Weird Brocolli

The brocolli I raised from seed is finally starting to make heads, but look how weird they are. Perhaps it is the raining weather?

Cabbage

Cabbage look great this year. I have not had the cabbage moth like before. So, the lettuce is done and time to eat slaw. Nancy

Strawberry Harvest Begins

I (weeded) and picked my first round of strawberries. I froze two quarts and David and I ate one. The patch looks real good with at least two more pickings. The cool weather has been a blessing for the lettuce, which we are still eating . I have had two meals of spinach. Other greens (mustard, collard, chard and kale) are coming along and will be ready soon. My broccoli and cabbage from seed are slow going? Not sure if they have enough time. My struggle this year is with bunnies. They ate a lot of peas and half my broccoli seedlings raised from seeds. What are you gonna do? I have most everything covered in chicken wire and netting, but they still tend to get through and under somehow. I have to go buy some more netting. My snow peas have been blooming a week and should make some peas real soon. The shelling peas are blooming also. Carrots, potato and radish are up and onions need weeding. We planted nine rows of beans for drying: pinto, red, white, and black. Like all home grown foods, they taste much better. If it is not too wet we will do some summer plantings on the weekend, I'll keep you posted.

sunflowers

opps! the wire info was for Jan, not you Nancy! Good to see you found your way to the blog!

Happy Mothers Day, mothers! and what a glorious day it is!!

About the sunflowers, Nancy, you may try putting some chicken wire, tomato cages, or the like over the seed and let them get up a ways before pulling the wire off. I'm guessing some bird is eating the seed or the young sprouts...we know how good sprouts are! I LOVE your pics!

Last Falls spinach has bolted, flowering now, so the leaves are much smaller, we pull it up as we harvest to make room for something else (I'm always in need of more space this time of year!)Normally I'd let it go to seed but last year was a bumper crop, so I have plenty. March's planting is ready to pick now too. Spinach anyone??

Sno peas started blooming last week, the sugar snap shouldn't be far behind! Yea! Beets and carrots broke ground during last week rains...and did it rain. Everything else is looking pretty good. This year more than others I've noticed my timing has been better getting seeds or transplants in the ground...sowing seeds before the rain and transplanting between the showers or on cloudy evenings. I think it does make a difference.

The fringed phallicia is the tallest and most robust I've ever seen it! Must be all the rain. The larkspur, butter wort or wild mustard (I have to look it up) and thimble flower are waning, just a few stragglers. The wood poppy is getting her second wind as we are past peak.

Love to all my fellow gardeners, Michael

Lenore's Garden is Online

Lenore will be posting soon!!!!with all her garden updates.

Frist Weeding

I spend the entire weekend weeding my rows. Peas are coming along with only a few eaten by rabbit. Spinach is doing well thanks to fish emulsion. We cleaned out the chicken house also, so I have plenty of fertilizer now. Once weeded, I found swiss chard, kale, onion and leeks sprouting from the seeds I planted a month ago. All are very small. Maybe it was too cold? I also found a meal of bok choy which I ate last night. The bugs were going at it, and a few had bolted already. Bok Choy does better in the fall. I planted some carrots like Mike suggested, as well as radish. Tomato seedlings are growing their second leaves :) That makes me happy, last year they just stopped at seedlings and never grew their second leaves. We have been eating lettuce one week now. Isn't it beautiful!!!

Ditto

I might be a little behind everyone else, but like all of you, appreciate this time of year so much! I worked at weeding and repairing parts of the garden yesterday and will plant some today. Up closer to the house I have the things I like to grab for dinner: kale, lettuces and spinach, etc. In the big garden in back, the peas and onions are coming up. My passion is berries - I now have blueberries, black raspberries, red raspberries, and blackberries (new this year).

Every year I plant a couple of packets of sunflowers and none ever made it. Any suggestions? I'm going to try again this year - maybe make a cold frame. I saw a HEDGE of them one year out in the country and was bowled over!

Hey folks, I'm back! had a techno mental lapse, but thanks to Nance I'm fine now. I'd like to see that lettuce Lenore, sounds great! I've never had any winter over, but never used glass either...will have to try that. Plantin spinach in the fall is the way to go, I'm not kiddin when I say we'd have more hand size leaves if we wouldn't eat so much at a time!! Darkest green thing in the ground right now. Starting to transplant early lettuces and herbs that were broadcast in the garden first 2 weeks in March. Of the 7 different saved lettuce seed only 4 are surviving, the romaine germinated but didn't live thru the freeze we had 2 nites in a row only covered w/ straw.
I'd be glad to take some of the baby arugula off your hands Lenore if you've got plenty, its good to stagger the plantings cause that stuff will bolt pretty quick.
Put out a dozen kale, brocolli, lettuce plants since I last wrote. Peas are starting to climb the straw looking for the wire fence up higher! The sno peas looked puny at first (home grown seeds) but are coming around with a couple doses of manure tea, the sugar snap seeds from Buntons last year germinated better and are a week or so behind the snos.
We're in the dark of the moon now so I sowed beets just today and hope to get carrots in Mon if it doesn't rain too hard tonite. I sowed both last year at this time and they did well planted this early. Guess everybody has their seed for this year cause I didn't get any takers for what I had.
Can't leave w/o giving a wildflower update for those interested...this past week it was yellow and blue with the jacobs ladder still blooming along w/ the Virginia blue bells, yellow violets and wood poppies. Rue hangin on as are the spring beauties. This upcoming week should bring the meadow flox(blue), thimble flower(white), larkspur(purple), jack-in-the-pulpit is not far behind!
Happy Gardening everyone! michael

Nancy's Garden Update

This is the height of my snow peas, planted on Valentines Day. I hope to put the fence up today. Bunny has chewed on my regular peas - still trying to keep him out. The most impressive thing I have is a long row of lettuce~which I will cover up tonight through this cold spell. I have a little spinach, and put some more seeds in yesterday. My greens have not come up to well? May have to replant. I planted dinosaur kale, swiss chard and Chinese greens. I am starting my broccoli and cabbages inside. They will be ready to plant outside next week. Onions are doing well, and seed potatoes are ready to go in as soon as it dries out enough.

Lenore's Garden Update

I have peas up a few inches, spinach leaves the size of my thumb (planted under glass in Feb.) I have this beautiful lettuce, full grown which I planted last Sept. and kept under the windows. Also.....the wild arugula which I planted last summer, wintered over on its own with no protection!! It has taken over an area and I have plenty to share if you want to transplant. The seeds are heirloom which I got at Whole Foods. They are are avery hardy variety, smaller leaves and a spicier taste. Also my kale wintered over and is now producing wonderful tender leaves.

Pea Report

My snow peas poked through last weekend in the warmth. Guess we tied this year Michael! The warm dry soil here was perfect for digging and planting last weekend. So I tilled the whole plot and got all my cold weather seeds planted. (With a fun auction and dance party inbetween) On Tuesday I bought some onion sets and planted them also, along with a flat of brocolli and cabbage seedlings for early eating. Here is what your cute little daffodils in the snow look like when you have chickens. We purchased the fencing to start keeping the chickens in a pasture.

Hey everybody! Sure is great to get outside & in the dirt again!! While turning some cold soil this evening I noticed the peas and onions starting to poke thru. I also covered last Falls spinach w/ straw, even tho its been exposed to worse than tonites expected 28. Should be eatin it next week, can't wait!
Gotta mention the wildflowers bustin out w/ last weeks warm (hot) weather & rain....Saw 1st bloom on the bloodroot & meadow rue? on Tuesday! Jacobs ladder, toothwort, & flox all have buds now & are awaiting more sun....stop by & ck em out when you're in the hood....should be poppin w/ next weeks warm up!! Late March into April is the best for viewing spring wildflowers.
I've got homegrown veggie seeds, mixed variety, willing to trade for some early surplus transplants, hint, hint. I haven't started anything inside this year.
Good to see most of you at the wonderful gathering @ Kerk & Freddies this past weekend! Dance on!

This is a great idea, Nancy.
Today was the first morning above freezing in .... a long time. It's about time.
Today I put out some lettuce I started indoor a few weeks ago. (I overhauled my plant/light table and it's doing great). Broccoli seeds sprouted in 1 day. Parsley, on the other hand, will take weeks, if at all. I refuse to give up on parsley. I've done hot water, soapy water soaks in the past.
This year's new plans for Sheila and I are for 'haricot vert' beans, a new winter squash, and to grow snapdragons for November and ?December blooms. Can't wait to grow the delicious yellow watermelon again, Orangeglo. I hope to get some straw and use liberally like Michael does. Garlic is coming up great. I read that it needs some good cold to promote good bulb formation. We had some cold alright, so I hope I have a good crop.
Isn't it amazing how things like kale and lettuce survive 0 degrees or below.

Nancy's Garden 2009 Begins

On valentines day I planted half of my snow peas, some spinach and lettuce. I sewed brocolli seeds in pots and are sprouting them in the sunroom. I plan to also start some cabbage and kale from seeds inside. If it is dry enough this weekend, I will do a second planting of snow peas, spinach and lettuce, as well as my first planting of shell peas. I have some onion seeds, so I guess I will throw them in and see what happens. I ordered my seeds this year from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. Check out their website: http://rareseeds.com/ Happy Gardening ~ Nancy

Good Neighbor Gardens

Good Neighbor Gardens is a blogspace open to all Good Neighbors wanting to post their garden updates. Members include: Michael Storm, Eric Stevens, Andrew Crenshaw, Phil Adkins, Lenore Crenshaw, Freddie Hoskins, Shelia Ward and Nancy Miller. Other Good Neighbors wanting to join the blog please comment and send along your email.