Expanding

Phew...finally warm enough outside to dig in the dirt. This year I'm planting a lot more, so a little garden plot expansion was necessary. I started on Wednesday, clearing sod to make the plot roughly 3 times its current length. Then, of course, it rained for the entirety of the next two days. So, yesterday (Saturday), I was finally able to get back outside and finish up. I swung by Earl May and Menards for some Omagro compost and organic topsoil - my compost pile was not successful - I'm going to work on that this year, as well. Omagro will do - it's local at least, and heck, it it probably made from the sod I tossed last year!

This morning, I drug myself out of bed in order to spread the compost and topsoil. Ugh, 40 lb bags are not my friend! Then I sorted through my seed packets to determine what needed to go into the ground today. Lettuce mix, dill, radish, and sweet pea seeds are nestled safely in the soil, soon to sprout alongside the onions that are already growing. I'm not sure the origin of the onions for sure -they are either the ones that I didn't pull up last year, or the winter onions I planted in Oct/Nov (a gift from a friend's mom). Either way, at least something is growing!

Starting some onion seeds...outside!

I read about this in Mother Earth News a couple of months ago...you can start seeds in milk jugs as an alternative to using lights inside (for those of us without much interior room to spare). I decided to start my onions this way...hopefully it works!
I took several milk jugs (collecting from friends since I don't drink milk) and cut them in half, leaving one side intact to function as a hinge.

Using my organic potting soil, I filled each jug with about 3 inches of soil. The soil was generously moistened, and the onion seeds were spaced in the soil, about 1 inch apart.

I taped the jugs shut (all I could find was electrical tape, but I may replace it), leaving the caps off.

Each jug was paced inside a garbage bag, which was tied shut with a rubber band.

These jugs/bags will stay on a sunny spot on my deck for the spring, where the onion seeds will hopefully spout inside the insulated environment...we'll see... I'll check on them for water and heat needs as necessarily...those issues weren't included in the directions!

Planning for spring

I’m probably months behind schedule compared to “serious” gardeners who know what they are doing, but nevertheless, I have started!  The spring-like weather of the past two days has put me in the gardening mood, so with that comes a Garden Blog update. 

This years goals include: 

• an expanded plot
• more variety in veggies
• select herbs
• a new attempt at composting
• and a better effort at preserving

 

n addition to my veggie garden, the DH and I are joining a CSA (splitting a share with ML), so fresh local produce with be abundant come this summer.  I can’t wait!

Today, I put in an order for seeds and some transplants.  From Seedsavers, I order a variety pack of pepper and tomato transplants, to be delivered for mid-May planting.  I also order seeds for dill, anise, cilantro, wormwood, english lavender, purple basil (doesn’t that sound pretty?), dwarf gray sugar peas, cucumbers, lemon cucumbers, brown onions, plum purple radishes, a lettuce mix…  I’m really excited about the transplants!  The pepper sampler includes Alma Paprika, Buran, Jimmy Nardello’s, King of the North, Sheepnose Pimento, and Orange Bell peppers.  In the tomato sampler are Amish Paste, Brandywine, Gold Medal, Green Zebra, Mexico Midget and Stupice.

 

From Seeds of Change, I ordered seeds for Calabrese broccoli, Charentais cantalope, St. Valery carrots, butternut and spaghetti squash…

Hmmm…I don’t think I ordered any zucchini…but a friend at work offered to share, so maybe that’ll do.  I also have a packet of green bean seeds from him. 

This year I’m going to do my reseach!  Things will be planted more carefully, at the right time, and with the right soil conditions (as best as I can manage).  A lot of the herbs I ordered are said to repel bad bugs and/or attract good ones.  I’ll give the tomatoes enough room to spread out, and keep them caged as best I can…I’ll be the best home veggie farmer ever!  OK, maybe I’m jumping the gun a little…J  Hurry up Spring!

 

Seeing Red!

I mentioned before that I planned to try to ripen a bunch of green tomatoes indoors.  I took the best of the ones I pulled from the garden, wrapped them individually in newspaper and sat them on shelves in my basement, covered by a dark blanket.  Well, I checked them this morning – well, I checked one of them that is – it was red!  It worked!  Now the trick will be to keep them in decent shape until I have time to process them.  I wasn’t expecting this to happen so quickly! 

Scurries off to locate sauce recipes...

Tomatoes out the $%@

They’re everywhere! The green tomatoes that is…it’s like summer is taking another turn – everything is green and flowering again… Alas, I know it won’t last, so I’m trying to enjoy it while it does. My tomato routine until now has been to check the garden every day or two and pluck the red ‘maters from the vines. As the season went on there were fewer and fewer ripe red ones, but still TONS of green tomatoes. My dear sweet husband, being a practical boy, inquired “can’t we just pick the green ones and use them?” So I did a little research on the subject. My new plan is to gather the healthiest of the fruits, bring them inside and let them ripen on their own indoors. Then I’ll process them – can them, freeze them, eat them, or something. J My sources tell me that indoor-ripened tomatoes do not taste quite as good as vine-ripened, but will be infinitely better than store-bought. Since I do plan on canning most of them as sauce of some sort, I think it’ll be OK. I picked a large basket-full last night, but didn’t even get a quarter of the way through the garden. Eek!

I’d also like to try some green tomato cooking experiments – any recipe recommendations?

Resurrected onions

Bit of a gardening surprise yesterday (but, as I’m pretty new to this sport, what isn’t a surprise?).  I went out to pluck the few cantaloupes that hadn’t been attacked by bugs from my little plot, and eventually turned my attention to the onions.  I had read that onions can be harvested after their stalks dry up and flop over, which happen earlier this summer…I pulled a few of them for salads already.  I figured I’d pull up the rest…but then I noticed that they were no longer dried and shriveled (the stalks that is)…they were green and sturdy.  Did I miss my chance to harvest the onions?  Why did they suddenly spring back to life?  Comments welcome; in the meantime I’ll be doing some research…

The Case of the Mystery Melon - solved!

I did eventually manage to snap a few pics of my mystery melons (the ones I thought were cantaloupes, but were looking much more like watermelons), but alas, the camera didn't make it back into the house from our last car trip. I'm bad at bringing things back in...
However, the mystery is solved! I am in fact growing cantaloupes. Their "skin" (rind?) is starting to develop a very cantaloupe-like texture. Phew! I'm not sure how mature they will get, as we've already started to experience some low temps in the area. But maybe next week's predicted upper 80's-low 90's will give them a boost...

Update: here is a photo (I cleaned out the car...) of the melons before they were identified: