Spring is here

Spring is finally here in full force and I have been enjoying all of the beauty that it brings to my garden. The tulips, ranunculus and daffodils are blooming and the fruit trees are just covered with blossoms. The grapes have started to bud and promise to provide a beautiful backdrop to the flower garden. I keep thinking about the bounty that will follow in the late summer. My girls have really been enjoying the weather. They are scratching and pecking away, they love to dig up freshly planted flower bulbs and have completely annihilated the chicks and hens I had planted in the flower border. It doesn’t bother me too much these days. I just keep tucking the disturbed plants back into the soil and hoping for the best. Only the strong survives in my garden. I’ve got two cats, two dogs and 8 hens. My little menagerie keeps me on my toes, and they are sure to weed out anything but the toughest of flowers in my borders. If only they would take care of the weeds with equal enthusiasm…. This week I will finally be starting my summer veggies. I am looking forward to peppers, eggplant and tomatos. I have been working on a garden design plan. My garden planting area is 80ft wide by 43 ft deep. Minus my Green House, I have 2,960 square feet of planting area. I am planning to fill that space with as many veggies as possible. I’m hoping to stay on the 100 foot diet all summer long this year. Food prices are rising and I would rather invest in my own backyard garden then spend money at the grocery store.

My Seeds Have Arrived

I am thrilled that my seeds have started to arrive in the mail. Today, I received my order from Baker Creek. The order included Golden Treasure Sweet Pepper, Yellow Hog Tomato, Anch Grande Hot Pepper, Ping Tung Eggplant, Purple Beauty Sweet Pepper, Kikuza Winter Squash, Golden Delicious Winter Squash, Thai Round Purple, Quadrato D'Asti Rosso, Thai Sweet Basil, Pandora Striped Rose Eggplant. I have never grown any of these varieties before and I can't wait to see how they all do. I'm going to get these little guys guys started in the green house this weekend. My Yacon and Oca plants should arrive sometime in March or April. I am off to a great Growing Challenge start so far.

Backyard Views

I snapped this photo from my garden. The mustard field is in bloom and the vineyard on the hill looked especially pretty today.

New Lavender Plants

I bought 55 new lavender plants to complete my flower bed border. There is this awesome program at the Sonoma County Jail that teaches inmates how to grow and care for plants. They have a nursery and I've been buying plants there for a few years. I can't wait to get these cuties planted. It was really windy this weekend and I didn't spend much time outside. Looks like we are going to get a few rain free days this week, I'm hoping to get started on my new rock veggie garden beds next weekend.

I was flipping through the March issue of Sunset Magazine and came across this great garden design plan. I think I am going to use this as my inspiration for my revamped veggie garden this year. I love the idea of using half moon shapes instead of rectangular beds. I also really like the texture of the rock vs. using wooden boards as I've done in the past. There is also some great info on raised bed gardening on the Sunset website .

Protecting Seeds

This is an interesting article about the new seed bank in the Arctic. Here's hoping that we never have such a huge disaster that we need to use it.....

Doomsday’ seed vault opens in Arctic
Frozen ‘Garden of Eden’ secures biological diversity for future generations
By Doug Mellgren
LONGYEARBYEN, Norway - A "doomsday" seed vault built to protect millions of food crops from climate change, wars and natural disasters opened Tuesday deep within an Arctic mountain in the remote Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard.
"The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is our insurance policy," Norway's Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg told delegates at the opening ceremony. "It is the Noah's Ark for securing biological diversity for future generations."....read more

Weekend Work

It was pouring down rain most of the weekend so I decided to do some crafting. Last year I had issues with my vegetable markers disappearing under the plants mid way through the growing season. I wanted to make some new markers that would last for many years. Mark and I went down to the hardware store and picked up some plywood. He cut it into 6" x 12 " pieces and I painted away on Sunday. They took a bit longer to do than I expected. The goal is to attach them to 3ft high garden stakes so they are easy to spot.

The Growing Challenge

I have decided to sign up for The Growing Challenge. I will be spicing up the garden this year with some new items that I've never grown before and some new varieties of my old favorites. This week I am planting some horseradish. The kid at the nursery told me that it will take over and suggested that I plant it in a pot. I love the internet! Found some cool info on growing and using it. http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/champaign/homeowners/001106.html

Spring Fever

What a great weekend for planting. The weather was great and I was able to get so much done!!

Here's what I've been up to....

I did a little seedling shopping.

Bosley the wonder dog inspects the cleared out beds...All set for planting.

Beets, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cabbage, Lettuce, Kale, Chard, Asparagus, Collard Greens, Rhubarb, Horse Radish, Potatoes...grow, grow, grow!!!!

100 Foot Dinner #1

These Potimarron squash were a delight to grow last year. I've saved some seeds so I can plant them again. They were prolific...I must have 20 of them left in storage.

Home grown winter squash (Potimarron) roasted with rosemary and local grown olive oil. It's the best I could come up with tonight. Next, I think I might try pumpkin soup. I'm so glad that I grew winter squash last year and that I still have plenty to last a few weeks until my lettuce, kale and other veggies get bigger. I am so lucky to have the opportunity to grow my own food, and to have the resources to feed my family. I am so sad when I read articles about people who have to go without food, or have to resort to eating dirt like the previous post. I wish I could do more to help feed the worlds hungry.