Planting

This is how God said good morning to me today.  We're overcast and expecting rain now, so Cliff and I went to Hilltop Farm to buy a few bedding plants.  After the fiasco last year, I didn't even attempt to start my own tomato and pepper plants from seed.  

I bought two eggplants, four sweet pepper plants, and eight tomato plants.  Also some impatiens, but those don't go in the garden.  

Iris always keeps a close eye on me when I'm gardening, especially when the tiller is running.  Notice the volunteer potato plants in the foreground.  I'll be tilling there before long, getting rid of them.  

Seems like every time I use the tiller, I till up a toad.

I planted the impatiens by the back steps.  There are two pansies next to the steps that came up volunteer from last year.

The mayapples I brought up from the woods three years ago are thriving in the flowerbed on the north side of the house.  

One of them is blooming.  Those little purple flowers are from the woods also.  The only thing I don't have in my wildwood flower garden is a jack-in-the-pulpit.  They grow further down in the ditches, and I don't enjoy climbing up and down the hills with a shovel, especially this year;  because of our mild winter, the ticks are everywhere.
I planted some corn a week or two ago, and I didn't think it was going to germinate.  So today I tilled it up to replant more.  After it was too late to do anything about it, I looked at all the seeds the tiller had dug up and realized the corn was starting to germinate after all.  I could kick myself; corn seed is so expensive!  

spring rain

Friday Cliff took a vacation day from work and we went to Colonial Nursery.  I was out of dormant spray for my fruit trees, I wanted to buy some Yukon Gold seed potatoes to plant on Good Friday, and I was in the market for some pansies.  

Pansies are one of the few perennials that can be planted this early, and I need to see some flowers blooming.  Only one of mine is starting to bloom, but it won't take long.  I love the little old-man faces on pansies.  I got them planted up next to the house on the north side, so they won't get too much sun and heat.  

I also planted carrots and beets in the garden, and some iceberg lettuce.  I don't usually have much luck with head lettuce, but it can't hurt to try.  We eat lots of salads, and lettuce is so very expensive!  I know iceberg lettuce isn't the most nutritious, but I love the crunch of it.  Many years ago I managed to get a bumper crop; as I recall, part of the secret is to thin the plants so they aren't crowded.  Oh, and pray for the weather to stay cool until it's mature.  
Exciting things are happening in our bedroom these days (now, get your mind out of the gutter).  Is it a sign of old age when you find gardening to be the most exciting thing in your life?
Our bedroom, since it has south-facing windows, is doubling as a greenhouse.  

The tomato seedlings are starting to grow the first of their true leaves.  

See, there in the middle of each seedling?  It's like watching your baby take his first step!  

These are the tomatoes on the other side of our bed.  I have four varieties; as you can imagine, I have far more tomato plants than I'm going to need.  But hey, it's a long time until they can go out to the garden; I'm sure I'll kill at least half; most likely some will die of thirst, and some might be lost to the elements when I take them outside to harden them off.     

Finally, most of my pepper plants have germinated.  It took them easily twice as long as it did the tomatoes.  I have too many of these, too; but since they don't take up as much room as tomato plants, I'll probably plant them all and give the extras away to friends.    
I somehow bought too many envelopes of sweet pepper seeds.  If you are a gardener and would like my extra packets, I'd be glad to send them to you.  You can plant them directly in the garden after all danger of frost is past, or you can start them inside as I have done.  If two people are interested, I'll divide them between the two.  If more than that want them, we'll draw names.  The varieties are:  Yellow Monster, Horizon pepper, Chianti pepper, and California Wonder.  If none of my readers need pepper seeds, I'll pawn them off on a neighbor or save them until next year.  


I still have two of Pioneer Woman's cookbooks to give away, but we'll do that at another time.  
Oh by the way:  Happy first day of spring!