Wednesday, March 30, 2011

New Border, Stinky Kitty

I forgot to mention the half row of English Peas that I planted last Thursday under the trellis. Today I added some sprouted garlic that I had in my kitchen. Although my original 2011 garden plan called for onion sets, I never got around to buying them so garlic will have to do.

Miss Cha Cha crammed herself into a 12 pack box a while back and looked positively pleased with herself.

Sometimes she spends hours contemplating what it means to be so fuzzy and to have such a big pink nose.

Other times she explores her relationship with her environment: What does it mean to be "in"?

Monday, March 28, 2011

Sowing the Seeds

The gardening has begun. Last Thursday I spent most of the afternoon rebuilding my plot walls, adding a little sprinkling of compost, and turning the dirt. After consulting my 2011 plot plan (drawn up way back in January when the first seed catalogs came in and my dreams were a little bigger) and editing it based on the seed selection available to me at the local Shoprite, I got to sowing. Thus far we have: Mesclun "Spicy Mix" Radish "Cherry Belle" Carrot "Nantes Half Long" Beet "Detroit Dark Red" Swiss Chard "Fordhook Giant" I tried to rotate my crops and I adjusted my rows this year to accommodate more carrots and fewer beets. After several years of meager radish crops with fancier varieties, I stuck with the old standby "Cherry Belle". I also opted for Mesclun instead of lettuce this year hoping to get a little radicchio and frisee out of the mix. I'll try to remember my camera next time so you can see my fancy plot walls. Also: I had one head of Escarole survive the winter and my oregano is springing back to life.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Spring

After an action packed weekend with sunshine and pleasant weather and back-to-back activities totally unrelated to gardening, I find myself behind on this year's gardening season. Last year the lettuce and radishes were sown by this point. I haven't even restrung the trellis or pulled out 2010's pepper and tomato carcases. My soil has not been amended. My seed order was never placed.

As many of you know, I'm hoping that my gardening situation will improve this year. We've been contemplating a small move (same general locale) to an apartment or house with a little outdoor space. The possibility of uprooting ourselves mid-season has been a little detrimental to the gardening plans. I have renewed my plot membership and I have drawn up a planting scheme but I have not begun.

While all this sorts itself out, I'll be watching episodes of
The Horticultural Channel and Victory Garden and dreaming about my own personal green acres.