More Seeds...

Today while in Home Depot buying more basement supplies, I perused the seed displays. I decided to try my hand at starting some herbs and some more flowers, here's what I walked away with:

• Rosemary (Mr. Fothergill's)
• Parsley (Mr. Fothergill's)
• Thyme (Mr. Fothergill's)
• Purple Coneflower (Mr. Fothergill's)
• Purple Prince Zinnia (Johnsons)

I need some more purple coneflower for my new landscape plan this spring and read that they are pretty easy to start from seed. So this will be my first experiment with starting my own perennials from seed. If all fails, there's always the nursery!!!

Today I'm going to plant some more broccoli and a bunch of the thyme. I ordered some things I've had my eye on for awhile from Stokes: Tidy Tray (in great need of this), Sea Magic seaweed fertilizer, pea and bean trellis mesh, and a new compost bucket for the kitchen with a bunch of compostable biobags. I might order some goodies from Lee Valley Tools, I really want a soil thermometer and heating mat for my seeds...oh and I'll soon be need another grow light. Too many things to buy...too little extra $$$ sitting around to do it!!!

Snow...finally!!!

The weather this week looks like Christmas decided to finally show up...loads of snow!!! Good thing I didn't have to go anywhere this weekend so I can enjoy it from the warmth of my front bedroom. Today was thinning day, I finally thinned my broccoli since they now have their set of first true leaves. I was worried about choosing the weakest ones to snip, I just went by stem thickness instead of height. I also split up my two kale since my other cell of kale didn't amount to much, now they all have some more room to grow. I also finally bought a dual timer for my lights so now both setups are good to go (fish tank and larger setup).

I also ordered some fun plants from Spring Garden yesterday: 2 Top Hat Blueberry Plants, 1 Ozark Beauty Strawberry Kit, and 1 Dwarf Banana Plant.

This is the Top Hat Blueberry Plant which is supposed to be a small container blueberry bush, I'm excited to see if they really get this abundant. I bought 2 just in case they needed another one to set fruit. The dwarf banana tree just looked so cute I had to try it out, they claim it will actually produce mini bananas!!! Even if mine don't, I think it's a really nice indoor tropical looking plant. My bulbs are looking good and some of the grape hyacinth are starting to flower!!! They already look pretty, white tops with deep purple bottoms, can't wait to see them in full bloom.

Sunny Days

This weekend has turned out to be pretty nice weather wise, when the sunny is shining I feel like Spring is just around the corner. My bulbs are coming along nicely, I tried growing a few daffodils in some gravel without soil and it's actually working to my surprise. This weekend has been busy as we are finishing our basement and the drywall is going up. This meant I had to move my seed starting setup back upstairs to the front bedroom, not a big deal since now I don't have to go down into the basement to check on the little seedlings. The broccoli and kale are coming along nicely although the one cell of kale doesn't see to be doing anything. I might end up not thinning the kale and using both seedlings. I'm doing some more research on this lunar planting stuff, I might try it out. Next weekend I'm hoping to get out to Lee Valley Tools and pick up some goodies!!!

Broccoli!!!

My four broccoli seeds that I planted on the 15th have now all sprouted and I'm going to be moving them to my fish tank tonight. No sign from the kale yet but maybe they're just a bit slow. I think I'm going to attempt starting the next batch of seeds in vermiculite just to try something new. Lots of life from the bulbs I'm forcing which is promising, green leaves and stems appearing everywhere!!!

Brassicas and Bulbs

I completed my first plantings today, two kale and two broccoli in a cell pack. I'm basing my planting schedule off of a last frost date of May 9th for my area. I have a bunch of cloches from last year so even if the cold lingers around a few weeks past this date I should be ready to compensate. Also, my bulbs that I'm forcing indoors have sprouted and seem to be doing well. You can already see the flower heads of the Muscari latifolium (Grape Hyacinths) starting to form. I planted quite a few pots of bulbs and most have started to show signs of life, I'm looking forward to having some color this early in the year.

Setup

I finally got around to setting up my seed starting setup in my basement. Last year I built a small "greenhouse" out of scrap wood and vapor barrier to use with my florescent light. This year I decided to try another route and go with the easier setup of adjusting the light instead of the seed trays themselves within the greenhouse. I'm also going to make use of my old fishtank again too. I haven't planted anything yet but that is on my list of things to do this weekend. I'm going to start some broccoli and kale, I found an old seed packet in my garage of kale so I'm going to try it again. I didn't have much luck last year with the kale, I think mostly due to the fact that I planted it too late and ended up with really small plants, but they tasted alright!!! I've almost got my planting schedule and garden scheme ready but they still need a few tweaks. I'm trying to be as efficient as possible with my limited garden space but there are just so many things I want to try!!! I'm definitely going to try out the garbage bag potatoes, I did some more research on them last night and I think it should be relatively easy....fingers crossed.

Signs of Life!

While cleaning out my garage this afternoon to get my seed starting supplies in order, I came across the pots that I planted in the fall with various bulbs. I had totally forgotten about them since they've been hidden behind one of the cars. To my surprise a bunch have already started to sprout!!! I haven't grown bulbs before so I was quite excited to see these guys popping through, although, I'm not sure if they are supposed to be coming up this early since it's only February. Oh well, these little bits of green made my day!!!

2010 Seed List - Revised

So today I went out and completed my seed list by buying my early peas and broccoli. I decided to go with Alaska Peas (McKenzie) and Munchkin Broccoli (McKenzie), which is the same broccoli I grew last year. The package says it's a dwarf plant which only grows to 1 ft however I vividly remember mine growing to at least 2 to 2.5 ft tall....crazy.

I'm going to try a few annuals this year too, here's my list:sunflower (Dorado - OSC)

• morning glory (Mixed Colors - OSC)
• sweet peas (Royal Family Mixed Colors - OSC)
• nemophilla (Penny Black - McKenzie)

I have some seeds left over from last year which probably won't do much but I'll give them a try anyways:alyssum (Carpet of Snow, Royal Carpet - OSC)

• bachelor buttons (OSC Mixed Colors - OSC)
• nasturtium (Dwarf Jewel Mixed - OSC)
• red columbine (collected from plants I bought)
• milkweed (from my Wings of Paradise Monarch Kit)

The Penny Black looked really interesting, it's a low growing plant with lots of little flowers that are deep purple, almost black with a white boarder. They looked really unique so I thought I'd try them out.

2010 Seed List

My seed list this year is comprised of some from last year which either I never got around to trying out or just didn't do so well. Seeds from last year include:carrot (Baby Finger - OSC)

• eggplant (Black Beauty - OSC)
• summer squash (Sunburst Hybrid - McKenzie)
• watermelon (Sugar Baby - McKenzie)
• zucchini (Dark Green - OSC)
• tomatoes (Golden Queen, Sweet Cherry, Roma, Christmas Grape, Bush Beefsteak - McKenzie)
• peppers (Long Red Cayenne, Orange Sun - OSC)
• spinach (Emilia F1 - Mr. Fothergill's)
• pak choi (White Petiole - Mr. Fothergill's)
• edamame (Butterbeans - Mr. Fothergill's)
• bush beans (Andante - Johnsons)
• pole beans (Scarlet Funner - OSC)

New picks for this year include:swiss chard (Bright Lights - OSC)

• lettuce (Ruby Red, Salad Bowl - OSC)
• cucumber (Marketmore - OSC)
• cantaloupe (Lil'loupe - OSC)
• peas (Homesteader - OSC)
• pepper (Mini Bell Mixed - McKenzie)
• tomato (Tumbler F1 Hybrid Trailing - McKenzie)
• pumpkin (Small Sugar - McKenzie)
• beet (Early Wonder - McKenzie)

I still need to pick up a packet of early season peas and broccoli. I might try out some transplants from the local nurseries if anything catches my eye.

First Post

I'll keep my first post short and sweet. Last year was my first year of home gardening and I jumped in both feet first. This year my enthusiasm for my backyard garden has carried over and is the same if not more. I kept a gardening journal to keep track of everything but decided to take a more modern approach this year through this blog. Wish me luck!