Don't be fooled. Inside this thin coating of sweetness is a fiery core of total insanity.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

I May Be Jumping the Gun

Well, I may be jumping the gun, but we are halfway through winter officially! So I direct-sowed a bunch of vegetables today in my raised beds. It was so nice to be out in the cool clean air. There wasn't a lot of sun, but it wasn't raining, and the temp was in the low 50s. The showers return tomorrow, so I figured I'd do what I could. If they don't sprout, I'll try again.

Leeks -- Large American Flag
Cauliflower -- Early Snowball
Broad  Bean -- Windsor
Peas -- Oregon Sugar Pod II
Peas -- Telephone
Snap Peas -- Super Sugar Snap
Lettuce -- Flashy Trout's Back, Mottistone, Speckles, and Drunken Woman

Next week I'll start sowing seeds in my little portable greenhouses, but in the meantime I am also experimenting with starting some seeds a few other ways. I really want more Arum italicum, so I direct sowed the seeds into the bed where I want them, and then covered them with a makeshift cloche, to protect them from the wind and from critters. I made these from plastic recyclable clamshells, that once held a piece of cake from the grocery store. I cut holes in the top and sides to let rain in, and to allow for transpiration. This method worked very well last year for starting poppies, so I'm hoping it will work for Arum.