Blooming Already?
I was potting up a few tomatoes on Sunday into the big pots they’ll spend the summer in, and I was surprised to see that they’re already blooming! These are Sub-Arctic tomatoes, they’re supposed to set fruit at lower temps, which is good because we had a frost advisory last night. I’m hoping I’ll get a tomato in a month or so, I’ll keep you updated.
I also noticed that one of my green pepper plants is blooming, I’ve been bringing this plant inside in the evenings, so perhaps it will set fruit, it’s still fairly cold for peppers though with night temps in the 40’s.
This is the time of year when things really start ramping up the garden. I noticed my catmint will be blooming soon as will some salvias.
Anyone else have an early blooming tomato?
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One Happy Localvore
I’m one happy localvore. Why?
I went to the farmer’s market yesterday morning. It was a beautiful morning, in the high 60’s and overcast.
There were a lot of plants for sale this week, I think a total of 4 vendors were selling all different kinds of plants; veggies, perennials, annuals, herbs, trees and shrubs.
I bought some euphorbia that I’ve been looking for and I bought a plum tree from Mr Vincent.
Mr Vincent has an apple orchard and sells apples and other fruit all season long at the market. This plum tree is an offspring of one of the old plum trees on his farm (he even had some photos of his old tree). He says they’re some of the best juicy plums you can find, I bought some from him last summer and they were quite tasty!
There were also a lot of baked goods and crafts for sale, as well as soaps and lotions.
So what else did I buy? Some apples and some delicious baby radishes. I also got a bar of olive oil soap, I can’t wait to try it. I was surprised that I didn’t see any lettuce for sale at the market, since it’s such a quick and easy crop.
I love going to the market, I really don’t need to buy veggies because I grow a lot of my own, but I love supporting local people that are growing things for the community. I encourage you to head on down to your local farmer’s market (or several) and buy a few things from the vendors. In this way you can strengthen your local food system and let the farmers know that people are interested in buying the things they grow!
What kinds of things are sold at your local farmer’s market?
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Good Times
While in D.C. last week we spent some time taking in all the monuments. It’s really interesting to spend some time learning the history behind them before you go, they have much more of an impact that way.
We only visited the White House at night since we were turned down for our tour, so I didn’t get to see the new veggie garden.
I did spot a few gardening/preserving items while touring the Smithsonian, as well as a few Victory garden posters.
Here are some old canning supplies on display at the American History Museum. This was my favorite poster of course (anyone recognize it?)
All-in-all we had a great time in D.C. with our friends.
When we returned home however, the fun ended. The weather must have been perfect while we were gone because the gardens were a jungle! Our lawn was actually so tall it went to seed (and I mowed it the night before we left).
My kale bloomed while we were gone and the peas must have grown a foot.
The lettuce was overflowing from it’s planters, so we’ve been eating salads every day (not that we mind).
The most exciting sight when we got home were our strawberries in full bloom. I can hardly wait to see the red berries.
Going on vacation during prime spring planting season it a bit of a gamble, I did worry about coming home to flats of dead plants and weeks of work down the drain. I had 5 grow lights in the house on timers and I watered everything well before we left. There were only a few casualties as far as the seedlings go, and it was from nibbling cats. I think next time I’ll plan my vacation a little earlier or a little later to avoid being gone during this time of the gardening season.
Do you avoid going on vacation during certain times of the year because of gardening chores?
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The U.S. National Gardens
While in D.C. we visited a lot of museums and monuments. They were all very interesting, but of course my favorite thing was spending the morning at the National Gardens. It’s a small garden, much smaller than the one in Cleveland, but it very nice. They had some traditional herb gardens divided up into quadrants, a water feature with a pond, and a very nice conservatory filled with tropical plants, succulents and a medicinal plant section as well. (if you want to see the slide show in full size click on the little icon in the upper left hand corner)
[flashgallery folder=”National_Gardens”]
If you’re ever in D.C. I would suggest taking a morning to visit the National Gardens. It’s a great way to take a break from the museums.
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Longwood Gardens
The first place we went on vacation was Longwood Gardens. We’ve been telling our friends (that we went on vacation with) how great it is for the past 2 years, but you really can’t explain it and the photos don’t do it justice, you just have to see it in person. (here are a few photos from our last visit)
The spring blooms festival was in full swing while we were there, and the tulips were AMAZING!
The espaliered trees were also spectacular, they have them on various walls as well as an orchard full of them. I’m hoping to add espaliered apples or pears to my garage wall someday soon.
I was super excited to see their cold frames, something that escaped my attention on our last visit.
It’s such an amazing place, filled with all different kinds of plants, both familiar and exotic.
It is a truly beautiful place filled with greenhouses, fountains, woodlands, prairies and so many other wonderful things. Their vegetable garden is sure to impress in the summer, I’m hoping to go back this summer to see it in it’s full glory. If you’re in need of a vacation somewhere lovely and inspirational, I would highly recommended heading to Kennett Square, PA to see Longwood Gardens! You won’t be disappointed! The photos of this trip and my previous trip don’t even do it justice.
What’s your favorite inspiration garden to visit?
