Spring Chores :: Spring Light

Daylight savings time was a gift on many levels for this working mama.

Instead of returning to the homestead in the dark, I drive home with the pink and golden evening sun-lit sky stretching out before me. I get to put Willa on my back and trudge out to the soil, to the garden and sometimes beyond - for a walk. And, with her early bedtime, the evening can continue. I can work in the garden for a spell. Listening to the birds, poking in the dirt.

Last week, I eked out every moment I could - with the fading light. Irises tucked away. Snap peas and sweet peas sown. Calendula, lettuces, spinach, kale starts, and radishes in the raised beds. The herb bed fed with compost - with sage, chives, rosemary, oregano, yarrow and lavender peaking out. The rhubarb is unfurling.

The outdoor room (photos soon) that I can see from our big front window is coming together. I just ordered some willow wattle fencing and am putting hints of blue here and there. A bird bath, large glazed pottery and The Bench. The true-blue ephemeral bulbs are sprouting in the grass and in other spots - where-ever the earth moving machines deposited them. Turns out the happenstance nature of that sort of landscaping suits me.

This week :: Clearing more of the raised beds to make way for sowing carrots and planting mulberries and juneberries. Ordering some daylilies. Tracking down some echinacea, yarrow and black-eyed susan seeds to give the seed balls another go-round. And finally putting up the bluebird houses (we, ah-em, received these as gifts five (!) years ago).

Hope the longer days are giving you what you need as spring kicks into gear!

Tasha Tudor and Her Gardens

In a parallel universe, I would be an apprentice to Tasha Tudor. Learning all about cottage gardens. Tending to hollyhocks, forget-me-nots, foxgloves. Baking bread and hand-dipping candles and wearing old-fashioned smocks and bonnets while sitting next to the fire with some knitting.

Tasha died earlier this year, at the age of 92, and I imagine she is somewhere - curled up with a corgi or two and sewing, painting, creating.

What she left behind are treasures upon treasures. In the gardening world, she has written books about gardening with children and her own gardening endeavors. You can buy cottage garden seeds from her garden descendants, as well. The prints above are her own watercolors of her gardens.

Tasha's world is also big on the cozy, simple celebrations around wintertime and Christmas. I just put two videos on hold at our local library - on the holidays with Tasha Tudor and The Magical World of Tasha Tudor. With the long Thanksgiving weekend coming up - I'm hoping I can curl up with Willa for a bit and visit Tasha's Vermont house for a half hour or so.

I know that I would look silly in a bonnet, but Willa is always a willing model.

Sow A Seed in June? Can You Dig It? Yes, You Can!

Last year, I wrote a little bit about herbs, vegetables and flowers that can still be started in June.

Thought it might be a nice day for a blog re-run. Visit the link above for details . . .

Local Color: Seeds from TJ's Gardens

Yes, from high upon the mount, Monticello, down, down, down to my humble garden. The Center for Historic Plants at Monticello sells seeds that are direct descendants from Thomas Jefferson's own gardens. It is good to know I can buy myself a bit of class, thrown in with a bit of history. Makes for a good story in the garden.

I picked these up during an outing with Kris, her little boy, Will, and Willa. We walked the Thomas Jefferson Parkway up, up, up to Monticello and saw that they had plants for sale, as well as a tempting selection of seeds.

Not one to walk away from a seed rack empty handed, I am testing out . . .

Hollyhock (Alcea rosea) - "In a Garden Book entry in 1782, Thomas Jefferson noted that his Monticello hollyhocks flowered from mid-June through July. These seeds were harvested from Monticello hollyhocks, which produce four to seven (!) foot spikes of single flowers in shades of pink, with occasional white, yellow and red blooms."

Blackberry Lily (Belamcanda chinesis) - "Jefferson planted 'Chinese Ixia' in an oval flower bed in 1807. It grows to three feet with showy orange flowers in mid-summer and blackberry like seeds in September."

'Caseknife' Pole Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) - "The Caseknife pole bean is one of the oldest documented bean varieties in American gardens, dating to the 1820's."

No where near Monticello? No problem. You can buy them online here.

The Spring Garden Takes Shape

Corey, Baby and I beat feet over to Staunton yesterday morning for a visit and a walk through their farmers' market. They had just what I needed these days - starter plants for the vegetable and herb garden. Then, I snuck out to the garden today - for a quick 15 minutes - and got all seven plants in their proper spots. And the first row of radishes sown.

Simpson Elite Lettuce
Another unknown lettuce variety
Swiss Chard
Thyme
Chives
Italian Curly Parsley
Apple Mint

Phew. And now? I nap.

Snippets of New Momma Gardening Endeavors

My new life hit me literally overnight. I went from being a pod and a vessel to a food source. A master laundress. A mama.

So, my gardening these days comes by piece meal. Which, I thought would frustrate me. Instead, the slower pace has been an eye-opener. Splicing up my gardening time and projects into little moments that I find intriguing - with the time to look at more of the details. Close up. Before they disappear and I am called away from them.

My commitment to growing easy cutting flowers has not faultered. My inability to say no and limit seed purchasing has no end, however. As of today, I have seven varieties of zinnia seed packets. More probably to follow. I'm planting - Apricot Blush, All Summer Cutting Mix, Giant Flowered Mix, Exquisite, State Fair Mixed Colors, Fruit Smoothie and Granny's Bouquet.

Flower and fern pressings from this past fall. Watching one too many Victorian-set BBC programs has me framing my ferns! An obsession with tea and crumpets to follow.

Bulbs in containers. It was my first year trying this and I am thrilled to pieces ('Thrilled to pieces?!' When did I start saying things like that?! Egads. Must be another side effect of the BBC addiction.) My absolute favorite tulip color totally does my blue pottery justice. I keep peeking out our back door to gaze and gander at them.

A Late Start . . . But A Start, None-The-Less

Willa and I scurried out between the rain storms this morning and planted seeds. Weeeeeee! It smelled great - the bluebirds chirp-ily greeted us out in the raised beds and baby snoozed against my chest in her little carrier while I tossed seeds into the ground.

We're pushing things a tad - as far as starting times. In the interest of efficiency, I just mixed all of the lettuce and greens seeds together. I'll harvest it as a ready-made salad mix. It'll include Oakleaf lettuce, Saladbowl lettuce, Deer Tongue lettuce and arugula. Spinach was sowed in a separate row - I know, late for spinach, but I did sow the Bloomsdale variety (which is supposed to do better in the heat and puts off bolting a little longer . . . ). Up against our pea trellis, I got the Sugar Snap peas and the sweet peas in the ground.

AND, while I was out there - I saw that our three rhubarb plants were kickin' it and calling it a comeback - as healthy as ever. Huzzah - huzzah - huzzah!

Rethinking the Possibilities in the Vegetable Garden

I now realize that I love seed collections. Especially ones that include seed suggestions for new varieties that never would have come up on my radar. The Seeds of Change collections are especially motivating. With spring so close, spring greens and lettuce varieties reside at the front of my brain. And, BTW, Seeds of Change specializes in organic, open-pollinated varieties. My kind of seed peeps.

The one that has my attention this morning?! Their European Greens Medley Seed Collection . It includes Bellesque Endive, Wild Garden Chicory, Early Palla Rossa Radicchio, Garden Sorrel, Brune D'Hiver Buttercos Lettuce, Bloomsdale Spinach, Val D'Orge Butterhead Lettuce, Rouge deGrenoblouse Crisphead Lettuce, Persian Garden Cress and Roquette Arugula. Imagine all of the different textures and colors in your lettuce bed! Or, maybe, your portable, container-friendly salad box.

Mmmmwaaaaahhh. Mmmmwaaaahhh. More. Seeds.

Where-ever I go, there you are.

Seed racks. Rows upon rows of seed packets. Some of you beguile me with color photos or botanical watercolors. Others court me by touting your organic origins. With promises of a new day, a bountiful spring and the garden to end all gardens.

I hope I still get this giddy about February seed daydreaming when I am 80, 90 - 100!

In keeping with my promise to myself about gardening and the unknown world of motherhood, I just purchased tried and true seed varieties. Mammoth Russian Sunflowers, Zinnia - State Fair, Heavenly Blue Morning Glory, Cosmos - Early Sensation and some greens - arugula, Salad Bowl lettuce and Deer Tongue lettuce. All from Southern Exposure Seed Exchange.

What's this - at the bottom of my shopping bag? One last seed packet - Sweet Pea, Royal Family Mixed Colors. Egads. I must have blacked out for a moment at the seed rack. Not the easiest to cultivate 'round these parts. I guess I'll try them one more time, just this year.

Although, I have a feeling I'll still be pursuing sweet peas when I am 80, 90, 100 . . .

Back in the Hollow!

A busy-busy weekend. I moved back out to our beautiful house. A TON of nesting. Getting to appreciate the details as the major, sweeping construction aspect - that has been our lives for five years - winds up. Forgot for a moment that I am a huge POD, a vessel, you name it . . . and wore myself out a bit. Albeit, gleefully.

From the top:

Dragonfly Tiffany's stained glass lamp - bought at Caravati's in Richmond, VA. The colors remind me of all the ways the sun hits those Blue Ridge Mountains.

Garden and spring daydreaming by-way-of Renee's Garden seed packets. Some winter days, I'm not sure what gets me more - the thought of sprinkling those seeds down in the spring - or staring at each seed packet's gorgeous watercolors. Either way, I'm a complete chump.

A mini-greenhouse from, get this, Target. Complete with organic herb seeds - oregano, basil, lemon balm, curly parsley . . . I am one smitten kitten. February weather can suck all it wants - I'll have a corner of the house growing new things. I hope.

Getting All Your Ducks, Er, Seeds In A Row

A few handy-dandy sites that will help you navigate the dizzying seed starting process.

Frost Chart - from the Farmer's Almanac. You'll need these dates to calculate when to start your seeds.

A brilliant seed starting chart from You Grow Girl. Just plug in your last frost date information and away you go!

Southern Exposure Seed Exchange's seed starting chart - as part of their catalog - page 3. Specific to the Mid-Atlantic states. Yep - that's (some of) us.

Local Color: Get Thee To A Greenhouse!

Ivy Nursery's Greenhouse

I just zipped out to lunch, to pick up a little somethin' for my mother-in-law's birthday. I decided to visit Ivy Nursery - since their greenhouse is so totally kick ass. Houseplants galore. Delicate ferns of all varieties, the scent of gardenias wafting through the deliciously humid air, cyclamens in all colors, ivies, primroses, succulents.

If you are feeling the winter doldrums, their greenhouse will pull you out of that slump. Beware, Ivy Nursery is not for the penny pincher - I usually visit for ideas and for gifts. But, I may treat myself to a few unusual ferns for my brand-spankin' new Wardian Case.

I ended up buying sweet, dwarf yellow narcissus and a small Guy Wolff & Co. scalloped-edge planter. For my MIL.

For me? I couldn't resist. They sell my cottage-garden-drug-of-choice seeds - Renee's Garden Seeds. I picked up a new variety of zinnia for 2008 - "Apricot Blush" and another zinnia - "Granny's Bouquet", as well as Hyacinth Bean Vine in "Ruby Moon." Phew. What a rush.

Easy Peasy Spring Vegetable Crops

Seed sellers Southern Exposure Seed Exchange already have their seed packets sprouting up around town. I have seen them at both Rebecca's Natural Foods and Integral Yoga.

You can also order the catalog here.

What's so spectacular about SESE?

1. They are local - so you are buying seeds that do well in our area. This cuts back severely on the first-time gardener frustration factor.

2. They sell organic heirlooms. Enough said.

3. Their catalog ROCKS. At the front, is a sowing/transplanting guide that is nothing short of a thing of beauty. Clear information on best sowing dates and times specific to our area. No math skills needed; no counting backwards necessary. Seasoned and newbie gardeners will find it helpful. Get the catalog or view last year's catalog in .pdf format on their website (the planting chart is on page 3).

If you are thinking about trying out vegetable gardening for the first time, early spring is an ideal season to start. The crops are easy to sow and harvest and are so thoroughly appreciated after a long winter. The seed varieties I recommend from SESE that have yet to let me down:

Long Standing Bloomsdale Spinach
Black-Seeded Simpson Lettuce
Red Salad Bowl Lettuce
Cherry Belle Radishes
Sugar Snap Peas

These can all be sown directly into your garden. No indoor seed starting and no transplanting. Mixed all together, they make one of the best salads around. A spring tonic of sorts. Go. For. It.

Uh-Oh. It Is Already June. What Can I Still Start From Seed?

When I first started working in nurseries and going to school for horticulture, I found the bevy of rules and information almost paralyzing. Planting times, staggered planting times, last frost dates. I couldn't imagine that things had to be that stringent. Seeds and seedlings are so resilient, yes?

So, I was delighted when I received my most recent email newsletter from Johnny's Selected Seeds and it included a list of flowers, vegetables and herbs you can direct sow in June! How cool is that?!

******
HERBS - Basil, borage, calendula, chamomile, chervil, cilantro, dill, epazote, flax, marjoram, milk thistle, parsley, poppy, savory, shiso, and spilanthes.

FLOWERS - Ammi, calendula, centaurea, cleome, cosmos, grasses, hyacinth bean, marigold, morning glory, nasturtium, phlox, poppy, reseda, salpiglossis, scarlet runner bean, snow on the mountain, sunflowers, tithonia, and zinnia.

VEGETABLES - Beans, beets, carrot, corn, cucumber, endive, escarole, kohlrabi, kale, lettuce, pumpkins, radishes (Easter Egg heirloom variety pictured above), spinach, squash, and Swiss chard.

******
I know that I will never have it together enough to have everything in the ground by the end of May. I'm not made for that type of gardening. Happily, I'll be out there this evening, sowing my little pickling cucumber seeds. At a pace that better suits me and my own internal gardening calendar.

Seeds Bombs - Ready for Firing (and Flinging)

Ah, yes - a project filled with much promise. I am still holding onto the quote from the Path to Freedom website that states these bombs are great for 'derelict' sites. Man-o-Manishevitz, I hope so.

I have been making seeds balls in the evenings, while watching my Netflix DVDs. I ended up getting regular terracotta clay from the art supply shop. I mixed the following seeds with some compost, pinched off a penny-sized bit of clay and molded, rolled, molded, rolled. A good workout for my digits. I set them in the sun for a day or two (to harden) and simply placed the bombs on top of the soil.

Natives
Echinacea
Black-Eyed Susan

Annuals
Bachelor's Buttons
Calendula
Cosmos
Love-in-a-Mist
Sunflowers

I will test them out in two sites on our land. One - the bad of the bad - a true derelict site - compacted red clay that we have tried to till up. The second - a more humus-rich soil in a bed that I made over the winter. Both full sun.

I am helping the clay soil spot a little bit with occasional waterings. The other will have to rely, somewhat, on nature. Seed bombs are specifically designed to deal with areas that receive low rainfall - as the clay/compost combination protects and feeds the seeds as they sprout.

Please visit the Path to Freedom site for great directions (and photos) on how to make a seed ball/bomb. It also lists other sources on seed balls - if you want to dig further.

Holy Cow! *Lightbulb* Seed Balls!!

I get it. I get it. Finally!

Seed balls (a.k.a. "seed bombs") are a sure-fire way of introducing and establishing native plants - from seed. As quoted from the very cool website, Path to Freedom, "seeds balls are a great way to seed waste areas in your yard."

Being that our land has been a construction zone for years - that's us! The site adds, "They (are) useful for seeding dry, thin and compacted soils and for reclaiming derelict ground. This method takes a fraction of the time or cost of other methods to cover large areas and is also very applicable in small areas."

The seed balls, a mix of compost, clay and native wildflower seeds, prevent the seeds from drying up, blowing away or being eaten by birds and the like. They are especially successful in areas with low rainfall.

You don't even need to bury them - just 'bomb' the area with seed balls by setting them on top of the ground. Here are very simple instructions to make your own, from the Path to Freedom website.

Or, you can purchase pre-made seeds balls here.
I just picked up some terracotta clay at lunchtime. I have black-eyed susan and echinacea seeds at home. I may also try sunflowers. Desperately waiting for 5 o'clock to roll around - when The Man releases me from his grip and I can go p-l-a-y!

Life in Sugar Hollow Seed Give-Away/Door Prize!

I have a seed collection of four heirloom tomato varieties that I will mail to the first person to send me an email.

sugarholler@hotmail.com

I have a nice amount of Cherokee Purple and Brandywine Pink seeds. And around 10 seeds each of Black Prince and Yellow Marble.

This could be an opportunity to try out heirlooms - free! I'll even kick in the postage.

Give me a shout!

UPDATE: Taken!

Seed Starting - Part II. I Still Suck At It.

My experiment with starting tomato seeds in egg cartons has failed miserably. Look away and don't read another word if you are hoping for seedling tips. This part of gardening - I know the talk, but can't walk the walk.

I was hoping to use up our piles of egg cartons for something green. They failed, I think, for several reasons.

1. Too shallow.
2. Dried out too easily.
3. The individual working with the seedlings is a bumbling oaf.

Errr . . .

I started another group of seedlings - it may not be the ideal sowing time - maybe they can be my group of "late" producers.

I'm also fortunate enough to have a local supplier of heirloom tomato plants. My back-up. Thank goodness . . .

On the bright side, the other seedlings - my black-eyed susan vine, shasta daisies and calendula - are hanging tough and Rockin' with Dokken. Their healthy vigor, I believe, simply lies in their good stock. Lucky for me. Small victories!

Seed Starting. Ugh. Actually. Double Ugh.

Most garden bloggers have photos of their healthy, vibrant seedlings on display these days.

Not me. You don't want to see what I do to seedlings. In fact, I can barely think about it without my stomach going in knots.

Leggy? Yep. Damping off? Check. Mostly dead at this point? Check. Check.

I find faith in an article that I read recently by a life-long gardener. He described the abuse his seedlings took - while he tried to grow them in a classroom as a high schooler. Fellow classmates would try, when his back was turned, to kill the seedlings in various ways, including pouring soda into the soil. But, the author explained, the seedlings persisted and won out in the end.

Maybe some of mine will pull through. My maltreatment wasn't of the same ilk as those high schoolers. Just more ding-batty than anything else. An inability to pick up on the subtle cues each seedling gave me during their sprouting.

I will probably go home this evening and start from scratch. Try to apply what I learned from this last batch of seedlings. That is, after all, what keeps me addicted to gardening. Is it frustrating? Sometimes. Forgiving? Often. Boring? Never. Thank goodness.

Seed Lust - Part IV - Well, Well

Heirloom Acres Seeds
Over 700 varieties of heirloom vegetable, herb and flower seeds, books, cover crops
http://www.heirloomacresseeds.com/

Looky, looky here. No. Self. Control. Sir Otis is pictured with my most recent seed packet booty.

I feel an intervention coming on. I can rationalize this act of horticultural debauchery by arguing that it will ultimately be a source of food for us - but we all know it runs a little deeper than that. This e-commerce racket will be my undoing.

I was drawn to Heirloom Acres Seeds for two reasons - 1. Access to an incredible selection of heirloom variety flowers and vegetables and; 2. The $.95 mini-packs.

Heirloom seeds are open-pollinated varieties (think of birds and bees handling the pollination bit) that have roots in an earlier time and an original seed. Some say pre-1951 is the cut off. Growing heirlooms is moving away from the monoculture trend in today's agriculture - i.e. grow the same dependable hybrids over and over. Instead, with heirlooms, you have more varieties and you will be sustaining the future of each heirloom vegetable through growing and nurturing them in your own garden.

Some of my newly arrived heirlooms (heart racing as I write this) - Stowells Evergreen White Sweet Corn, Bronze Mignonette Lettuce, Caribe Red(dish) Potatoes, and (drumroll) The Best in Taste Tomato Sampler - which includes - Black Prince, Brandywine Pink, Cherokee Purple, Mrs. Maxwell's Big Italia and Yellow Marble. I must say, the smaller packets for $.95 help me screw up the courage to try something new without having hundred of seeds to feel accountable for . . .

On that note, join me (laugh at me?) as I also try to grow asparagus and rhubarb in the Piedmont. Guffaws are welcome . . .