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Monday, May 3, 2010

Garden Update Two inches of snow on the ground last Thursday morning, but the yard is about to burst into bloom. The lilac buds swell every day. The apple trees shrugged off the white stuff and promise a good crop this year. Above, the crab apple is ready to go. The asparagus, strawberries and rhubarb are in. Or half the strawberries are. I need more. The ones I planted, just roots really, haven't done anything. I'm really wondering whether they will ever poke their little noses through the soil.

Seeds planted: carrots, beets, chard, arugula, cilantro, and spinach. Also in are 150 onion sets, a dozen shallots, and three three kinds of potatoes (all seed potatoes from the nursery -- I discovered a bit of scab on the ones I'd saved, and don't want to perpetuate it).

Seedlings in: cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and three kinds of lettuce. The spinach I planted last fall is ready for harvest, and a few onions I missed have come back with fervor.

Still, everything looks pretty barren.

I've dug the trellises, newly placed, into the kitchen garden. The half walls used to hold potatoes last year have been converted to round planters -- K calls them the wishing wells. Since I'm moving all the herbs from their former space by the back porch to the vegetable garden, they'll go in these planters. Thyme, tarragon, chives, rosemary and two kinds of parsley wait on the windowsill. Oregano, sage, borage, and more thyme and chives have come back up and will be transferred within the next two weeks. There's still plenty of mint out front, but I'll need to buy basil and chervil. The peas, sweet peas, and leeks still have to go in. It's late and I should have planted them sooner. The water wells are filled and warming in the sun, ready for the tomatoes and peppers to go in. The weeds are already making me crazy. And I'm going to have to find something to do about all those California poppies that reseeded last year.

The daffodils are dying off, and tulips paint most yards -- either with dabs of color or huge, indulgent swathes.

Good gardening to all!