5/12 Garden Update

My garden is doing quite well.
Yesterday I weeded the entire thing. It took me about six hours but it really was alright. There were quite a few clouds so I didn't get sunburned but it was cool and it didn't rain. It wasn't heavy labor that might trigger an itching episode from the last of the venom in my system but it was physical and relaxing. I can't imagine many other ways I would have enjoyed more than spending my day like I did.

Here is my garden. I don't know if you can see but a little over half the plants are starting to outgrow their containers. I intend to switch to 2 liter bottles when they get larger and begin to harden them off as they reach the tops of the 2 liters before removing them completely and moving the container to a different plant that has outgrown is smaller container. I also transplanted some of the last of my broccoli. I know, so very late, too late, but we'll see. The broccoli that's in my garden seems very stunted, and those are the ones that survived at all. I may not get any broccoli this year, but at least I gave it my best. I also put out a couple more kale and (re)planted carrots. This time I will make sure to cover them before pests can get to them (I have four out of about 20 growing from my last attempt). Other than that, reading the growing instructions on bell peppers was daunting. I think I will hoe out an area near the fence around the end of may and see if they'll grow there.

I picked two pea pods and ate them yesterday. They were quite tasty. and my pea plants seem to be doing pretty well, even if they are kind of short, and some of the ground planted ones seem to have had more trouble with bugs (don't know why, it's just a few).

Here is my sage plant, which seems to be turning into a bush. I'm very happy with the results of wintering it.

Oh, and this is actually a picture of my largest spinach from last week (obviously, as the garden is filled with weeds and maple seeds). It's larger now, and I think in another week I will start clipping off leaves to use.

Finally, I wanted to give you an up-close of one of my lettuces. This was actually taken while I was thinning them. I made a nice salad out of what I thinned and each "container" (what's the word for it?) has only one plant now. I'm very happy with them thus far.

Finally, I planted zania seeds in the front yard near the tree and near the rocks in our "flower bed." Hopefully those will grow. If they do I have every intention of pesticiding them. I would like people who are not just my next-door-neighbor to know I take care of my home, and it would be a nice sort of pretty-but-silent farewell to the neighborhood before I move.