Over-wintering Outdoor Plants

Overwintering outdoor plants is as simple as bringing them indoors and potting if necessary.  This is an ideal method for having ready-to-use container plants for the following spring.  We spent the month of October at our vacation home in sunny Florida.  Before we left, I gathered up all the potted geraniums, annual herbs, the potted herbs and the hibiscus tree to bring indoors for the winter.  Normally, I bring in a couple of pepper plants and tomato clippings but this year decided not to.

Now, bringing in outdoor plants is not as easy as it sounds.  Logistically, I need to find suitable space for them among my houseplants and continuous garden.  At the same time I have to be very careful not to introduce disease or pests from the outdoor plants to the existing indoor plants.  Complicating the issue is some of the outdoor planters I bring in are rather large, not easily moved around indoors as required for sun exposure and watering.  Here's a few tips for what I did this year:

• the prep - All plants intended for overwintering were brought onto the deck.  The pots were hosed down well then allowed to dry.  The plants were cleaned up (eg. dead foliage removed, trimmed if necessary) and checked for any insects.  Normally this isn't much of an issue with most herbs but I have found spiders like to spin webs over the openings of certain style self-watering pots.  Pill bugs and earwigs are also rather common in some potted plants.  Once I was sure there were no living bugs on the plants, I brought them indoors.
• isolation - Even though there may be no signs of infestation on outdoor plants or any newly purchased plant for that matter, all plants new to the house must be put into isolation.  This gives me time to be sure there were no insect eggs or larvae that hatched to cause any kind of infestation.  I put the plants well away from the other plants, in one of the spare bedrooms.  After a two week period, I move the plants to where I think they will do well which means plenty of natural sunlight.
• large planters - I put the large planters on wooden plant dollies that I get at the dollar store for $2.  They come un-assembled but all that is needed is to attach the caster wheels.  The wheels are a heavy plastic that doesn't mark up our hard flooring so for the price, a rather good deal.
• watering - I water as the plants need it as well as use self-watering planters and water globe for some of the plants.
• fertilizing - I wait to fertilize plants brought indoors until they have adjusted to the indoor environment, usually three to four weeks.  I fertilize monthly with an organic fertilizer from that point onwards. 

Balsam Apple (Momordic charantia)

Balsam Apple Seed Pod

(Momordic charantia)

September 22, 2010

I have taught my husband well!  He was out on the golf course with a couple of buddies and spotted a rather interesting plant so he brought me home a seed pod for identification.  Despite warnings he should not touch unknown plants just in case apparently this plant did not pose a warning for him.  I now have to get him used to taking pictures of the actual plants.  At any rate with just the seed pod I was able to quickly identify the plant as being Momordic charantia or commonly balsam apple, balsam pear or bitter melon.  The seed pod is bright orange and knobby ridged.  Inside the seed pod there are bright red seeds surrounded by  a gelatinous protective coating as pictured.  This plant is classified as an annual weed.  There is some indication that there are medicinal uses for reducing blood sugar but the fruit coat, ripe fruits and seeds are toxic when ingested in large quantities.  I will be looking to get pictures of the actual plant.  It should be easy to identify with this unique type of seed pod.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Pinnacle Salmon '07 Geranium

Pinnacle® Salmon '07 Geranium

July 12, 2010

Geraniums have never been my favourite garden plant.  The reason being my mother would line every windowsill in the house with geranium cuttings in the fall so she would have geraniums for the following year.  I found the scent overpowering.  The past few years I have come to appreciate the simple beauty of geraniums.  They are available in a wide range of colours and some even have double blooms.  I find they add a wonderful splash of colour.  Geraniums are also relatively problem free making them ideal for new home gardeners.  I'm a bit partial to the salmon geraniums.  I bought 10 of these geraniums from our neighbour's kids who were selling them as a school fundraiser.  As a result they were a bit more expensive at $3 each for a 4" potted geranium but it was going to a good cause.

What is interesting about this particular variety of geranium is on the tag it says propagation prohibited.  This is becoming increasingly more common for some hybrid flowers.  It means the plant developer owns the patent on that cultivar.  It sometimes appears as PP on the tag.  However, it is basically useless for home gardeners propagating plants for their own use!  First few read the tag anyway especially for plants like geraniums and second the tag usually ends up being lost because the plants are repotted.  Unlike many, I tend to keep the tags with the plants if at all possible but that is simply for easy identification of plant varieties later.  Any home gardener is going to propagate the plants they like.  That is a given.  In this case the plant developer is concerned about asexual propagation (cuttings, division) not pollination.  The reason is asexual propagation results in exact copies of the plant that they hold the rights to.  The idea that the plant developer can prevent a home gardener from using asexual propagation methods on their protected plant is nonsense but they can prevent you from selling any plants propagated asexually from the original plant.  It's the same principle as the music copyright issue.  They can't stop you from making a copy of a song for personal use but they can go after copyright infringement if you sell the copy.  Technically, the propagation you can do on plants that are marked propagation prohibited are by pollination (sexual plant reproduction).  So you should not collect seeds or take cuttings however some plants will propagate through dropped leaves or seed.  Legally you do not have to destroy the plants that result from this but you cannot sell those plants.  The plant can be divided to suit your needs but you cannot sell the divisions.  

In Canada a plant developer can apply for Plant Holder's Rights.   Once granted the rights are for 18 years providing a renewal fee is paid annually.  There are two exemptions to the Plant Holder's Rights

Research Exemption: Protected varieties may be used for breeding and developing new plant varieties without the permission of the holder of the rights.

Farmers' Privilege: Farmers may save and plant their own seed of protected varieties on their own land without infringing on the holder's rights.

- Plant Holder's Rights

A plant developer's rights may be revoked for failure to pay the annual fee as well as failure to maintain propagation or proving the variety is being maintained.  The rights can also be revoked it is found the plant developer was selling the variety before being granted the rights.  It is quite possible that even though the tag says propagation prohibited the plant is no longer protected under the Plant Holder's Rights.  From a home gardening perspective, taking cuttings from a propagation prohibited plant to create new plants should be for personal use only.  However, there is nothing to restrict you from collecting seeds from the plant or using that plant to do a cross with another variety of the same plant to create a new but different plant from the parental plant.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Magenta Madness® Petunia

Magenta Madness® Petunia

June 25, 2010

The Magenta Madness® petunias are in full bloom, quickly filling their container.  The blooms on this petunia are large and colourful.  I love the gorgeous lilac colour of the blooms!  They are so bright and cheery.  Did you know petunias attract hummingbirds?  They do although so far I haven't seen any hummingbirds flitting around the garden yet.  I planted more containers of petunias this year so perhaps I'll see a hummingbird yet this year.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

What's Eating My Sweet Basil?

Herbs generally are rather problem free plants in the garden yet this year I have encountered more problems with herbs than in previous years.  The oregano has been attacked by spider mites and fungus gnats.  Earwigs attacked the potted parsley and I just discovered an unidentified caterpillar attacking the potted sweet basil.  I'm hoping this isn't a sign of things to come for this growing season!

Like many gardeners I also have several plants growing in pots.  I bought this pre-planted basil combo at the nursery thinking it would look good sitting on one of the picnic tables.  The planter is planted with sweet basil, purple ruffles basil, Siam queen basil and boxwood basil.  The wind blew it over so I moved it onto the covered patio for protection.  A couple of days later I noticed signs of the sweet basil blooming so brought it in to trim up.  The planter was filled with earwings that I blamed signs of damage on.  After knocking all the earwigs out I watered the planter well and made the clippings.  I placed the cuttings in water hoping they would root.  I put both the planter and clippings into the sunporch out of harms way from earwigs.  The next morning I checked the planter and cuttings to discover the black frass under the cuttings, a tell tale sign of some type of caterpillar.  Sure enough upon closer inspection I found a caterpillar happily munching away on the sweet basil cuttings!

How I missed this caterpillar the day before remains a mystery.  While knocking out the earwigs I likely knocked the caterpillar deeper into the plant then during the night the little critter crawled from the planter back up to the cuttings where it resumed feeding.  I carefully removed the caterpillar for it's photoshoot then set about trying to identify it.  So far I have not had any luck with the identification.  The caterpillar obviously is a foe to sweet basil but had not damaged the other basil.  It is about 1¼- inch long.  It has a black and yellow stripped body with 4 distinctive yellow bumps.  The body is hairy.  The antennae are black and the head is an orangish red.  Any help in identifying this caterpillar would be greatly appreciated.  If you know what this caterpillar is could you please leave a comment. 

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Starting to Plant the Beds

The following day my husband stopped on the way home to pick up a flat of flowers and herb.  I was not specific in my instructions other than marigolds, petunias and herbs.  I figure he has been helping me around the gardens long enough to have a good idea what I like.  He brought an assortment of marigolds, deep purple petunias, thai basil, purple basil and lemon basil.  Apparently my comment that one can never have too much basil has not gone unnoticed :)

The flat of plants just looked so pretty!  I always love planting and buying flats of plants because in such a small space there is a lot of hope and anticipation of what is to come.  This year has been a bit off with the house for sale and a May vacation so I didn't start a lot of plants indoors.  I am relying on buying a few flats of plants this year as well as the free tomato and pepper plants I can get. 

Buying plants if you don't have the chance to start them yourself is still a good value.  A cell-pack of vegetables usually ranges in cost from 99¢ to $1.29 for 4 to 6 plants.  A flat usually holds 48 plants and ranges in price from $10 to $15.  A $100 budget for annuals, herbs and vegetables can buy a lot of plants! 

Marigolds are excellent companion plants for tomatoes, peppers and lettuces.  This bed will be planted with all three so I planted marigolds around the perimeter.  In less than two days the first bed is already taking shape and looking good!  Once the marigolds were planted the bed was prepped for planting the other vegetables.

Work has already started in the herb raised bed. The herbs there already look great so it was a matter of working up the bed a bit after weeding then stringing the grid.   Then that bed was ready for planting as well.  So really under 2 days of a bit of work and it wasn't difficult or time consuming work the beds were in the progress of being planted.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Geraniums

Geraniums 

May 13, 2010

The common garden geranium is likely one of the most popular of gardening plants perhaps tying in popularity with petunias.  I think every home gardener has at least one geranium growing in their garden.   They do nicely in pot, hanging baskets and in garden beds.  The reason for their popularity aside of their showy blooms is for the most part geraniums are rather low maintenance, problem free plants.  They can even stand a bit of abuse like drying out and they overwinter well.  Propagation is through rooting clippings.  My experience has been that geraniums benefit from dead heading spent blooms if only to keep the plant looking nice.

The neighbour kids were selling geraniums for a local school fund raiser.   They were $3 per 4 - inch potted geranium.  Now I know I could have bought them cheaper at likely one of the box stores (eg. Canadian Tire) but this was for a good cause as well as fostering good neighbour relation so I bought 10 at that price.  The adorable kids delivered my plants on the 12^th. They are nice healthy looking plants that I will be using in window boxes.  Aren't they cheery?

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

A Taste of Summer - Yellow Petunias

Yellow Petunias
June 14, 2009

I have always loved yellow petunias. The problem is they are annuals here and hard to find. Pinks, reds, purples and fuschia tends to be the most popular petunia colours. Last year I did a lot of petunia seed collection specifically yellow petunias. I am really looking forward to an abundance of yellow petunias this year!
Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2009

New Raised Beds Layout

Over the past weekend we worked on two new raised garden beds (more here). The beds are being created while we are continuing to rip out existing vegetation so the new beds were not planned using Garden Manager software mainly because the beds were going in late spring. I would have to reboot in Windows as well since this software is not Mac compatible. I've been using the combined with square foot gardening method combined with companion plantings in raised beds for 8 years now. Over the years I have learned a lot with respect as to what I can and can't do with this type of gardening. The grid is critical for square foot gardening. This year the beds are being laid out very similar to my former large square food garden as they are created because this layout has been tried and tested. However, the layouts are being designed for maximized planning for the 2010 growing season that will begin as soon as the first seed catalogues of the 2010 season arrive.

Bed 1

I used MS Word for windows to create a template for the garden beds. If you have followed this blog you will know I number my beds usually in order of creation. This is simply for reference. At the top of the template I put the label 'bed _____' which is important not only for the working sheets but also the final layouts. Each bed is 4' x 10' so I created a table consisting of 4 columns and 10 rows. That gave me 40 cells representing the 40 squares I have to work with in each bed. I use a separate layout sheet for each bed. The beauty of planning using a computer is you can easily change the cells as desired until you get what you want then plant according to your plan when it is finished. I printed off a copy then set about working with the plant I had.

A square foot garden bed should not be planted willy nilly. It should be planted according to the grid. The location and sun exposure needs to be considered. I like to lay the beds in a north to south orientation with taller plants at the north end of the bed and shortest plants at the south end. This maximizes sun exposure for all the plants. I plant parsley and other plants that rabbits like to munch on, towards the centre of the bed and behind a barrier of marigolds. This technique worked well for my former garden but I will be adding a low fence around the entire perimeter of this garden. Each plant is then set in place and recorded on the working copy. For bed 1 where all of the plants are annuals there is no need to include the scientific names on either the working sheet or the computerized copy but they are indicated in my gardening journal along with notations as to their performance and any problems.

Pictured is the layout for Bed 1 consisting mainly of tomatoes, peppers and greens. Thirty-two of the 40 squares are currently planted. Over the following week I will be checking the local nurseries for any compatible plants I can pop in these squares. The nice thing about buying plants late in the season is their prices are greatly reduced. With a little TLC they will perform quite nicely as well.

Herb Bed

Bed 2 is the herb garden consisting of perennials, biennials and annuals. The herb bed takes a bit more planning. Unlike an annual bed, only portions of this bed layout will change over the next several years. Over time the grid becomes non-existent unless it is constructed from a material that doesn't break down. Plant identification tags have a tendency to go missing as well. I like to use the computerized copy of the layout as later identification of the various herbs. I include the botanical names as well to avoid confusion as there are often more than one cultivar of the herb growing in the bed. Above the name of each herb I indicate in brackets whether the herb is perennial, biennial or annual. It really helps with the overall herb bed planning because at some point there won't be room for the annual herbs as the perennial and biennial herbs spread.

It is important if considering any invasive herb especially those in the mint family to contain them in pots dug into the space, plant them in their own small raised beds or confine them to areas where spreading is restricted. If this is not done they will quickly take over your herb bed choking out the other herbs. So choose your herbs wisely!

Twenty-six of the 40 available squares are planted. From experience sage and chives get quite large so over time will likely take up the end 8 square feet but for now they will only take up one square each. The squares around these two herbs will be planted with annuals for the time being with the exception of lavender started from seed. I have not had good luck starting lavender from seed but if successful I will move the plant to a more appropriate location. In the meantime I have a few herbs started indoors to be transplanted to the garden when they are ready and I will again be checking the nurseries.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2009

Over-wintering Plants

Our ADFF was October 12^th this year meaning on that date there was a 50/50 chance of a damaging or hard frost. Unfortunately it came earlier than predicted spelling disaster to local tomato farmers. There were hundreds of thousands of dollars lost due to the early frost. Our property is water front so tends to be a bit protected from frost longer into the season still it is time to bring in plants for over-wintering. These include any herbs grown in pots, geraniums and any plant I want to try over-wintering. Over-wintering allows you to save some potted plants that you want to use the following year but at the same time if you do it correctly some plants will provide you with a bit of fresh produce while giving you any easy way to propagate some plants.

My method is relatively simple. I clean the plant of any dead growth, inspect well for any signs of infestation and wipe down the pot. Then I fertilize using an organic fertilizer and water well until the water runs from the bottom. Once the bottom of the pot is dry I bring the plant in where it is isolated from other house plants until I am sure there is problem with infestation. Potted plants can introduce spiders, earwigs and pill bugs to the home so I check carefully under the plants for a few days to be sure there no introduced bugs.

Tomato Clippings

If you have a sunny location in your home do consider taking clippings from your tomato plants before a frost hits them. This technique will work for hybrids that don't breed true through seed so it is a good way of keeping plants going from one season to the next. For best results cut from the terminal end of a healthy tomato plant and keep the clippings less than 1 - foot in length. Place the cut ends into water where they will root. In about a weeks time take each clipping that will now have generous growth of roots and pot them. As the plants grow make more clippings from them. Keep the vines clean by removing any dead or yellowing foliage. Pinch feeders (stems that form between a Y branch) to encourage bushier grown. The feeders can be rooted as well. Continue in this manner and you should have a rather lovely supply of tomato plants in time for planting in the spring. They will simply need to be hardened before planting. Choose the hardiest plants for this purpose. At the same time you will have enjoyed a few fresh tomatoes if you have hand pollinated. Cherry tomatoes when used this way can give you a nice supply of cherry tomatoes throughout the winter and since the vines are smaller they are easier to grow indoors.

Impatiens

Impatiens are a beautiful low growing flowering annual in our area with flowers ranging from white to red and shades of pink. Several years ago when I was learning about ponding I came across a reference that said us use impatiens clippings for shading. It was a simple, inexpensive solution to poke holes in thin styrofoam sheets to allow the impatiens clippings to reach the water. They would form a good root system within a week or so, ready for planting in the garden. That year I had more impatiens than I knew what to do with.

The same technique can be used for over-wintering impatiens as well as propagating for spring planting. Choose healthy plants then cut two or three 4 - inch clippings from the plant. Place the clippings in room temperature water and allow to form roots. Plant in soil. As the plants grow you can take further clippings to start more plants but do not take more than ⅓ of the total foliage when clipping. In the spring you will need to harden off the plants after the ADLF and when the soil warms a bit.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2008

This Lawn is Your Lawn

I'm of the mindset that every household should have a vegetable garden. This is not a new idea as Victory Gardens were encouraged as a way to save energy and keep people fed during World War I and World War II. Twenty million of these gardens existed producing 40% of the vegetable produce consumed nationally in the United States. Planting a vegetable garden was seen as a national duty.

I hope you enjoy the video. As you know this is a Canadian blog so I try to find content of interest to other Canadians. The video focuses on the American White House but the message really can be applied to any country. Our elected officials should be setting an example and practicing what they preach. I urge everyone to write their elected official at all levels of government conveying the idea of encouraging Victory Gardens as a way to help the environment, feed the hungry and encourage people to help themselves. I urge everyone reading this blog to grow fruits and vegetables at some level. If you can, grow more. If you don't have a garden now is the time to start one! Get involved. Start a community garden or a friendship garden. If you have more produce than you or your family can use when preserved for the following year, consider donating it to a food bank or church agency that will see it gets to a family in need. Encourage everyone you know to grow a vegetable garden. Spread the word, sign petitions and write letters but first ensure you are growing a vegetable garden!

Today we have the luxury of huge supermarkets stocked to overflowing with every kind of fruit and vegetable imaginable. However did you the average food travels 1500 miles from farm to table? Revive the Victory Garden and Eat Your View are two organizations that are encouraging households to grow Victory Gardens again as a way to reduce global warming. Planting edible landscaping makes good sense environmentally and economically. When you grow your own you end up with nutritious, fresh vegetables at a fraction of the cost of store bought. With gardening comes preserving either by canning, freezing or drying further reducing your food costs. It's a win win situation.

Did you know that home canning continues to increase fueled by the concerns over rising food prices. While a pressure canner necessary for canning low acid foods (vegetables, meats, etc.) will range in price from about $100 to $500 depending on the brand and size, they will more than pay for themselves within one season. Not only do you save money by preserving your own, you also can take advantage of buying local produce in season and preserving enough to get to the next season. I should mention that my pressure canner is in use year round often two or more times per week. Recipes, methods and pictures can be found on my cooking blog.

I've often mentioned on this blog and elsewhere that even small space gardening can be quite productive. Think outside of the box. Replace the environmentally unfriendly lawn with edible landscaping. Many herbs have beautiful flowers so plant perennial herbs instead of annuals. Those dandelions may be a weed in your lawn but if you don't use herbicides they make tasty salad greens. Use trellises and arbours to grow fruit and vegetables up instead of spreading. A small balcony can be used for container gardening. Small patches of land between sidewalk and house can be planted with vegetables or herbs. Window sills can be used to grow herbs and greens year round. Grow your own sprouts (mustard, bean, alfalfa, etc.) indoors year round. I've even had success growing tomatoes, peppers and potatoes indoors. Be sure to save seeds from your garden to reduce the cost of buying seeds the following year.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2008

Petunias

Common Garden Petunia
(Petunia x hybrida)

Very few gardeners are unaware of the common garden petunia (petunia x hybrida) with their beautiful showy, cascading trumpet shaped flowers. These plants are members of the family Solanaceae (nightshade plant) that originated in South America and are thought to be a hybridization between P. axillaris and P. integrifolia. There is a wide variety of colours available ranging from white to very deep purple and everything in between. Petunias are grown as annuals but in warmer climates they are biennials. They are a popular plant for hanging baskets and containers. Why?

The reason is quite simple. Petunias are very low maintenance plants that but on a beautiful cascading display of colour from mid-spring to first hard frost. Their only real requirement seems to be regular watering. To keep the plant looking nice, remove spent flowers by simply giving a slight tug. This will leave the seed pod intact so you can harvest the seeds. The seed pod will turn brown and open releasing very small, round, dark brown seeds. Since most petunias are hybrids the seeds may not breed true but you can get some interesting combinations and they are free plants!

Petunias are more than just a pretty flower! They are excellent companion plants for pole beans, bush beans, peas, squashes and potatoes. Pink petunias in particular will repel the Mexican bean beetle, potato bug and squash bug. I've also noticed that rabbits don't seem to bother petunias. Taking advantage of that observation I planted petunias around the entire perimeter of my legume bed and sure enough the rabbits left that bed alone. So be sure to plant pink petunias in and around these crops for a natural pest control.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2008

Daffodils

Daffodils
genus Narcissus
April 28, 2008

Who can resist the cheery bright yellow of daffodils blooming in early spring? These beautiful flowers have graced gardens for centuries. Botanically, daffodils (common name) are are in the family Amaryllidaceae, genus Narcissus. All members of genus Nacissus have a central trumpet (corona) surrounded by a ring of 6 floral leaves (perianth) that forms a tube at the forward edge of the ovary. The outer three segments are the sepals while the inner three are the petals forming the trumpet.

Daffodils are quite cold tolerant and one of the easiest flowers to grow. They grow nicely under deciduous trees as well because they are finished blooming by the time the diciduous leaves are out. They do not grow well under evergreens although some here planted quite close to evergreens are growing fine as seen in the clump pictured above. Daffodils are propagated from seed (sexual - different copies) or bulbs (asexual - exact copies). Naturalize daffodils by planting bulbs under sod or ground cover in locations where the daffodil foliage can be left until died back and the area will remain undisturbed for years. Plant the bulb so the top (pointed end) is twice as deep as the bulb is high. For example a 2" high bulb should be planted 4" deep. Squirrels and rodents will not eat the bulbs because the contain the toxic crystal lycorine but they may dig up the bulbs. Fertilize with 5-10-10 when the leaf tips emerge then with a 0-10-10 or 0-0-50 as they flower. Water well while in bloom and for about 3 weeks after blooming then stop watering. Allow the leaves to die back, removing when they have turned brown. In flower beds, daffodils should be left for 3 to 5 years then moved. Dig them after the foliage has turned yellow. Wash them well and allow to dry about 1 week. Store in a cool, dark location for fall planting.

An excellent resource for further information on daffodils is the American Daffodil Society. There are at least 25 species but many cultivars of daffodils consisting of thirteen divisions based on description. For example all daffodils in Division 1 have a cup that is as long as or longer than the petals with one bloom per stem. According to the division classification, the clump pictured above is in Division 2 with a cup measuring more than a third but less than half of the length of the petals.

I have several clumps of daffodils here. Some have double trumpets (Division 4) and most are Division 2. Some are all yellow and shades of yellow with yellow cups (corona) and perianth while others have yellow cups with white perianth. Most of my clumps are being naturalized in the back yard rather accidentally as we removed flower beds but the bulbs survived. The look is really quite pretty in the sloping and gently rolling backyard so I plan to expand the naturalization of both daffodils and crocuses.

Warning: All parts of the daffodil but more so the bulb contain lycorine and galanthamine that are toxic. They can be dangerous to animals especially dogs. Pets and children should always be supervised when in the garden. For more information on poisonous plants in your garden please click here.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©2007

Marigold

The marigolds were wonderful last summer so I have several close-ups. I'm playing with Adobe Photoshop today. Can you tell I'm bored and itching to get into the garden? I'm learning lots of neat tricks and thought this photo would lend itseld to the technique I wanted to use.

It is getting time to start seeds indoors for us. Some of the seed packs say to start 8 to 12 weeks before transplanting so it won't be long now. I bought rock cress, scarlet runner and lobelia seeds the other day at a dollar store, 3 for $1. Normally I don't do this but I figured even if the germination rate was low, I'd still end up with something. One of my biggest problems is I do not have a lot of indoor space so am hoping the weather starts warming enough to open the greenhouse. Otherwise we will be tripping over seed trays for a couple of weeks. That's ok though because it just means the gardening season is close by!

Happy Gardening
© 2007