Patiently Waiting
Dexter is patiently waiting for gardening season to arrive. He has been enjoying some outside time, but he much prefers to be outside when I’m around. He likes to follow me around the garden.
I’m with Dexter, I can hardly wait to get out and start digging in the soil. At least I have indoor seedlings to tend.
What gardening chores are you most looking forward to?
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Friday Favorite: Botanical Gardens in Winter
Yesterday, Mr Chiots and I headed down to Boothbay for an errand. Since we were in the area, we decided to stop at the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens. I really enjoy visiting botanical gardens during the winter, it’s the perfect time to notice the structure of the gardens and the plants. You notice interesting things you might not see at other times when you’re distracted by flowers and other things.
I was particularly interested in seeing the witch hazels. I’m planning on adding them to the gardens for color at this time of year and I was looking for varieties that would suite my climate. Luckily, they had a nice selection. Back in Ohio, we had native wild witch hazel that bloomed in November, they were pretty and understated, nothing compared to these showy beauties. ‘Arnold Promise’ looks almost like a forsythia, only it blooms much earlier.
There’s something so wonderful about a plant that produces blooms like this in a season like this. When everything around is dull, muddy and gray, the bright pop of yellow is eye catching to say the least. This is ‘Aurora’ with hazel, it’s quite lovely don’t you think?
‘Limelight’ witch hazel has smaller, less showy flowers and had a slight greenish tint. The green was immediately noticeable with the other with hazels blooming in the area. You might not notice this if it was the only one in your garden.
‘Bernstein’ witch hazel was especially lovely, I think it was more wonderful than all the others. The blossoms were large and lovely, though there weren’t too many.
I’ll definitely be adding a few of these to my garden this year, now I just have to decide where to put them.
Do ever visit botanical gardens in the off season?
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Surveying the Land
During the 6 months we’ve been living here, I’ve been keeping a close watch on the garden. The way the sun moves across the sky and the shadows it casts on the various part of the garden is something I watch. Also of interest to me, is where the wind blows strongest and the snow drifts. Of most importance though, is how the snow melts and the water runs.
Where the snow melts first is important, because it’s a good place to plant things like hellebores, snowdrops and crocuses. They can take the cold and won’t mind at all if a heavy frost blankets them after a thaw. They’ll be able to bloom beautifully without worry about a blanket of snow. These spots would not be good places to plant things those things that might be lured into budding out early, only to be frozen out when the frosty air blows again
At this time, I’m particularly interested in the snow melt and how it moves across the land. How quickly the soil dries out is important because I want to know where I can plant my first sowing of cold hardy greens for early spring salads. I’ve also taken particular notice of the areas in the garden where the water collects, while some plants enjoy wet feet, many do not. There are a few areas that will be in need of a little excavating in order to allow the water to drain more freely, or perhaps a few small seasonal ponds will be installed to encourage toads and frogs to multiply in the garden.
Yesterday I spent a half hour out walking about looking at the edible spaces in the garden. Now that the snow is gone it won’t be long until I can start sowing spinach and onion seeds. Depending on the weather, I might be able to plant some spinach seeds next week.
Do you have any trouble spots in your garden?
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Just Visiting
Last Saturday, I found a Flat Stanley in my mailbox. It was sent to me by a friend’s young daughter. Her class is doing a project where they each send out a Flat Stanley to see where he will end up between now and May 15th.
Since I was the person they knew who lived the farthest away, he came to my mailbox first. The class requested that Stanley send postcards from the places he visits with details of his journey. I decided he could write a blog post here today for his postcard. Here’s what Stanley has to say about his visit.
The first morning of my arrival in Maine, I was warmed by a large mug of coffee. You might think this was a bad thing, but it wasn’t. There was actually about a foot of snow on the ground outside and it was very cold. The coffee was a nice warm blanket and it prepared for what I would do the rest of the day.
After morning coffee, we headed out to feed the chickens and gather eggs. There were 13 chickens in all, 2 big roosters and 11 hens. We gathered 9 eggs that morning for breakfast.
Then we went to check on the ducks, they were happily splashing in puddles in the driveway. Even though it very cold outside, some of them were swimming in their little pool. No wonder down blankets are supposed to be so warm!
We came back inside from checking on the animals and water the seedlings. There were onions, celery, herbs, and all sort of other little plants underneath grow lights inside. They will be planted outside when the snow melts and the weather warms. There were hundreds of seedlings, the garden will be bursting with vegetables this summer!
After a hearty breakfast of those eggs we gathered from the chickens, we were back outside to cut firewood for next winter. The rest of the day was spent cutting, splitting and stacking firewood. Boy was I tired after that. It’s certainly true what they say, you warm yourself twice!
I also made a trip to the coast to see the big boats and the lobsters, but it was raining and I was afraid I’d disintegrate, so I stayed in the car.
Then I was folded up into an envelope and mailed off somewhere else. Where will I go? Who knows, but I certainly can’t wait to get back to Peri in Kentucky so I can tell her all about my trip!
If you could fold yourself up into an envelop, where would you mail yourself?
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Seed Watering Tip
As I was watering my seedlings the other day I thought I’d tell you about my watering techniques. When the seeds haven’t germinated yet, I use a spray bottle to keep the top of the soil moist. Generally this is all that is needed until the seeds germinate.
When the seedlings emerge, I spray them with a spray bottle to moisten the top of the soil, I like that it also gives them a bit of movement (like a fan blowing on them) to make them stronger. Then I water fully with an old dish soap container. I find it perfect for getting just the right amount of water without flooding the tiny plants. I feel like it gives me good control over how much water I use and puts it right where I want it to go. You can get the smallest drip or a decent stream of water exactly where you want it.
When the seedlings are finally get big enough and are outside, I water with my favorite watering can. Be mindful however, don’t overwater your little seedlings. Let the soil dry out in between waterings. Overwatering is one of the main reasons for failure with houseplants and seedlings.
Do you have any good techniques or tools to share?
