This winter has been a busy time of preparing for the coming gardening year. I have been a regular book worm lately. The library has many wonderful resources for us to use. I have been researching everything I can pertaining to vegetable gardening so I can prove to Cheesehead that not every vegetable garden I grow is doomed to failure (among other things, obviously).
What's past is past and this year my garden will be magnificent (I hope). Besides, I was suffering from depression when I had those other gardens. Too lazy to do the work even though I still harbored an inner desire to grow food for my family. This time the kids even sound like they're enthusiastic about helping me, they've been excitedly telling me all kinds of wonderful vegetables that we should grow. Sure, that will probably only last a few days into the season, but one can hope they remain gardening enthusiasts, right?
I have also been internet surfing and scouring the pages of seed and plant catalogs that have pouring into my mailbox. I want to find edible plants that suit our growing conditions and I can't choose plants that require too much extra attention. My garden size is optimistically large for a rather new vegetable gardener and I don't want to bite off more than I can chew.
I got my garden area in my craft room mostly together as well. I am so excited. Soon I will be starting my seeds. I'm a bit nervous about this as well since I only tried starting seeds one other time and I failed miserably. I won't let that fact deter me from trying again. As the saying goes, if at first you don't succeed try try again!
If I knew it would stay as nice as it is today I'd run into town to get seeds now, but it's not usually so pleasantly warm here in February so I'd probably be jumping the gun. I'd better hold off for just a bit although I'm tempted to be live that spring really is here. I mean the trees are practically bending over in the warm winds that are whooshing through the trees. Isn't that a true sign that spring is coming?
Last year it wasn't like this until late April or early May. That was rather late though. Have we skipped February and jumped right into March? If so I'd be able to get a nice early start on my garden! Today we might have a record high of 47 degrees. We aren't far from it now and it's early yet.
The roads were slick like solid sheets of ice as I walked Peanut to the bus this morning. We got our first rain of the year and my tennis shoes could really tell. It felt as if I were gliding over ice at a skating rink instead of walking in fairly new tennis shoes. Now I know why mom used to drive bolts into the bottoms of her shoes when she went running in the winter. As I got half way down the driveway I found myself wishing I had put on my boots instead, then I could walk in the nice thick blanket of snow.
You sure can tell when you've been walking extra carefully on ice going uphill, there are muscles you tighten that you aren't used to using when you walk naturally. I guess I've gotten my workout for the day in!
Just yesterday I couldn't see anything but the roof of the wishing well in the shade garden I created last year. Now, I can see most of the wishing well and most of the bench nearby too. That rain has taken quite a bit of our snow cover off.
My garden ornaments are peeking out from their blankets of snow too. I was going to put some salt down on my sidewalk to clear the rest of the snow off of it, but apparently the rain did that job for me.
Look! There are even a couple of areas in my yard that I can see the ground already. I guess I'll have to get on the ball if I want some seeds to be ready soon. Hooray!
Thank you for stopping by. Please leave me a message. I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Cindy
10 comments:
Wow what a colorful background your blogs has! it feels like spring here but we will have a few big frosts that always make us gnash our teeth and complain to everyone! I hope you have an early spring. Do you think you'll have that linger snow pile this year? gail
Gail- Thanks! I thought it looked cute, kind of scrapbook-ish too.
I sure hope we have an early spring, it would make up for last year! I don't think I'll have a pile like we had last year, we didn't have to call in a snow plow since we got our snow blower working. I guess we'll see though.
Cinj
Looks like your snow is melting off fairly well Cindy. Ours has finally melted and I can now see the mud :) and of course all of the limbs and sticks to be picked up from the ice storm. Sounds like your really into the gardening this Spring and do not worry what you learned from seeding last time will be a good teacher for this years crop. You are to be commended for all of your work into budgeting your household. We all have to tighten our belts here lately. You look like you have a wonderful stand of pine trees around your home. So pretty.
Lona
Oh, you have inspired me! I must get going on my garden, we will be breaking new ground this year! Your background is wonderful!
Cinj, if you need good information about what to plant and when to plant it for your vegetable garden, try to find you local extension agent. Our master gardener group works with our agent and we live to give out good area specific information and advice.
Lona- It sure is. I hope to be rid of it soon, but I'm not going to pin all of my hopes on that or I may be disappointed. I've been working hard and I sure hope it all pays off too. My wish list is extremely long and I hope to be able to afford most of it, I may have to wait for some of it though.
Dawn- Really? How can my mess of snow and incessant rambling inspire anything? LOL. I wanted something different, no snow but not quite sping yet.
Debbi- Good idea, thanks. I know we live in the county seat so there must be an office around here somewhere....
It won't be long now and you'll be outside digging in the dirt instead of shoveling snow. Hang in there!
Glad to see you're getting some melting too, even more progressed than mine! I figured to start my indoor stuff and the wintersowing about March 1st, since our "safe date" for no more frost isn't until Memorial Day. Yours may be sooner, though. Don't feel bad if your seed starting doesn't go too well, my past efforts led to wilted seedlings and bare dirt (a.k.a. compost! ;-)
Your new hearts are pretty! Vegetable gardening is a lot of work but is really worth it. I usually go to the farmers market as I can't grow things for what I pay. Will you be canning some of your produce? I do hope you keep us posted about your gardening, perhaps we can be your accountability partners :)
I like to plant my first lettuce, spinach, radishes, and kale as early as the soil can be worked, sometimes, as early as the last part of February, here in zone 5b. I plant small amounts weekly or so, so that they don't all get big at the same time, and want to go to seed. The plants won't come up until the soil is warm enough, and sometimes my little seedlings get snowed on, but I normally still get a crop out of the first plantings. I almost planted a few seeds today, but didn't make it out there. Soon, soon, we can plant.
I need to take a blogging break and do some cleaning and reading, too. I don't read much anymore besides blogs. I don't think I'm quite ready, though. I will be off much of tomorrow, because I'm cooking and serving supper at a local outreach center with some people from the church I'm a member at, but not currently attending. A couple of the families aren't attending there right now, either. Sunday we'll be watching our one year old grandson.
Have a great weekend!
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