checklists

i planted a lot of things this weekend.
a lot of things.

i'll tell you all by section... because the section planning itself is hopefully going to aid in the way it all grows later on this spring.

first section:

gutters on the fence.  we had a friend who had HUGE success with her strawberries when she planted them in gutters. so the middle gutter is going to be for strawberries. i have TONS of strawberry seedlings so we may add a fourth gutter on the bottom for more.  strawberry plants take about two years to come to full fruit bearing capacity. hopefully this year, they will just fill out the gutters nicely and then next year we will have full yield.  

on the top gutter i planted spinach, bunching onions, 2 inch carrots and mini radishes. 

bottom gutter has red lettuce, gold lettuce, butterhead lettuce and... oh my. i forgot what the last thing is.  something leafy.

the cool thing about these gutters is that it will be really easy to hang shade cloth for them in the event that they get too hot.  also they are space saving... everything planted in the gutters has a very small root system and does not need depth, they like to be slightly crowded and they love the the same levels of light.  oh! pak choy was the last green in the gutters.

second section:

along one side of the house is the bean/pea section. one of my good friends did a seed swap with me so i got like 3 more types of beans/ peas then i already had.  i hope that they go crazy.  all in all i have like ten species of beans and peas.  last year our legumes did not thrive, but their soil was not good... not tilled correctly or farmed the right way.  this year i tried to rectify that and amended the soil with lots of nitrogen for them. this pic doesn't do the section justice. it goes more than halfway down the length of the house.  as the plants climb, i have plans to add more trellis that extends upwards.

third section:

first half of the giant raised bed we have is dedicated to corn and onions. two types of corn and four types of onions. onions like to be cramped, they do not like a lot of space, and i hear that they are good at weeding themselves out. we will see... i will probably help them space themselves.

to the right of the raised bed is where the kohlrabi and the rat tailed radish went.  like the mustards, they are ok with a little bit of shade. so they are right by the walnut tree.  lots of sun for now, but natural shade as soon as the walnut tree fills out during the summer as it gets scorching hot here.

fourth section:

cylinders of hay? why you ask?

potatos i say!!!

each round has a different type of potato: purple majesties, two different reds and then some russets.  

i really, really, really hope that they work. if i pay attention to the moisture levels in the hay, all should go well.

augh!!!!!!!!!

on saturday as i was planting all of this stuff, i had my planner out right along side me, just checking things off as i went.  each check mark was a new and heightened sense of accomplishment.  then the anxiety set in when i was done planting and had some time on my hands.  what if none of them sprout? what if they don't like the settings that i picked for them? ugh. then i gave my worries to the earth because what else can i do? then i went to a bbq and made smores.  so there.   

in closing: the tomato babies are about a foot tall and in the process of being hardened off. this means that they spend a little time outside every day to get used to the weather. they need to do this for about a week and a half to two weeks. then. they go to their new home next to the corn. the peppers don't go out until april. the eggplants will go out also around that time, plus the ground cherries. 

soon i will give you some updates on all of the seed babies that are already sprouted and i will also show you the planning calendar that i made, so that the method to my madness is clear.