All the dried stalks of the perennial wildflowers surrounding the roadside vegetable garden were cut down with manual hedge clippers leaving the garden fully exposed. The leaning fence posts from a wicked winter with lots of snow plow action were stood back up. One day I will have a new fence. It's on the list.
Last year's vegetable garden expansion was used to grow corn and miniature cantaloupe - what sorry melons. It was always intended as the requested strawberry patch. The wood chip mulch was raked aside and a new planting bed for the strawberries formed.
All the dead stick debris from the perennial wild flowers was burned to make terra preta. I am patient. This process every year can't hurt and I am too lazy to make large amounts of the real thing. It is just a quick and easy way to get rid of a huge pile of debris.
The strawberry bed is ready to be planted. I bought seven small pots with three plants each in them. These were divided for the proper spacing. A second strawberry patch was made in the upper right corner near my truck. There was some concern that it was a bit early to plant when the strawberries were not in a dormant state. In the little bit of weeding I did I was happy to find that the wild strawberries had already woken up.
Here is the second strawberry patch. I'm thinking if a perennial crop is going to be using room in the roadside vegetable garden I may have to annex more land. I can think about that later.
Today saw spring cleaning and the planting of strawberries and the seeding of sugar snap peas. That is a good start for this illusion of spring. Real vegetable gardening does not start for another two full months in the middle of May. Even then it can be a might cool.
A little ornamental gardening was slipped in too. Two more Rhododendron 'Nova Zembla' were planted next to the first. This is the beginning of some evergreen structure for the garden to be and some screening for the cabin from gawkers in the nakedness of the winter forest.
Next door at the ridge top garden little spots of color are beginning to show in the brown litter.
The emerging daffodils are gaining some presence.
Bulbarella just missed her crocus. Last year when they came she was here for the show.
These are some new ones she planted last fall in the old fire pit used for hot dogs and smores when the grandkids were younger. They don't do that anymore and Bulbarella can't let a blank spot go unbulbed. There are tulips in there too.
It all begins with the snowdrops.
Each warm day increases the momentum until a hillside is covered in 10,000 daffodils and an equal number of the minor bulbs. It's coming.
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9 comments:
On the third day of spring my garden gave to me...
Hi Christopher;
Does Bulbarella rake (even to thin) any of her leaves, or do the small bulbs come through them OK? I have a similar lot and am curious.
Thanks, Bev
And here I was, impressed by my 200 daffodils on a small hillside. I can't wait to see it in full bloom.
"Bulbarella can't let a blank spot go unbulbed"... it must be quite a beautiful display when they are all in bloom.
I planted my peas a few days ago, along with spinach. The strawberries here are breaking dormancy... I think I need to move mine to another bed and give their old bed a rest.
Lisa after this winter, three days of sun in a row is a bit of a shock.
Bev yes she does rake the leaves away from the bulbs when she finds them poking through the leaf litter. There does need to be some natural penetration through the leaf mat in order for them to be found and of course it is not uncommon for the raked leaf pile to bury another clump of bulbs nearby that is discovered a bit later. I tend to just break up the leaves around a clump with one of the handy nearby sticks.
Tom at one time Bulbarella only had 200 daffodils.
Carol spinach and lettuce are the next sowing on the list. I am going to move my bean poles and paint them I think. Maybe this early I can get spinach past the seedling stage before the bugs come out in force. I really need to get some row covers.
I loved to think of someplace being bulbed, what a concept! Our sugar snaps are just showing green poking up through the coffee grounds used to deter the snails and slugs, same with the sweet peas, sown the same day, February 19. It seems to have taken them a long time to show up, but guess they know what they are doing. Good luck with the strawberries. We are awash with them and got one single berry last year. The rabbits got the rest, but there were very few on the plants. Must have done something wrong, the first year they were quite good. Everbearing type. We are yanking them out in favor of a seed grown wild one called Red Wonder.
Frances
Three days of sun in a row. Wow, that is great. I see you got quite a bit done.
I can imagine how pretty it is when all the bulbs are in bloom.
Uncle Ernie, still being ever so watchful. He still looks handsome in his attire.
I wondered how all the bulbs came through all that litter. I too would just break it up around each clump. All those leaves & such will only enrich the soil. I learned not to rake too much on a hill side.
Lucky for you you have a Bulbarella!
Frances I don't expect to see the sugar snap peas for two or three weeks at least. The resident gardeners said the same thing about their strawberies. One good year and that was it. I think they remember that year fondly and trust me to hover over them more than they can. Or maybe strawberries need to be treated as an annual no matter what they say.
Lola I have been getting all kinds of of odds and ends chores done. Leaves here only get raked up in certain spots. Otherwise they just get shuffled around a lot. They are what makes this soil so nice.
Tis true Elizabeth. How many people are lucky enough to waltz into a garden like this, twenty years in the making.
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