January Garden Update

We're Back!

After several weeks where we've just been too busy to garden, we're back. Things in the greenhouse are going pretty well, but I'm a little nervous about the cold snap we're expecting this week. Our greenhouse came with a small heater, and we've set it on a thermostat to turn on if it goes down to 35 degrees, and then turn off when it goes up to 45 degrees. Hopefully that will be enough.    We lost our tomatoes to a cold snap earlier this winter (we wanted to know if we could go without the heater, and it turns out we can't), but the Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbages, beets, greens,  catnip, and carrots are going strong. Winter is a good time for growing greens, and we'll definitely be incorporating more of those next time around.

We were very pleased to see that we've got cauliflower coming in - after inchworms ate almost the entire plant, it's nice to see it sprouting some veggies for us! Our beets are also looking good - I'm hoping there's some nice, big roots under all of those beautiful leaves. Even if there aren't beet greens are tasty and we'll enjoy them.

What's next? We have to start planning for spring (hooray!). Basically, we're going to begin the growing season inside a couple of months earlier than we can outside - but we'll probably try the same kinds of vegetables we would otherwise. We'll test a variety of peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, and of course, more greens. I'm also hoping for some early strawberries.

What do you want to grow this year? Let me know in the comments.

One Big Planter Box

It's Enormous!

So we've finally got our raised bed installed, thanks to a lot of sweat equity from my husband, family, and friends. It looks lovely, and since it's made of cedar, it smells great and will last forever without imparting any arsenic or BPAs into our food.

Once my current crop of Brussels sprouts, cabbage, beets, and tomatoes is done, we'll be planting some more root vegetables, like potatoes, so we can benefit from the nice depth of the box. It's about 20 inches deep.

It's got strong brackets at each corner and 10 inch timber screws, so we don't have to worry about it blowing away in Hurricane Sandy.

In other news, I think I've almost resolved our inchworm infestation - I'm only finding one a day now. This is probably because we're officially out of cauliflower.

Also, now that it's getting colder, we're enjoying how nice and warm it is in there, and looking forward to some tasty veggies.

So, what are you up to in the garden today? 

Post your updates in the comments.

Seeds, Glorious Seeds

While we are waiting for the weather to improve so that we can finish assembling our greenhouse kit, I'm starting our seeds so they'll be ready to plant when we have our raised beds all put together.

So, what are we planting, seedwise? At this point, I'm going for...

- Two kinds of tomatoes (Long Keepers and Siberian Reds)
- Red and green cabbage
- Arugula
- Catnip
- Cucumbers
- Beets
- Carrots
- Green beans

We've also got some seedlings - Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and some more greens (just for insurance), and we're planning to graft and/or transplant some of the herbs, peppers, and tomatoes we have growing outside now.

I've had bad luck with seeds before, so I found a seed-starting kit at my local garden center. Basically, the kit begins with peat pellets that expand in water. Once they're nice and damp, you just add seeds to each pellet. The pellets come in a handy tray with a lid - kind of like a miniature greenhouse. The most important thing to remember, other than to avoid the temptation to overwater them, is to label what you've planted - a lot of baby plants look the same.

I'm looking forward to seeing how this works, and post updates as things start to sprout. I have a long  history of overwatering, so wish me luck!

So, what are your hints on seed starting? I know the soil needs to be kept warm. Do you all use heat mats, or find another way? Please share your experiences in the comments section.