🍅 Is anyone starting their veggie seeds for the garden yet? What are you planting?🥬

[Diamond_Dog]

Mr. Diamond is going with these tomatoes: Celebrity, Brandywine, Rutgers, 4th of July, Moby Grape,and Health Kick.

Grand Rapids, red and green Romaine lettuces

Maybe some Swiss chard if I can find some.

I got tired of green beans after planting them the last 5 years or so. We still have 18 pints of canned peppers from last year. I don’t have much luck with cucumbers any more. So, just tomatoes and lettuce so far this year.

What are you going to plant in your garden this spring?

[Callalily]

1. I only do herbs out on my patio and then dry them for winter's use.

Typically I just purchase the plants, but I did pick up some "Slow bolt" cilantro/coriander seeds. I stopped planting cilantro/coriander as the plant would bolt far too soon, so hopefully I'll have more luck with this variety.

[Diamond_Dog]

6. Having your own dried herbs is so nice for winter use!

Plus you know it’s all organic! I always use my own dried parsley in Thanksgiving stuffing.

[QED]

2. Tomatoes!

My plants are about 12" tall and one has 4 yellow pear tomatoes. I plant either Sweet 100s or yellow pear - larger tomatoes split. I know it's a watering issue. I like the small tomatoes better anyway.

I also have some mammoth sunflowers started - they're 3-4" tall but will be huge and attract some very pretty lovebirds.

I'm in the Phoenix area - our growing season starts now and may be over in June although I've had tomatoes going through August sometimes.

[Diamond_Dog]

7. Sounds great!

How do you like the yellow pear tomatoes?

I always had problems with Sweet 100s cracking from heat, hence I switched to to Moby Grapes which resist cracking. I love homegrown grape tomatoes just to snack on.

I’d love to plant sunflowers in honor of of Ukraine. Do you save and roast the seeds?

[QED]

10. I love the yellow pears!

They are sweeter than others. I haven't had problems with the sweet 100s cracking but Early Girls always do so I gave up. I haven't seen/heard of Moby Grapes.

I let the birds have the seeds.

[Diamond_Dog]

12. Wow, awesome photo!

I have never seen birds like that.

[QED]

15. I've lived here over 20 years and hadn't seen them until last summer.

Apparently there are a lot of them around. The story goes that many years ago someone had a pair as pets and released them. I remember my mom telling me that there were "parakeets" in the trees near her friend's house a few miles away. I'm sure it was these kind of birds. They really are beautiful.

[questionseverything]

3. I usually buy starter plants but I read this article on garbage gardening

So tomorrow when I make sweet and sour pork, I’ll save the seeds from the small, multi colored , sweet peppers and try and start them.

I just did the same with the last of a garlic bulb, stick it in the dirt and it grows

I get so many volunteer tomato plants, when gardening time gets here I will only buy one decent size “ better boy” , plant it in the best spot and then move the “volunteers” where I want them

I don’t have much gardening room because I live in town but i plant my edges&borders, have big pots for the peppers 🌶️

Sorry, I’m rambling but the thought of spring and gardening always makes me happy

[Diamond_Dog]

8. Don't apologize! It's so cathartic to plan and plant a vegetable garden

after a long winter, and as a distraction from the terrible news on the TV.

I’m always so impressed with some of the ways clever people like you find space to grow veggies.

Garbage gardening …. Now that’s what I call economical!

[WestMichRad]

4. I've started several crops indoors:

Basils, sweet and hot peppers, some lettuces (I grow several heirloom varieties), geraniums, tatsoi. Also several species of native wildflowers just went onto warming mats today after finishing their cold moist stratification.
Next week I’ll start the first of our peas outdoors, if the top few inches of soil isn’t still frozen. (We still have a bit of snow on the ground, mostly in shady spots or where it was piled up.)
Our average last frost date is in early May here in SW lower Michigan, so I’m waiting another week or so before starting all of my tomatoes (about 20 varieties).

It’s nice to start playing in the dirt again!

[Diamond_Dog]

9. NE Ohio here.

I’ve always gone by “the third week in May” because that’s what my Grandmother always said and she grew a beautiful garden.

We still have snow in spots like you do and our local lake is still frozen, but tomorrow it’s going to be in the upper 50s. Woo hoo!

What is tatsoi if I may ask?

[WestMichRad]

11. Traditionally it's about May 15 here,

but I regard our average last frost date as at least a week earlier now, thanks to the fossil fuel industry. The last several years, our last frost has been in late April.(!!). I remember once, more than 30 years ago, when we had a frost on Memorial Day weekend, but that was a rare event.
We live near a hilltop and are protected by a lot of surrounding trees… giving us extra protection from cold dips.

Nowadays I wait until about May 10 and then look at the long range forecast before deciding if it’s time to plant my tender seedlings. No need to hurry if it’s relatively cool, since tomato and pepper plants don’t do squat in cold soil… but I have a large garden to plant, and the sooner I can get started, the sooner the job will be done. I still wait until June to plant beans.

Tatsoi is a leafy green brassica, pretty similar to spinach, that can be used as a salad green or in soups and casseroles. Since I can’t seem to grow spinach without it bolting immediately, this is a good substitute for us. Very easy to grow!
https://gardenersmag.com/tatsoi/

Happy gardening!

[Diamond_Dog]

13. Thanks, WestMichRad!

That tatsoi looks really interesting. I have never seen or heard of it before. I will definitely try to find it. I’ve grown Swiss chard before and it is always easy to grow and I end up picking a laundry basket full every time I go out.

I have the same problem with spinach, it bolts like within a week. Grrrr

[The Wizard]

5. tomatoes, peppers, basil, potatoes.

Just got the pods ready yesterday, seeding tomorrow.

[Diamond_Dog]

14. Don't you just love fresh basil? Especially with home grown tomatoes.

Sounds good, The Wizard. 👍

[The Wizard]

17. I have regular basil and

lemon scented basil. Crushed lemon basil in a mixed drink adds a nice touch. It's also good in salads.

[MissB]

18. I'm managing to keep my seedlings alive.

I had a knee replacement last week, so dh has been helping me - literally my water boy. I have 18 varieties of peppers and 14 varieties of tomatoes going, along with about five varieties of eggplant. Leeks, onions, kale, asparagus are on my enclosed porch. I have some coleus, snap dragons, begonia and hens/chicks started too.

I saved a bunch of coleus seed last year. Not sure why I thought it would be hard to germinate? Let's just say I currently have mats of coleus that I will have to separate soon.

The weekend before surgery, I threw in some green onion seeds and pea seeds into my planter beds. I can't go out and look at them just yet, but I saw a photo from the other day that shows the green onions have popped up.

[Diamond_Dog]

19. Wow, sounds like you will have quite a garden this summer MissB!

Good luck recovering from your knee surgery. I hope all is going well! I’m going to be spending the next week staying at my sister’s house in another city because she’s having knee replacement surgery next Tuesday and I’m going to help her.

[MissB]

20. Good luck to your sister and her surgery!

I think two things that really helped was having water available at all time- a cold water bottle or a glass of ice water.

And then the other thing was ice. I have both the wraparound (insert ice packs) Velcro closure knee wrap and the ice machine. Both require ice packs of some sort, and I was grateful that DH would empty and refreeze the packs immediately when I was done.

I’m about 10 days post surgery and just to the point where I could make a meal if needed, but moving that plate and glass to and from the table would be a challenge!

[Diamond_Dog]

21. Thanks, MissB. That's good to know!

Looks like I’ll be on ice making duty for a while then? Is there anything else I should know?

I’m so happy you’re doing so well 10 days out! That’s so encouraging! Best of luck to you on your recovery!

[MissB]

22. I was shocked by how much I didn't know?

The first three days post surgery can be remarkably painful but it gets way better after that.

Good food is good! I’m going with a lot of lean protein and veggies and some fruit. It really does make a difference. I’ve never drank so much water.

It is a dance to balance the OTC pain meds with the narcotics. OTC first then narcotic as needed? The advice I got was that if pain was restricting movement, then more narcotic may be needed. Her Dr will guide her; I just expected to not need any narcotics at all. I was wrong.

I thought I’d be bored, you know, convalescing and healing. Nope, every waking hour I’m up walking for at least 5 minutes and then doing at least 30 minutes of exercises, taking care of personal needs, and then resting for a few minutes until it’s time to get up and walk again.

[Diamond_Dog]

23. I can only stay 5 days

So hopefully by then she’ll be OK by herself. She does have a dog, her dog is well behaved, but still they need care,too.

She had her other knee replaced 12 years ago so she’s somewhat familiar with the routine, but it will be all new to me on how to care for a post-op knee patient. Thank you for your description of the experience!

I am bringing homemade chicken soup and tuna salad. 🙂.

[onethatcares]

24. started in February

Pineapples, Fig trees (both already in ground), Kale, sweet potatos(Asian purple), jalopenas, swiss chard, okra, finger eggplant. Plantint 3/15, sugar baby watermelon, cantelope. In starter containers growing roots, cayanne sweet peppers, indigo cherry tomatos,

This is year 5 garden and it's going purty well. I'll be making compost tea and mulching with safe hay this weekend.

I'm in zone 10a.