Garden Vigilence

What's happening down on the "farm?" Let's begin with some pictures from last month. Pictured above is the second garden box that I built--the supplies and materials were an early birthday present from my love. In a soiless mixture of peat moss, vermiculite, and compost, I planted some already started broccoli (front right of box--notice the nice big uneaten leaves), sage thyme Italian parsley and three kinds of basil (front left in box), and three tomato plants across the back of the box. I also tried to start some seeds in the first box I built (pictured below), and I planted some seed potatoes in my build-as-you-grow potato bins, I first read about them here (pictured on the right).

Jump forward a couple of weeks and for my birthday I was treated by family and friends (again, thank you SO much!) to many gardening delights including jiffy greenhouses, some great books, a course in organic gardening at a local community college, and a field trip and spree at a beautiful local nursery/farm. At this point, the broccoli and tomatoes were progressing nicely although, I began to notice a few cabbage worms and some nibbled leaves. We removed the worms that we spotted and hoped that would be enough. Only two of the seeds I planted in my first box (pictured left) actually germinated but they quickly disappeared... And to my utter excitement, the papas had begun to sprout. Here they are on the right--aren't they cute? :)

I've since discovered that I can't start seeds outside because the birdies nab them as soon as their tiny green heads begin to peek out of the ground (that's why I thought none of my seeds had germinated!). Also, they will eat seedlings that are less than an inch tall. I'm also incredibly aware that cabbage worms get around! In about a week, I went from happy healthy broccoli, to where'd my broc go? Those little buggers also started in on my tomatoes and ate almost all my basil before I realized that there were so many of them! Good thing I have such great resources at hand! A trip to another fabulous local nursery and I came home armed for battle. I must insert here, that I am a pacifist and until now, I wasn't even willing to kill a poisonous spider in my home. But, I am realizing that the bugs and I are competing for food now, and my family needs the food more! There are plenty of other non fruit and veggie plants to munch on in my neighborhood. That said, I chose an organic bacterium specifically designed to combat caterpillars and worms--safe for beneficial bugs, birds, and humans. I'll update later on it's effectiveness...

Bounty from my birthday fun: Seeds: Sweet Peas (two varieties), love lies bleeding (I couldn't resist it for the name), rainbow Swiss chard, two varieties of artichoke, an heirloom variety of butter lettuce specifically for container gardens. Plants: two small sweet potato vines, a giant coleus called Kong Rose with delicious green and purple variegated leaves, a lemon scented geranium, and a rose scented geranium for momma.

I started the seedlings in the jiffy greenhouses and they shot right up--much faster than the packages of seeds said they would! I decided that I would plant the sweet peas and the love lies bleeding in the front yard on the side of the porch and acquired some bamboo and jute to make a homemade trellis (a project in You Grow Girl).

Pictured above: Left--the space beside the porch where my baby dug out the old soil to be replaced with new soil and the baby sweet peas and love lies bleeding. Center-- my bamboo lattice project. Right--the babies in their new home. :)

Next post: You won't believe the progress of the potatoes! Plus flowers, seeds, recycling, etc. Thanks for tuning in!