Tuesday, February 24, 2015

The Maple Hill Hop 69



Maple Hill Hop


Welcome to 
The Maple Hill Hop.
This is a hop for folks who love the outdoors.
Feel free to post about anything that's going on
OUTSIDE
in your neck of the woods,
no matter the season.
(Please share only outdoor posts.)
*Please link back to Maple Hill 101.*


Our winter has been mostly mild this year,
but we recently endured a bit of a chilly blast.
With temperatures predicted around freezing,
measures had to be taken to protect our crops. 
 
The practice of covering up ornamentals was stopped years ago,
when the garden became more Florida-friendly and less at risk for damage with cold temps.
The native plants will take whatever Mother Nature can dish out,
but with all the food we have growing, 
we wanted to be sure that something would be harvested in the next few weeks.




Here's an eggplant that will soon be flowering.




It got bundled up in a sheet and clothespinned to keep the drafts out.
The stakes surrounding the plant help to support the sheet,
so that the plant's delicate leaves aren't stressed.




My lone Roma tomato plant got covered with a feed sack
and anchored with some bricks.
It had just shown the first flower the morning before.



Another feedsack protects a potted eggplant.
It sure came in handy to have these sacks around!



The new border of lettuce was draped in old towels.



The veggies in the square-foot garden and adjacent bed were snug as a bug.
Here's where we have more eggplant, lettuce, broccoli and thyme.


These bricks were taken from a footpath that I had just redesigned.  Oh well...
We also used some filled water jugs and terra cotta flower pots.
You use what ya got!


Looks like some strange stuff growing in this garden, huh?



The next morning, the welcome sunshine was able to
warm us up and dry the covers out,
so that we'll have them for the next time.
With the full moon coming next week,
this should be the last chance of a frost or a freeze for this season,
but it's always a possibility.
A quick check on the garden showed us that everything survived just fine.





We may just get some tomatoes yet!

Although we haven't experienced anything close to
what our northern neighbors have this winter,
we are grateful that Old Man Winter is on His way out.

What's been going on outside where you are?
HOP on!









10 comments:

  1. Nice garden plants that you have started. I am only dreaming at this point...we are -15 degrees right now.
    Lori from LL Farm

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    Replies
    1. Spring is coming soon because the birds here are singing up a storm! Hang in there!

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  2. So glad you saved your vegetables. Northern gardeners are used to this game----and everyone has a pile of blankets/etc for quick coverups.
    Love the sunshine in the pics. I could sure use a dose of that right now......

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  3. I'm glad all is snug and warm and safe for your plants. I love that photo of all the sheets stretched out. We play that game when the first frost of the season is coming - I dash out and cover everything up so it looks like I am growing ghosts. Happy Gardening. Best, Kim

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    Replies
    1. So glad you stopped by today. Hope you get to get into the dirt soon! ;0D

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  4. So glad you were able to save it all. I don't cover our ornamental plants either, it's so nice to not have to worry about them. We've had a very mild winter with more rain than we've had the last few years, so it's been great for growing.

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    Replies
    1. Your garden looks fabulous! Enjoy the transition to spring.

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  5. Thanks for hosting this hop. I really enjoy seeing what everyone is doing outdoors.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for taking the time to leave your thoughts!