Tah dah! Summer garden is in!

I finally got around to planting my garden yesterday. Even though I hope to sell the house over the next few months, I figured I should at least make the garden look nice. I'm going to try to sell without removing it, hopefully someone will like it.

The garden was a pretty big mess, since last fall I was too busy with my 11 month old son to do any cleaning up, and unfortunately my husband has a brown thumb. So as you can see below, the before pic is pretty ugly! But I'm happy with the after pic, even though I have a few more finishing touches to complete (like fixing the fence). You can't see much b/c they're still all seedlings or seeds, but you get the idea. The entire list of what I planted is on the 2012 garden plan tab.

 Before

After

Now the other side of the yard was an even bigger mess. I'm embarrassed to show this before pic, but I guess at least I had a decent excuse. The good news is a month or so ago I removed everything and replaced it with grass seed. That side of the yard was just too hard to maintain, the paths grew so many weeds and it never really got enough sun. So even if I wasn't selling the home, I'd decided last year to remove it. I didn't really believe one little bag of grass seed would fix it, but lo and behold it came out great! I can't get over how you can't even tell there was a garden there 2 months ago.

I guess that is a testament to the benefits of concrete block gardening. One of the reasons I originally chose them was so I could move them if needed (low cost being the other reason). I was really happy to find out that they truly were easy to take apart.

  Before - beds 1 and 2.

After!

2011 Planting Plan

It's that time of year again. I think I'm actually a bit late in planning even though it is only February, since I'm hoping to grow tomatoes from seed this year. It will be my first time so I need to learn more about the particulars, but I think I need to start the seeds pretty soon.

I'm only going to do 2 tomato plants this year, since most of them did really poorly last year. That's also why I want to grow them from seed - I'm trying to grow varieties that are resistant to blight. I know Sungold cherry tomatoes are one, since they did ok last year despite all 5 other tomato plants failing. I read about some others: the mountain series, ferline, legend & fantasio (which only seems to be available in the UK). They all appear to be determinate, except for ferline, but it is late season. Legend is early season, but determinate. I'm tempted to grow both, but then I won't have room for ground cherries. So I still need to decide.

I'm also cutting down on pepper plants this year. The italian fryers and mini orange peppers did great last year, while the bell peppers did hardly anything so I'm eliminating those. I didn't like the nardello or pepperoncini much, even though they grew very well. So I'm sticking with Marconi Golden and Little Dickens. I think I might try bananarama for green fryers just for something different. And I might replace the bells with a hungarian blocky type. As for hots, my husband barely ate any last year, even though they grew ok, so I told him he lost his privilege to my limited garden space lol. So I'm only growing 1 jalapeno for my salsas.

I thought this would leave me with a lot of extra room to fit in somewhat exotic plants I couldn't fit in before like endives and ground cherries, but in compiling this plan I quickly realized once again my imagination outpaces my limited space! I wanted to add some bush beans and soybeans this year, but there just isn't going to be room. And I'll probably only get a handful of peas but what are you gonna do.

So here it is, drumroll please:

BED ONE (large + fence) 42 x 94.5 = 3.5' x 7.9' = 27.6' = 27.5'

Spring: turnips & carrots

Summer: green beans, turnips & carrots

fall: radishes & lettuce

BED TWO (small + fence) 31.5 x 46 = 2.6' x 3.8' = 9.8 sq ' = 10'

Spring through fall: endives

Summer: cool breeze cucumbers

In front of beds 1 & 2: gem marigolds

Front: calendula bed

Fence: climbing nasturtiums

BED THREE (small) 31.5 x 47.5 = 2.6' x 3.9' = 10.14 = 10'

Spring through fall: Strawberries & Chard

Behind bed three: Chamomile & Borage, lavender

BED FOUR (large) 58.5 x 126 = 4.9' x 10.5' = 51.45' = 51.5'

Spring: radishes, lettuce, cabbage & arugula

Summer: ground cherries, tomatoes, squash, basil

fall: maybe lettuce & cabbage

OTHER SIDE OF YARD

BED FIVE (large + fence)

Spring: peas & radishes

Summer: trombochino & peppers

Fall: same

BED SIX (large + fence) 39" x 94" - 3' x 7' - 21 sq '

Spring: leeks, mustard greens & lettuce

Summer: diva & rocky cucumbers

Fall: leeks, arugula, mustard greens, mache

nearby: bush nasturtiums

Just Reserved my Tomato and Pepper Plants!

Whoa, talk about too much of a good thing! They have so many varities at Cross Country Nursery my head almost exploded trying to pick just a few. I ended up buying 2 more tomato plants than I had planned, and 3 extra peppers. I think I may have to nix my edamame test, and grow a few less chinese cabbage. But wow, will it be worth it! If we have a good season this summer, I'm going to have a rainbow of delicious gourmet tomatoes and peppers!

Here's a list of the exact varities I reserved. Since the nursery is in NJ, I'm going to pick them up around May 10th.

Medium Round Globe Tomatoes:
1 MATINA (Red)
1 RAMAPO HYBRID (Red)
1 SNOWSTORM (White)

Cherry Tomatoes:
1 GRAPE (Red)
1 BLACK CHERRY (Purple)
1 SUN GOLD HYBRID (Orange)

Sweet Bell Peppers:
1 BELL BOY HYBRID (Green to Red)
1 LADY BELL HYBRID (Green to Red)
1 ARIANE (Orange, super sweet)
1 ORANGE SUN (Orange)

Italian Frying Types
2 CUBANELLE (Light Green to Red)
2 MARCONI GOLDEN (Orange)
1 NARDELLO (Green to Red, long & thin)

Hot Peppers
1 ANCHO MULATO (Dark Green to Brown, mild)
1 JALAPENO TAM (Green to Red, mild-medium)
1 THAI HOT DRAGON HYBRID (Green to Red, very hot)

Assorted Peppers
1 PEPERONCINI (Green to Orange to Red, for pickling)
1 YUMMY ORANGE (Orange, small size)
1 LITTLE DICKENS (Orange, mini size, upright)

Wheeeee! (I really do get way too excited about gardening. lol)
Now I just have to pick 4 basil plants to add on to my order (they're only available at the nursery so you have to reserve them with a follow up email). Here we go again...

Update: OK, I picked my basils. That was so hard - there are so many on their website I never heard of, and they don't have descriptions like the tomatoes and peppers. I was able to narrow it down because my partner and I don't like Thai or lemon types, so I tried to pick big leaved, sweet aromatic varities. This is what I settled on:

2 Genovese
1 Osmin Purple
1 Red Rubin

Then of course I had to get two more than I planned haha. I got smaller compact varieties, since I figure these can fit in the front of the bed:

1 Summerlong
1 Magical Michael

I would like to try to save the seeds so I can grow them myself next year, but I think they may cross-pollinate so I'm not sure if that's possible.

It's That Time of Year Again

Time to figure out what seeds to buy and start growing inside. I want to grow everything, but I only have so little space this is really tough!

2010 PLANTING PLAN

1. BED ONE (large + fence) 42 x 94.5 = 3.5' x 7.9' = 27.6' = 27.5'
Spring: lettuce
Summer: Trombonchino squash, 2 italian frying, 2 green bell, 2 red or something bell peppers
fall: nothing

2. BED TWO (small + fence) 31.5 x 46 = 2.6' x 3.8' = 9.8 sq ' = 10'
Spring: mustard greens
Summer: cucumbers & endives
Fall: nothing

In front of beds 1 & 2: gem marigolds
Front: calendula bed
Fence: climbing nasturtiums

3. BED THREE (small) 31.5 x 47.5 = 2.6' x 3.9' = 10.14 = 10'
Spring & Summer: Strawberries and Chard

Behind bed three: Chamomile & Borage, lavender

4. BED FOUR (large) 58.5 x 126 = 4.9' x 10.5' = 51.45' = 51.5'
Spring: radishes & arugula
Summer: soybeans, cavili squash (Parthenocarpic), Chinese cabbage, hot pepper
fall: lettuce, carrots & turnips

OTHER SIDE OF YARD
5. BED FIVE (large + fence)
Spring: peas, radishes
Summer: tomatoes & jalapeno
Fall: nothing

6. BED SIX (large + fence) 39" x 94" - 3' x 7' - 21 sq '
Spring: Carrots & turnips
Summer: same
Fall: arugula, mustard greens, mache

nearby: bush nasturtiums

7. BED SEVEN (shade, in ground)
Same perennials - ferns, mint, shisho (will hopefully reseed), yarrow, anise hyssop

8. NEW BED EIGHT:
Spring: ???
Summer: Emerite beans & leeks, basil

Well, that was easier than last year. I already went and bought all my seeds! Good thing too because the squash I wanted was only sold by one place, I'm sure it will sell out. Here's what I bought, and that's all I'll need. Everything else I have saved from last year.

• Cucumbers - Diva (slicer), Cool Breeze & Rocky (both mini picklers). All 3 are Parthenocarpic.
• Endive (witloof) - Totem OG
• Nasturtiums, climbing - Jewel of Africa
• Nasturtiums, bush- Kaleidscope OG
• Summer squash, bush - Cavili, also Parthenocarpic
• Chinese cabbage - Lettucy type
• Carrots - Napoli OG
• Leeks - King Richards (early & long) & Giant Musselburgh (old heirloom, very winter hardy)

The only other thing I'll have to buy are a few pepper, tomato and basil plants, since I think it would be too much to grow from seed inside. I will probably do the cucumbers and squash inside to get an early start, as well as marigolds like I did last year. I'll get the others from this nursery in NJ: http://www.chileplants.com

Frost Warning!!

Oh no. I knew this day would come. There is still soooo much stuff left in the garden, it will take me a day to harvest it all!! Green tomatoes, hot peppers, lots more bell peppers, flowers...dang. And there is no way I can take another day off.

This is why I really hate winter - getting home after dark. I can't pick anything if I can't see it. We really need to get some proper lighting for the backyard. It is at the top of a very long list of things this house needs. (homeownership is no joke, that's for sure!)

I guess I can try to get up early and at least get some in the morning, but this is even more complicated tomorrow since I have to go vote. (still don't know who I'm voting for - I don't like Corzine or Christie)

Oh well, at least I already have the row covers up. I guess I'll just have to pick as much as I can. We'll see what I get tomorrow.

Do I love my garden or what?! Took the day off edition

You might remember this "Do I love my garden or what?!" post from last year's veganmofo. Well, it is kind of interesting to reflect on - things are looking better this year, what with my Agribon rowcovers instead of sheets.

Still, I took today off from work (it was a slow week, so my boss was fine with it) just to work in my garden haha! It is bright and sunny, about as good as a fall day could be. Although we haven't had a frost yet (very unusual) we've had extended cool temperatures so things are starting to show signs of dying. The leaves on the herbs are turning brown, which I definitely don't want since I am trying to dry and preserve them for winter. I have a number of things I want to get done:

1. harvest and dry the hot peppers (habanero & kung pao, mainly. The jalapenos still haven't turned red)
   
2. harvest and dry herbs (shiso, oregano, marjoram, eucalyptus, sage, mint, chives & lavender)
3. harvest and dry the edible marigolds
4. harvest the nasturtiums and make something with them for dinner
5. pull down the malabar spinach. It has spots all over it now, since it is a tropical plant I think it is hating the cool weather
6. sew the extension onto the agribon covering the lettuce bed

Jeesh! It is a lot for one day. I've also got to clean my house since I'll probably have people over for a Halloween party this weekend, and I need to put another coat of plaster/joint compound on a drywall project in the upstairs bathroom. I'm sure I won't get everything done, but, I'll try my best.

Today's Garden Tasks: Updated

Good thing it is a beautiful sunny day here in the 70's, as there is lots to do!

1. Weed & cover paths with straw
2. Weed strawberry bed & mint/fern bed
3. Trim herb bed which looks like a wild and crazy jungle right now
4. Pull old peas & bolted lettuce then replant with new lettuce, beets & carrots
5. Spray with more baking soda/soap mixture to keep away powdery mildew
6. Fertilize with a little more Maxicrop, or maybe Bonnie soybean stuff. I haven't decided yet. Gardenweb told me not to put on anything but I'm going on my own here and going to do at least a little weak solution of one or the other.

I think that's it. Like as if it isn't enough! Hopefully I'll get it all done. Then tomorrow no work - going swimming in the lake!

UPDATE: Ugh. This weekends garden tasks = FAIL. First, my dog JJ got sick, poor fuzzball was pooing green and vomiting so we had to take him to the emergency vet. Turns out he is now fine after taking a little bit of medicine, but, it was scary. On top of that, I appear to have some kind of bad chest cold or possibly bronchitis. Going to the doctor tomorrow. So, with help from my partner all we got done was some weeding and 3/4 of the paths covered with hay. Needless to say, I didn't get to the lake either. Oh well, try again next weekend...

Today's Garden Tasks: Updated

1. Pick up garden-quality straw (no or dead seeds) from local horse farm, then spread over paths and around plants (but not touching stems). This straw mulch will prevents weeds, reduce watering needs, and break down into the soil within a season or so, acting as a rich compost/fertilizer. I got this tip for a great new list I found: the veganic agriculture network. http://www.goveganic.net/ STATUS: HALF DONE. The horse farm was literally on the same street as my Aunt & Uncle's house, that I've been going to my whole life. I had no idea there was a horse farm, dog park & nature preserve all right there! It was so cute! The hay looks and smells really sweet. I will definitely go back & bring JJ to the dog park, and maybe even go horseack riding on the trails. Did not yet get a chance to spread it out though, it is sitting in the basement.

2. Mix baking soda, a little biodegradable dish soap, and water then spray on plants to prevent powdery mildew. http://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/bakingsoda.html STATUS: DONE.

3. Add more Maxicrop (seaweed) fertilizer. 1 tsp per gallon of water, spray on leaves & soil. STATUS: ON HOLD. Veganic network & gardenweb say I should wait for a soil test and/or just use hay b/c of the carbon footprint from importing this stuff from Norway. I agree & will use sparingly. I think I will put on another teaspoon in a week or so though. Also need to continue researching local sources of NJ seaweed and salt hay.

4. Might also add this fertilizer I picked up yesterday at Lowe's made of soybeans! I was so happy to find this in just regular old Lowe's from the list of ingredients it appears to be vegan! I just wrote them an email to confirm it is. I hope so!! STATUS: ON HOLD. (see above entry on Maxicrop)5. Reset fence & plant a few new plants I bought yesterday to attract more pollinators: 2 shasta daisy, 1 echinacea, 1 black-eyed susan, another yellow black-eyed susan type, I'm not sure the name, & a purple plant I'll have to update later with the exact name too. STATUS: MOSTLY DONE. Just need to trim off excess fence posts, staple down hose, dig a bit more dirt and plant 1 daisy & the royal candle purple plant. Got all the others planted and the whole fence pounded in.

6. Maybe I may even make a bit of compost tea by putting some in a sock and soaking it in water. I have to turn the pile and add some straw to it, too. Definitely the low-fi way of making compost, that I read on the gardenweb forums. Whereas this article makes it a lot more complicated: http://www.finegardening.com/how-to/articles/brewing-compost-tea.aspx But I just may try soaking it just for a day or two and see. STATUS: ON HOLD. (see above entry on Maxicrop)

I need to find out if I could mix the seaweed, fertilizer and compost all in one batch. That would be easiest if I could, but I'm not sure if they'd react with one another or something. Anybody happen to know? STATUS: CANCELLED. Veganic network/gardenweb says no, or at least - be cautious when doing something like this. Might have too much nitrogen, which would promote too much leaf growth instead of fruits and veggies.

PHEW! I better get to work!!

Everything's In!

Wow, I planted my heart out yesterday. I was planting from 10AM until 7PM. But finally, everything I have is in the ground. Yep, the whole big list!

I am soooo excited for it all to grow. I planted something in every possible inch of the backyard. If everything grows, I'm going to have veggies and flowers out my ears!

Yesterday I also noticed the snap peas finally grew the first pod. Then this morning I looked again, and now there are 7 or 8! One is even a couple inches long, looks like it will be ready to eat in a few days. I swear that wasn't there yesterday. It was like they grew the pea pods overnight!

More great news: I found the camera battery and took lots of pictures. In fact, I took so many I don't even know where to begin posting! Of course, it doesn't look like much yet either, since lots still has to grow. But I'll try anyway. Here's a couple long shots of each side of the yard.

Above, you see the left side. There are 5 beds: along the big fence on the left, in the front is the peas & salad, in the back is peppers and the future home of climbing zuchinni that hasn't sprouted yet. Behind that is the herb garden. Then, on the right near the white picket fence, in the front is the large bed with basil, peppers, tomatoes, and some of the remaining radishes & arugula.

Then below you see two shots of the two new beds on the other side of the backyard. On the left, mustard greens, more peppers & squash, plus emerite pole beans that haven't sprouted yet. On the right, carrots, beets & turnips. Of course, more close up shots will follow soon enough. (you may also want to scroll back a bit through the last couple posts, as I updated them with cute pictures of lambs and chickens!)

































I also have a decent picture of another new, somewhat strangely placed bed. Like I said, I planted every possible inch of the backyard! haha

Below you can see the fern & mint garden in a little corner between the house and the fence. I think this may end up being my favorite. I don't know why, I just love ferns so much. I wasn't sure if I should buy the white yarrow (that's the plant in the front on the left) but I'm so glad I did - I think it is going to look awesome next to the Ostrich Fern in the back left corner. I can't wait to eat the fiddleheads next spring!! In the middle of the yarrow and the fern you can only barely see the purple perilla (shiso, Japanese mint) in the shade. On the right, in the back is white peppermint, and the front is pineapple mint.

I am also putting a couple paths in there with stepping stones, just haven't gotten to that point yet in this picture. I already dubbed the concrete block in front of the yarrow my "contemplation seat". Makeshift for sure, but still, so peaceful. I sat and contemplated the ancient, even prehistoric nature of this garden for a good long time when I was done. Eventually, I plan to get a real stool in there for this purpose. Maybe I'll even dry the yarrow stalks to read the symbolism of random events using the I-Ching . Now that would be cool. haha

Gardening is Hardcore

Only for the headstrong. That's what one of my favorite musicians, dj Frankie Bones, used to say back in 1992 (except he was talking about hardcore techno, not gardening haha). I think he still does actually. In any case, it is probably one of the reasons I always liked him - I think I am a pretty hardcore person. What I mean by that is when I do something, I like to do it BIG. I don't like to do things half-way, if I like something enough to do it, I like to do it right and put my whole self into it. I realized recently, while gardening, that this was something still true about me. In just one year look at how much I've done - oh no, not just a couple tomato plants for me. I've got to do it UP! haha

Little did I know how much work it could be, which got me thinking again on Sunday, man, this is hardcore! I had gone to Brock Farms nursery on Thursday and bought all of my summer heat loving plants, but knew I couldn't get to planting them until Sunday. Since I didn't want them staying in the pots for too long (plus they brought tiny black ants into my kitchen, yuck. Anyone know how to get rid of them?) I knew I had to plant them all on Sunday.

I got out there about noon, and realized, wow, I have a lot to do and better get going! So I worked as fast and furiously as I could, and would you believe, still only got about 1/3 of what I needed to do, done by darkness. The good news is I got all the veggies and herb plants in, including transplanting some chard, chives and parsley still alive from last year in my 1st raised bed into the herb garden & digging out all of that chamomile! But, I did not have a chance to sow any seeds, put the trellises together, or make the wire hoop houses. I worked so hard, bending and digging for at least 7 hours straight (with only occasional dancing breaks hee hee. Hubby put new outdoor speakers in the garden, which rock). I'm still so sore today, two days later!

That said, it was fun! I really enjoyed getting outside all day, and was almost happy to be back sitting in my desk on Monday to get a rest.

As for how the spring veggies are growing, well, I already mentioned that I harvested the radishes, which grew quite well. I was also able to harvest some baby arugula. The first ones I planted are already starting to bolt though, a bit dissapointing but not really surprising. No blooms on the peas yet, although at least now they're getting to be a couple feet tall. The lettuce seedlings are getting nice and big in their new outdoor home, and will probably be ready to harvest in a week or two.

Here's my old list of plants to be grown this year, with a star* next to the ones that have already been planted. I can't wait until everything grows in. Unfortunately, I can't update the blog with pics just yet - we can't find the camera battery. It is bound to show up sooner or later though.

From seed:
*Buttercrunch Lettuce
*Merveille De Quatre Saisons Butterhead Lettuce
*Vivian Romaine Lettuce
*Mesclun Salad Mix
*Spicy mesclun mix
*Red Leaf Romaine Lettuce- Silvia
*"Astro" Arugula
*Tendergreen Mustard Mache Gala (a.k.a. lamb's lettuce or corn salad)
*Red Ace Beet
*Detroit Dark Red, Medium Top Beet
*Beet Lutz Green Leaf
*Fordhook Giant Swiss Chard
*White Icicle Radish
*Easter Egg II Radish
*Early Scarlet Globe Radish
*Purple Top White Globe Turnip
*Pea Sugar Snap
*Dark Seeded Early Perfection Pea
*Carrot Napoli Hybrid
*garlic chives (still inside in seedling tray, but growing!)
*pansies
*violets
*Malva sylrestris (hollyhock mallow, mystic merlin ) (still inside in seedling tray, but growing!)*Alcea rosea (Hollyhock Creme de Cassis) (still inside in seedling tray, but growing!)
*Bellis perennis (English Daisy Tasso Strawberries and Cream) (not germinating, these might not make it)
*Platycodon grandiflorum (Balloon Flower Astra White) (still inside in seedling tray, but growing!)
*Bergamot Lavender
*Monarda fistulosa (still inside in seedling tray, but growing!)
*Bergamot Panorama Red Shared (Monarda didyma) (not germinating, these might not make it)*Calendula Flashback Calendula officinalis
*Velvet Queen Sunflower
Calendula Oktoberfest
Nasturtium Rainbow Whirlybird Mix Tropaeoleum majus
Nasturtium Climbing Amazon Mix Tropaeolum majus
nasturtium Empress of India
Anise Hyssop (Mint Licorice)
Agastache foeniculum
White Yarrow Achillea millefolium
Jolly Jester Marigold
Cilantro
Dill
Summer Squash Tromboncino

Marketmore Cucumber

Cucumber Pearl Hybrid

Spinach Malabar Red Stem

Emerité Pole Bean

Purchased Nursery Plants:
*Raspberries
*Strawberries
*Pickling cucumbers
*Red Grape Tomatoes
*Yellow Grape Tomatoes
*Roma Plum Tomatoes
*Rutgers Tomatoes
*Italian peppers
*Jalapeno
*Habanero
*Kung Pao peppers
*Red Bell Peppers
*Yellow Bell peppers
*White Mint
*Basil
*Marjoram
*Eucalyptus
*Tagetes tenuifolia (lemon, red & tangerine gem signet marigold)
Yellow Squash
Dianthus Firewitch
Red Dianthus

Already growing back from last year:
thyme
chives
oregano
spicy oregano
sage
curly parsley
lavender
Red Trumpet Honeysuckle
chamomile

The Best Laid Plans...

So, I had all these previous posts with ambitious plans to plant by the moon phases, start this and that inside, blah blah blah. Well, most of it didn't happen. Haha I've just been too busy.

But tomorrow looks perfect. I'm just about to finish a project I've been writing so tomorrow will be clear for nothing but fun. The weather report is looking great- in the mid 70's and sunny. (despite what my weather widget says in the sidebar- apparently it is broken)

So tonight I want to get some seeds in water to soak them over night. I don't want to pre-soak too many, or else I'll end up like a few weeks ago planting 200 radish seeds for 2 hours straight. (good thing I like radishes!) So I'm trying to work out a good estimate here to get the right number for my space:

The measurements of the new bed these are going in: 39" x 94"

• Beets: sow 1" apart, 1/2" deep, 12" rows, thin to 2 (babies) - 4" (storage) apart

• Carrots: sow 1" apart, 1/2" deep, cover with soil lightly. keep moist. thin 10 1" apart when 1 to 2" high, then again later when they're bigger to 2" apart

• Turnips: sow 1" apart, 1/4" deep. rows 6" apart for babies, 12" for bigger ones. When seedlings 3 - 5" high, thin to 3"apart

So wow, if the bed is 94" long and they all get sowed 1" apart, that means I have to sow nearly 300 seeds tomorrow! Oh my. Well, at least I'll be getting lots of exercise!

Note: I got the planting directions above from Barbara Damrosch's "The Garden Primer". She's the wife of Eliot Coleman who wrote "Four Season Harvest". They really seem to know their stuff so I'm going by what she says.

Also, my Agribon finally arrived today!! Now I just need to get wire and make the chenille row covers as described in Eliot's book. I have about a snowball's chance in hell of getting this all done tomorrow, but, at least it's finally here!

End of March: Wonderful News!

Despite having freezing cold nights at the beginning of this week, all of the veggies I planted outside are growing! I went outside Thursday and couldn't believe my eyes, all of the peas I planted (both types) are peeking out of the soil. I counted them last night - there are nearly 40 pea sprouts. The arugula also survived the cold, and the whole row looks great. We even have two radish sprouts.

The inside seedlings are still ok, though leggy. I'm going to harden off the lettuce this week then plant them deep so hopefully they'll recover once in the garden. Of course, as you can see below the cut-and-come again tray of extra seedlings I didn't even plan to plant is looking way better than the leggy lettuce in individual containers! Oh the irony.

I'm getting excited now for the next few weeks in April. Lots of things to be planted. I made another plan (yes, I couldn't help it haha) for exactly when to plant the seedlings according to the moon cycles. I went with different dates since the Farmer's Almanac seemed to early considering the cold weather we've been having, based on the conventional wisdom that leafy plants with seeds on the outside go in the first quarter, annuals with seeds on the inside second quarter, root veggies and perennials in the 3rd and nothing in the 4th. I don't know if it is bubkus or not, but I figure there is no harm in trying since it is pretty much right on time as far as the weather anyway. This is the plan for the next two weeks:

Today:

• Pre-germinate radish seeds for early (non-moon) planting in the next few days. I want to put these in early where I will plant warm weather veggies in May so they'll be ready for harvest by then. It will be interesting to compare them to the later moon sown radishes, although I won't know if any difference is due to the moon or just warmer weather.

4/1 or 4/2:

• Start flowers inside - Tray 1 = Calendula (10 flashback, 5 octoberfest), Marigold (2), Bergamot (3 fitulosa + 3 didyma) & Garlic Chives (2)
  
• Tray 2 = Nasturtium (10 climbing, 5 empress, 6 whirlybird), Balloon Flower (2), Mallow (2)
• Tray 3 = Hollyhock (15) & English Daisy (10)
• Direct sow more lettuce & arugula plus mustard greens, mache and chard
• Transplant lettuce seedlings

4/4 or 4/5:

• Direct-sow a couple more peas to fill in any empty spots

4/11 or 4/12:

• Direct-sow turnips, beets, carrots & more radishes
• Plant purchased berries outside - raspberries, blueberries and strawberries

Second Week of March Update

I'm posting from outside in the garden right now!! Haha gotta love technology.

We put in two new raised beds on the other side of the yard today! I am so happy, I can hardly believe we managed to get it all done. It was a lot of work, but not as bad as last year. (at least right now. We'll see what my muscles say tomorrow!) Especially b/c last year we hurriedly buried a huge plank of wood underneath one pile of soil. Whoops! Had to shovel up the whole pile to slide the board out from underneath.

The compost pile, unfortnately, doesn't seem done. I was only able to get out a sprinkle. But, I worked in lots of cottonseed meal, lime and rock phosphate so hopefully that will help. I'm going to try to find some compost tea at the local nursery so I can put that in too.









And now we are on our way to Ikea to get a shelf (Gorm) for our growlight setup. Got full spectrum florescent lights, chain and hooks last night so all we need now is the shelf to hook it to. Hoping to get that done tonight.

Final, Really Final Plan for Spring 2009. No really.

This is probably getting repetitive, but what can I say - I'm a planner. Always have been. Plus, since my garden is so small and my wish list so big, I really wanted to make sure I could fit everything in there. As mentioned before, last year I had a problem with spacing so this year I'm trying to give them plenty of room. When you add in trying to rotate crops, plus spring, summer and fall planting- it quickly gets very complicated! So, plan I must.

I believe this is the final version. The planting dates are based on that Farmer's Almanac link I found to go with the correct moon phase. I would love to get the early crops in by March 10th, but with this awful winter we're having I don't know if that will happen and I may have to wait until the end of the month. Especially because we still have to build bedsfive and six! The piles of soil are already there under tarps, but they're still frozen solid under about 8 inches of snow. Guess we'll see what happens! Just in case, I'm starting some lettuce inside now to give them a jump.

SPRING 2009 PLANTING PLAN
1. BED ONE (large + fence) 42 x 94.5 = 3.5' x 7.9' = 27.6' = 27.5'
a. Mar 7-10, Mar 26-31 Pea Sugar Snap (6 inch row)
b. Mar 26-Apr 9 Fordhook Giant Swiss Chard Seed* 9”apart (each corner)
c. 6/1 Tendergreen Mustard – later- when the peas get taken out
d. Mar 1-10, Mar 26-31 Four mesclun, four mache (12” row)
e. Mar 1-10, Mar 26-31 8 four seasons Butterhead Lettuce Seed 12-18”apart
f. Mar 1-10, Mar 26-31 4 each red & Vivian romaine (12” row)

Additional Note: Omg I just realized I forgot the Buttercrunch lettuce! All this, and I still forgot one. Unbelieveable! Well, it will probably fit where I'm thinking the mache will go now. Those can probably be smooshed in elsewhere since they are pretty small.

2. BED TWO (small + fence) 31.5 x 46 = 2.6' x 3.8' = 9.8 sq ' = 10'
a. Mar 11-25 Radish/Mar 1-10, Mar 26-31 Mesclun (early growing)
b. Apr 24-30 trombocino squash (6 inch row)
c. Apr 24-30 jalapeno & cayenne (2 feet x 3.8)

3. BED THREE (small) 31.5 x 47.5 = 2.6' x 3.9' = 10.14 = 10'
a. Mar 7-10, Mar 26-31 Strawberries Early = Earliglow, noreaster Mid: Allstar, Guardian Neutral: Tristar
b. Mar 7-10, Mar 26-31 Peas

4. BED FOUR (large) 58.5 x 126 = 4.9' x 10.5' = 51.45' = 51.5'
a. Mar 11-25 Radish/Mar 1-10, Mar 26-31 Mesclun (early growing)
b. Mar 1-10, Mar 26-31 Interplant with arugula (early, but spaced so that we can plant summer plants on Apr. 30)
c. Apr 24-30 Four tomato plants
d. Basil
e. Apr 24-30 Italian Peppers

OTHER SIDE OF YARD
5. BED FIVE (large + fence)
a.Mar 11-25 Radish (early growing)/ Mar 1-10, Mar 26-31 Mesclun (early growing)
b. Apr 24-May 9 Cucumbers
c. Apr 24-30 Bell Peppers
d. Apr 24-30 Yellow Squash (one in corner)
e. Apr 24-30 Habanero

6. BED SIX (large + fence) 39" x 94" - 3' x 7' - 21 sq '
a. Apr 24-30 Filet beans
b. 2 Dandelion (each corner)** maybe put something else here (flowers?) in spring then plant these in fall
c. Mar 15-25 Turnips (12” row)
d. Mar 15-25 Beets (12” row)
e. Mar 11-25 Carrots (12” row)

7. BED SEVEN (shade, in ground)
a. Mint
b. Ferns

Gardening Binge 2009 #2: Check!

I knew after my last seed order a few weeks ago, there were still a few things I forgot. I definitely wanted to order the Agribon row covers. I also want to make the existing wild violet area (as described in this post last year) on the other side of the yard into an edible flower bed, but didn't get anything for that when I ordered my veggies. So, today I had some time to spare and of course my thoughts immediately went to my garden, and the little violets that should be sprouting any week now. One thing led to another, and bye bye hard earned $$$! Haha. At least I don't feel too bad since they are all edible and most perennial. Here's the haul, all organic, from Peaceful Valley:

• Anise Hyssop (Mint Licorice) Agastache foeniculum
• White Yarrow Achillea millefolium*
• Bergamot Lavender Monarda fistulosa*
• Calendula Flashback Calendula officinalis
• Nasturtium Rainbow Whirlybird Mix Tropaeoleum majus
• Nasturtium Climbing Amazon Mix Tropaeolum majus
• Garlic Chives Allium tuberosum
• Catalogna (Italian) Dandelion Greens Cichorium intybus (these were Free!)
• Tendergreen Mustard (also Free!)
  
• Mache Gala (a.k.a. lamb's lettuce or corn salad)
• The lightest Agribon (19) to keep the worms off my Kale
• The next heavier Agribon (30) to protect crops from frost

*Native to New Jersey!

Wuhoo! I'm so excited I don't even know what to do with myself. Well, actually I do- make lots and lots of origami boxes to use as pots for indoor seedlings! I better get to it- hopefully it will work and you'll see the results in my next post.

Now I need to put some more details here on a couple of these new plants that I've never grown before.
-Anise Hyssop= Height: 2-4'; Spacing:18-24 in. (45-60 cm); Sun to Light Shade; Propagation: From seed; sow indoors before last frost (cold, moist stratification dramatically improves germination); blooms mid to late summer

-White Yarrow= Height: 6" - 4'; Spacing: 1 - 2'; Full Sun; Drought resistant; Propagation: Divide in the spring. The seed germinates in 2 weeks at temperatures between 65 and 75 degrees. Light is necessary for seed germination (so plant no deeper than 1/4 inch). Germination time indoors may be as little as 5 to 7 days.; bloom in June, but will bloom again in September if the dead clusters are removed

-Bergamot Lavender = Height: 3' - 5' (mowing may keep it shorter & water/fertilizer will make it grow huge); Spacing: 12 - 24" (good air circulation keeps away powdery mildew); Full sun to light shade; Somewhat drought resistant (moreso than monarda didyma) but may like moist feet - seems to depend; Propagation: Direct seed 2 seeds/in or start indoors 4-6 wks before last frost and transplant when frost danger has passed. Planting Depth: 1/8"-1/4"Soil Temp. for Germ.: 60-70°FDays to Germ.: 10-21; Blooms in June/July, may continue through Sep. if deadheaded

Other Possibilities:

• Tagetes tenuifolia (lemon or tangerine signet marigold)
• Malva sylrestris (common mallow, french hollyhock)
• and/or Alcea rosea (Hollyhock) probably doesn't taste as good as mallow but it sure is cute! Also has upward, tall habit
• Bellis perennis (English Daisy, Lawn Daisy) small, adorable and I NEED it haha
• Centaurea cynaus (Bachelor's Button, Cornflower) pretty, blue, many colors but also large: 2 - 3 feet tall
• Platycodon grandiflorum (Balloon Flower) Another purple 2 - 3 foot tall totally gorgeous edible flower
  

Garden Dimensions

Not a very exciting post, but I need to record this. I just took the measurements of my garden beds. We built them last year just where they seemed to fit, with however many bags of soil/cinder blocks we had at the time. No measuring was involved whatsoever. So today I went out there with a tape measure and got some data to use in planning where I will plant what this year. I definitely want to be more careful than last year, because several of the plants got ruined from being too close together. The jalapeno and cayenne were swallowed by the tomatoes and the carrots totally covered by the peppers. Not this year if I can help it!

first small bed near left fence by herb garden: 31.5 x 46 = 2.6' x 3.8' = 9.8 sq ' = 10'
second small bed near herb garden 31.5 x 47.5 = 2.6' x 3.9' = 10.14 = 10'
large bed near left fence: 42 x 94.5 = 3.5' x 7.9' = 27.6' = 27.5'
largest bed built last in the fall: 58.5 x 126 = 4.9' x 10.5' = 51.45' = 51.5'

total approximate square footage of garden = 99

I can hardly believe it is almost 100 square feet. That sounds way bigger than it seems.

Soon we'll have another two large beds on the other side of the yard too. The piles of soil are already there, covered in tarp- but we've got to wait for the freezing night temps to subside before we can dig them up.

Seed Binge 2009: Check!

I've been super busy but after this weekend's 50 degree temps I could wait no longer. I just placed my seed orders!! Here is what I bought:

From Natural Gardening Company:

• Emerité Pole Bean Seed
• Buttercrunch Lettuce Seed*
• Merveille De Quatre Saisons Butterhead Lettuce Seed
• Vivian Romaine Lettuce Seed
• "Astro" Arugula
• Red Ace Beet Seed*
• Fordhook Giant Swiss Chard Seed*
• Marketmore Cucumber Seed*
• White Icicle Radish Seed*
• Easter Egg II Radish Seed
• Purple Top White Globe Turnip Seed*

From Cook's Garden:

• Summer Squash Tromboncino
• Beet Lutz Green Leaf
• Pea Sugar Snap*
• Carrot Napoli Hybrid

Whee I'm excited now! Seeds with an asterisk* next to them were specifically listed as good types to grow in New Jersey by Rutgers: http://njaes.rutgers.edu/pubs/download-free.asp?strPubID=FS681 , with the exception of Fordhook Chard which was suggested by a NJ gardener on the garden web forums.

Although that is a long list, I'm still going to have to buy quite a few plants from the nursery. I know I don't have a lot of time this year, and my indoor growing set-up doesn't really exist yet, so I only went with mostly things to be direct seeded outside. A lot of the above list will also be planted in the fall. Last year I learned quickly that you have to get them in the spring, because by the time fall came around none of my local stores had any plants or seeds.

This is what I plan to get from the nursery:

• Yellow Squash
• Regular Zucchini
• Grape Tomatoes
• Rutgers Tomatoes
• Two types of heirloom (maybe from the Rutger's special plant sale)
• Cucumber, maybe a pickling variety & another long seedless
• Italian peppers
• Jalapeno
• Habanero
• Bell Peppers (maybe red and orange)
• Cilantro
• Dill
• Mint
• Basil
• Borage
• Assorted herbs for my dog's garden (haha yes you read that right my dog gets his own garden. This will be explained in a later post)
• Raspberries
• Blueberries
• Strawberries
• Nasturtiums
• Marigolds
• Daisies

I think that's it! Phew!

Spring Planning in the Snow

It has been sooo cold here over the past week. I can't take it anymore, I feel like a popsicle. It keeps snowing a little bit at a time so my poor partner has had to go outside and shovel just about every other day. Good thing he is Canadian and prides himself on his shoveling skills! He keeps bragging about how our sidewalk is the most ice free of the block. Haha I'm so annoyed that it has only been accumulating about an inch. I love snow- so if it is going to be this cold at least we could get enough snow to take the day off and go sledding or build a snowman or something!

The only things keeping me warm are my dog and thinking about what I'll grow in the spring. This is the first time I've ever tried growing seeds inside to plant out in the spring so it should definitely be a learning experience. I'm researching the best varieties to order and drawing up a plan of how to rotate my beds. Looks like the is a 50% chance of 32 degree weather on April 20th and a 10% chance by May 1st. So like last year, I'll plant the warm weather crops the first weekend of May, but the cold weather crops could probably go in as early as April 1st. That seems kind of late though...I think I'll have to do a little more research on that. In any case, I better get to ordering my seeds in the couple weeks so I can start growing them inside in March.

Edit: Aha! I just found this additional planting calendar from the farmer's almanac that even tells you when is a good time to plant in accordance with the moon. http://www.almanac.com/garden/plantingtable/index.php As I suspected, it says to plant the cool weather veggies like chard and beets in mid March. It still says not to plant beans until mid April. I thought they should go out earlier than that. Hmm. I've never grown any beans except those scarlet runner beans last year that didn't do well at all, so this is completely new to me. I'd really like to grow haricot verts this year. I'm thinking almost definitely Emerite Pole Beans, or maybe Straight N Narrow. I might try Soleil bush beans too. I think I'll have to call my friend the Master Gardener and my brother to find out what they think.

Here is a picture of my dog playing in the snow in the meantime. Today he was eating the flakes in the air as they fell. Too cute. :-)

New Raised Bed for Fall

This is my new raised bed, just finished on July 28th in time for a fall crop. What a lot of backbreaking work that was! First my husband and I had to dig up all of the weeds, then turn the soil over. We placed the concrete blocks and dumped in at least a ton of soil that was delivered in a pile on our driveway, so we had to hand shovel the whole pile into the bed. We slept well that night, you betcha!

Not a very exciting post I guess, but it was an excuse to use a picture of my new doggie. :.) I can't help myself, just look at that face!

The First Raised Bed

So I don't have a car yet, having just moved out of the city to the suburbs. But when I first moved in, my husband and I rented a car. Since we had the car, we tried to get as much house related stuff as we could, knowing we wouldn't have one again for a few months. In my excitement, I bought a couple cold weather plants, (this was in March) even though we did not yet have the bed set up. I got some mesclun greens, romaine lettuce, chives and a strawberry.

I decided to use cinder blocks as the most cost effective means to build raised beds. I figured the cinder blocks would also be good if I only used one layer, they could be moved next season if necessary. Being a beginning gardener, I knew this season would probably hold some lessons for me so I didn't want to do anything terribly permanent. We also picked up 10 40 lb bags of soil.

Two weeks later the plants were looking pretty unhappy in their containers, but I still hadn't any time to set up the bed. So after work on a Thursday hubby and I frantically dug up the weeds, arranged some of the cinder blocks and filled it with soil. I couldn't believe it took 8 full bags of soil just to fill this one tiny bed!!!! We realized at this point, we were going to need a better solution for getting soil then loading a million bags into a rental car.

To the right is a picture of the first finished raised bed. That's two mesclun in the front, with a chive in the corner on either side. Then 4 romaine in the middle and another 2 mesclun in the back.

I also put the strawberry in a self-watering pot that I was lucky to score on sale for $5.99. Here it is.