First Planting of the Season

Oh it's finally here! The glorious day I dug holes and filled them with lovely things with roots!

I love each and every season, but the drabness of winter got old, quick.

This year we did have a lovely snow storm, and the snow was absolutely beautiful for a few days. Unfortunately, it did not last long.

The snow became dirty from sand or mud, and the beauty was tarnished. The snow melted, uncovering dull yards and dreary fields of brown grass. The countryside was full of sleeping trees and colorless landscapes.

During the cold winter, my main hobby is knitting or crocheting. The yarn satisfies my need for color, and it's therapeutic to me because wool feels wonderful to work with. But I also spend time perusing seed catalogs, thinking of what I want most to plant in my small garden plot, and itching to dig in some dirt.

Thankfully we did have warm spells with lots of sunshine before the biggest snow storm. I took advantage of these days and recruited hubby to turn compost into the soil. I didn't dare plant anything yet because I hadn't yet made a cold frame to help the soil warm early.

But now the natural world is starting to wake up. Pear trees are adorned with an abundance of white blooms. Red Clover is dotting the hillsides with splashes of color. Tulips are beginning to push through the crust of earth. And Daffodils are brightening spring flower plots with color of sunshine.

The spring I have been craving for is finally here!

Today I bought new Strawberry plants, onion sets, and garlic. I also bought seeds for flowers and some vegetables. I spent this afternoon happily turning the soil one more time, dividing up one plot, and planting. And when the rain showers began, I came inside to plant veggie seeds for seedlings.

It was a wonderful day when my dreaming, wishing, and planning could be put into action. Now I am looking forward to planting more, and reaping the rewards in the late Spring and Summer!

What do you look forward to with the coming Spring weather?

New Strawberry Plants

Companion planting onions among strawberries

Starting Tomato, Cucumber, and Pepper Seedlings

The Garden 06/28/2010

Hubby put up the trellises for the tomato plants this evening.
We planted tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and sweet potato plants. Planted bean seeds and marigold seeds.

Reviving the garden..

Did I mention I have a garden? Well, if you can count weeds as a produce, I have a garden. Oh, I do have some strawberry plants, but they ain't producing anything yet.

Early in the year I was determined somewhat determined interested in having a garden. Like I am every year.

I love the thought of fresh lettuce, tomatoes, and other good for my family produce, lovingly planted and raised and then expertly prepared cooked if I felt like cooking. I look through seed catalogs every new year and fall prey to the tempting pictures of red, ripe, juicy tomatoes, or mouthwatering watermelon, or cool and crisp cucumbers.

So this year we started on our little garden. As soon as it was warm enough to go outside w/o freezing and we could dig in the soil, we were out there digging in. The kids and I plotted out a spot, got some lumber to make a small frame, and with the hand tools we had dug up the weeds and broke up the sod.

My wonderful hubby even helped out by stripping the sod off a second plot for me. He worked his big muscles he developed working out (he needed an extra workout that day anyway, right?)

We got peat moss and compost, mixed it into the first plot, and planted strawberries.

Then I allowed my ADD to kick in. I got distracted by homeschooling, errands, church activities, and life. So we lost full interest in the garden, and was pushed to the back of my mind/priority list.

It wasn't like the patch was out of site. It was in plain site of the kids swing set. I saw it every day. I just kept pushing off weeding or tending to the garden.

Yes I still have bouts of laziness.

Fortunately we had an abundance of rain so the little patch never went thirsty due to my neglect.

Weeds flourished in the unfinished plot. Mint took over the strawberry patch. The unattended berry plants thrived, had a party, and made lots of little babies by runners.

It was looking like a jungle.

Did I mention I do this every year?

This past week I sat down, had a conference with myself, and we both decided that I'm going to finish what I started for once. I'm going to finish this growing season with a strong garden. And I'm not going to ignore the weeds anymore.

So Saturday I spent several hours outside enjoying a nice cool breeze in the already hot Oklahoma summer digging up the mint and the weeds in the strawberry patch. Then I took shelter in the shade and replanted the mint along the side of the house. I hope it really takes root there and choked out weeds that try to grow.

I came back after the sun had set and it cooled off a bit to thin out the runners and transplant them to where I just dug the mint from.

After several hours work. This is what it looks like now.



My hope is that the transplants will take root, and make more nice strong berry plants. But if not, they needed to be thinned out anyway. And now all the runners have been cut, I expect my original plants to start making berries. Yum!

I'm not showing you the second plot. I'm so ashamed. If there was a Plant and Garden Protective Services I would definitely be reported in if you saw this pic. But all weeds are to be evicted this week. I'm taking advantage of live in slave labor hiring my daughter for some cheap labor. I need a weed free garden and she needs spending money for summer camp. So it's a win win situation in my book!

I don't know why I'm sharing about my weedy garden. I promise I do have more interesting things going on in my life. But maybe I know deep down there is some one else like me out there. Who has a neglected garden too, and is too ashamed to admit it. We could form a sister hood. And we can tell each other we need to be ashamed no longer.

God still loves us, weedy gardens and all. And it's not to late to take the garden back!! We can do it one weed at a time. So to all the sisterhood, pick up your trowels and weeders, go on the offensive, and attack with all your might.

Till we get distracted again.