More Planting

We had a nice day yesterday, so I took advantage and planted some seeds.  I am trying beets this year, never planted them before, so it is an experiment.  I also planted spinach, leaf lettuce, head lettuce, cucumbers (two kinds) and yard-long Kaoshuing beans.  The beans are from Taiwan and apparently grow very long and have very small black beans and taste like asparagus.  Another new endeavor.

I also planted many seeds in the cuc and bean trenches.  I usually only plant two seeds and space evenly, but I never get enough fruit.  So I used the entire packets of seeds this time and spread them closer together.  I am hoping they all sprout and I can train them up shared vertical lines for greater harvest.

I am leaving many areas of the garden open for later plantings.  Last year I had too much all at once and I know better than that.  So this year I am back to really rigidly spacing the plantings out.

First Sprouts

It is still too cold, in the 60's, so not too much activity yet.  I did get some Arugula sprouts today, but still no carrots.  The tomato plants are not looking too good; leaves are yellowing.  I hope the sun comes out soon!

Spring 2011

It's April 10, 2011 and it has been a long, cold, rainy winter.  We had rain and hail only yesterday!  But today is sunny and beautiful, even though still a bit cold for April.  I usually start the garden in March, but had to delay it this year.  So today I harvested the last of the leeks, pulled out the overgrown arugula, and set about to turn the soil and prepare for planting.  


I discovered that Lemon Balm grows like Mint -- it self-propagated and threatened to destroy my garden.  So, out with the Lemon Balm, my tea will just have to go with our new lemons instead.  My sweet potatoes still are not even close to ready to harvest.  They are not thriving and I am not sure why.  I am keeping a couple of the plants and will see what happens.


Now that all of the old plantings have been removed, the weeds stripped out, and the dirt turned over, I am ready to plant.  I hope the weather continues to warm so that I can start the planting next weekend.  I have planted a couple of tomato plants already, leaving a lot more room this year since they went hog wild last year.  My artichoke has expanded to about 3 feet wide and there are some heads growing.  I finally found a hearty plant that can thrive next to the garbage cans.  Yeah!


The planting plan for this year is much the same:  lettuce varieties, peppers, corn, peas, beans, bok choi, cucumbers, carrots, maybe a cauliflower or broccoli since my readings show that they might grow in spring also, zucchini, melon (although last year's was terrible), tomatoes, basil, cilantro and strawberries. I can't wait to get started.