomatoes in our yard last summer was greater than the # of blog posts I have read this last week covering the royal wedding) I decided that I would plant tons of "normal" tomatoes and just one or two plants of the cherry variety.
Since our last frost date occurs at the end of May, most seeds cannot be planted until after that date. However, peas tolerate frost well, so I put three rows of pea pods and four rows of shelling peas in today. I also sowed (sew?) chamomile flowers in hopes that I can dry them and to make tea. About three minutes after I had finished up with the peas, I saw RWAs (Robins with attitude) trying to find the seeds! Moses needs to get to work chasing those birds away.
I did get my starts going this week at the moment they include Brandywine tomatoes, Heart of Gold cantaloupes, and a grand variety of hot peppers. You can see the cantaloupe plants starting to sprout already. Moses is posing in the sun with my little greenhouse starter (it has a top as well) we have sort of odd lighting from our windows so I try to move the seeds around to the areas that receive the most sun during the day (yes, I a bit obsessive). Note, the giant pile of recycling that is spilling over in the corner...
Our irrigation just turned on so I started "prepping" my raised beds by giving them a good soak. This is my newest bed that Daniel constructed during spring break (wooo!). Note: our pretty magnolia bush blooming.Toiling in my soil reminds me that life does not have to run around thesis writing, teaching classes and worrying about job applications. I love it.
Anyone have tips to dissuade RWAs from eating all my seeds?
Will I ever get my cooking mojo back?
Will Kate Middleton wear an awesome feathered hat/veil at the wedding?
I am so jealous of your little gardens. Our apartment has the worst sunlight in the world, and even our porch is covered so I will have to live vicariously through you. Maybe you could borrow that wood cutout of a cat Mom used to put up for halloween to scare the RWAs.
ReplyDeleteI am primarily interested in the royal wedding for the promise of spectacular hats. Also I am interested in how their wedding fruit cake will turn out. Sounds disgusting.
Matt says to buy a gun for RWAs problem. Needless to say, I disagree--won't some shinny tinsel hanging from the eves do the trick?
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