right now

right now

Feb 18, 2011

Flying solo again!

 Hubby left this afternoon... I had him doing all sorts of chores and even had him get a load of mulch in the trailer and park it next to the garden - and then I realized that he was leaving on a hiking trip, not deployment - so I basically had him do a months worth of chores to prepare me for 4 days of him being gone!  LOL, I don't know any other way...

The computer issue turned out to be an easy fix (macs rule!) I did myself, but it did finally light a fire under me to get my computer backed up.  I've finally purchased backup and have been running it for the past 2 days, should be another 2 days or so and the entire hard drive will be backed up.

 LOTS of stuff getting done the past couple of days.   Temps of 65º yesterday and 76º today has had me outside nonstop, and loving it, I couldn't tear myself away until now!  I did a good job of reminding myself it's only February and not sowing any flower seeds or anything, but I did get lots of planting done!  I checked my calendar, and I sowed peas last year on Feb 10th, it was much colder outside and we had a fantastic crop, so in they went.

Cleaned up all the beds in the small fenced in garden.  The only plants to survive the winter (other than leeks, scallions & garlic) were half of the spinach and the below:


Brussels Sprouts?  LOL, figures they would live through the whole winter... yuck!

Below, felt good to have my caddy along today armed with markers, shims for plant tags and SEEDS!


Below:  back right bed has Oregon Sugar Pod II snap peas, broccoli will go in the front of them when it's time, the back left bed only has brussels sprouts right now, front left bed has another trellis with Cascadia snap peas and carrot seeds, and front right bed contains parsley, scallions, Olympia spinach, Mizuna greens, Mignonette Bronze lettuce, Tango lettuce and mache'.


Signs of spring: pansies planted last fall are coming back to life in some of the beds - I usually plant rows of them between the varieties of onions and garlic.


I was worried that I planted my garlic too late (I did) and that the bulbs would rot before they had time to grow since they are usually about a foot tall going into winter, but here they come, behind the red and yellow pansies.  


Below, all of my artichoke seeds sprouted or are just peeking up, and only took a couple of days - much bettter luck than last year!


Below is hubby's light setup - I laughed when he brought it in and asked him if he thought I was growing  "another kind of plant" since he made the frame so TALL, LOL... good thing I had enough chain to lower the lights and a booster seat for the trays hahaha!  There's only one flat in there now but it will fit 4 flats in it - it's parked in the kids' room, there was nowhere else for it to go!


Here's hubby taking off this afternoon for the annual "Guys Only Winter Hike" on the Appalachian Trail.  The guys come from a 75 mile radius or so, they will all meet after work in Williamsburg and then head out the Blue Ridge Parkway until they get to the trail head and leave the car there and hike in at night tonight.  Although I love hiking, I'm not jealous - I want no part of this nonsense:  you should see what gets packed for the guys only trip!  Survivalist homemade pop can camp stoves, 10 different ways to "make fire", flasks of scotch, cigars, they are probably going to shoot and eat squirrels LOL... whatever... he even used my sewing machine to make himself an ultralight hammock to sleep in.  One of the last things he said was how this nice weather was going to put a damper on the fun hiking in the cold, wet, snowy trail - yes, he's happiest in "survival mode"!  I sent him with my camera so I expect some good photos when he gets back, that is if he doesn't turn it into some kind of snare trap or firestarter.  



Me?  I'm going to light a few candles on the back deck and enjoy a glass or two of wine and the lovely 60º evening we are in for!  I'm hoping for the energy to work on the quilt after the kids go to bed, but after the full work day I've had outside I'm not sure that will pan out!  I'm hoping to get some sweet pea seeds into the ground tomorrow...

14 comments:

  1. Well, m'dear, you are definitely living in a different world than we are! Woke up to 9 degrees and ice covering everything this morning. Lots of melting the last two days left standing water everywhere . . . which froze very solidly overnight. We listened to gale force winds all night and they have continued during the day today. Can you say, "D*#n, it's cold out there!"

    Thanks for the garden tour. I could almost smell the new earth you've been playing in. Gotta go stoke the fire now.

    Hope hubby has a wonderful hiking trip! You should take the time to get some quilting in.

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  2. I'm happy to hear that your computer is now fixed and it wasn't one of those computer problems that cost to much $$$

    It looks like you got a lot done in the garden and you found a home for your light set-up.

    I just love the Blue Ridge Parkway...enjoy your evening :)

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  3. I almost couldn't read all of your post - I am so envious of your warm weather - and the fact that you can actually see dirt! Sounds like a lovely evening - have a glass of wine for me.

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  4. Mama Pea & Susan, it feels kind of strange, and we have frost until April so I won't jump the gun too quickly! Seems strange that just last Monday the kids had a snow day!

    Robin, my back is already telling me I did a bit too much in the garden!

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  5. I am looking outside at 4 inches of mud and thinking how un-fun it would be to go camping in this mess. I would much rather do the wine on the porch for sure. And I love camping. Enjoy your evening.

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  6. We have a wonderful night like that coming our way as well. Cousins are spending the night with the kids and I'm thinking of taking the e-reader and a beverage outside on the porch.

    Life is good, and gardening is right around the corner.

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  7. Sure was nice to see what you've been up to outside. We HAD a nice warm-up, lost about 2 foot of snow (still another foot to go) and are under the gun for a snowstorm. Sigh.
    Well, happy planting!!

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  8. It was sunny here today too but not real warm, probably around 5C.

    I can't believe you've got plants growing already!

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  9. My garden is longing for a warm day, so I can go out there and clean up the winter mess. It was quite warm here last week, but the weatherman knew I was coming home, so the temps plunged. That's OK for now, but it had better be warmer next week for the annual shed cleanup and dead squash removal/mini-greenhouse setup.

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  10. Let the Spring Feva Begin!

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  11. Wow, you've been busy... So far I only managed to do some garden clean up, cutting back dead branches, cleaning up the beds... It is supposed to be in the upper 60's or low 70's this weekend, so hopefully I'll be able to get more done.
    Enjoy your weekend!

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  12. I love New England, but I admit I do envy you your extended growing season :) I keep toying with the idea of building a hoop-house. Maybe if I get around to shifting the garden fence this year?

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  13. Hey Erin, glad you just had a small glitch and not a major breakdown.

    I got a video recommendation from the SFG forum and wanted to pass it along, it's on using dish soap for squash bugs, and it shows them dying. The guy even mentioned the satisfaction he got from killing them, reminded me of me last year out in the garden with hubby's flame thrower burning the darn things after they killed my squash, should have gotten video of that. Anyhoo, I just wanted to share that I posted that video and another on my blog, the other one debunks the myth that the bugs come with the seeds, I was amazed to learn that (just kidding). I will be out in the garden this year with dish soap, pepper spray, Pyola, and if all else fails, a butane tank and a flame thrower.

    Isn't it nice to get outside, we hit 70 yesterday, and are expecting 70's through next week, with a bit or rain. I have already used an entire trailer load of dirt, hubby will be hauling off a load of scrap tomorrow morning and returning with a second load of dirt. It costs $30 for 30 cubic yards. I still have empty boxes (and empty spots to put boxes) so he needs to get a move on. I'm off to Lowe's to buy some blue taters, have an awesome day!!!!

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  14. I've never tried to grow artichokes before. Are they hardy?

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