[derdsgirl]

Me! s :bounce I almost started a thread last week but I thought maybe it was too early for everyone so didn't.

I've been working in our garden since early Feb. Started with weeding and putting up some more raised beds. Then late-Feb planted a HUGE bed of bare root strawberries and rhubarb with some sorrel lining the front of the bed, borage and chamomile are along the back - with a bit of room back there for lovage. The strawberries are starting to sprout and it is so fun. I can't wait for strawberry rhubarb pie.

I had some volunteer lettuce plants pop up in early Feb. We have had a couple of salads so far picking off the bottom leaves. Snap/sugar peas went in the ground, direct sown, mid-Feb and doing well growing. First round of carrots were intersown with some of the peas and sprouted last week. I also started my brassicas about the same time indoors and repotted those up to 4"pots last week. They are looking great. I started too much broccoli though. I'll give away extras. Last weekend we finished up a 4x10' bed that I got planted with our "salads" (lettuce, chard, beets, second round of carrots, radishes, spinach, napa cabbage) on one half, and a 10' row of kale too with a 10' row left blank for the brussel sprouts once the starts are ready to be planted in a couple of weeks. I finally found some shelling peas, they had been sold out everywhere, and got those in the ground today.

I think the spring garden is officially planted now.

Within the last week I have gotten most of my summer garden starts going. Tomatoes, peppers, tomatillos, basil, cucumbers, summer squash, melons, and a bunch of flowers. I was super excited to see hibiscus seeds earlier this year - I never thought to grow it myself before seeing the seeds but I *love* hibiscus tea. So I planted a whole packet and every single seed germinated. I am definitely going to have extras for friends around here.

I still have some more herbs, beans, and one other thing that I'm not remembering to get going. Oh, and I ordered my seed potatoes, but those ship sometime this week or next for proper planting in our area, so those aren't started yet either, but I have a big bed already cleared and waiting for them.

Most of April will be babysitting seedlings and transplanting them to bigger pots plus building out a few more raised boxes. Last year I didn't get all the boxes built that I wanted but , having had more time to plan since then I've expanded my whole garden plan which is great - now I have room for an avocado tree and blueberry bushes which I'd love to do NOW but there is a wood pile in that area at the moment because we removed some trees to make better garden space. I might need to get the avocado tree now and put it in a big pot for this year, and transplant it next. They take so long to mature I really want to get that going. DH is also getting invested more in the garden and is wanting to help me build proper compost piles which hopefully can get started in April.

Then May all the things (minus a few of the hotter loving plants) get planted!