rainy day

 
 
Its a rainy day. The garden is soaking it up. I’m inside looking out and admiring. All of the beds are read to go. Little trays of seedlings are waiting for transplanting. The fig tree has been re-potted to a bigger pot. Tulips are fading, small iris in full bloom, and summer perennials growing fast.
 
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compost screen

 
 
My husband made me a compost screen today. It is a big frame that fits nice on top of a wheelbarrow. The mesh is made from doubled chicken wire. I’ve seen many ways to make a compost screen. The main thing is that the wire mesh is well supported by a frame and the mesh size is not too small. Over the years, my compost bins have been accumulating things that don’t compost so well (branches, avocado seeds, Christmas trees, oyster shells, plastic plant labels…) Instead of returning them to…
 
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pear blossoms

 
 
The two espaliered pears in my community plot are full of blossoms! Finally. For two years they haven’t bloomed at all. Last summer I found a book on pruning and stopped clipping off all of the side branches. What a difference. I’m hoping some pears set.
 
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getting ready to plant!

 
 
Isn’t spring wonderful! I just now clicked on my label link below for “sideyard aerial photos” and was reminded what a tough winter it was. Only one month ago we had a foot of snow, Feb we were covered with nearly 3 feet, Jan and Dec were cold and dark, and October we had Hurricane Sandy…. All I can say is: Isn’t spring wonderful!
 
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my seed potatoes are here

 
 
I ordered two varieties of potatoes this year. Instead of the 4 or 5 I usually order. I am trying to cut back…. They look really nice. Burbank Russet and German Butterball from Fedco Moose Tubers. Some years I have planted them right away. Other years I wait and let them sprout a bit. I am wondering what is the “correct” thing to do. Another thing I’m wondering about is different planting methods. I have always planted in trenches then back filled as the spuds sprout. I end up with…
 
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no yard work today – everyone please stay safe

 
 
I was planning to work in my yard today, but we have been told by the police to stay inside here in Belmont. There is a man hunt on now for one of the Marathon bombers. It is centered about 2 miles away from us in Watertown. What a sad and scary situation. Hopefully I can do yard work later in the day. More importantly, we are praying no one else will be injured. We want everyone to be safe.
 
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books for beginning gardeners?

 
 
Does anyone have a good book to recommend for a beginning gardener? I got a nice email from Julie who is planning to start a garden and is looking for a good resource. Hey Kathy, I’m fairly new to gardening and I’m feeling a little confused about where to start learning about it. I plan to start a garden this spring in my parents backyard and I’m trying to educate myself on the basics of this subject as fast as possible. Don’t want to totally mess it up 🙂 Could…
 
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spring planting in Mom and Dad’s garden

 
 
Today, my parents and I did the first work of the season on their vegetable garden. Here are before and after photos.   BEFORE AFTER Only a couple hours work. We raked, then weeded and marked out paths. My Mom had her pad and pen and wrote down what we planted where. Dad and I planted seeds and seedlings. We did our best to leave enough room for the warmer weather crops, like beans and tomatoes, and to plan for crop rotation. Dad put row cover over the newly transplanted…
 
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update

 
 
I’ve been preoccupied the past few weeks with a couple things and have neglected my blog: Firstly, our community garden’s annual Spring Work Day was last weekend. As the coordinator for the Gardens, this took a lot of my time for planning. Second, I took a week of vacation in the beautiful Bermuda sunshine to recharge after a long New England winter. Both the Work Day and Bermuda were wonderful and I hope to post descriptions and photos of each, as well as get back to regular posts. It’s the…
 
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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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