It Has Begun

Yesterday I was fortunate enough to not only watch an afternoon baseball game but to also get in a good couple hours of garden/yard work with my wife and boy. A big project was clearing out and taking down as many of the vines that grow on the fences surrounding our back yard. We were able to fill up about 8 lawn bags worth of vines and debris. No matter how much you try to clear them out, they keep coming back so each year involves cutting back and yanking out of as much as we can.

I was able to get 3 raspberry plants in the ground as well. I ordered Mammoth Red Raspberries over the winter. They were shipped out a bit earlier than I had anticipated so they had an extended stay in my refrigerator. It was nice to be able to work the soil, finally. I am really hoping these raspberries take and mature. Time will tell.

My bulbs that I planted this past fall are starting to make their presence known by pushing their way through the early spring soil. One even has a small, colorful bud on it already. Just as a reminder of what I ordered and planted: Drumstick Allium, Royal Tulip, Wildflower bulb mix, Border Daffodils, Mountain Bells Mixture, and Wood Hyacinths mix. You can see their beginning growth below.

I was also able to get some actual seeds into the ground in my yard. Below is a series of pictures showing where things are planted. It is just dirt right now but it is exciting to know that I have seeds out there just waiting to come alive.

This is a row of spinach, two different kinds. Foreground is a smooth leaf Emu Spinach from Johnny's Selected Seeds. Planted further back (top of screen) is Bloomsdale long standing crinkled leaf spinach

My trusty homemade pea trellis. This may be it's last year. Under it I planted two rows of Sugar Snap peas (same as I had growing on it last year). In three double rows in front of it, I have planted Little Marvel (Dwarf) peas. They grow to only 18 inches and can be self supporting, especially when allowed to grow up and against each other (hence the double rows). I am trying these out to see if I can maximize my pea harvest without as much need for trellising. We shall see

Here I have four rows of radish seeds planted. In the first row closest to us is a French Breakfast radish. The second row is Champion Radish. The back two rows are small tri-colored Easter Egg radishes. 

This is my wildflower "bed." Really, it is just one part of my front lawn that has been used to grow flowers. I raked back all of the left over debris and planted down a wildflower mix, some Poppy double mixed seeds and a tall mix of Rocket Larkspur. I'll continue to plant out flower seeds as the season calls for it.

Not bad for a couple hours work. More work will surely follow as it warms up. I'm looking forward to it. I hope you are as well.