Sometimes we get busy at the garden and forget to share our photos on the journal. The photos below were taken by Paula Herman, who sent them to me. Enjoy!
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New for 2015 – Garden bed plans
We began planting many of our garden beds according to drafted plans this year. The planting plans were developed from our 5 years of cooperative gardening wisdom. They are primarily for 6’ by 9’ beds.
The layouts express our interest in maximizing the number of crops that we grow, along with maximizing our limited garden space. They represent our current best guess at the ideal plant and/or row spacing for most of the crops we grow. They also represent our increasing interest in companion plantings.
Some of the layouts are works in progress. The Three Sisters bed is a great example. We have had a Three Sisters plot in the garden since 2011, and we have experimented with it every year.
This first set of planting plans was possible only because of the extensive photos and other records that we've kept. I am grateful to everyone for contributing to the process.
The complete set of scale bed planting plans for 2015 is available on the 2015 Garden Plan page. We hope they will be of use to other gardeners. They have been quite helpful for us.
My green car is even greener…..
Elisabeth and I have developed a system for the seedlings we start indoors. She has a cold basement and a shady backyard. I have a warm basement and a good-sized sunny patch in my backyard. She starts the cool weather seedlings (like the brassicas) in her basement, and I start the warm weather seedlings (like the nightshades) in my basement. When the seedlings are ready to go outside, they go first to her backyard, and then to mine.
Today was transfer day for most of the warm weather seedlings, from her backyard to mine. My car was completely filled (the back, the floors, and all the seats except the driver’s seat) with tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and tomatillos. It did all fit, but barely.
Hot Lemon Peppers
I know that these peppers are very popular with the gardeners (and with me, definitely) but maybe there’s a reason why they’re so expensive when we typically buy them as seedlings. This year, we’re growing them from seed, and they've definitely been the most problematic of any of the seedlings I've been fostering.
This is a picture of their current state (on 4/29). I don’t keep detailed records like Elisabeth does (I should probably do that), but we planted the seeds on 4/4. The largest seedling probably sprouted about 4/13. The next largest seedling probably sprouted about 4/23, and the 2 smallest seedlings just sprouted yesterday. Maybe we’ll get some more!
Multiple applications in the vegetable garden…
Use your imagination…
Season’s first seedlings emerge
With only a foot of the over 8 feet of snow that fell this year still with us, the seeds we planted indoors on March 7th have begun to sprout. (Reasons to be cheerful, parts 1 and 2.)
The broccoli, Brussels sprouts and cabbages are solidly up. The leeks, lettuce, spinach and onions are beginning to sprout and we await signs of life from the celery.
The photo shows green and red cabbage in the foreground, broccoli and Brussels sprouts in the middle, and leeks and onions in the background.
