What Did You Do In The Garden?

[digitS']

Three very nice, very sunny days - I have been outdoors quite a lot .

Today, dug out the well-decomposed compost, put the 7 "fresh" kitchen scrap buckets of the Winter supply in. Ran the compost thru a screen. Worked on the car ... oh, that's not gardening.

Well, I laying on the ground so maybe that counts for something!

Steve, who had probably better begin moving tomatoes into 4-packs beginning tomorrow, when it is supposed to be raining ...

 

[digitS']

My exercise today was running the spading fork over 2, 4'x20' beds that will soon be covered under the temporary hoop house.

I'd like a little warmth to stretch the plastic film. Wednesday looks good!

Gives me time over the next few days to move some tomatoes and, maybe, some peppers and eggplant, into 4-packs.

Steve

 

[Branching Out]

Today my neighbours and I were busy planting out starts of lettuce, chard, spinach, kale, bok choy, scabiosa and yarrow. We will all have matching vegetable gardens, and that is okay. I noticed that the crocus blooms are fading now so I will make a note of that, to see if that is a good indicator for when seedlings can go out. Chickpeas went out yesterday, with row cover. Leg muscles are not used to this much crouching, and are feeling just a tad sore.

 

[Phaedra]

We have snow and rain today, so not much can be done in the garden. However, I dug a few more chamomiles and put them in the mini-pots. I also repotted tomatoes and honey melons - they grow really quickly.

 

[digitS']

The temporary hoop house is UP.

The sun had moved behind the clouds by 10AM, doggone it. No real wind and that helped. I already knew that I would have a small problem and suspected as much, 12 months ago. This thing about having a 20' shelter to cover and buying construction grade plastic film in 100' rolls. Okay, the end walls are less than 5' high. (There is an excavated path inside). The film is held down by bricks and rocks. However, that means it needs to be 30' + long.

Weeell, what if I go a bit farther than 33' my first 2 years using the film? Yeah, it measured short. Maybe, not a problem because I had a scrap of film and a roll of special UV-resistant tape. A bother but I think it will work out. I tried this once before ... in my long career of inadequate measures. It was really an inadequate measure using regular wrapping tape. I spent the final few weeks of the 10-12 weeks it is up trying to hold it together as that tape failed. The proper tape on both sides - it should work now!

The door is in but didn't put the window in. Maybe in a week - snow forecast for the weekend, again. Temperature only made it up to 50°f (10°C) but clouds may persist. I think some seed can go in the hoop house with room left for a bunch of Asian greens, later.

Steve

 

[Zeedman]

Before all the rain started, I was able to lightly till all of the gardens. This allowed me to break up all of the shredded leaves spread last Fall, and to turn under some wood ashes as well. The leaves were heavily matted because of all the snow, and the ground will be better able to dry out now.

The home gardens

The now-reduced rural garden. You might notice an untilled strip just beyond the garlic bed... this is why:

The wheel fell off - fortunately, when I was almost done. This is the 2nd time that happened; and by the time the wheel works its way off the shaft, the mounting bolt & pin have long since been tilled under. After the last time, I installed the new bolt with a helical lock washer, but it worked loose anyway. IMO this wheel mounting system is the only design flaw in an otherwise great small tiller.

 

[ducks4you]

OMGOSH! I've been there!!
I hope that there is a shop nearby that can repair.
I don't know HOW, but YOUR WI property is possibly flatter than my own!

 

[Zeedman]

OMGOSH! I've been there!!
I hope that there is a shop nearby that can repair.
I don't know HOW, but YOUR WI property is possibly flatter than my own!

Probably because both locations are adjacent to marsh land... and dry out only slightly faster. The long strip next to my house is on the same side as my 2 sub pumps. The 2nd pump was just added in 2021; and the two pumps not only keep the basement dry, they might be draining the adjacent garden as well. If the rural garden was on my land (its not) I would consider putting a sump pit there too.

 

[Phaedra]

I started transplanting new perennials to the flower bed outside our greenhouse. They came as bare roots but sprouted and grown well till now. Today, prairie mallow 'Little Princess' and one Salvia 'Dark Knight' are transplanted.

 

[Dirtmechanic]

Finally got the deer fence up. I leave it high so cats can do the rabbit thing.