Taking A Break On A Busy Day

Having a busy day. My wife is away caring for her ailing mother (any prayers or positive vibes appreciated) and we dearly miss her, but she is where she needs to be.

In her absence and considering the weather (which is verging on perfect) I am doing all the yard prep I can.

Finished my compost area:



I have been weeding around the edges, getting ready to put some mulch down, got the front yard aerated and power raked, fertilized the flower beds, trimmed blackberries, etc, etc, etc, and its not even 1 pm.

More to go. Plus, I have a great helper:

Unhappy With My Mycorrhiza

So I am going through one of my favorite nurseries and I spot something I have wanted to try for a couple of years at a price that, while not comfortable, is in my range, so I purchase it.

I have wanted to try Mycorrhiza for quit some time. Its a fungus that occurs in undisturbed soils that has a synergistic relationship with plants. I have seen it used on some garden shows to revive difficult or over worked soil. Another property it is supposed to add to the soil is greater moisture capture.

So, there it is on the shelf. I look it over for a second and it also has some material to support the fungus, it has some 3-3-3 fertilizer combined in and touts its moisture retention ability. The fertilizer is not organic, which I would normally avoid, but my excitement at having the mycorrhiza overwhelms me and I decide to go for it. I look on top and it has an expiration date, which encourages me that there is in fact, something living inside. I read almost every detail on the container. But I missed one key sentence in the fine print.

I get home and sprinkle some on my main beds. I mix it in. I am excited to think about this fungus starting to grow in my beds. Then I don't go out for a few days because of rain.

Then one of my daughters asked why one of my beds looked white. This is what I find:



That one portion of sentence I somehow missed?...", and water-storing polymer crystals that help reduce plant waterings."

I was, and am, so mad about this I cannot even accurately express this. Of course, really, I am mad at myself for missing that one little piece of information in a bit of fine print.

Organizing The Seeds

This winter I made some seed orders. As soon as I got done ordering seeds a gracious family member and a friend dropped off a bunch of seeds. Seriously, I could plant half of Iowa. What was interesting were the variety of seeds and the variety of providers. Seeds Savers, Ferry Morse, Burpee, Park, Henry Fields, Pinetree Garden, Select, Freedom, Lake Valley, Totally Tomatoes, Thompson Morgan, etc, etc, etc. And of course, saved seed of my own, and some from friends digital and other wise. Had to set down and organize them in some fashion. I had a better system, but the big influx of seed sent me back to square one. So I broke them down into the following categories:

1) Empty Packs - Packs that I kept that are empty but had useful information.

2) Started - Seeds that I have done all the starts for this year.

3) Not Planting - Packs of items I don't have room for in the garden, I don't want to plant this year, or otherwise are not using now.

4) Ready for direct sow - Put all the seeds I will direct sow in one bunch ready to go outside.

I need to return to a more complete system though.

Turning Beds, Finding Worms

Went out and turned the beds to keep the composting going. I turned some grass and leaves into the beds last fall and have turned them every chance I got, even through the winter. When I turned them this time I found what I wanted to find:



So many worms, I actually even turned over a ball of worms about the size of a baseball. Exactly what I was looking for!

Seedlings Going Strong

The seedlings are doing well with a few exceptions, but nothing too harsh.

I think I have to many tomatoes. Actually, is that possible?

Volunteer Madness

We have VOLUNTEER MADNESS going on. Carrots, onions, and sunflowers. And its the second week in April.

Can I bring my self to till these in? They are in the totally wrong place, but, geez, what does a plant have to do to get some respect around here?

Pepper List for 2011

I am a huge fan of peppers. I use six types in my chili. I use them every chance I can. I love the heat. I love the sweet. But mostly the heat!

Peppers
Anaheim
Cayenne
Zavory
Marconi
Poblano
Serrano
Jalapeno
Giant Jalapeno
Tennessee Cheese

No Thai peppers this year. I should grow them, they just didn't taste good last year. And I am soooo tired of seeing "Ancho" peppers, and "Chipotle" peppers on seed packets I could scream. Those are semi-prepared versions of Poblano and Jalapeno peppers.