planting Mom and Dad’s garden

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After double digging the new compost into Mom and Dads’ garden, we planted: One row of marigolds, Lemon Boy, Petit mix and Fireball 3 Early seedlings tomatoes with Wall-O-Water on green mulch film One row cabbages: Radicchio, Savoy, Wong Bok and Super Red One row salad greens: Elegance mix, Black seeded Simpson and Red Romaine One double row of onions: Ruby Ring, Frontier, Sweet Yellow Spanish and Ailsa Craig Two long rows of potatoes: Butte, All Blue and Cobbler
 
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plant corn when oak leaves are as big as squirrels ears

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This season is going so fast I can’t keep up with it! Already the oak leaves are opening. I am planting more by my calendar than phenology, just because I can’t seem to keep up this year. The dandelions have been open a week and I still haven’t finished planting my potatoes and I haven’t started planting my carrots. I will keep trying to catch up. Here’s some other phenology advice:When red winged blackbird females return its time to plant peas.When the chickadees build their nests, plant peas and spinach.When…
 
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seeds planted today

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Today I planted: Pumpkin, Jarrahdale (Botanical Interests)Pumpkin, Long Island Cheese (Territorial)Pumpkin, Baby Pam (Fedco)Pumpkin, Big Rock (Johnny’s)Pumpkin, Galeux D’Eysines (Territorial)Winter Squash, Waltham Butternut (Sand Hill Preservation)Winter Squash, Delicata (Botanical Interests)Cucumber, DivaCucumber, North Carolina Pickling (Sand Hill Preservation)Cucumber, Boston PicklingCucumber, Tokiwa (Sand Hill Preservation)Cucumber, Sweet Success (Burpee)Summer Squash, patty pan Benning’s Green Tint (Territorial)Summer Squash, patty pan Starship (Johnny’s)Summer Squash, patty pan SunburstSummer Squash, Zephyr (yellow straight neck) (Johnny’s)Summer Squash, zucchini Cashflow (Johnny’s)Watermelon, Crimson Sweet (25 lb) (Burpee)Watermelon, Red Sugar Baby (Johnny’s)Melon, Anne Arundel (Sand Hill Preservation)Melon, Crane (Sand Hill Preservation)Melon,…
 
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seedlings in the sun

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All my seedlings are outside on the porch again this week. They are staying out night and day with this balmy weather. We are flipping back and forth from pouring to perfect weather. I am hoping to plant my early tomato seedlings outside in the garden soon using my new Wall-O-Waters. Its a busy weekend, but I hope to oi this soon. They are getting quite big. I planted lots more tomatoes last week and they have just come up.
 
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sprouts in milk bottles

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My winter sowing bottles suffered from the heavy rains. They ended up half full of water after the big storm and I forgot to check on them until a week later. I poked holes and drained them finally (I have to remember to do this before setting them out next year!). So far two bottles have lots of little sprouts. Since I have my new cold frame, I might as well open them up and put them in the frame.
 
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today’s sowing list

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(6 weeks before the last frost) Tomatoes:Cherokee Purple (Sand Hill)Mortgage Lifter (Ohio Heirloom)Sungold (Johnny’s)New Girl (Johnny’s)Purple Calabash (Sand Hill)Opalka (Reimer)San Marzano Gigante 3 (Territorial)Big Beef (Johnny’s)Brandywine (Johnny’s)Giant Belgium (Sand Hill)Tomango (Sand Hill)Oxheart Red (Sand Hill)Pink Beauty (Johnny’s)Orange Blossom (Johnny’s)Box Car Willie (Reimer) Cabbages and greens:Elegance Greens Mix (Johnny’s)Chinese Broccoli, Green Lance (Johnny’s)Cabbage, Dan’s surprise seed, Baby Bok ChoyCabbage, Wong Bok (Botanical Interests)Cabbage, Super Red (Johnny’s)Cabbage, Savoy Alcosa (Johnny’s)Radicchio, Palla Rossa Ashalim (Botanical Interests)
 
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Wall-O-Water

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My new Wall-O-Water tomatoes shelters arrived yesterday. I’m hoping to get them set up very soon. The direction say to set them up, then wait 1 week, then put the tomatoes in. Don’t know if I have that much patience. And since I have too many early tomatoes (7 seedlings), I think I’ll try planting one a day starting right away. My regular tomato planting time is next week – 6 weeks before my last frost.
 
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pea planting day

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Happy St Patrick’s Day! Its a beautiful sunny day – perfect to plant the peas! And some fava beans. I have my seed packages out. And the inoculant. I’ll also spread some clover seed in the squash and corn beds to see if I can get any cover crop growth to turn under before planting these beds in late May.
 
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Kathy Martin
This is a journal of my vegetable gardens. Skippy thinks the garden is his, even though I do all the work. We're located near Boston, in USDA zone 6. I have bees, chickens, fruit trees and berry bushes, too. I use all sustainable organic methods and strive to grow all of my family's vegetables myself. -Kathy


weeks and counting until my last spring frost

What I planted recently

Jan 21
thyme, lettuce, escarole

Feb 21
celery, celeriac, parsley, leeks

March 11
cabbage, kale, arugula



What I'm planting soon

April 1
peppers, eggplants, marigolds, beets

April 12
tomatoes, basil, sunflowers

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My garden this week

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17 years of archives!

Check out the food pantry farm I helped to start up:

Aurelia's Garden

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Skippy’s vegetable of the month – Egyptian walking onions!

“I envision a day when every city and town has front and back yards, community gardens and growing spaces, nurtured into life by neighbors who are no longer strangers, but friends who delight in the edible rewards offered from a garden they discovered together.” – Greg Peterson

"What can happen to a seed is a miracle."

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