Snuck in before the rain

This morning Matthew and I snuck in before the rain hit to do some plant transplanting and garden cleaning.

Finally transplanted a couple of hostas that use to be hidden under our huge trees. Now, moved them to a happy partially shade area in front of our house.. Still trying to find one more plant but they are in hiding.. Maybe I will find it in a couple of weeks.

One week of growth

Look at the difference in just a week

After that we worked on cleaning out the strawberry patch.. I haven't decided if I am going to leave them there or not..

This is where I think I am going to plant my raspberries.. I have some cleaning to do!

Go away rain

I just wanted to put in a little post today as I have been away for the weekend...
Go away rain and cold weather!! I want to get out in my yard and have some fun.

FYI: Be on the look out for my raspberry plantings! I am working on getting everything prepped and can't wait to try planting them this year :)

Death of the Seeds!

Well back in early Febuary when we were having a non rainy day, I decided to try out the Planters Pride Heated Greenhouse.

Heated Greenhouse by Planters Pride

Matthew and I got out in the overcast fresh air to plant some "hot weather" plants.
Peppers, Jalepeno Peppers and Walla Walla Onions. These type of plants need to be planted indoors early so they can be transplanted outside once the weather gets warmer.. It's a hit and miss if these veggies will take as it all depends on how warm the summer will be.

Well, last weekend (March 18th) I got really excited with the nice weather and decided to put the peppers and onions outside to get some real sunshine.

That wasn't the smartest idea, as I killed then.. I brought them in and the next morning I found this.

The onions never had a chance anyways.. My neighbor Becky informed me yesterday that you are suppose to plant walla walla onions in the fall, the hunker down for the winter and then start growing in the spring and ready to pick in the late summer..
Well, there is still hope as I will re-attempt the onions in the fall and hope for the best next summer (2012!).

I have now attempted more "seedlings", and growing inside:



Almost exactly one year later

Well, now that I will be confined around the house more with two kids and their nap schedules, I think I should have more time to concentrate on my home garden (we will see!)

• Today was a beautiful March day, Matthew and I got a good start on the garden while Brooklyn slept. I am really hoping to get Matthew excited about gardening and watching the veggies grow from seeds to food we can eat.

The first sign of spring for me is bringing out the trellis for the peas!

Next is to get the beds turned over and check out the compost underneath after a winter of decomposing cardboard and hay.

• Matthew and I decided to do Garden Beans-Kentucky Blue Pole and Alaska (Wilt Resistant ) Peas.
• These are both cool weather veggies and do well when planted outdoors in the Pacific Northwest (Zone 7-8)

How to find your zone



Matthew was so excited to open the peas!

Now time to plant!

Beans

Matthew planting the peas

Ready to grow!

Now that the beans and peas are put to bed for a few weeks, another great cool weather spring time veggie is carrots and lettuce. You can grow lettuce and carrots all summer long and it's best to continuously plant them every two to three weeks so you get a constant supply all summer. I know last year Matthew and I couldn't stop eating the carrots. Nothing is better than the "pop" of pulling a carrot out of the grow. They taste so sweet, it was addicting..

Matthew had the honor of planting..

Time to pat down the soil so they can grow

It's been awhile

Well, I have to admit that I thought I could do it all but realized now that I can't.
I haven't been back to the farm since the end of March (when the last pictures were taken).

1st) The worry about getting our van stuck again. The weather was not warming up and I wasn't taking the chance of getting stuck again.
2nd) With the pregnancy progressing, it was just too hard to get out and work. Plus, I was just too worried that if I did get out there I would want to work.. The last time I worked at the farm, I spent the next day with Braxon Hicks contractions. I just knew I had to stay away to keep me safe. .Sad isn't it.
3rd) Just too tired to get out there.

I know my fellow farmers have been working over time there and sounds like the farm is growing happily..

Baby is due in 2 days, so hopefully I will be able to get out there in a month and check things out.

Until then, it's the little garden in my backyard that will keep me happy!

Day 1- March 27th, 2010

This morning we head to the farm to start plotting out our sections.

What a interesting morning.. I headed to our old farm plot to pick up the stakes from last year (forgot to get them) and was on my way out when my trusty, non 4X4 suburban minivan got stuck in the saturated soil of the farm land.


Thank goodness my neighbor Barb was being me, otherwise a 7mth pregnant suburban wife and her 2.5yr would have been in real trouble.
Barb tried to help out for a bit, but we knew we couldn't do it on our own. Thankfully, she had a 4X4, so off she went to get some help. During that time, the DVD player in the van came in really handy to occupy Matthew, who was so good through this whole process.. Thank goodness for Duck Tales!
About 15mins later, Barb, Becky (my other neighbor), Ryan (Becky's coworker), Abby and their kids all came back to help out. Now, this still was a funny site since we are all suburban farmers and really don't have much of a clue on how to remove a minivan that is stuck in the mud

After some spitting of mud (sorry Becky!), the farm owner Joe came to the final rescue.

Plowing down the road in his pickup truck, he hooked up my van to his truck and pulled me out!



Woohoo, we have been rescued!!!

As soon as I got out to the road, here comes dear Husband.. Kinda late, but he did run 10miles from our house to the farm so I will give him some slack..

Finally, I got to the new farm plot and have decided this year to do smaller plots that are more manageable for everyone. This is for the veggies that don't need alot of room to grow.
IE: onions, lettuce, beets, carrots and mostly every other "root" vegetable.
The larger areas will be set aside for the pumpkin patch, which we learned after last year, need alot of room to grow.. Those silly vines just love alot of room. We are going to attempt melons this year, so let's hope for a warm summer!! And, many more wonderful vegetables.

We laid hay between the plots to keep the weeds down and give us pathways between the veggies.

Planting Schedule for 2010 Season

For all you gardeners, here is the schedule for planting your seeds or transplants for our zone here in Seattle.

It's a great resource to review and not feel overwhelm with all the options out there.

A great start is peas, potatoes and tomatoes




A Garden Planting Chart

http://www.thevegetablegarden.info/resources/planting-schedules/zones-7-8-planting-schedule