Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Starting Again

Last year was an interesting year in the garden. There were several ‘firsts’…first time planting a Square Foot Garden, first time keeping a blog, first time limiting what I planted to a reasonable amount. The garden was actually a resounding success. Not once during the year did I lose control of it. Some crops didn’t perform as I had hoped, but that is to be expected in a garden. The amazing thing was that it never turned into a raging jungle, and that was another first!


The blog, however, did not fair so well. Oh, I took plenty of pictures of the garden as it progressed, and had the best of intentions, but I think sitting in front of a computer all day makes me less inclined to sit in front of a computer during my leisure time. But I am ever the optimist, and I am going to try again this year.



Today, I planted the first of the seedlings. Yes…today…March 31. The latest I have ever planted my seedlings. Usually, I plant them much too early and they become tall and gangly before I can get them outside. Maybe a little late is better than much too early.


So, what did I plant? My tomatoes this year are San Marzano tomatoes. I’m sure they will not be quite as sweet as the canned ones I buy since I doubt that Lucketts has the same sunny, Mediterranean climate that Italy has, but they are a lovely, meaty tomato, great for sauces. And…I suspect…great for drying in my new dehydrator! I’m thinking dried tomatoes packed in oil! Yum!!


I also started some lettuce inside – Santoro Butterhead Lettuce, Edox Butterhead Lettuce, and an heirloom variety of Romaine called Forellenschluss. Again, starting small…worked so well for me last year.

Until the garden begins to pick up speed with more planting – I have peas to put out as soon as the rain stops and the ground dries a bit – I am going to use this early spring to review last years garden and post some of the pictures.

Last year, there was quite a bit of 'animal nibbling' that went on. In fact, I returned from a business trip to find all the beet plants eaten right to the ground and half the carrot tops gone. A trip down to the local antique store to snag this gate solved the problem for the summer. Unfortunately, during the fall, I found the deer had decided to go for it and jump the fence so this year, I will need to come up with another plan.


It was also a great year for basil. Of course, I did buy many more plants than might normally be needed. This is one plant that doesn't have to follow the rule of keeping it small and controllable....you can never have too much basil!

2 comments:

Retired Knitter said...

Glad to see you are blogging again and the pictures are great. They need a black lab in them ... even if it isn't his thing to do!! (smile)

Linda said...

Looking forward to the garden updates. Charlie and Leslie have been in our garden - peas, lettuce and onions are in plus some other stuff (not sure what!). Yea, it's spring!