Garden 2015

I have a good feeling about our garden this year. 

First of all, Justin, with the help of my dad (nailing boards) and our neighbor (designing the gate), put up and awesome fence with chicken wire backing. The posts are also cemented in the ground and it has a 8 inch barrier below the fence line to hinder those under-the-fence diggers. I'm hopeful that this will really help with our wildlife problem that we've faced the last few years. I also made some cute hanging baskets with marigolds and ivy just for fun. 

Second, I put the seeds (or plants in some cases) in about three weeks ago. We've had both sun and rain, and most seem to be doing well. For plants, I put in two peppers, four broccoli, four yellow squash, four zucchini, peas, spinach, parsley, green beans, tomatoes, honeydew and musk mellon. My first round of spinach didn't come up so I replanted this week to see if it would take, though I researched a bit and am worried I might be a little too late for the season. My melons didn't seem to take either, so I replanted those too. I did, however, has quite a few cucumber volunteers in random places, so I transplanted them and they seem to be doing fine. I am hoping to have peas in a few weeks. Green beans will probably be next, although I always seem to have trouble with bugs at the beginning, even though I used diatomaceous earth on them. Humph! Hopefully they will be alright though. 

Now it's just a waiting game and trying to keep up with the weeds, which I seem to have such trouble with! Gee thanks, Adam, for making us all struggle with the earth... 

Here's some pics of everything: 

  Left two rows: peas                                   Right two rows: broccoli, squash, zucchini  

 Left row: tomatoes                            Right two rows: green beans

Spring Planting 2014

Over the last few weeks I have managed to do some yard work, albeit being 39 weeks pregnant today. (Hey, I'm hoping it might kickstart labor....). In the front of the house, I put snapdragons into two big pots, like I did last year. They did really well last year, and I liked the height, so I figured I would do the same thing again. Then, in the front bed I put two rows of purple salvias alternated with creme petunias. I think as they fill out they will look great!

In the back, I am happy that my hostas from last year are coming up strong. I got some Deer Off like my grandma, a master gardener suggested, so that I won't have to worry so much about them. The coral bells in between the hostas don't look like they are doing  much yet, so I am waiting to see if they will fill out. If not, I might replant. To give a nice border around the tree, I just put in some red begonias today. Can't wait to see them fill out!! New mulch helps a lot too.









We also have this old chimney contraption that we would never use for an real fire, because the tree is too close. So two weekends ago we filled it up with soil and I planted some seeds. A few have already started to come up, but they are just tiny green shoots right now. I'm hoping to have have a good display once it gets going in the next month or so.

As far as the garden, the only thing I haven't put in is the tomato plants. Students at school in our natural resources program started them for me, and I will pick them up in a few weeks, before school ends. The garden plot is about 15x25 or so. On the left end by the fence, I planted cucumbers on each end and sunflowers and gourds in the middle. Hopefully they will come up pretty soon and climb the fence well. Next would be three rows of tomatoes (I'll put those in at the end of May). In the middle of the garden, I just planted three rows of green bean seeds today. I'm sure that will be plenty, as I got 60 quarts out of that much last year. Finally, on the far right of the garden, I have peas that will grow up a short fence, and I am trying a few broccoli and zucchini plants as well. Those will be more for eating fresh than canning. I'm excited to have gotten those seeds in today! It hasn't got down to freezing for two weeks, so I think I am doing ok on the time table. Each year I learn more... I suppose I can always replant if they don't come up.

Whew! I sure felt productive today. I'm glad that I got them in before the baby came! (Now if the baby would just come!)

A Growing Garden

My first garden is doing quite well! We put up a chicken wire fence to keep some of the small animals out a few weeks ago, and everything is growing well. It looks even better than this picture that I took a few days ago!

The corn is about three feet tall, and my tomato plants are a little shorter than that. I even have a few blooms on the tomato plants. (Thanks dad for the stakes). My beans are really starting to expand, and I can't wait for fresh green beans!! Oh, it just sounds so good! And my peas are looking tasty as well. I've counted several pods forming, though they aren't ready to pick yet.

I have only weeded twice or so, and even then the weeds weren't too bad. I'm so thankful for that! I did have trouble with bugs getting the bean plants early on, but they seem to be doing better now. That diatomaceous earth stuff must work, and it's supposed to be organic too. Needless to say, I always rinse things really well before we eat or preserve them.

I am hoping that by the end of the month, I will have fresh peas at least, and maybe green beans soon after. Yum!!

Busy... of course!

The last few weeks since I've blogged have been busy. Of course, it always gets this way at the end of the school year, and by the time summer gets here and I don't have to use an alarm, I sleep ten hours a night at least. (I think that whole sleep debt theory is true!)

So, since I last blogged, I got back from chaperoning a school trip, graded final projects, submitted senior grades, organized a class party, cleaned to house, did about 10 loads of laundry, supervised the wood laminate floor being but down in my house, helped with after-school tutoring, painted the shed, planted some plants, and made (and ate) carmel twists. Whew! Oh, and went shopping with my best friend! It is so nice to be back in Ohio and be able to actually hang out!

This week I have a banquet on Tuesday, church Wednesday, graduation Thursday, and then over the weekend my in-laws will be in to help put on the roof. Justin's trying to have the floor down in a few more rooms before they get here- I hope he is able to! All these projects get a little stressful, but I always like the end results. So it's worth it...

My garden is growing. My peas have been in about three weeks now, and most are 2-4 inches high now. The corn is still pretty short, but it has sprouted. I haven't seen anything from the green beans, but they have only been in about a week. Probably this week I will see something. I still need to plant tomatoes, so I am planning on getting them tomorrow after school. I love growing my own food. It's going to be an investment getting jars and canning supplies as I start out though.

I also added some plants around our awesome tree in the backyard- mostly hostas. I just love hostas! In a few weeks they are going to really fill out and look nice!

Spring is great- so much going on! But summer is coming too- and I can't wait for our Arizona vacation. Well I'm out for now, more later!

Starting Zinnia Seeds

Last Wednesday I started some Zinnia seeds, and they are already shooting up! It's so fun to watch something new grow after just a week. I'm definitely ready for spring. I used potting soil in plastic trays with a dome for the first few days, but then some of the very small sprouts looked like they were getting plant mold, so I took the dome off. They are inside the house anyways, so figured that it was warm enough. Another little problem was that they started leaning towards to sun, even though they were right by the window. I shut the blinds, and today they look like they are growing straighter. I think I was warned about putting them in sun too soon, because the stalks won't be strong enough, and that might be happening. (It's so fun to watch them grow though- I couldn't help it!) Still, this is just the first round, and I can always plant more. It's pretty early in the season, being mid-March and all.

I also started some sage, chive, and oregano seeds. They seem to be growing slower, which is probably just part of their maturation time. It will be so awesome to have fresh herbs though!!