End of April Update

This is an update of what's going on in the yard at the end of April.  The colour is all coming from flowers (like the crocus above - one of my spring favourites) as very few veggies are showing yet.

The daffodils are up ...

The rose bush is starting to bud ...

This is in bloom - but I can't remember what it is (but so pretty!).  It's not hyacinth is it? 

And I'm always pleased when I see some hollyhock's coming up (they are biennial but I planted them several years in a row so I usually get a few volunteers each year).

 And some annuals that I have started for this year include these nasturtiums just sprouting in the greenhouse.

And I have several flats of marigolds on the way as well in the greenhouse (plus basil and this one swiss chard):

And on to the veggies.  Here are the two boxes of garlic I planted in the fall.

I planted Music (shown here below), German White, Mennonite Porcelain, Majestic Porcelain and Red Russian.

And just a few sprigs of asparagus, with hopefully lots more on the way!

I dug up one rhubarb plant for a friend at work, but still have 4 or 5 coming up like this one:

I transplanted these brassicas late this afternoon - it is supposed to rain most of the next two days so seemed a good time to get them in the ground although they are a bit small (1 kohlrabi, 2 kale, 3 brussels sprouts, 2 broccoli, 2 cabbage and a couple of cauliflower).

In the greenhouse bed, I have some arugula and radish.

Lots of other crops have been seeded but are just barely poking up through the soil so they will have to wait for another update. I am very glad to have some rain for a day or two as it has been quite dry and I haven't been around much to water - I am worried the carrots or beets that I seeded about 2 weeks ago won't germinate as they have not been kept very moist.

Looking forward to some good eats this summer if all goes well!

Garden Prep and More Seeds in the Ground - Beautiful Weekend Weather!

As usual, we've gone from piles of snow to lots of heat in just one week.  It's been quite hot the past two days and I've taken advantage of the nice weather to get some of the garden spaces ready for use.  I've moved the raised beds around a bit as some were getting a lot of grass growing in and around them.  The frames were moved onto an area with no grass and filled with fresh hay, compost and topsoil.  The space where the frames used to be will be turned over and just used as-is (so in-ground garden vs. raised bed).  This activity is also increasing the overall square footage I will have available.

The old hay bales were broken down and replaced with fresh bales.

This particular set up of bales below is new on the south end of my house.  I'll use this for most of the cucurbits.  I had a terrible bout of squash bugs and cucumber beetles last year and I've decided to start off this year in a new location.  I'm pretty sure it won't work, but I'm kind of hoping any bugs that overwintered don't find their way to the new space.

And I've managed to get some seeds sowed as well.  Here is what I planted this weekend:



I expect to sow more beets and carrots over the next month or so to keep them coming all season.  The daikon radish and mustard seeds were an impulse buy last week.  The seeds come from Tourne-Sol, a Quebec-based co-operative farm.  I bought them at an event sponsored by the Canadian Organic Growers association along with the Collards seeds (from The Cottage Gardener).

I have several weeks to go before the average last frost date has passed but everything I've planted so far should be able to handle some light frosts.  I won't be taking chances with the more delicate plants as I lost quite a few last year after getting excited by a bout of warm weather in May.

I'm linking up with Our Happy Acres as part of the Harvest Monday submissions.  Pop on over to see what other gardeners have on the go this week!

Flowers From Seed and Potting Soil - Make Your Own!

The great part of starting flowers from seed is the amazing variety!  I can go to my local grocer and pick up some petunias but there tends to be very little choice.  For the most part, I'm only growing flowers to help the vegetables I grow (distracting bad bugs or attracting good bugs for pollination).  And that generally means marigolds, nasturtiums and sunflowers.  And there are so many colours and size to choose from (well, maybe not all of those sunflowers, just a few of them!).

Here are my plans for this year:



I made a post this same time last year on this subject so won't get into detail about the flower seeds themselves.  But I thought I'd share how I make my potting soil.

I've already potted up tomato and pepper seedlings using a store-bought potting mix.  That's okay for a small amount of seedlings.  But around this time when I start many other vegetable seeds and flowers, it can get a bit pricey.  So I make my own mix.

It's a pretty loose "recipe" but I generally use 1/3 each of compost, vermiculite/perlite and peat moss.  The compost provides vital nutrients.  Vermiculite or perlite helps with aeration and drainage.  Peat helps with retention of both water and nutrients.

I need to rethink the use of peat moss simply because of its ecological impact here.  And when I say "here", I mean Canada as it is one of the world's largest (2nd?) producers of it.  Approximately 12% of Canada's land surface are covered with peat although most is in remote locations (reference here).  So maybe I'll switch to coir which is a byproduct of coconut.  But hey, I had a bag of peat moss left from last year so that's what I used!

I mix them up in an old wheelbarrow along with some water.  Flower seeds are started in styrofoam flats and left in the greenhouse until ready to be planted outside - many weeks from now!!