Finally the weather is warm and soon I'll be putting all these guys outside: [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375"] black krims peeking out the window[/caption] In their soon-to-be new home! [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375"] better than a bathtub![/caption] Ten feet long by three feet wide means space for lots of veggies and soon there will be a trellis on the wall for giganto-bean, cucumbers and tomatoes.  Exciting!  But there are lots of other things coming back out too, like a little ginkgo: [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375"] hi friendly ginkgo[/caption] That little thing spent the winter looking like a stick stuck in the ground but I figured if these trees have been around since the dinosaurs they must be pretty tough.  Same (except for the dinosaurs part) goes for the mint: [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] mint[/caption] This mint has been planted and dug up and replanted so many times I've lost count.  But now they are in a big container so that my entire backyard doesn't turn into a mint forest. And some bulbs finally came out! [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] a mix of lots of things containing blue squill, eranthis, crocuses and others I've forgotten[/caption] Winter Wolf's Bane: [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] otherwise known as winter aconite or eranthis but obviously winter wolf's bane is the best name[/caption] The Winter Wolf's Bane even looks good after it's done flowering: [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] little flower lions manes[/caption] And here is one little blue squill in the deceased bathtub (RIP): [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] pitiful?[/caption] I also have lots of blackberries, raspberries and strawberries but that "wing" of the yard is not done yet.  Soon!

Finally the weather is warm and soon I'll be putting all these guys outside:

black krims peeking out the window

In their soon-to-be new home!

better than a bathtub!

Ten feet long by three feet wide means space for lots of veggies and soon there will be a trellis on the wall for giganto-bean, cucumbers and tomatoes.  Exciting!  But there are lots of other things coming back out too, like a little ginkgo:

hi friendly ginkgo

That little thing spent the winter looking like a stick stuck in the ground but I figured if these trees have been around since the dinosaurs they must be pretty tough.  Same (except for the dinosaurs part) goes for the mint:

mint

This mint has been planted and dug up and replanted so many times I've lost count.  But now they are in a big container so that my entire backyard doesn't turn into a mint forest.

And some bulbs finally came out!

a mix of lots of things containing blue squill, eranthis, crocuses and others I've forgotten

Winter Wolf's Bane:

otherwise known as winter aconite or eranthis but obviously winter wolf's bane is the best name

The Winter Wolf's Bane even looks good after it's done flowering:

little flower lions manes

And here is one little blue squill in the deceased bathtub (RIP):

pitiful?

I also have lots of blackberries, raspberries and strawberries but that "wing" of the yard is not done yet.  Soon!

Listen.  I planted a lot of seeds.  I always do.  And when they first start sprouting, they all look the same.  So I don't have much news to report other than:  more things have sprouted!  You'll just have to take my word on what all these are.

Hey, little green things!  This is romaine lettuce.  Mmm mm.

Look at these green things!  These are lettuces too, only bibb this time.

I planted these a few weeks after my first seeds so that's why they're all so small.  But below are my mustard greens, which are actually starting to look like mustard greens:

Cute.  And now, the bean that's grown like a foot since last week.  Just a couple more weeks, bean, and you'll get to go outside!

Crazy one, that bean.

Listen.  I planted a lot of seeds.  I always do.  And when they first start sprouting, they all look the same.  So I don't have much news to report other than:  more things have sprouted!  You'll just have to take my word on what all these are. Hey, little green things!  This is romaine lettuce.  Mmm mm. Look at these green things!  These are lettuces too, only bibb this time. I planted these a few weeks after my first seeds so that's why they're all so small.  But below are my mustard greens, which are actually starting to look like mustard greens: Cute.  And now, the bean that's grown like a foot since last week.  Just a couple more weeks, bean, and you'll get to go outside! Crazy one, that bean.

Just checking in to show you the amazingly fast-growing bean:

Crazy!  Soon it's going to be big enough to need something to grow on, which should be about the time when I can put it outside.  Which means I have to build the raised bed/trellis in these next few weeks.  Okay!  Game on, bean.

Just checking in to show you the amazingly fast-growing bean: Crazy!  Soon it's going to be big enough to need something to grow on, which should be about the time when I can put it outside.  Which means I have to build the raised bed/trellis in these next few weeks.  Okay!  Game on, bean.

My first tomato seedling popped up!  It's just a little one compared to some of the other seedlings I have, like this bean:

Which actually just popped up yesterday too!  Such a nice, strong stem, little bean.

And these are little broccolis.  I planted eight seeds and there are seven seedlings which is pretty good, if you ask me.  My first two years of starting seeds I always planted many more than I needed because I was afraid lots wouldn't sprout or that I'd kill some once they did.  That never really happened and I just ended up throwing out all the little seedlings I didn't have space for.  This year I actually made a plan for my garden and figured out how many plants I have space for.  I still planted a few extras, just in case - I really only have room for two broccoli plants - but if I only have to get rid of five extra baby plants instead of 20 I'd say that's an improvement.

And then we have mustard greens - three kinds.  Again, I only have room for a few plants of each kind of mustard green so I only planted a few seeds for each.  I'd like to note here that the broccoli seeds are from 2010 and seem to be fine.  I keep my unused seeds in a paper bag folded over and taped shut (for darkness) in one of the drawers in my fridge, away from any food.  The tomato seeds are saved from last year, too.  So I must recommend this method of storing seeds.

Lastly, I found myself with an abundance of wooden chopsticks - the kind you get with takeout Chinese food, which is strange since we don't order Chinese takeout very often.  I don't know why I didn't do this earlier, but obviously their secondary purpose - after utensils, of course - is as plant markers!  Duh, Sarah.

Above is an embarrassing photo of my garden "plan."  For my birthday next month my father has agreed to build me a raised bed for the sunny part of my backyard!  Thanks, Dad!  I measured it out and decided that 3'x10' would be a good size for the space, against my neighbor's wall that he has graciously allowed me to attach a trellis to.  So the beans and tomatoes will have something to grow on!  Then I did something strange - I looked up each plant in my copy of Square Foot Gardening to figure out how many plants I could reasonably fit.  No more crowding as many tomatoes in as possible!  (And note that you're supposed to plant ONE tomato plant per square foot which is definitely not what I was doing in the past.)  If I do end up with extra plants, which I most likely will since I planted a few extra seeds each, I can still grow things in containers around the raised bed.

Happy spring, everyone!  Here's to sprouting seeds!

My first tomato seedling popped up!  It's just a little one compared to some of the other seedlings I have, like this bean: Which actually just popped up yesterday too!  Such a nice, strong stem, little bean. And these are little broccolis.  I planted eight seeds and there are seven seedlings which is pretty good, if you ask me.  My first two years of starting seeds I always planted many more than I needed because I was afraid lots wouldn't sprout or that I'd kill some once they did.  That never really happened and I just ended up throwing out all the little seedlings I didn't have space for.  This year I actually made a plan for my garden and figured out how many plants I have space for.  I still planted a few extras, just in case - I really only have room for two broccoli plants - but if I only have to get rid of five extra baby plants instead of 20 I'd say that's an improvement. And then we have mustard greens - three kinds.  Again, I only have room for a few plants of each kind of mustard green so I only planted a few seeds for each.  I'd like to note here that the broccoli seeds are from 2010 and seem to be fine.  I keep my unused seeds in a paper bag folded over and taped shut (for darkness) in one of the drawers in my fridge, away from any food.  The tomato seeds are saved from last year, too.  So I must recommend this method of storing seeds. Lastly, I found myself with an abundance of wooden chopsticks - the kind you get with takeout Chinese food, which is strange since we don't order Chinese takeout very often.  I don't know why I didn't do this earlier, but obviously their secondary purpose - after utensils, of course - is as plant markers!  Duh, Sarah. Above is an embarrassing photo of my garden "plan."  For my birthday next month my father has agreed to build me a raised bed for the sunny part of my backyard!  Thanks, Dad!  I measured it out and decided that 3'x10' would be a good size for the space, against my neighbor's wall that he has graciously allowed me to attach a trellis to.  So the beans and tomatoes will have something to grow on!  Then I did something strange - I looked up each plant in my copy of Square Foot Gardening to figure out how many plants I could reasonably fit.  No more crowding as many tomatoes in as possible!  (And note that you're supposed to plant ONE tomato plant per square foot which is definitely not what I was doing in the past.)  If I do end up with extra plants, which I most likely will since I planted a few extra seeds each, I can still grow things in containers around the raised bed. Happy spring, everyone!  Here's to sprouting seeds!

Friends!  It is almost the best time of the year:  the time to plant seeds! [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] SEEDS[/caption] The past two years I've gotten my seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.  I chose them because they had a wide variety of open-pollinated seeds and lots of strange heirloom varieties that I couldn't find other places.  Also, and most importantly, none of their seeds are genetically modified.  Now I'm not here to lecture you on the potential horrors of eating genetically modified vegetables (ahem) BUT my reasoning is that if I'm going to go through the trouble of growing my own food I want it to be as healthy as possible.  I recently stumbled across a list of seed companies that are either owned by Monsanto or sell seeds from them, and then there's also a list of seed companies that are not affiliated with Monsanto and sell only non-genetically modified seeds.  Here's the list and, of course, take it with a grain of salt since it's coming from a website called "Emergency Homesteader."  But!  Both Baker Creek and Happy Cat Farm are on there - I mention Happy Cat because they are right in Kennett Square and you can find their seeds at a lot of local places (including Reading Terminal) if you'd rather go for local seeds.  Another local-ish one is D. Landreth Seed Company, which is near York. Although I've been very pleased with my Baker Creek seeds I think I might try Happy Cat or D. Landreth for some seeds this year since they're closer.  Plus they have lots of strange varieties that are hard to find elsewhere.  This year I am going to actually try to save some seeds (fingers crossed!) so I'm looking for some slightly weirder things to grow.  Plus, isn't it fun to grow produce you can't find in a grocery store or farmer's market?  I think so! One last thing:  even if you're not too worried about eating genetically modified food, Monsanto still uses lots and lots of chemicals to grow their genetically-modified seeds - in fact, lots of their seeds have been genetically modified so that they can survive insanely high doses of pesticides.  That's not cool, especially because those pesticides seep into the water and ground and then people and animals end up ingesting them unknowingly.  This is where I grew up so I witnessed it firsthand and let me tell you, the fish in the Housatonic River are deformed and dying rapidly and it's just ridiculous what big companies can get away with in this country. Anyway!  Choose your seeds wisely.  Soon it will be time to plant!

Friends!  It is almost the best time of the year:  the time to plant seeds!

SEEDS

The past two years I've gotten my seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.  I chose them because they had a wide variety of open-pollinated seeds and lots of strange heirloom varieties that I couldn't find other places.  Also, and most importantly, none of their seeds are genetically modified.  Now I'm not here to lecture you on the potential horrors of eating genetically modified vegetables (ahem) BUT my reasoning is that if I'm going to go through the trouble of growing my own food I want it to be as healthy as possible.  I recently stumbled across a list of seed companies that are either owned by Monsanto or sell seeds from them, and then there's also a list of seed companies that are not affiliated with Monsanto and sell only non-genetically modified seeds.  Here's the list and, of course, take it with a grain of salt since it's coming from a website called "Emergency Homesteader."  But!  Both Baker Creek and Happy Cat Farm are on there - I mention Happy Cat because they are right in Kennett Square and you can find their seeds at a lot of local places (including Reading Terminal) if you'd rather go for local seeds.  Another local-ish one is D. Landreth Seed Company, which is near York.

Although I've been very pleased with my Baker Creek seeds I think I might try Happy Cat or D. Landreth for some seeds this year since they're closer.  Plus they have lots of strange varieties that are hard to find elsewhere.  This year I am going to actually try to save some seeds (fingers crossed!) so I'm looking for some slightly weirder things to grow.  Plus, isn't it fun to grow produce you can't find in a grocery store or farmer's market?  I think so!

One last thing:  even if you're not too worried about eating genetically modified food, Monsanto still uses lots and lots of chemicals to grow their genetically-modified seeds - in fact, lots of their seeds have been genetically modified so that they can survive insanely high doses of pesticides.  That's not cool, especially because those pesticides seep into the water and ground and then people and animals end up ingesting them unknowingly.  This is where I grew up so I witnessed it firsthand and let me tell you, the fish in the Housatonic River are deformed and dying rapidly and it's just ridiculous what big companies can get away with in this country.

Anyway!  Choose your seeds wisely.  Soon it will be time to plant!