March 15th Square One Garden

 

5 eggs today, and some daffodils from a few days ago

The garden doesn't look like much right now.  I haven't tilled - I've barely cleared last year's dead grass and leaves and started to uncover the things that are there.  So, this is Square One.

In case you're wondering - the garden gets beautiful come May and June.  But it always has to start somewhere.  I love to look at the difference the months make.  It reminds me what is possible when I get out there and it looks like it does today.  Take a look at this 2014 garden post or the bounty in this 2012 produce post.  I'm looking at some more of that two-tone Zephyr squash.  It always did so well.

It is 43 degrees outside, and I am really feeling the itch to get away from this Coronavirus news and work in my garden.  I've been planting in my indoor greenhouse, but at some point I know the cold crops have to go OUT, and the garden needs to be cleared and tilled.  It is planning to rain all next week, too - which means it will be too wet to do anything.  It is a tough call between not getting sick with a normal cold and getting the garden out....

Although it is cold, I thought - I have these thermal clothes for riding in the post office route, so let's put them to work.  I took out the cabbage seedlings and pea seedlings to get some real sunlight for about 15 minutes.  Then I went out and cleared a few little bricked-in sections with the hoe.  I dug up a bit of soil from the base of some trees behind the garden and mixed it into the second pea area.  I did that last year as well, and ended up with some beautiful results.  I've planted peas already along the pole garden fence, just a few days ago before the rain.

 I did a very very minimal corn and beans garden last year, and a few tomatoes.  I put up this fence to keep the deer out of it.  It was a bad time last year - the deer and rabbits were eating almost anything they could find because the weather was just so fluctuating.  It is doing the same this Spring, as well, and I might have to makeshift measures again to keep them out.

I was looking through the garden the other morning and I scared two large deer nosing around the back fence.  They barked and ran away looking back at me like 'you're not supposed to be here yet!'

I also heard Canada Geese down at the lake, a mile down the road.  They were very noisy and I could hear them flying back and forth across the swamp to the dam and back again.  I will have to make some time to get down there and see what is going on soon.

 the goat and our chickens.  The chickens have really been enjoying all of the little bits of green I bring to them out of the garden.

 This is apparently kale that overwintered in my flower bed.  I have read that the flowers are edible, and it might also reseed itself if left to its own devices.  I'll just plant more kale around it.

 Hard to tell but this is the same beautiful area as in one of the posts above.  There is asparagus coming up in there, and lemon balm, and a stray daffodil that helps me know where the gladiolus is going to come up later.  I need to clear all of the bricks so they are visible and dig in the three beds that will be radishes and kale and cabbage, carrots and herbs.  I had a pepper plant and two tomato plants in here last year, as well.  It will look so much better after it is cleared and truly started on.

 the raised bed we planted with the Jones and Irene a few years ago.  I cleared out a lot of weeds out of the foreground one, and I know that lemon basil and purslane will grow in there as the weather gets warmer.  I usually put some cold crops in as well and a few carrots.  Last year I put six jalapeno plants and radishes in the very front area and had jalapenos all summer.

The back section also has strawberries and an Amish dianthus plant that Esme bought.  It has kept coming back as a perennial and has beautiful two-toned flowers.  I also had arugula and kale in there.

 the white daffodils with peach centers, and a bed I am digging to put Good King Henry and Sorrel in.

 the viburnum (snowball) bush.  The goat was munching on it the other day when she broke her string - but we got her repositioned away from it now.

pole garden where I have planted peas against the fence.

Almanac work today 

conditions: 43 degrees, light rain expected

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dug out round brick with fence in main garden (old snow pea fence), added forest soil

weeded one half of the raised bed

dug out and prepared new brick bed by white daffodils for sorrel

planted sorrel seed in six rows, 3 inches apart

transplanted cucumber seedlings in house, planted more seed

seed started lemon basil (1 pot) and red marrow squash (1 pot) and blue hubbard squash (1 pot)

tried to save garlic bulbs in indoor greenhouse, will see if they grow

aired cabbage seedlings outside for 15 minutes

planted clover seed over area outside chicken yard and in all walkways in the main garden