1. Pole beans- two varieties (Cherokee Trail of Tears and Kentucky Wonder), staked on the
trellis.2. Cucumbers- Homemade Pickles variety (#155) from Cook's Garden, also staked on the trellis.
3. Asparagus- Last year's planting has basically failed so I ordered more crowns (Jersey Giant) and replanted the same bed, except for the places where two ferns had spouted from last year's "crop". Since I had to order 2 dozen crowns minimum, I decided to start another bed as well, this time in full sun. This was the bed I had planned to plant with melons so that may have to be scrapped this year. What I hope will make the difference this time around is soaking the crowns overnight before planting. We'll see.
Now for the updates:
1. Blueberries- almost every plant has buds or
blooms. Of the 50 plants, only one appears to have died from the transplanting this winter.2. Hops- The Cascades that are growing on the kids play set have gone crazy. I'm wondering if I nee
d to thin them so they will produce more flowers or just let them go and see what happens.3. Broccoli-
Coming along very slowly, just like last year when we never got a crop before it bolted. I may have put this out too late (again). I also noticed some holes in the leaves but didn't see any bugs. Something may be feeding on them at night.4. Garlic- Incredibly successful growth in the last few weeks. No scapes have appeared yet but I'll be ready to prune them when they do so as to put more energy into bulb formation.
plastic mulch. I'm not sure what I did wrong here but if they don't perk up, I'm ready to move them and reclaim the bed for something else that will
5. Strawberries- a big disappointment.
Only three plants survived the winter, despite the grow better.6. Pumpkin- Dill's Atla
ntic Giant- I put out two plants this year and have had the cold frame on one of them. I need to mix up some liquid feed (nitrogen) to get them started but haven't had time yet.7. Potatoes- Two varieties, French Fingerling and Peruvian Purple. Both have lunged out of the ground and appear to be doing great. They're the most successful looking bed in the garden.
8. Peppers and tomatoes-
I opened up the Wall-o-Water insulators today by filling them the rest of the way to the top. I also staked them with the new rainbow spiral stakes that I bought this winter.
9. Fennel- It appears that fennel will grow nicely in a container but I've never seen it growing before so I don't know really how it's supposed to look.
10. Rhubarb-
another amazing
launch out of the ground. I just planted this a few weeks ago and it's already doing great. Despite the temptation, I'm going to do what "the book" says and resist the urge to harvest until the second year to let it get well established.
11. Perennial herbs- The mint will probably be big enough to harvest some for the first time this weekend. The sage is taking over the bed and is about to flower. Same for the hyssop. Oregano seems to be slowly spreading as is the thyme. The Lavender seeds never sprouted so I'm glad I bought a small plant for the container garden. This soil is too rich for lavender anyway.
12. Peas-
Sugar snap peas have emerged much better than last year, even being in the same spot. I'll keep a closer eye on them than I did before.13. Carrots- Touchon and a purple variety that I can't recall its name at the moment have been slow to sprout. From the nearby hole, I think a pest has found them tasty.
14. Flowers- It's not the vegetabl
e garden but the iris and carnations are blooming as are the peonies at the back door. It's all quite pretty.Lastly, a few other updates:
1. Water barrel-
I bought a water barrel at the Garden Faire and finally got it installed last weekend. It filled quickly but I can see that I need to elevate it higher to get the pressure I need for watering the beds that are slightly uphill.
2. Finally, I noticed this pile of feathers in the yard. Either a raptor got lucky with some prey or a bird got very unlucky with the power lines overhead.
