It’s that time!! The sun is shining, snow is gone, and I’ve got the gardening itch. I’m shocked it returns each year since come the end of August I am totally over the harvest, but somehow when spring rolls around I am all panicky with anticipation. I think every year I show up at the local greenhouses at least a couple weeks before they are really ready and stocked… bah!! All, well. I love it!
I started seeds back in February and decided that some were starting to yellow which means they have depleted the nutrients and need to be transplanted to bigger containers.
I recruited some little hands to help me and we got busy. Tomatillos and brussel sprouts were first up. I totally don’t need tomatillos in the garden this year since I am still drowning in salsa verde/green enchilada sauce from last year, but I just can’t help myself. I have seeds…I have to use them. Maybe I will sell these seedlings… (Tomatillos look like little green tomatoes in a papery shell for those of you who don’t know. They are used in Mexican cooking a lot. Mild flavor.)
Espen was my dirt man and Elias was the plant man. So fun to teach the boys about gardening and plants. Hands on learning.
After I got the biggest seedlings transplanted, I looked at some gardening books for when I could get seeds in the ground outside. This is where I nearly panicked since many seeds you can start 3-5 weeks before the last freeze date. Ahhhh!! There is so much to do!! We’ve hardly begun garden prep let alone planting seeds!!
Here you can kind of see our seed starting system. Wire rack with seedling trays and lights above. We have a little fan going to help the seedlings build strong stems and even a small heating pad to help with root growth. We tried to do it right this year and I am really hoping it pays off.
Here we have our pepper seedlings.
And our heirloom tomato seedlings that I seed saved from last year. We did not keep our tomatoes separated last year, so I might have some cross pollination between varieties, but again, I’m crossing my fingers that these produce just like last year. I don’t think we will really know until the end of the season. We will plant these as an experiment and then purchase from a local nursery as well…just in case. Maybe next year, we will be able to use all seed saved tomatoes.
Back in February I tried planting spinach and setting the pot inside in front of a window. The light did not cut it and I grew leggy tall plants. They failed even before they really started. So now I planted the pots again and they are ready to stay outside on the south facing deck. We will have fresh spinach and lettuce before you know it! Remember doing this last year?? We blogged about it at The Handmade Girl. You should try it!!
So excited for the gardening season!! Have you started anything yet?? Trying something new? Tried and true plants? Fill me in!!