Garden Friday

 Welcome to Garden Friday!
It still feels like winter,
but the pansies don't seem to mind one bit.
I'm amazed at the fortitude of these blooms!

 The garlic just keeps on keepin' on!
I'm so glad that we planted three times the amount as last season.
The goal is to never buy store-bought garlic again.
Yeah, 
     it's 
          that 
                 good.

The cover crops are getting tall and filling in 
our two new beds.
These will house sweet potato, Yukon Gold potato
and butternut squash plants.  
As they were constructed last year,
they have yet to be planted,
and I'm looking forward to seeing how the cover crops affect them.

 The straw bales on the perimeter of the garden's south side
will be replaced with new bales purchased last fall.
The plan is to grow bush beans, cucumbers and okra in them.
The "discarded" bales will be used elsewhere on the property.

 Whaddayaknow?
This parsley plant is still hanging on
without much care.
Adding some worm castings and compost tea
should perk it right up.
Parsley is grown not only for cooking,
but also for the black swallowtail caterpillars to enjoy.

Our "spa" room is a makeshift greenhouse
where seedlings can be started while the cold wind blows outside.
Our aloe vera and lemongrass have overwintered in here as well.
Once temperatures warm up, they will head back to the garden.

 This week, I started working on our garden plan,
using the free planner offered on the Gardener's Supply website.
I've used it for the last few years and it's so easy to lay out your plan.
I'm still tweaking it, and hoping that by next week
I'll have the entire layout complete and printed out.

 A few packs of seeds came in the mail,
with more on the way.
This is a thrill every single time it happens.
Better than Christmas!
I've grown the tatsoi and tithonia previously,
but the Dragon Tongue bush beans and Cylindra beets will be a new crop this year.
It's so fun trying new varieties.

 The first of our daffs showed up this week.
It's been a rainy, windy and cold winter,
with intermittent gorgeous sunny days in the 60's.
It's no wonder that the plants don't know what to do.
I'm just grateful that spring is around the corner
so that we can grow some goodies!