dirt baths

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I’m having some trouble with my sparrows. They are digging up my little pea seedlings. The dirt in this area of my garden is not as rich as other areas – actually quite dusty and dry. The sparrows love burrowing into this and then squabbling over the little depressions they make. As a result the pea sprouts are getting kicked up and scattered around. I was going to wait til the seedlings got a few inches tall to mulch, but will try mulching with hay tomorrow to see if this…
 
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pea sprouts!

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These are sugar snap peas planted on April 9th. It took them 2 weeks to sprout. I now have garlic, parsley, lettuce and peas growing! Pisum sativum
 
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helleborus niger

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Helleborus niger L.—Christmas rose. FAMILY: Ranunculaceae—the Buttercup Family. The genus Helleborus is recognized by showy flowers of white, green, or purple; sepals: 5, large, petaloid; petals: none; stamens: numerous, the outer 8-10 modified into staminodes; pistils: usually 3 or 4; style: erect, slender; fruit: a follicle; leaves: alternate, palmately cleft. (source: UPENN dept of agriculture) This flower is blooming in my front yard. I had no idea it was so interesting close up. I especially like the staminodes. The petaloid sepals are nice too.
 
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lettuce seedlings

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My first seeds to sprout are the lettuce. Both black seeded simpson and a lettuce mix have lots of little sprouts – all in a row. Lactuca sativa
 
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garden work

 
 
Today’s garden work: Add plastic row markers.Plant more carrots (cosmic purple and Oxhart), arugula, dill and radish seeds.Plant parsley plants.Move garlic chives into the garlic area. (I’m moving my herb garden into the vegetable area this year.)Remove black plastic covering from bed #2. Turn on outside water and water newly seeded areas with sprinkler.Bring peppers seedlings outside for the day and back inside at night.Enjoy the sun.
 
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spring planting

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The weather is great for growing vegetables. I have a lot of garden work to do. I picked up some row markers today, because I’m planting more seeds than I can remember. Today I planted fava beans, peas {green and Capucijner), and carrots (Oxhart, red cored chantenay and purple). I’ve never seen fava bean seeds before – they’re enormous! I used rhizobia inoculant with all of my peas and with the fava beans. I’m hoping this gives the seedlings a boost and gets them off to a good start.Vicia faba
 
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sunshine at last!

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Aaahhh. A beautiful day for gardening. I turned over the soil in bed #4, which had carrots last year. I was curious if they would winter over, so I left a lot in the soil. Well, they did not last the winter, and in fact, rotted very nicely and completely. The soil is now rich and dark now with the extra organic matter.
 
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Sand Hill seed catalog

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A copy of the Sand Hill seed catalog came in the mail the other day. Its a great catalog to read with a lot of very interesting gardening information. In particular, I found the following comments: About turnips, which I dislike and accidentally bought seeds for: they “make an excellent soil builder when planted and left to rot over the winter“. Great! Maybe I will grow them! About pumpkin and squash culture: “The vine crops continue to be the biggest challenge here in the Midwest to grow organically. We continue…
 
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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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