fall planting

Here's what I planted yesterday. My garden has little patches of free soil here and there. A spot where fava beans were. One where blighted tomatoes were. The empty garlic patch.

I got rained on while planting, so the packs look ragged.

Its late for fall planting. My calendar says I should have planted a few weeks ago. Last year I did my last planting on August 27 and only some of the greens matured by the first frost. The peas and spinach didn't. (I've never gotten fall peas to produce.)

It so hot now to think fall is coming. My count down calendar says 52 days to first frost (around Oct 15). We'll see how these seeds do.

planting seeds

I planted a bunch of seeds over the past few days. I'm imagining a full garden soon.

Summer lettuce: red Cherokee and green Cherokee and escarole. Lots of beans. Bush beans: Provider and royal burgundy. Soybeans: Envy and Butter Beans. Pole beans: Fortex and Chinese long beans. Fall crops: Tuscan and blue curled scotch kale, collards, marathon and blue wind broccoli, and Chiogga and Lutz beets. And some flowers: bachelor buttons and nasturtiums. Plus, I put in more peas, Sugar Sprint and Wando, just to see what happens.

"Blue Kale" is short for blue-curled scotch kale, a new (for me) old variety from Sand Hill that I'm trying this year.

I figure since we've had such cool weather so far and who knows what's next, I just put in all kinds of crops. I was interested to read that Tiny Farm is still planting lots of spinach with the cool weather.

Last year I started my fall crops (peas, beets, lettuce, broccoli and Chinese greens) too late. Here's a post. I planted July 18 and August 3. I'm only a week earlier this year. I'll try to tend them better this year.

I planted things pretty close together and will transplant most out to my plot after the seedlings come up. Maybe my lettuce, fava beans and some potatoes will be harvested by then.

I changed my sidebar countdown to count down until my first frost. Arghh. I was thinking this is coming soon. My internal seasonal clock seems to feel its September already, because of the cool weather. But am happy to realize its MANY days ... months!... away still.

today's planting list

melon Anne Arundel, 4 seeds
melon, Crane, 4 seeds
melon, Charentais, 4 seeds
watermelon, Sugar Baby, 4 seeds
yellow summer squash, Zephyr, 4 seeds
patty pan summer squash, Sunburst, 4 seeds
patty pan summer squash, Starship, 4 seeds
zucchini, Cashflow, 4 seeds

Melons (Cucumis melo)
squash (Cucurbita pepo)

today's seed sowing list

My planting calendar says to plant zinnias, cucumbers and pumpkins this week. I started some extra greens too.

Spinach, Bloomsdale, 1 6-pack
Lettuce, Valentine mix, 1 6-pack
Lettuce, Merveille 4 seasons, 1 6-pack
Zinnia, White Star, 4-pack
Zinnia, Bernary's Giant Purple 2 6-packs
Winter Squash, Lakota, 3 seeds
Pumpkin, Baby Pam, 6 seeds
Pumpkin, Big Rock, 3 seeds
Pumpkin, Jarrahdale, 3 seeds
Cucumber, North Carolina Pickling, 6-pack

I didn't finish, but will plant the following soon:
Cucumber, Diva, 6-pack
Cucumber, Straight 8, 6-pack
Cucumber, Tokiwa, 6-pack
Cucumber, Sweet Success, 6-pack

2009 sow-what-and-when

planting surprise seeds

There's nothing like a good mystery.

A couple of weeks ago, Dan, a fellow garden blogger, sent me some seeds. We had arranged a trade. He sent me 6 Charentais melon seeds and 6 seeds each of two heirloom tomatoes (Hillbilly and Suddoth's strain Brandywine). I sent him 6 Delicata melon and 6 purple Calabash tomato seeds. BUT, in addition to the agreed on seeds, Dan added a package of SURPRISE seeds.

I have no idea what the surprise seeds are. They are small and round like cabbage or radish. And recently Dan told me I could plant them when I plant my broccoli. Those are the clues.

So, yesterday I planted them. I labeled them "SURPRISE". How fun. I'm really curious to see what sprouts.

Thanks again to Dan :)
surprise seeds
2009 sow-what-and-when

first seeds sown

Right on schedule, my onions are sown: one flat each of white, yellow and red onions. 11 weeks before my last frost date - April 30.