Believe it or not, it's time to plant spring crops (said incredulously as I look out at the pouring rain)! I spent some time yesterday looking through my seed packets to see what I have from last year, what I have bought and forgot about, and what I still need to get. So far, I have planted Oregon Sugar Pod Peas, Little Finger Carrots, Giant Nobel Spinach, Red Romaine Lettuce, and Buttercrunch Lettuce. Other things that could go in the ground now are Swiss Chard, Onions, Broccoli, Cabbage, Radishes, Beets, Asparagus, Cauliflower, and Kohlrabi...to name a few! Now that the ground has thawed, it is a good time to plant berries, grapes, rhubarb, and horseradish as well. All my veggie growing is going down in pots this year due to the clearing of my larger 'in ground' veggie garden to make way for a fountain and knot garden...priorities. :) I still crave those tender spring crops though, and won't let having no available space stop me! All it takes is a couple of free pots, some soil, and seed, and you have it made!
We love spring. It is a time of promise and big plans. A time when our eyes are possibly bigger than our space in which to grow (spoken, admittedly, from experience). In all, it's a fun time in the garden world! We have spent the winter researching seeds and deciding on a few new varieties to throw in with the tried-and-true, we have reworked our garden design to assure proper crop rotation, and have gathered up needed soil amendments to work in before planting (we HIGHLY recommend Natural Guard Soil Activator). Now, it's finally time to don the wellies and raincoat and dig in!
A few varieties that we LOVE are:
Purple Queen Bush Beans
Sweet Olive Tomato
Suyo Nishiki Cucumber
Freckles Lettuce
Oregon Sugar Pod Pea
There are scores of other veggies we love, but these are a few that we plant EVERY SINGLE YEAR.
AND...as a quick side note...Speaking of growing your own food, you should check out this book (though it really deserves a post all of it's own). It's about a family who journeys through an entire year while eating nothing but locally grown or homegrown foods. The author delves into the many merits of organically, locally grown food, and the into the demerits of the big conglomerate seed companies who are beginning to produce mutant GMO seeds, and who are trying to buy up and monopolize the seed market. There is nothing natural or healthy about what these companies are doing. Read this book for some good info about it!
It has inspired me to be more conscious of what I am buying and putting into my body, as well as to who I am supporting in the process!
~Laura
