lettucesubatus

I don't know where or why I made that word up... lettucesubatus.  It just goes together in my mind somehow... twisted I know.  I felt the need, and mainly since I have the covering over the back porch now at the DC, to begin lettuce seeds.  Some of them do great in the colder climates and don't go to seed as fast.  Especially if you can keep the frost off of them.  So I started what lettuce seeds I had hanging around the day care last week in little paper Dixie cups and a plastic zip up thing to make a little greenhouse.  This was towards the end of the week and by Monday I had completely leggy sprouts.  Not enough so that I felt I needed to start over.  I am excited for the new growth though.  I planted Red Romaine, Spinach and some purple lettuce that I saved the seeds from that I can't remember the name of.  It will be several weeks before they go outside.  Even them though if we have a bitterly cold night I can bring them inside.  Kind of a perfect little plant world... someone looking out for them.

One of my kids at the DC gave me this for Christmas.

I also started some wheat grass for Tommy.  It sprouted in just a day or so.  I took the seeds last year from my father-in-law's field by our drive way.

Woops!



tiny seedlings

As you can probably guess, since I love to garden and it is spring, I have begun sprouting seeds indoors getting ready for summer.  My first planting was on March 17th and I began to see sprouts from some seeds on Thursday the 19th... yay!  Sometimes I feel like I pot seeds with my shoulders down having done my part and leaving it to nature now, wondering if any of them will come up.  I always feel such a relief to see little curls appear from the soil.

Shaun and I are doing a repeat of last year and not planting our big garden until the first week of June when the ground is good and hot and seeds sprout up overnight it seemed.  Plus there was less tilling to do because the plants grew so fast.  Needless to say, I have not started any seeds that will go in our garden yet because the first week of June is much more than six weeks away and plants would be too leggy and hard to take care of.  And I am practicing patience.  So, the seeds that I have already begun are for flowers and herbs that will live through the summer in pots and such.  I did actually start some tomato seeds on Monday for Mom, Mary Evelyn and my friend Melia who all want them to grow in pots.

When planting seeds it can be very hard to keep up with what's what until there are leaves to identify.  Some of the seedlings I know from their first leaves but most have to be their second set or real leaves before I can tell good.  In the past I have labeled pots and made little markers to go on tooth picks to stick in the soil.  This year I gave in and simply drew a diagram of my starting tray and that will do until I start moving things around... then I will lose track of what they are!

My greenhouse is simple and portable.  I have a heater with a thermostat that cuts on and off by itself so as to keep a certain temperature for the seedlings and create a humid environment.  I also have a thermometer hanging inside the greenhouse to make sure it doesn't get too hot or too cold for them.  Later on, when plants are bigger and ready to harden off I can move the entire greenhouse outside, most of the time with the front flap zipped open.  Although I do have to seriously tie the little greenhouse down tight or a swift wind will knock it over.

So back to the seeds, so far I have planted basil, oregano, caraway, rosemary, petunia, snapdragon, dichondra, craspedia, lettuce mixes and tomatoes (for friends).  And here is my diagram in my journal.

basil

snapdragon... so fragile looking aren't they?

I may have over done it a bit with the oregano!  Look at all those seedlings!  I haven't had much success starting oregano in the past so I over compensated.  I hate having to pluck out the weak when it comes time to separate.

Seeds

Am I finally getting to this post??  I ordered new garden seeds a few weeks back and have actually already received them!  I haven't, at this point, gotten around to starting any indoors as of yet.  We are planning on setting out the garden the first week of June again this year.  We used to put it out on May 10th or there-a-bouts.  But it really seems to take off faster and better and really needs less tilling when the ground is truly warmer and ready.  So there's really no rush on starting my tomatoes this soon.  Boooo.  However, I do feel that the seeds I will begin to go in pots do need to be started very soon.  If I put them outside earlier I can always bring them under the porch eave if there is frost in the forecast or pop them into the house for the evening.

Two years ago I was given a tip for a good company to order seeds from that offers a wide variety of heirloom seeds and are non-GMO, non-treated and non-hybrid.  Just good seeds.  Their catalog alone helps get me through the winter and the last one they sent out was just beautiful... cover to cover and featured pictures of their employees.  My orders are easy to place and arrive by post very speedy.  If you are looking for a good spot to purchase seeds I highly suggest giving them a try.  All of the seed that I purchased from them last year came up and grew very well.  The bell peppers were ever as huge as they said they would be and I have had problems in the past with bell pepper plants... not these!!  They offer herbs, flowers, vegetables and more!  And they were nice enough to allow me to use their photos for this post!  Thanks a buncho!  Visit Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds at www.rareseeds.com

Here are some of the seeds I purchased.  The following I bought to try this year.  They are all plants that I've not grown myself before.

Crosby's Egyptian Beet

I have fallen for beets and they and I always say that things are just better when you grow it yourself.  I fully intend to try it with this one!

Calabrese Green Sprouting Broccoli

A friend of ours remarked last year about how good the broccoli was from their garden.  It's been on my mental list to try and grow.

Chantenay Red Core Carrot

The kids at the day care wanted to grow carrots in our garden this year.  We shall give it a go then!

Caraway

Ah caraway... I love to use caraway seeds when baking bread and also in my cabbage.  I can't wait to collect my own seeds for next winter.

Oregano Vulgare

I've not grown oregano from seed before that I can recall.  I think I've always bought a plant from the garden center.  Hopefully.. not this year!  And I've been out of homegrown oregano for a few months and I sure miss it and need to grow more this time.

Apple Blossom Snapdragon

I had such success growing snapdragons last year that I thought I'd try another color this year in addition to the seeds I will sprout that I saved from my own plants.  They bloomed all summer and I so enjoyed them!

Orange King Zinnia

I'm gonna tell the truth here when I say that I decided to order seeds for orange zinnias instead of stopping to steal some from the gardener up the road.  Not that he would have minded.  I never could seem to catch him out there to ask permission and going late at night just felt wrong.  I can't wait to see these big orange beauties gracing our garden!

I also ordered Henderson's Black Valentine Bean, Glory of Enkhuizen Cabbage, Bonny Best Tomato, Crimson Sweet Watermelon, Blue Lake Bush 274 Bean and Basil - Genovese.

These are the peppers that I grew last year and extremely pleased with.

Emerald Giant Pepper

Here is a shot of their beautiful catalog.

Click on it to order yourself a copy!

The 2015 ones aren't available anymore but you can get on their December mailing list!

But you don't need a catalog to order online!

They also have a larger catalog for sale that is amazing.

I was in awe when I saw the collage of seeds adorning the entire cover of their catalog.

Amazing and beautiful I found myself trying to name the seeds and beans.

Thanks to Baker Creek Heirloom for allowing me to use their pictures for this post!

All credit goes to them!

Remember to click the pictures or names to be directed to that item.

What do you intend to grow in your garden this year?

Really!  I want to know!

Trying anything new to you this year?

Happy Birthday to readers Kathy and Katety!

dc halloween

Man have we been partying around here?!?!  Halloween at the day care is in full force today complete with pumpkins, goodies and costumes!  We truly started out on Monday when we all made super hero masks from cut outs I made a couple of weeks ago and mardi gras masks that I ordered from Amazon.  We all liked that project!  

Then yesterday, the boys and I carved a big pumpkin that will be lit on Halloween night at my house.  Can't blame me for getting help!  I brought out Mr Refrigerator Pumpkin Head and we decided on what face our lantern needed by taking turns making faces on him.  We chose the most used parts, traced them on our pumpkin and took turns digging out the guts, poking tiny holes along the lines and using safe utensils to cut out the face.  It turned out pretty good.

During nap time I roasted the pumpkin seeds (for myself :) ) and after the kids got up we got to work.  We counted out enough seeds for everyone and placed them in a bowl.  Then we added orange glitter, gold glitter and tiny peach sequins.  We passed the bowl around and each child gave it a stir and muttered their wish that the pumpkin seeds would magically come up over night.  We marched out to the garden and each chose a spot to plant our magic seeds.  I tell you I felt like Santa this  morning placing pumpkins in the garden before they all got here and their faces were soooo worth getting my winter moccasins wet in the frosty grass.  I did hide my shoes so no one would be suspicious!  They were giddy with excitement saying "Miss Laurie... our spell worked!!!!

When all of the children were here we traipsed out to the garden, got our pumpkins and brought them back up to the porch.  There were small, carving pumpkins and tiny pumpkins.. enough for each child and a tiny one for me too.  We quickly got to work with glitter (any excuse for me to use glitter!) and glue on the tiny ones for them to take home.  It's up the parents on the bigger ones once they get home.  The bigger ones were given to me by my father-in-law who grew them in his garden this year.  How nice!

We've played Halloween bingo and we still have cupcakes and more games to go once nap time is over.  A full day planned is nice!  Happy Halloween kids!!!

They just couldn't believe it!  How magical!

 I definitely feel as if I have accomplished something today!

Wanna see Mr Refrigerator Pumpkin Head? 

This is my third year to use him!  I have replaced the facial parts but only because I lost them.

By the way... I used a small Pillsbury Funfetti cupcake mix that is orange and only makes twelve cupcakes which is plenty for us!

I got the Halloween Bingo game as a free printable HERE.

I got the free template for the super hero mask accessories HERE.

And the masks at amazon HERE.  Which were a lot cheaper when I ordered them than now.

lovin right now

With a most lovely Florida vacation now in my back pocket, I am holding on to a select few things and calling it "loving right now".  For starters I was introduced to Hawaiian Tropic's shimmer sunscreen tanning lotion by my nieces a couple of weeks before the vacation and picked up a bottle for myself, along with Neutrogena's  spray spf 70 and lotion 30 spf.  I found myself spraying down with the 70, lathering on the 30 and topping it off with shimmer lotion like cool whip on jello before sunning on the beach every day.  

On the way down my niece Lacey pulled out a bag of Bigs dill pickle sunflower seeds.  The first mouth full was a bit sour in taste but after I got through it I wanted more.  And more I had... all... week... long.  I found myself on the beach tucked up under an umbrella spittin seeds, drinking Bud Light tomato beers with my nose crunched in Fifty Shades of Grey.  I don't care who says it's raunchy.... I think it's the fastest I have ever read in my life.  I love the story line although it's a bit far fetched and plain out fan-tasty.  

Speaking of tasty... Nature's Harvest honey sesame sticks and plain M&Ms mixed together in harmony inside a sandwich sized Ziplock are ta-ha-sty.  Did I mention I had a Birkenstock goal in mind way before I even headed south on I65? Well I did... and I achieved my goal on Monday.  Why wait to break in a good thing??  We visited the local Florida Birkenstock store and they were mine in minutes and I love them.  I wasn't home a day and they had garden dirt all over them.  I can't have nothin I tell ya.  

So.. there's my post vaca "lovin it".  xoxo

hidden seeds

After spending the last few springs looking from greenhouse to greenhouse for snap dragons, with no success at finding any, this year I decided to try growing my own from seed.  I ordered snap dragon seeds from a dealer on etsy and they did great!  I have been so pleased with the plants that I grew and have loved the various colors of the flowers.  So I have been thinking of next year... already!... I know.... but I have been trying to pay close attention to the flowers and plant.  Enough to find where the seeds are coming from.  The pretty flower heads on my snap dragons seemed to just fall off when they were finished blooming.  I picked up a fallen flower one day and really examined it.  There was really nothing I could see that would turn into a seed in there.  So I really got to looking around the plant itself and was so excited at what I found.  At the base of each flower there is a pod and when the flower head falls off the pod remains and is full of tiny seeds.  TaaDaa! Of course they need to mature so when the pods begin to turn brown is when I guess they are ready.  I have also found this year that petunias have the very same type of seed pods and is also a plant that drops it's flowers.  Neat huh!?  I plan to collect enough to have more beds of snap dragons next year and possibly even label which seed is which color so as to separate them.  There is something special about the mixed colors all together though.

This is the second year these petunias have come back on their own.  

Finding where the seeds are coming from explains why!

Finally got a decent macro shot out of my new point and shoot camera.