It’s March. And in where I live that means rain, snow and hail. But it also means a few days here and there of sun breaks. Enough sun breaks that I may actually put on my wellies and start slogging around my yard. I did this over the weekend, it actually broke 60ยบ and it was so nice to start digging, or rather cleaning…spring cleanup. We live on a lot acreage and our home sits on 20 acres and the “yard” is maybe an acre. The line is a little blurry between yard and land but that’s the way I like it. So I’ve started the process of cleaning up the yard, checking out all the new growth and taking a general survey of all the projects I’m in for this season. Since weather is hit and miss and I’m a fair weather gardener, this process will take a few weeks.
But this is also the time of year when i need to start thinking about seeds. There are a few things I can get a head start on in the house under grow lights and some stuff I can start outside pretty soon and since I live in a 4 season climate I’ve had several months off to think about what I want to plant.
I’m new to gardening so I’m constantly scouring the internet and reading books. One thing I keep coming across is crop rotation…which means no tomatoes this year!! Yikes!! I think I’ve run out of places to plant them that haven’t had a two year break. I may have to break this rule and hope for the best.
This is the first step of the growing season…planning out the different crops, reviewing last years crops, tweaking things and figuring out what you want to plant this year. I will always remember what one of my former patients told me about gardening…”you never totally figure it out…you just try it and see how it goes, then the next year you tweak some things like soil and light and try it again…it’s an ever growing process” She had been gardening for years and I always loved it when she came in because I would glean as much information from her as possible in 60 minutes. I actually saw a handful of avid gardeners like her regularly and the common thread with all of them was “I’m still learning too!”
As I’m getting ready for a new season I like to look back at my old pictures for inspiration.
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| My first year gardening I started everything from seed. I’ve since learned better. |
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| Yellow, Purple and Parisian carrots. |
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| I always make the mistake of planting too many summer squash |
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| You can never have too many “cherry” tomatoes. I roast them with olive oil, agave, s/p. |
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| Currant tomatoes I grew last summer, from Territorial Seed Its like a pop of summer in your mouth! photo taken by Julie Collins |
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| More tomatoes from last summer… photo taken by Julie Collins |
