Garden · Uncategorized

This Week In The Garden

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9 Weeks Before Average Last Frost Date

March 13-18

Garden Zone 5-6

March is a pivotal point in the garden year, this is the month that gardening really can begin.  Thought March can be very mercurial and very up and down weather wise, this is usually a month of the promise of the new garden year and we can actually get our hands in the garden soil.

  • If the soil can be worked, you can begin preparing the ground for this years garden.  Remove any mulch (this will let the soil begin to warm up some) and left over debris and rake in some good compost or fertilizer.
  • On nice days, do garden clean up-straighten borders, raking, pulling of what weeds are growing-and believe me-they are growing!
  • Start seeds of eggplant and a variety of sweet and hot peppers.
  • Start seeds of cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, kohlrabi, and Brussels Sprouts. Try different types of cabbages-green, red, Savoy. My favorite is Savoy, for Cole slaw!
  • After you have started this years seeds, store them carefully so they will stay viable till next year or later.
  • As soon as soil can be worked you can direct sow seeds of leeks, onions, carrots, peas, radish, spinach, parsnips and turnips.
  • If the soil cannot be worked yet you can start many of the above seeds in containers indoors.
  • If you have ordered any asparagus, rhubarb or horseradish crowns, try to get them planted as soon as possible.
  • If you have seeds started, they may need potted up to bigger containers.  Do not let them get root bound.
  • If you have planted a cover crop on the garden, get it turned under.
  • Remove mulch from garlic and strawberry beds as the new growth begins.
  • Work out your crop rotation plan.

Have you started any garden work yet?  Let me know!

 

 

 

Garden

Crocus

margieclyde1 Comment

(photo by Deborah Blowers)

And all the woods are alive with the murmur and sound of Spring,

And the rose-bud breaks into pink on the climbing briar,

And the crocus bed is a quivering fire,

Girdled round with the belt of an amethyst ring.

Oscar Wilde

One of the first flowers to bloom in the new year is the crocus. The blooming crocus signals the ending of winter and the ushering in of Spring.  What a welcome sight these cheery blossoms are!

The cheery, determined crocus will even bloom through the late winter snows, bringing much needed color to the departing winter.

Crocus symbolizes cheerfulness.

Growing Crocus

  • Crocus, from the ‘Iridaceae’ family, are perennial, growing from corms or bulblets.
  • Crocus are low-growing, not fussy, and low maintenance.
  • Crocus, being perennial, will come back year after year, much to our enjoyment.  They will live for many years.
  • Crocus grow from zone 3-8.  They need cold to bloom
  • Crocus bloom in late winter to early spring, in February through March
  • Crocus like well-drained, loose soil.  The corms will rot if grown in water logged areas
  • There are the early, or snow crocus and the later, giant crocus.  Both can be planted for a longer bloom period
  • There is also an ‘autumn crocus’, that is actually in the lily family, blooming in the fall.  They are quite stunning to see
  • There are the Saffron crocus where we get the saffron spice from
  • Crocus grow best in partial to full sun, liking 6 + hours of sunlight a day to do best.  Since they bloom so early, they can be planted under trees; they will bloom before the trees leaf out
  • Crocus are low growing, from 2-4 inches and are great at the front of a flower border
  • Crocus are perfect in the perennial bed, rock garden or mixed borders.
  • Crocus colors are blue, purple, lavender, pink, orange, yellow, and white
  • Crocus are fragrant and a wonderful early food source for honeybees
  • Crocus require minimal care and will naturalize wherever they are planted
  • Crocus are rarely bothered by deer, rabbits and squirrels
  • To plant crocus, first work some compost into the soil, then plant the corms 3-4 inches deep with the pointy end up.  They should be planted in the fall while the ground still can be worked, any time from 6-8 weeks before the first hard frost right up to frost.  Water in well. This usually is September to November in my zone 6
  • Since crocus are such dainty flowers, it works best to plant them in groups or clusters of at least 10, with the corms a few inches apart.
  • Crocus can be planted right into the lawn area for a wonderful spring display.  The first mowing is usually after the bloom time.
  • Crocus do appreciate water when needed and regular fertilizer and mulch
  • Once crocus are done blooming, let the grass like foliage die back naturally.  The leaves will send food to the corms for next years blooms. Then the crocus will disappear for the year to greet you again in the early spring
  • Crocus can be dug and divided after blooming.  A great way to increase your plantings or to share with others
  • Crocus can also be successfully grown in containers
  • Crocus are toxic.

The Story of My Crocus

This narrow bed along our carport is where I had my crocus planted, along with other summer blooming perennials and annuals . I wanted to see the blossoms every time I walked by in the spring.  They really did cheer my heart after the winter, and I looked so forward to them. 

Last summer was a big project of making a cement parking area on the area to the left of the bed.  There originally was a sidewalk here, but the whole yard area was put into cement.  I dug as many of the perennials as possible before the big equipment arrived and began digging the dirt up.  Since the crocus were dormant at the time, I forgot about them and didn’t dig them.  The mess you see in the photo below is the weeding that I did last fall.  After the cement was poured, and the bed was backfilled, all these weeds came up.  I thought I had lost all the crocus as the dirt was all moved around.  

The dirt that was excavated out for the cement pad was all piled into the yard.  This is the dirt that will be used to fill the new raised vegetable garden beds that will be built this spring.  We have lived with this unsightly pile of dirt all year, but the soil here is too nice and I couldn’t bear to have it hauled off, since I would be needing it this year.  (My poor husband-what he has to endure with a wife that loves to garden!  I make him walk around regularly with me to see what is coming up-he could care less!)

Just a few crocus came back up in the flowerbed and I felt sad that most were gone.

This is not a good photo, but the yellow in the photo below is my crocus!  Apparently, most of the crocus corms were dug and dumped on the dirt pile together.  I was surprised to see them blooming this spring.  They will be dug and re-planted back in the same bed soon.  Shows you how hardy these little dainty plants are!  What a nice spring surprise!


Praying for Ukraine

 

Uncategorized

The March Full Moon

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March 7th is the full Worm Moon, the last full moon of winter-that should be good news for all gardeners!  This month’s moon is also known as the sugar moon-the sap begins running for maple syrup, and the Wind Strong Moon, as this is usually a windy month.  This is also a Lenten Moon.

This full moon should be especially large while it is near the horizon, so here is hoping for good weather to see it.

Worms rising to the surface is a spring sign that winter is ending and the ground is thawing.  Worms are wonderful for the garden-aerating the soil and devouring decaying material.

 

Worms are reported to taste like bacon!  I will never know…

The full worm moon is such a welcome sight as it also brings another welcome sight-the red-breasted robin.  The robins return when the the worms come to the surface.  If they could talk, we could ask if worms taste like bacon, as they love to eat them.

The robins are such a familiar and welcome sight as they run and hop over lawns looking for worms.  They are welcome to nest where ever they like and their early morning song is delightful.

But…I have not seen a robin yet, though there have been reports of robin sighting in our town. We are currently in Florida and I will have to wait till we get home to see my beloved red-breasted robins.

 

Garden · Uncategorized

Seed Starting

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It is that time of year-time to start your seeds.

Here are some tips to help you get started.

  • Purchase or use seeds you have saved
  • Gather and prepare your containers.  There are many items you can use to start your seeds in.  I have tried a number of ways, and most of them worked out well for me.   Egg cartons. Wax covered milk or juice cartons. Carry-out container. Paper, plastic or foam cups.  Containers that yogurt or puddings come in.  I wash and save them all year and just poke a hole in the bottom of each for water drainage.  Used six packs can be reused if they are cleaned well. You can make your own growing containers from empty toilet paper rolls or you can make them from newspaper. Just make sure that they are at least 2 inches deep.  All work well.  Have a water proof tray or container of some sort to put all your seeded containers in.  Something that will catch the water that drains out of the seed cups. A tote works well for this.
  • You can purchase ready made starting trays from the store that come already filled with starting mix and have a humidity dome. These are the easiest.  Just wet the soil and you are ready to plant.
  • Make sure you are using a seed starting mix and not regular potting soil.  Seed starting mix can be purchased by the bag to fill all your starting cups with.  It is the ideal medium for seed starting.  It is finer and more light weight than regular potting soil and makes it easier for the germinating seeds to break the surface.  It actually contains no soil and is comprised of peat moss, vermiculite, coconut coir and perlite.  Just moisten, stir and fill your containers.  Make sure to tamp the soil down so there will be no air pockets and good soil to seed contact.
  • Poke a hole into the center of each cup of starting mix-I use the end of a pencil-it seems to be about the right size.  Check the seed packet for information on how deep to plant each seed, usually two times deep as the size of the seed.

 

  • Drop the seeds into each pre-made hole.  I use tweezers to do this-it can be hard to handle small seeds.  Sow 1 or 2 seeds into each one.  If both seeds germinate, just cut the smallest one off after they germinate so there is only one plant in each pot.

  • Pinch the soil up over each planted to seed to cover it.  If the seeds are very small, just give a thin dusting of soil over them.
  • Make sure to label and date the seeds sown.  My stand-by for marking all the things that I grow is plastic mini blinds.  Find an old set of mini blinds and cut out the cords.  Cut the loose blind pieces into whatever length of marker you need and use a permanent marker to label each variety.  These markers will last all year.  (I did this when I had chickens-I had all my perennial plants marked in their pots. I usually let the chickens out in the evening to scratch around the yard and they pulled all my markers out of the pots.  Sigh!)
  • I love the pre-prepared trays that come with a humidity dome.  Once the seeds are planted, just cover the tray and that is it.  The moisture will stay inside to keep the seeds well watered. If you do not have a humidity dome, you can cover the tray of seeds with plastic wrap to keep the moisture even.  Light is not needed for most seeds to germinate.
  • I also have a heat mat and consider it a good investment if you will be starting seeds regularly.  I set the trays of planted seeds on the mat to keep it at an even temperature for good germination.  If you do not have one, don’t worry.  Any warm place will work.  Seeds usually like a temp of 65 to 75 degree to germinate.
  • In just a few days this is what you should see…the seed packet will have information on the usual germination time of each seeds type so you will know when to expect to see growing green.
  • As soon as most of the seeds have germinated, remove the humidity cover, remove them from the heat mat and make sure the seedling are put in bright light.  A window is usually not enough light to promote good growth. You will need to provide good growing light for the seedings. This usually involves artificial light. The seedlings will grow tall and spindly and lean toward the light if there is not enough light.  You are wanting short and stout seedlings.  When I was growing plants for the Farmer’s Market, I had a seed starting set up that involved a metal shelving unit with regular shop lights hanging on chains that I could adjust as the seedlings grew taller. The lights need to be just inches above the growing seedlings.  Regular shop lights worked fine for me as opposed to more expensive grow lights.  I also had the shop lights plugged into a power strip that was plugged into a timer so the seedling received the correct time of light.  You will usually be starting seeds when the daylight is less.  Seedlings need 16-18 hours of light to grow properly.
  • Water the seedlings regularly.  They can be watered by bottom watering or use a fine spray bottle with room temperature water. Do not let them dry out, but also do not overwater.
  • The first leaves that emerge are not true leaves, but are known as cotyledons.  They are actually part of the seed.  When the first true leaves emerge-and you should now recognize them as the leaves of the plants you are trying to grow, you can begin fertilizing.  Use 1/2 strength regular fertilizer once a week.
  • As your new seedlings begin to grow, they will need to be potted up.  More on that later.

Some vegetable seeds that benefit from early sowing indoors are:

Peppers- 8-10 weeks before last frost

Leeks and Onions-6-8 weeks before last frost

Tomatoes-6-8 weeks before last frost

Eggplant-6-8 weeks before last frost

Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage and Cauliflower-4-6 weeks before last frost

While you are busy planning for your garden this year, remember that God has plan for you!

 

 

Garden · Uncategorized

Seed Shopping

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Have you started shopping for your garden seeds yet?  Here are some ideas to help you get started.

  • Browse the seed catalogs, (a nice thing to do on cold, snowy days!)  Stop by the store and see what seeds they have available.
  • Inventory the seeds you already have.
  • Make sure the seeds you have saved are viable and will grow for you.  Nothing quite as disappointing as planting, watering, tending and….nada…nothing.  (More on that later)
  • Decide what you want to grow this year. What is your reason for growing vegetables?  Flowers?  Are you planning on canning and freezing or just growing for fresh eating?  Are you wanting to make cut flower arrangements or just enjoy beautiful flower beds?  (More on this later)
  • Consider the days to maturity, habit and size of the plant and fruit, disease tolerance
  • Grow what you will eat
  • Comparison shop
  • Shop early for the best selection and supply and to avoid shipping problems
  • Know you growing zone

  • Know your frost dates

  • Mix of seeds may be better than a straight variety
  • Will you be growing hybrids or heirlooms?  Or a mix of both?
  • All American selections are always a good choice-tried and true
  • Save the seed catalogs-there is usually valuable info there you can refer to later.

Have you started buying you seeds for this year yet?

 

 

 

Garden · Uncategorized

In My Garden

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On a lovely warm day I took a walk about the garden, and these are some of the things I found.

Tulips in late winter.

Primroses looking good after winter.

Rhubarb pushing up. Pie coming soon!

Sedum looking good!

Allium

As always-Larkspur. Everywhere….my nemesis!  I love it when in bloom and can’t bear to pull it up but it reseeds everywhere!

Carnation. I was very surprised at this overwintering, but it is looking good!

And….we have flowers!

The first flowers of the year, the beloved crocus.

We had some major excavating done when we put in a new cement parking area.

Many of my flower beds were demolished in the process.

I tried to dig as many of the bulbs and perennials as I could,

but lots of crocus corms were dumped in with the pile of dirt in the middle of the yard.

We rototilled, raked and planted grass seed.

 

And now I have crocus coming up in the yard.

Not such a bad thing…They are so pretty and welcome after the winter.

They will be done blooming by the time to begin mowing

So I will enjoy them where they are!

 

 

 

 

Garden · Uncategorized

This Week in the Garden

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For the week of February 20-26

We are 11-12 weeks away from the last frost date for my growing zone 5-6 here. Here are some things you can be doing in the garden this week.

  • Start more seedlings of the cool weather crops such as leeks, onions, celery, spinach, lettuce, swiss chard, and peas.  These don’t all need started early, as most of these can be direct sown from seed into the ground as soon as the soil can be worked.
  • To test the soil to know if it can be worked yet, gather a handful of garden dirt into a ball in you hand-if it remains in a moist ball, the ground is still too wet to work and you will damage the soil (as well as it will be very messy to work in!).  If the soil crumbles in you hand like chocolate cake when you squeeze it it is ready to be worked.
  • Look for and save any recipes that you think you might be interested in using for the vegetables you plan to grow.  (I will be sharing my favorite recipes for each vegetable and fruit as I post about each one)
  • On a nice day do a walk around the garden and make a list of what will be needing done as soon as the weather permits.
  • Build a cold frame to put your seedlings in.
  • The items that were listed in my post of February 13 –SEE HERE-can all still be worked on.

Happy Gardening!

 

 

Garden · Uncategorized

The Amaryllis Update

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In a previous post-SEE HERE– I talked about growing Amaryllis bulbs.

Here is the update on how the plants did for my Sunday School class.

The first week we were very pleased to see that all the pots had sprouted green leaves.  There were even some flowering stalks beginning.  We carefully watered them every week.

The first to bloom was the white one.  They were amazed at the size of the bloom.

Over the next few weeks, they continued to bloom beautifully for us.  The flowering stems got so tall that we had to tie them up with stakes and string and prop them against the window.

The flower loving church ladies also came to our class to admire them.

Two of the pots did not flower, so I will work on them over the summer.  I think I had them planted too deeply.

We have started another gardening project in our class that the girls are excited about.  Keep an eye out for what that is!

 

 

Garden · Uncategorized

This Week in the Garden

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For the week of February 13-19

I garden in zone 5/6 and we are 15-16 weeks away from our last frost date.  This is what can be done in the garden this week….

  • Gather the seed starting supplies that you have on hand and purchase what ever else is needed.  Clean old pots and make markers.
  • Inventory the seeds you have on hand and order what else is needed.
  • Do a seed viability test on old seeds to see if they are still good to plant.
  • Start seeds of cold hardy vegetables such as leeks, onion and celery, spinach, Swiss chard, lettuce and peas.
  • Start seeds of hardy perennials.
  • Order bare-root perennials, plants and shrubs.  Also rhubarb, asparagus, artichoke and horseradish crowns.
  • When the weather is nice, you can work on the compost pile and do general tidying up around the garden.
  • Repair, sharpen and clean the garden tools if needed.  Tune-up and service mowers and power tools.
  • Take a walk through of the garden and make note of what is needing done. Make plans to fix, repair, or replace anything needing it.
  • Write you garden plans out and make a planting schedule.  Begin a garden journal.
  • Inventory any vegetables in cold storage and discard the bad.
  • Try growing sprouts.
  • Begin pruning fruit trees and shrubs.
  • Care for your indoor plants.  They are responding to more daylight hours and will begin putting out new growth.  Give a good pinching back and keep watered and fertilized.
  • Force branches for indoor color.
  • Apply dormant oil to fruit trees.

 


 

 

Garden · Uncategorized

Reasons to Start Your Own Seeds

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Have you considered starting your own seedlings this year?  It may seen like a difficult thing to do, but with a little know-how it is easy to accomplish.

Here are some reasons to start your own seeds this year.

  1. Better selection.  Buy your seeds early to avoid not getting what you are wanting and had planned on growing. Seed companies have so many more varieties than the seedlings that are grown by the nursery, greenhouse or big box store.  In a previous post-SEE HERE-there is a list of some of the seed companies that can be ordered from.  Most of them have a website and you can order on-line. Or you can request a paper catalog be mailed to you.  I always so enjoy taking my time to read through the paper catalogs before I place my order.  The choice is yours, not only what has been started by the garden business.  A word of caution!  Be careful and thoughtful or you will get carried away and order way too much!  Don’t ask how I know this….
  2. Save money.  You get more for your money when buying seeds as compared to buying the usual 6-packs of seedlings.  For the price of the six-pack you get many more seeds in a packet. If you only need a few seedlings, most seeds can be saved for future use.
  3. Growing Practices.  You can have control over the growing practices.  If you are concerned about pesticides, herbicides, GMOs, etc, you can make sure of how your seedlings are being grown.
  4. Planting and Harvest.  When you grow your own seedlings you have control over the planting time.  You may want to start seeds early to be set out under a protective cover for an earlier harvest or start seeds late to have a later fall garden.  You can grow just the amount you need.
  5. Earlier Harvest. Some types of plants will need to be started indoors as the growing season is not long enough to get a harvest before frost, but many of the plants that can be direct sown can be started indoors to get an earlier harvest or flowers.  You can get a jump on the season.
  6. Successive Planting.  You can have control over successive seed starting to give a long season of harvest.
  7. Proper Plants.  You can make sure that you are growing plants suited to your region and location.
  8. Seed Saving.  Many of the plant varieties (open pollinated or heirloom) can left to go to seed and the seeds saved from year to year.  This is another way to grow plants that have become acclimated to you location.
  9. Quality Control.  You have control over the quality and quantity of the seeds grown.  You can grow strong, healthy seedlings.
  10. Food Security.  Growing your own plants is a good way to enjoy some food security in this unsettled time.  Grow enough to can and freeze and you will have food all year long.
  11. Avoid the Spring Crowd.  I always make a trip (sometimes many trips!) to the greenhouse in the spring, but if you want to avoid the frantic rush of everyone in town scurrying to buy those plants to get them in the ground in a hurry, you do not have to go there.
  12. Sharing and Swapping.  Starting your own seeds is a great way to do sharing and swapping with others.  For many years I started seedlings to sell at the Farmer’s Market in the spring.  The left-over seedings I would take to church and share with whoever wanted any plants, usually tomatoes. When church was over I would pull my van up to the church entrance and open the back with a sign-Free Tomatoes!  I grew lots of unusual heirlooms and got lots of questions about each kind.  It was a great joy to share with others.
  13. Fun.  Seed starting is a very good garden activity to do when those long winter blues are feeling heavy.  How nice to get your hands in the ‘dirt’ and be growing things when not much is happening outside. It is very fun to watch the seeds emerge and grow.

Have you ever started seeds before?

Planting Seeds

We can plant the seeds of kindness,

Seeds of hope and joy and peace.

We can plant, and we can water.

Only God can bring increase.

All God asks  is faithful planting,

Constant reaching toward the goal.

Then His blessed Holy Spirit

Can reach out to save a soul.

We know God will never ask us,

“Just how well did you succeed?”

All He wants is faithful living,

Faithful planting of His seed.