Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Notes for March 25, 2008

Yesterday I did notice some of the grass seed I put down in February is starting to sprout. But not nearly as much as I hoped.

The male goldfinches are starting to get their summer (bright) plumage. The bluebirds are a daily visitor at the moment.

I started some seeds indoors over the weekend: tomatoes, peppers and several perennials.

The daffodils are in full bloom and the forsythia are starting to bloom.

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Notes for March 19, 2008

Last Friday I took the day off and by the afternoon it was around 60 degrees and nice enough to work outside. I emptied two five gallon buckets of horse manure (which I had saved from last fall) into my onion bed (second year). Then I turned it under by hand (shovel). Then I emptied four 40 pound bags of composted cow manure into the onion bed (2.5' x 15') and turned it under. I leveled it off and then planted about 100 onions (four rows), leaving room on the end to plant some parsley.

Saturday was again nice in the afternoon and I worked on the big veggie garden. I raked the leaves piled along the fence away from the fence into the middle of the garden and then mulched them with the lawn mower. I then spread a 30 pound bag of bone meal over the whole garden (using a trowel and not remembering that I had a lawn spreader in the shed that some one had given me that I have yet to use). I then spread a thin layer of finely mulched leaves over the whole garden (the mulched leaves were from my compost piles of ground up leaves gathered by the mower from the rest of the yard last fall) and turned it under using my tiller. My veggie garden is approximately 20' x 36'. I tilled in one direction and then I tilled it a second time at 90 degrees.

I spread some grass seed on President's Day back in February but it hasn't sprouted yet. Maybe I put it down too soon and its been too cold for germination. But I know we've had good moisture since and some warm days but I guess it hasn't been warm enough in a long enough string of days for germination. So it seems to be a lesson learned, don't put spring grass seed down until late March or until April (at least in my zone)

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Notes for March 12, 2008

It's getting closer! My daffodils alongside my house have started to bloom. The ones out in the yard are up but have not bloomed yet.

I've sent out my seed and plant orders this week and I should start my indoor seeds next week.

I am hoping for a relatively warm day this weekend and I will get my onion bed ready. Unfortunately it looks to be another wet weekend and then colder.