I just love waking up with the aches and pains that remind me of time spent in the garden the day before! Even though I'm all out of alignment.... I love, love, LOVE knowing that our "empty" boxes will soon show signs of life.
Yesterday was BEAUTIFUL outside, quite literally the perfect day in every way. Michael took the day off from work to take care of some repairs on our car. While I took on the bulk of the gardening endeavors, Michael joined in on the fun after his long wait at the auto repair place. I had to remind myself several times that it was Friday, not Saturday.
We prepared four of our raised beds for planting, turning and amending the soil with Michael's special blend of stinky bone and blood meal.
Box #1:
Sugar snap peas (the edible pod pole variety)
We were careful to keep this area of the box free from the bone/blood meal as sugar snap peas don't do so well in nitrogen rich soil. Instead we added a tiny bit of inoculant to help our baby peas to get a healthy start. Last year we planted the peas along the edge of two of our boxes- in our strawberry bed and our potato bed. Our pea crop wasn't our best last year, so we chose a new spot in an area where they'll have less competition for nutrients.
Carrots
We planted three rows, each of a different variety: Royal Chantenay (aka "the all around carrot"), Cosmic Purple (a fun variety that's purple on the outside and orange on the inside), and Calliope Blend (a rainbow mix of purple, red, white, yellow, and orange carrots).
Beets
We planted two rows in this box: Detroit Dark Red (deep crimson in color and meant to grow large) and Gourmet Blend (aka "the beet renaissance") This is a blend that includes Detroit Dark Red, Chioggia (a variety that has bright pink and white interior rings), and Golden Beets (my favorite beet with bright yellow flesh).
Spinach
In this box, we planted two rows of Bloomsdale Long Standing spinach. I'm not sure if we've planted this variety before. This variety is known for its thick, crinkly, glossy dark green leaves. Popeye would be drooling right about now.
Arugula (Roquette)
I just love the peppery flavor that arugula adds to salads. Arugula, like spinach, tends to do better in cooler weather, so I'm hoping that we weren't too late. If it gets too warm, the plants are likely to bolt ("go to seed") and the leaves will begin to taste bitter. We planted two rows in this box.
Buttercrunch Lettuce
There's a reason for the name. This awesome variety grows in heads of thick, crisp, buttery leaves. We'll have to be sure to thin the two rows that we planted to get some nice healthy heads.
Lettuce (Select Salad Blend)
This mix includes five different varieties: Crimson Butter, Red Salad Bowl, Iceberg, Bibb, and Lolla Rossa. We just love the fresh salads that we harvest from our garden. Our favorite summer salad is a mix of all of our greens, fresh raspberries, amazing feta (from Trader Joes), and a dash of Brianne's Blush Vinaigrette.
Box #2:
Radishes (Champion)
We planted three rows of this traditional red variety. Radishes germinate fast, so we should see growth in about 4-7 days.
Greens
We planted eight more alternating rows of spinach, arugula, buttercrunch, and select salad blend in this box.
Beets
Three more rows of beets (two rows of the Detroit Dark Red, one row of the Gourmet Blend) will keep us happy all season long. Beets, and other root vegetables seemingly keep forever. If only we had a root cellar!
Sweet William
We planted a row of these between sections of the vegetables that we planted. So, we should get a pretty borders of pink, red, and white flowers.
Zinnias
We planted two rows, one on either side of the patch of greens (the giant double variety in mixed colors of red, yellow, orange, and pink).
Box #3
Mystery Flowers
While transplanting some strawberry starts to a new spot, I discovered a few mystery bulbs (probably gladiolus, not sure). After turning the soil, we transplanted these four bulbs to the edge of this box that borders box #2. This will become one of two (maybe three) beds for cut flowers... mostly dahlia bulbs to be planted in May.
Box #4
Asparagus
The asparagus seeds that we planted several years ago have finally formed roots in this box. I think we'll actually be able to harvest a good crop of asparagus this year! We dug up the three tightly packed root balls and divided them into 10 separate roots. The once randomly placed roots are now neatly planted in a row along one edge of this box.
Sunflowers
In the corner, right next to our Harris Farm and Garden Sign, we planted several Mammoth Sunflower seeds. I'll have to thin them as they begin to sprout as these giant flowers grow 7-12 feet tall and will need some space to breathe.
Perhaps the best part of the day was the good company of our neighbors who came over to chat with us while we planted. We just love the way that the sunny weather brings people out of their little caves. All afternoon the buzz of lawn mowers and weed whackers were music to my ears. SPRING IS FINALLY HERE!
-Trisa
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