Ahhh Spring...that magical time of year when gardeners roll up their sleeves and joyfully skip out to their dirt patches and sink elbows deep in the rich loam we so love. And that's what I've been doing. The peas are in and up as are the kohlrabi and cabbage. I've never even tried to grow cabbage before because I've never really been a fan but I've found a few recipes lately that have really tuned my tastebuds toward cabbage.
Eggroll in a bowl
and
Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls (I used sausage in this one instead of ground beef and it was delish)
These are just a couple- Corned beef and cabbage is another.
So anyway, I planted 12 cabbage plants to see how it goes. Hopefully they'll flourish and we won't have to fight off too many cabbage moths. I worry about the kohlrabi for that too. Those pretty little white butterflies are sure a nuisance when it comes to any plant in the cabbage family. But I have my spray bottle of dawn dishwashing soap mixed with water to spray on the plants and hopefully keep the little caterpillars from chewing them to bits.
The peas are doing well so far. I'm hoping I got them planted early enough that they'll be established before the aphids come out. It's still pretty cool in the evenings so they shouldn't be a bother for a little while yet. I usually don't plant anything until around the first week or so of April but it's been so nice and warm so early this year I wanted to get a jump for the cooler weather plants.
Our compost turner that sat all winter was loaded with a beautiful batch of wonderful compost that I mixed into the soil before I planted the cabbage. What a treat that was! Compost is like treasure and making my own is wonderful because I know where all that stuff came from, what's in it and how it's been treated. I know I'm not dumping anything toxic on my plants...just good nutritious soil bursting with life.
Are you planting yet? Are you growing anything for the first time this year? Talk to me and I'll send one lucky commenter a packet of seeds from my stash!
Saturday, March 4, 2017
Saturday, February 4, 2017
Gearing up!
Hello!!
I keep waiting for winter to appear here in Western Kentucky but so far it's managed to land everywhere but here. Not that I'm disappointed- not a fan of winter personally- but after last year where we got feet of snow, I keep waiting expectantly. We've had many days of 60's and even a few in the 70's. We've had a few down in the single digits but mostly we're in the 40's and 50's. Kind of crazy for this time of year. We got one little dusting of snow, less than an inch and that's been it for the wintery weather.
So, while hubby and I were out shopping the other day we stopped in at our favorite farm store- Rural King. I call it Hillbilly WalMart. 😁 We love to just browse around and see what's new and much to my delight, I saw GARDEN SEEDS!! Oh what joy! And they have a very good selection of heirloom seeds which made me even happier. So I scooped up 4 packets of peas- early frost variety- and I fully plan to get them into the ground the middle of February. I've not had a lot of luck growing peas, I think, in part, because I plant them too late and the heat gets them before they can really produce well. The aphids also do a real number on them so maybe if I plant them earlier, they'll get established well before the aphids are out and about and we'll actually get some peas.
Next weekend we hope to get our greenhouse built so I can get some tomatoes and peppers going. We inherited some old wood frame windows so we're going to use those to build a little greenhouse right up against the brick of the house to help keep it warm inside. I've got a small heater to help at night but I think we'll be okay for the most part and we'll have plenty of light. I've not had a lot of luck growing tomatoes and peppers from seed so hopefully this will help. I'd like to get to the point where I don't have to buy plants anymore and tomatoes and peppers are the last ones I need to master to make that happen. Any tips or tricks would be very welcomed so please feel free to comment and share your secrets with me!
When do you usually plant your gardens? Do you do a fall garden? If so, what do you plant for fall harvest?
Talk to me!
I keep waiting for winter to appear here in Western Kentucky but so far it's managed to land everywhere but here. Not that I'm disappointed- not a fan of winter personally- but after last year where we got feet of snow, I keep waiting expectantly. We've had many days of 60's and even a few in the 70's. We've had a few down in the single digits but mostly we're in the 40's and 50's. Kind of crazy for this time of year. We got one little dusting of snow, less than an inch and that's been it for the wintery weather.
So, while hubby and I were out shopping the other day we stopped in at our favorite farm store- Rural King. I call it Hillbilly WalMart. 😁 We love to just browse around and see what's new and much to my delight, I saw GARDEN SEEDS!! Oh what joy! And they have a very good selection of heirloom seeds which made me even happier. So I scooped up 4 packets of peas- early frost variety- and I fully plan to get them into the ground the middle of February. I've not had a lot of luck growing peas, I think, in part, because I plant them too late and the heat gets them before they can really produce well. The aphids also do a real number on them so maybe if I plant them earlier, they'll get established well before the aphids are out and about and we'll actually get some peas.
Next weekend we hope to get our greenhouse built so I can get some tomatoes and peppers going. We inherited some old wood frame windows so we're going to use those to build a little greenhouse right up against the brick of the house to help keep it warm inside. I've got a small heater to help at night but I think we'll be okay for the most part and we'll have plenty of light. I've not had a lot of luck growing tomatoes and peppers from seed so hopefully this will help. I'd like to get to the point where I don't have to buy plants anymore and tomatoes and peppers are the last ones I need to master to make that happen. Any tips or tricks would be very welcomed so please feel free to comment and share your secrets with me!
When do you usually plant your gardens? Do you do a fall garden? If so, what do you plant for fall harvest?
Talk to me!
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