Spring Fever!!!

Hey Everyone!!
The fever has shown it's ugly head in our house recently.  No, I don't mean the flu (Thank Goodness!!), I mean Spring Fever!!  Though it is still clearly winter, we have been getting lots of sun lately, which has brought with it warmer days, lots of melting, and many many thoughts of spring!!

To help get ready for the upcoming season, I have been a busy bee.  We're in a new house, so I am still learning what plants are already in the ground (the former owner left me a very detailed journal...score!), and what grows best in our location. 

I wanted to share a few recent purchases with you, as well as give some updates on plants I have mentioned in the past.

First up, I scored some beautiful planters at Winners recently.  The tags said they were beverage coolers, but they screamed planters to me!  I am going to use the larger two for veggies out back and the smaller one for bulbs out front.

I've also collected a few seed packets and books about local gardening.  I'm still planning on consulting my trusty Square Foot Gardening book, but I figured I'd add a few more good reads to the mix. 


For seeds, I am trying a new brand this year,  Renee's Garden.  The various seeds I bought are all smaller versions of veggies, perfect for patio growing.  I'm going to miss my old garden in Calgary, but I think these seeds will offer a new and exciting growing method.  I bought my seeds at the Enjoy Centre, but based on their website, it appears as though they sell all over the US and Canada, as well as from their site directly. 

Even Hannah has gotten into the growing spirit.  A week or two ago, we went to the store and picked out some easy to grow seeds.  She picked Cosmos and Marigolds.  They are growing great, and she is learning a wonderful lesson about responsibility.  She sprays them daily and lets me know if they need a bigger drink.  I can't wait until it is warmer outside she she can pick where we plant them.  I saw some cute rubber boot planters the other day at the Enjoy Centre, so maybe those will work...we'll see!! 

Stay tuned for a few more gardening posts...tis the season!!

Happy Planting!
Sharon

Garden Update...Green Green Everywhere!!

Hello All-

Despite the recent snow we've had, my seedlings are doing great in their warm, sunny, south-facing windows.  I did lose my second batch of parsley seeds...I have no idea why they won't grow for me.  Oh well, I can get established plants easy enough at the garden center.  I'm starting to wonder if it is the seeds that are the problem, but I'm sick of planting and failing, so I'll just buy them instead.

First up, my broccoli, violas and Canterbury bells.  They are all doing quite well.  I had one broccoli not sprout, but the other one is doing great.  I am still on the fence if I should plant a few more seeds to see what happens.  As for the flowers, they are doing just fine, and I cannot wait to get them in the ground and in pots!!

My tea garden is sprouting quite nicely.  The middle row of green is chamomile, and the back row is lemon balm.  You can't see the sprouts in this photo, but I do have some spearmint that is starting to pop up too.  I am so anxious to make my own tea!  I had to get a jump start and buy an established plant to keep my momentum going.  So, I purchased a peppermint plant.  It is doing great and soon I'll be crushing leaves into my teacup!!

When I purchased the peppermint, I also decided to get some herbs for my kitchen.  I have always had herbs in my outdoor garden, but I tend to forget about them and they either get leggy or die off.  To combat against this, I decided to keep my herbs indoors.  I plan to have some outside as well, but I think this pretty pink pot will be a kitchen fixture. 

In the mix I have basil, sweet marjoram, thyme, oregano, and chives.  This past weekend hubby roasted a chicken and used some of the thyme and oregano.  It felt so great to know that the herbs in the meal were from our garden!!  I have already found myself looking for recipes that call for fresh herbs.

I planted a few seeds before our trip to Edmonton, and they are also sprouting quite well.  In the front, there are lettuce seedlings, the middle are jalapenos and in the back green pot is a sunflower plant.  All seem to be quite happy in their pots and are growing nicely.

Yesterday I also planted some cucumbers, summer squash and bell pepper seeds.  I didn't take photos of them since right now all you will see is dirt, but hopefully in my next update I'll have some green to show off!!

Finally, I wanted to show off my little bonsai tree.  I mentioned it a few posts back, as I "saved" it from the Lowe's Clearance rack.  At that point, it was very thirsty and needed a bit of TLC.  Since then, all of the leaves have returned and it is growing quite quickly. 

I don't know if you can see them in this photo (they were hard to focus in on), but we recently got buds and little white flowers on the tree!!!  I wish I knew what kind of tree it is so I could care for it even better, but I think the flowers are a clear sign that it is happy living with us.

So, that's where my garden stands at the moment.  As soon as my raised bed thaws out a bit more, I am going to plant my peas and other cold weather seeds.  I told hubby that I was going to pour boiling water over the garden to thaw it out...either that or I'll bring out a blanket to keep it warm.  If the sun can't thaw it soon, I may cover it in black plastic to see if that speeds things up a bit.

I hope you all have a wonderful rest of the week!!

Happy Planting!!

Sharon

It's Not Easy Being Green

Actually, it really is easy being green...at least my seedlings seem to think so!!  Hannah and I have been planting seeds for the last 2 weeks, and they are taking off quite nicely.  From what I can see online, we are in Zone 3b, and May 10th is the expected last frost date (though we do get snow year round), so I have been planting all of my "Start Early" seeds.

Last week we got some of our early flowers started.  Rain Daises, Canterbury Bells, Violas and Wave Petunias all got planted.  So far the Daisy seeds, Canterbury Bells and Violas are popping up...some as quick as a day later!  The Petunias aren't showing signs of life right now, but no worries...they are found at nearly every garden center, so I know I can find some established plants later on.

(Don't mind the clover plant in the photo...I had to move it away from the windows since my cat Ella has decided that it makes for a tasty treat!)

Yesterday we started working on the seeds that need to get started 6-8 weeks before the last frost.  First up were broccoli and jalapeno peppers.  I know, I know, peppers aren't supposed to be early starters, but this breed is.  Supposedly it makes for an early crop, which I think is awesome!  I mean, once summer is officially here, who wants to wait for several weeks before having a batch of homemade salsa??  We grew jalapenos from an established plant last year and they were fantastic!  I'm hoping for good results from my own seeds. 

As for the broccoli, we've never grown it before, but we eat a fair amount of it, so I thought I'd give it a try.  If the directions on the packet prove to be true, then we may actually get a few crowns off each plant.  We shall see.

Parsley is a plant that I love to have around.  Last year I had an awesome plant in the garden and I ended up making yummy pesto with the crop.  We planted parsley seeds a week ago, but they dried out too fast, so we planted a second batch.  Hopefully these little guys fair better than the last ones.

This is the start of my tea garden.  I have always loved herbal tea and the idea of making my own "brew" would be a dream come true!  So, I took the plunge and planted some chamomile, spearmint and lemon balm.  I am planning on these being in pots on the deck, so the mint and lemon balm won't go crazy and take the garden over.  Of all of my seeds, these are the ones that I am really hoping work out!!

Finally, here is my attempt at growing sunflowers.  I have grown some in years past from seed and I've had so-so luck.  Then last year the birds "planted" some of the seeds from their feeder and we had monster sized flowers!!  Remember this post about Hannah and I roasting the seeds??

I'm going to attempt to start a few plants indoors this year from the bird seed.  If they don't take off, I'll just plant some seeds directly in the ground in a few weeks.

I have to remind myself not to get too excited about all of the green popping up indoors, considering the condition of my actual gardens outside.  Though much of the white stuff is melting, we still have a ways to go before I'll be knee deep in the dirt. 

As you can see, my side garden is thawing nicely.  I think I'll go out and cut back the cat mint this weekend.  After seeing the neighborhood cats jumping my fence to get to it last year, I think I will start looking for something not quite so cat friendly for this year.  It's too bad, the flowers are quite pretty...I just can't stand the fact that it, and the cats took over the garden as a result.  I can probably get several smaller plants into the same spot this year and be much happier!!

As for my veggie garden...well, see for yourself.  The snow is melting, but it is still a chore to get to it.  Once I can clear a path, I think I'm going to put some clear plastic over it so the sun can get in and warm the soil.  I have a feeling that much of the dirt is probably already thawed, as it sits on the south side of the house and gets most of the available sun.  We'll see and that will be an update for another day.

In the meantime, I'm off to see what other seeds I can start early.  I need to pick up some more seed trays.  Thankfully Hannah's birthday party next weekend is garden themed, so I don't have to move all of my seedlings before the guests arrive...they're just going to be part of the decorations!!

Happy Planting!

Sharon

What I have been up to...

Hello

Since I have been here in Calgary, I have tried to stay busy. Since I didn't have any of my craft supplies for two and a half weeks, I went to Michaels and picked up some new knitting needles and yarn, and started this poncho for myself. It is an easy pattern, but is taking me a while to make any real progress. I love the yarn and the style of the poncho, so I am sure that I will finish this...it just might take me a while.

I also went to the store last week and picked up some seeds. They had quite a selection of early starters, so I grabbed four different kinds and went to town! A shopping trip to IKEA led me to this really cool mini-greenhouse and the violets and spider plant inside.

I found a bunch of unfinished projects in a tote during the move, so I think I will try to clean them up before strting too many other projects. I do have something in mind as a gift for some family members...I'll give more details soon about that.

Well, I am off to take a shower and work on unpacking some more boxes...gotta love it when Hannah takes long naps!!!!

~S~