The preparations stage is at hand in the garden. I've seeded in spinach and lettuce in my basement to get a head start. I'm hoping the temps will moderate in the next couple of weeks. I've seen several forecasts and quite frankly, it looks like a colder than normal February is at hand. But once the cold weather subsides, I should be able to use my greenhouse to get early crops of spinach and lettuce if all goes right.
I laid down 6 ml clear greenhouse plastic over three of my beds last Wednesday. My hope was that with the sunny but cold days we're having, that the sun will heat up and thaw out the soil so I can get an early crop in. Well, we we're blessed with about 3 inches of snow over the weekend and all my beds were covered. After two straight days of sunny but cold weather, the plastic covered areas have already melted the snow and are heating up as shown in this photo I took this morning. When I reached under a part of the plastic, the air was a bit warmer than outside and the soil was actually thawed to the point that I could push my finger into it. For early February, that's good.
Once the temps turn warmer, I have several structures that I can use to protect the plants from frost. But, I will first harden the plants off in my greenhouse and then begin to plant out my garden. I have spinach and lettuce seedlings in my basement that are coming along fine at this time. I'm not quite sure how my garden will look this year as I have about 80 pots and grow bags to use. Seems I may have been overly enthusiastic with my purchases this past year. It a weakness for me in that when I see a pot that I know costs $15.00 retail and its in my hand priced for $3.00, that I can't just say no. I really have to just get a warmer day and spread them out in my driveway to survey what I have all in one place. Or maybe I'll do it at night so my neighbors won't see them and wonder what I am doing.
On another note, I was given 7 of these water drip kits as seen below. I didn't do anything with them last year. But I got to thinking and decided I would at least try them this year. After doing some research, I figured it out that in order to use these, all I needed to do was to buy additional tubing. This would allow me to effectively cover all my beds. I will most likely use them only on those really hot days where the sun just pulls the moisture out of the soil as you water it. And, it will be easier to have someone water the garden while I am on vacation. I have zero investment in them other than the tubing so it's worth a try.
On a timely note, I would encourage anyone who needs fertilizer for this year to purchase it now. Last night (1-31), a major fertilizer processing plant in South Carolina burned down. It was a major plant and it will most likely affect the supply and pricing of fertilizer. From initial reports, it was so severe that there is little likelihood of the plant resuming full production anytime soon. But, time will tell. Just wanted to give a heads up as the fertilizer situation in this country is precarious with regards to both supply and pricing.
Well, that's all for now. It's getting close to being time to work the gardens and I think we're all excited for it. Until next time, Happy Gardening everyone!
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