Spring Garden Blooms and Plantings 2019

We finally had a break in the rain so we could get our spring garden planted and we are so excited! We are planting real late this year because our area has been having historical rain breaking weather records. Some of the plants have loved all the water and others have had delayed growth while some have died because of to much water. Because the planting has been so late this year, we completely changed our garden plot plan. That's the fun of gardening it is ever changing and never a perfect science, we learn new methods all the time and will continue to pass that along to all of you. 

We Always Have A Great Helper With The Planting

Max Is Busy Helping Us Plant Today and 

Making Sure We Are Doing It Right.

We had prepared the soil in the late fall, by cleaning out all the old and dead plantings from the spring, summer and fall garden. We then deep tilled the soil and used our homemade compost to blend and smooth. Then the ground rested during the winter months. Because the ground was wetter than usual, we opted to only spade the actual planting hole for the plant rather than re-till the entire plot. We used our homemade compost in the planting hole and then covered. You can see in the photo how rich the soil is and also that it is not muddy but really wet.

We Have Mixed Some Herbs With Our Tomato Plants

Notice that we have planted some of our tomato plants in the front part of the plot and we filled in the back of the plot with Sweet Basil. The Sweet Basil with the tomatoes are great growing partners in the garden as well as on the table.

When the Basil is really growing in the hot summer, I harvest it frequently and then put it into bundles and hang it to dry. After it is dried, I store it in a glass container and use it in my recipes through out the year.

The Pepper Plot

We love peppers of all kinds but through the years have made decisions about the peppers that grow best in our area. In the front part of our pepper plot we have planted different color bell peppers and in the back of the plot we have planted our jalapenos. Note the rosemary bush in the corner of the plot. I use the rosemary frequently in recipes and you can find it hanging on the screen porch and sometimes in the shower, the smell is amazing! This year we will be making our famous salsa that we give to family and friends at Christmas so we are growing as many ingredients as is possible, home grown and homemade!

The Squash Plot

We have planted the Zucchini in the front of the bed and planted the Yellow Straight Neck and Crocked Neck Yellow Squash in the back of the bed.  As the squash begins to put on runners, we will place the raisers in the bed so they will have something to trail on. This is going to be a lot of Zoodles and Squash Casseroles. Our friends always love getting fresh squash from us in the summer.

We have a plot of cucumbers that we were unable to photograph because, guess what it started raining, however we will be showing you photos of the progress of that plot as the summer moves along. 

The Lettuce Tub

We are already enjoying Rainbow Swiss Chard, Green Onions and a variety of Lettuce leaves from The Lettuce Tub. The Lettuce Tub is an antique french bathtub that I found at a flee market a number of years ago and it has served as a great lettuce tub. The tub sits just right outside my kitchen door which is really convenient to step outside the door and pick a fresh salad. 

The Blooming Plants

The blooming plants and trees have been absolutely beautiful this year, because most of them love the wonderful rain water they have received.

Early in the season the Pear Trees bloomed and were just loaded with blooms this year. I love these pear trees, they bloom in the spring and our humming birds live in them in the summer months. We keep a bird feeder hanging on the front porch that they feed from all summer. As of this writing the families have arrived and are nesting already.

Don Juan Roses

The Don Juan hybrid roses were planted on the property along a fence line about 10 years ago. The rose has a beautiful color and still smells like a real rose. I keep some of these roses in a vase in my home almost all summer. They are a very hardy rose for our area.  The one thing that we have had to fight this spring with the rain issue is black leaf and we have to check it every day.

The Wild Rose

There is no other rose bush that gives more than the old fashioned Wild Rose. We have several Wild Rose bushes on the property and they give beautiful pops of color all spring and summer.

The New Iris Bed

I love Iris and am trying to start a small area in the front bed with very old Iris.

Both kinds of the Iris have been given to me by friends who got the bulbs from their very old root stock. I was very grateful that they shared them with me. This is the first spring for them to bloom.

The Blackberry Bush

When the blackberry bush has this many blooms in the spring that means we will have a bumper harvest. I can't wait for the berries, I am dreaming of that first Blackberry Cobbler already and don't forget all the great Blackberry Jam!

I am so happy that you could join us today for this tour of some of our spring blooms and spring plantings. Be sure and follow along with us and watch the progress of the gardens as they mature into harvest.  I have a lovely basket of roses for you to take along with you and enjoy!

Peace and Joy

Miz Helen

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