New garden cart, compost etc

We bought a new garden cart at Home Depot for only $20. It's WAY better than the old one! It's much smoother to push, it holds more weight, and it fits between the rows of raised beds.

The new garden cart

Saturday morning I finished unloading the compost and filled in dirt in the strawberry pyramid. Al and Kaitlyn helped me move cinder blocks to the front flower bed by the tulips and put them along the edge of the bed. They also cleared leaves and weeds out of the flower bed.

Compost on the beds closest to the house

Filling the strawberry pyramid

Strawberries in the new pyramid planter

Tulip bed with cinder block edging

Yesterday I planted new strawberry plants in the pyramid. I also loosened the soil and mixed compost in 5 raised beds. I planted the onion sets and found out they didn't take up as much room as I had planned for them, so I planted extra bunching onions and carrots. I also planted garlic, beets, arugula, romaine and kale. (I only planted about half of the kale so there's room to start the rest the end of June.)

Apparently we need to raise the fence along the back of the garden because there were deer tracks through the garden and it looks like it got in at the back by the onions. After fixing the places where the deer stomped today, I planted cauliflower, broccoli, a marigold, buttercruch lettuce, and more romaine. Some animal dug up a few of the new strawberry plants so I replanted those too. I put up some CDs around the garden to deter the animals from going in there any more.  We'll see if it helps.

The squash and pumpkins sprouted yesterday so I brought them downstairs under the lights when I brought up the broccoli and cauliflower. Hopefully the weather will cooperate so we can plant the tomatoes on time because on the top shelf I moved the chain up as far as it will go and the tomatoes are right up to the light.  We got another shop light from Sue on Saturday too, so when we get new full spectrum bulbs we'll be able to use that for plants also.  The squash I started for Cathy and the watermelon haven't sprouted yet.

Cauliflower growing inside

Garlic

Cauliflower and beets

Broccoli

Marigold by the back fence

Animal dug up a strawberry plant

Seed Starting & Compost

I started the watermelon and all of the squash and put them above the fridge to germinate.

I hauled 4 cartloads of compost tot he garden and put it on the beds. The handle broke on the garden cart on the last load so we'll need to fix the garden cart and/or the wheelbarrow before we can move any more compost.

The rhubarb that I spotted a little nub the other day has sprouted further and now has a couple leaves.

Plants on growing shelves downstairs

More rhubarb coming up

We finally got compost!

Boy, what a difference a couple days makes! The temp was in the 70s Friday and yesterday. Today it was 80! We went to the county compost site yesterday and picked up a whole trailer load of compost and a small bale of straw. The guy working at the compost site (John) said he'd keep an eye out for any more straw and set it aside for me.
 

Kaitlyn loosening soil to plant peas

Kaitlyn shoveling compost

Today I put compost on almost half of the garden. I also planted peas, salsify, carrots, and the romaine, spinach and black seeded simpson that are in the center of the bed where the peas are planted. We're supposed to get lots of rain tonight and tomorrow so I didn't water yet.

Kaitlyn and I moved some bricks to the front flower bed where the tulips are starting to come up. After the tulips are done I'll build up that bed so people stop walking on it and I'll plant more flowers there.

Lettuce growing in pots inside

Rhubarb is coming up

Hauling compost to the garden beds

Compost on the garden bed

Kaitlyn helping in the tulip bed

Peas are planted and stakes in place

Snow & indoor gardening

Between yesterday and today we got just over 11 inches of snow. :(  The compost site has postponed opening until Monday. With Al's work schedule we won't be able to get compost until Friday or Saturday, so hopefully the snow will melt before that.

Snow by 6pm. We got another 2" after that.

Add'l snow by 8am.

The buttercrunch lettuce is getting so big it's shading other seedlings so we stopped at Home Depot on the way home to get potting soil so I can transplant the lettuce to pots and just grow it inside. 6 of the borage sprouted today. I moved the light up again above the tomatoes that are on the top shelf. A couple more banana peppers and California Wonder bell peppers have sprouted.

Borage

Buttercrunch Lettuce

Romaine Lettuce

Darn Snow

It sure doesn't seem like spring yet. We got close to 6" of snow on Thursday and about an inch Friday. Today we had a bunch of snow and some freezing rain. One of these days it has to stop snowing!!! Because of the snow the compost site has delayed opening until next Saturday (4/20) so we'll plan to get compost and wood chip mulch then. Hopefully the snow will melt and the beds will dry out by then so I can plant the April seeds then.

Snow on the garden 4-10

Still snowing 4-11

Snow in the driveway 4-11

I never thought I'd need to use this in April.

I have several romaine and buttercrunch lettuce plants that are just about ready to transplant. The broccoli and cauliflower are just about ready too. I moved the lights above the tomatoes up several links.

Bachelor Buttons and Marigolds

Eggplant

Romaine

Buttercrunch lettuce, cauliflower

Tomatoes

Peppers

Plants under shop lights

Since it's been so cold I'm concerned about the borage, nasturtiums, and forget-me-nots actually germinating if I direct sow them so I started inside today in peat pots and put them above the fridge.

Weather & Plant Update

It's been cold the last couple days but tomorrow to Friday it's supposed to be in the low 50s for daytime high temps so hopefully the rest of the snow on the garden will melt. I haven't gone out to look closely, but it looks like some of the chives may be up already.

I found instructions to make a handy template tool for making holes for planting in a square foot garden so I'll make some of those in the next week or so.

The plants under the shop lights are doing well and a couple of the chamomiles have now sprouted.

According to the county website the compost site opens for regular hours on April 15th so Dad will bring his trailer down on the 13th so we can get compost and woodchips the week of the 15th.

broccoli & cauliflower

jalapeno peppers

bachelor buttons

cauliflower, basil, lettuce, marigolds

eggplant