Starting Again

I have decided to be a little more serious about my seedlings this year and I am trying some new techniques.

Some (mainly cabbages and peppers) in peat pots from Jiffy, herbs and some alliums in proper start pots, and tomatoes and lemon grass in flower pots.

I got a seedling heat mat and set them all on a glass table top with the mat on it so it would warm them all some.  It really seems to be working well.  I am a little concerned with peat pots drying out too much and some of the peppers (seems like the hotter varieties, like Scotch Bonnet) are slower to germinate, but all in all its a success so far.

Here we have a rare (but increasingly common) Garden Monkey enjoying a popsicle as we check our seedlings in the morning.  He helped plant them and we enjoy checking them together.

The 2010 Crop List

So, between time and timing I had to trim back on the variety a little this year. As always, I am focused on variety versus quantity. I have wondered why I do this and I think its pretty fun to plan and eat (although I am not sure you could say I did a lot of "planning"this year).

I also spent very little this year. Some savvy shopping, some saved and shared seed, and a few extra drives for compost and I have spent under $60 this year. Not bad.

So without further adieu, the 2010 list:

Herbs

French Tarragon

Rosemary

Sage

Michael's Basil

Sweet Basil

Greek Oregano

Thyme

Cilantro

Parsley

Greens

Bright Lights Chard

Iceberg

Mixed Greens (six types)

Pak Choi

Copenhagen Market Cabbage

Fruit

Raspberries

Blackberries

Granny Smith Apples

Concord Grapes

Red Seedless Grapes

Quinnalt Strawberries

Ground Cherries

Charantais Melons

Sugar Baby Watermelons

Rouge vif de Etempes Pumpkins

Squash

Acorn

Zuchinni

Dutch Crookneck

Vert et Blanc

Pattison Panache

Tomatos

Black From Tula

Super Sweet 100 Cherry

Big Boy

Beefsteak

Green Zebra

Root Veggies

Purple Onions

Shallots

Chantenay Carrots

Danvers Carrots

Purple Globe Turnips

Icicle Radishes

French Breakfast Radishes

Yukon Gold Potatoes

Parsnips

Other Veggies

Tasty Green Cucumbers

Parisian Pickling Cucumbers

Mary Washington Asparagus

Mammoth Sunflowers

Blue Lake Beans

For a total of 53 varieties. Guess I should find 4 more. :)

Along Came A Killer Frost

We had a hard frost this morning.

We had good notice so I spent a lot of time last night getting potted herbs in the garage and finishing harvesting a lot of the plants.

Got the Basil, Tarragon, Thyme, Oregano, and Rosemary inside.

Left in the garden? Sweet potatoes, ground cherries, pumpkins, watermelons, Charantais, zuchs, squash, and the pepper plants with a bunch of little peppers which I will probably never see.

Brought in the last of the tomatoes, picked every pepper worth picking (thinking hotsauce), cabbage, broccoli, chard, onions, shallots, cucumbers, etc.

Working on some totals for harvest this year so I can contribute over at Freedom Gardens.

Herbs, Herbs, Herbs

Thought I would drop a quick note regarding my herbs. I have (in order front to back, disregarding flowers) Rosemary, Tarragon, Basil, Thyme, Basil, Oregano, and Sage.

Gotta love those herbs!

Garden Update

Well, the garden is doing really well. A quick rundown:

Fruit - looks like about 20 bunches of grapes, some strawberries, a few apples, some ground cherries, our blackberries FINALLY bloomed so we may get some of those, and the raspberries have almost all taken. Not bad.

Veggies - All the veggies have taken, although the brocolli, cabbages, and carrots are struggling a little. Not sure whats up with the carrots, I got a really low germination level (one in ten, maybe) and I may have to plant some more to see. And something is already eatting some of my beans.

Herbs - All the herbs look good, but the thyme and tarragon are not thriving. It could be some prolonged transplant shock or a poor soil mix on my part (mixed my own potting soils this time - thanks for the inspiration Susy!). Will have to wait and see. And if I have one more person tell me that thyme is easy to grow and becomes invasive I will throttle them! This is my third year trying and its still not going well.

Anyways, here are some pics as well:

A shot down the walkway. Its about a week old, I need to update it desperately!

Cabbages. Coleslaw, steamed, sauerkraut, kim chi, soup, endless reasons to drool!

L to R - Tomatoes, radishes, and beans.

And here we have some ground cherries.