Thursday, April 24, 2008

I found my worm

Actually, it's a grub. I'd been finding these c-shaped white larvae every so often as I dug, and I wanted to find out what they were to see if I needed to do something about them. Turns out they're beetle larvae that usually prefer turf. I haven't found that many, so I'm not going to worry too much. I'll have to keep a lookout as the summer wears on, though.

I haven't used any pesticides so far, and I want to keep it that way as long as possible. Besides being distasteful, they're also another thing to keep track of and learn to use, and I hope to keep things as simple as possible.

Monday, April 21, 2008

Peadlings

I have baby pea plants!



They are just emerging, obviously. I'm just so terribly pleased that they are growing. This is the first time in my memory that I've grown something from seeds. Now I have to hope the rabbits stay away, because if my mother is correct, bunnies love them some peas.

I saw some more berry bushes at Whole Foods last week, and I *covet* them. They are staked and sturdy and gorgeous. Unfortunately I already have two raspberry bushes and I don't know where to put them, since the place they were going to go is probably too shady. I might have to put them there anyway and hope for the best.



Here is one berry bush, flourishing in its pot.

My tomato plants, on the other hand, are looking a bit sickly.



I waited longer than I'd planned to put them in the ground, since we had some frost problems and I had to take them inside a couple of times. They should get more sun and food now that they're planted. Hopefully they'll look less pale and spotty in a few days. I also transplanted the red bell peppers today, and they're looking much heartier.

I might as well include a picture of the dill, too, before it dies.



Dill apparently does not transplant well. I had a dill plant in a temporary pot, however, and it had to go somewhere, so it went in next to the parsley. If and when it kicks, I'll have another opportunity to grow a plant from a seed.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Brrr

I thought about planting my seedlings yesterday, and it's a good thing I didn't, because it's a lot easier to haul them inside than to build them all little pup tents. Although weather.com is a little confused - predicting a low of 35 in one place and 30-32 in another - the consensus seems to be that we'll probably freeze tonight. I don't have any sprouts yet, so I only have to be concerned with my herbs, and I know the mint will be OK because nothing on earth will kill it. We'll have to see about the parsley. I can't think of anything in my house that could serve as a potential parsley shelter. Maybe inspiration will strike once I get home.

I did plant my row of carrots yesterday. I tried to keep track of how many I was planting per foot, but it's HARD to keep track of those tiny seeds while you're inching across the row. Whenever I shifted position I'd lose my place. Assuming they grow, I'll have to thin them anyway, so I'm not terribly concerned. Also, I'm kind of happy about the cool snap, because I'm hoping it'll encourage the peas. Now that I have seeds germinating, I'm less eager for the weather to warm up already. Plus the cold was an excuse to buy a jacket today.

Monday, April 14, 2008

Ow. My back.




I planted a row of peas on Friday. It's probably too late, but I had to try. Next I'll put in carrots, because apparently those frozen veggies I ate at age three made quite an impression.

Last week I tested my soil, and if the meter is right, it was a bit too alkaline. So I added some sulfur along with fertilizer. I also bought and used a long-handled cultivator, and let me just say ouch. I have a feeling I didn't till quite deep enough, but those few inches were all my spine could handle. Good thing it is such a tiny plot.

Also, when I went to move my mint over, I discovered it was even tinier than I'd thought; there was a shelf of concrete a few inches under the soil at the narrow end. Bah. I'd been wanting to thin the rocks at the wide end anyway, so I moved them down to cover the inexplicable concrete. (My back loved this undertaking, too.)



For today, I think I'll get the carrots in, and keep weeding the potential berry arbor. Fortunately I have a lot more of Jim Dale reading Harry Potter to keep me company.

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

And we're off



I've never been a gardener. I can keep houseplants alive, but they survive in spite of me, not because of my horticultural talent. While my mom kept small garden patches in my youth, my greatest contribution to their life cycle was eating raspberries. My gardening education, in other words, has been inadequate.

The thing is, I have this lovely little patch (pictured above) in front of my house. It's spent most of the last five years overgrown with weeds - like I said, not a gardener - but last year it occurred to me that perhaps it could become, well, sightly. And useful. I wasn't working nights anymore, and I needed something to fill my evenings. So I started pulling weeds and digging roots.

I don't know how long it's been since anything grew in that spot on purpose, but there were a LOT of old roots and crap in there. After awhile I went to Target and bought actual gardening tools - a trowel, a hand rake (apparently called a cultivator), a kneeling pad, and gloves - so I could attack my bit of earth with greater vigor.

Once I dug it up, though, I couldn't figure out what to do with it. Was it too late to plant? If not, what did I want? I bought a couple of herb plants at the farmers' market, then went out of town before planting them and killed them. I did manage to get the mint going, but you could set mint on fire and it would still take over your yard. Pretty soon the weeds came back. My little plot sat empty and sad, a monument to my indecision and sloth.

But lo, a new year didst come upon us, and the seedlings didst return to the Lowe's Garden Center. And it was good.

So this year I'm really and truly going to plant stuff. We'll see what happens; this is more complicated than I imagined. You put seeds in the ground and water them, right? Snort. Different things need to be planted at different times, and at different depths. Some plants like their soil more acid; others prefer it alkaline. I have two small plots with completely different types of soil, and at least one of them is going to need assistance if I want to grow anything there. I am not a good organizer. There are a hundred different points where this project could go off the rails.

If it does, though, I'll write about it. I'll be keeping a journal of my horticultural maiden voyage. If any gardeners out there have tips for me, or if I do something hideously and shockingly wrong, tell me. I can take it. I'll also be writing about the garden's progress for the McClatchy newspaper Web sites.

Wish me luck, and let the games begin.


My plot from the side. Note the four plants my landlord unexpectedly planted one day while I was at work. I hope they haven't gotten too comfy, because they're moving.


This is the sandy strip under my kitchen window. I'd like to use it, but I'll have to test and see if anything will grow there.


From my perspective here (facing the street) this is the left side of my yard. I'd like to clear out the area by the stones and maybe plant some berries.