Warm Thoughts

It’s officially been spring for a few days, and like a bear awaking from hibernation, I can start to feel the change in seasons. It has been an extreme winter, hasn’t it? Not to brag, but the weather channel listed Toledo, OH as the worst weathered city this winter, and that’s not far from where I live. Tons of snow, tons of bitter cold days. Even today it snowed for a few minutes leaving no more than an inch accumulation. The good news? It won’t last!! The promise of spring is so enlightening.

Even though I haven’t been on the “blogging scene” much lately, I promise you I haven’t been slaking on my garden adventures. I have been prepping for this year’s garden since January, and my seedlings are starting to get big. Check out these pictures! I have many more varieties than I did last year, and I’m planning on having more plants too (assuming they all survive).

Cabbage and broccoli ready to be transplanted!! Also some basil seedlings in the yogurt cups.

Hopefully I have better luck this year with onions. I’m trying intermediate varieties. These should do better in my location, I think?

Peppers and eggplants, 1 month old.

Tomato seedlings one week old.

I have plans for a hoop house over one of the raised beds and more gardens in the front yard. This is going to be a great year, so keep in touch and hopefully the garden grows as well as it did last year! Everyone keep thinking warm thoughts!!!!!!!!!

Garden Update #2

 

This is one of my most prolific beds. Corn, squash, hot peppers, and eggplant.

I am in love with my garden. Starting this garden was probably the best idea I’ve had in a long, long time. True, not everything is growing as I had hoped, but I love it all the more. It’s a growing experience. A stress-relieving haven.  A true piece that symbolizes this time in my life. A time of self discovery.

We are finally done adding to our garden and landscaping, so now I can focus on nurturing these plants and reaping their harvests. We have been eating radishes, broccoli, and greens regularly from our garden now, and there’s still plenty to harvest. I noticed today that our first tomatoes are turning ripe. The plants are loaded!!

I have completely given up on melons. They all sprouted within a week (or so) of planting and haven’t changed since. They are starting to die off now. Winter squash and pumpkins have been growing a lot but still no vines. Seeing it’s almost July, I don’t expect any fruit, but I plan on letting the plants grow so I’ll have some experience for next year.

I hope you all enjoy the pictures and the summer weather!

Holy chili peppers!!!!

Beans have overrun our teepee just in the past 2 weeks.

The melons that never did much. Any idea on what might of went wrong? They haven’t grown in 2 months.

Tomatoes on bamboo stakes. These plants are loaded with green tomatoes!

Beans (hopefully for drying), radishes, carrots, parsnips, leeks, and broccoli!

Some of our potato pots. Hopefully the potatoes are growing in the soil just as much as the greens are growing above.

Ground cherry plant. GROWING LIKE MAD! Tons of green husks all over it. Can’t wait to taste ripe fruit

This picture does not do this bed justice. These tomatoes plants are over 5 ft tall, and its only mid June. If they continue growing, they will certainly reach the top (which was my hope). I may make this into a T-frame trellis. We will see. Tons of flowers and fruit on these plants too!

Last Seedling Update

Just a quick update on the plants, sorry for the lack of updates. Everything is ready to be put in the ground. I’m just waiting a few days more to save them from a random frost. Our beds are coming along nicely, pictures to follow. We’re building the frames now and then we’ll fill them up with soil. I can’t wait for all my seedlings to get in the ground.

Pepper and herb seedlings, ready to be transplanted.

 

As seen from the last post, my poor peppers didn’t make it, so I replanted and the second time they’ve done fantastic. Here they are 3 weeks old. I just transplanted them into these pots, and they’re loving the extra root-space. All sorts of sweet and hot pepper varieties are in the mix. Also some herbs (parsley, chives, and basil).

Here are all my tomatoes! I don’t know what I was thinking because I’m only gonna use about half of these guys. I’m planning on giving some to the neighbors and friends. 🙂

Success and Failure

 

I thought I’d give a little update on my seedling operation. Without doubt, I started some of my plants too early… mostly because I was too anxious to get started with the new experience of gardening. Here are some petunias I’ve grown. Most of them are flowering. Purples, pinks, whites, lavenders, and the like. I’m considering pruning them. Does anyone have experience with pruning flowering seedlings?

These seedlings were planted back in February. They’ve been growing in %25 worm castings and have done great! I hope they continue to grow. Do you think pruning them would be beneficial? I’d love to have the massive, full plants you see in magazines.

 

A few weeks ago I started a flat of peppers, and easily said, they have been my worst seedlings yet. Most of them are curling up and look very dry. I’ve been fairly religious about my watering habits, so I don’t know what happened with them. Good news is that I have started a second flat of peppers and they seem to be doing better.

These pepper seedling failures are all currled up and look dry even with (assuming) adequate watering. Any diagnosis suggestions?

Now check out these tomato plants! They were planted the same time as the peppers in the same peat-pods. Compared to the peppers, the tomatoes have responded very positively. I even had to transplant them to give them more room. Here are about half of them. Again, I had poor judgement on quantity. As a first year gardener, I have little knowledge of how much to plant… “Hey! This looks good, but just to be safe let’s plant 4 more.”

Tomatoes!!!!

I’ve found it very handy to use old yogurt cups as transplanting pots. This basil seems to be enjoying it.

Use old yogurt containers as transplanting pots!!

In a week or two I plan to starting putting plants in the ground. Anyone else anxious for Spring’s arrival?

Seedling Update

What used to be 2 layers of seedlings is now 3. As the temperatures begin to thaw, our gardening project begins to come into focus. We’ve even begun to dig our beds. (More on that later). Our seedlings are taking off. The official list now is: onions, leeks, broccoli, parsley, basil, thyme, oregano, lavender, sage, chives, eggplant, several varieties of peppers, tons of tomatoes, petunias, snapdragons, cosmos, calendras, and dahlias (I think). Enjoy a few pictures.

The petunias are finally getting bushy. Expecting a bloom before long!

Tomato seedlings just a few days old.

Pepper seedlings about a week old.