When last we chatted about the garden, I had finished moving around the dirt and rocks that was delivered. That’s all structure and aesthetic enhancements. What else is going on?
I have 4 boot trays and starter “greenhouses” full of seed starts. Luckily, I found some great tracking sheets at Botanical Interests, for easily logging the things in those trays.
Some things are going gangbusters, like the okra, cucumbers, and summer squash. In fact I had to take the lid off that tray because the seedlings were pushing at it already. Tomorrow’s to-do list includes moving those into peat pots so they have a little more room.
But the tomatoes aren’t looking too hot. I started making sure I have full-spectrum lights aimed at the tomato tray during the day, because there isn’t necessarily much sun getting to it. And I want lots of tomatoes for canning this summer! Really. It’s why I started seeds for the following tomato varieties:
- Cherry Sweetie: red cherry tomato for eating in salads, plain, or pickling whole
- Golden Rave: yellow Romanita type for eating raw or making chutney
- Chocolate Cherry: purple/black cherry tomato for eating plain or in salads
- Tumbling Tom Yellow: yellow cherry tomato
- Costoluto Genovese: red tomato for sauce or canning whole
- Cherokee Purple: multi-purpose purple heirloom tomato
- Brandywine: heirloom multi-purpose tomato
- Amish Paste: red heirloom type for sauce, paste or salsa
More later in the season on tomato chutney, tomato jam and homemade ketchup.
Next year I’ll have some rhubarb to pick, because I planted 10 last week. There’s one that came up from last year, out of I think 3 that I planted. I should probably move it, becase it’s in the middle of what’s now the asparagus bed.
Radishes, kohlrabi, turnips, spinach, beets and snap peas have all poked their little heads above ground in the garden beds.
Flower starts so far include marigolds, sunflowers and Gaillardia. The marigolds are supposed to help keep nemotodes away from garden veg. Gaillardia are perennials and will attract hummingbirds, butterflies and other pollinators. And sunflowers are just cool. I’m also hoping that they’ll give the squirrels something to eat instead of the garden veg.
Sorry, no pic. Sometime in the next week, we’ll have some sun and I’ll get out with the camera. But there’s not much going on outdoors yet. The average last frost date here is May 2, so it’s considered “safe” to plant out the starts after the 15th or so.
InTheMitten 