Happy Spring!
I hope the weather has been warming up where you live! We have had a cool and wet Spring so far but I am loving it and so is my garden! Right now its been around 65 -70 degrees during the day but this past week it finally went into the 70s. It looks like the possibility of frost is about over so I am looking forward to getting some tomatoes and squash in the ground. I still have a few beds to build before that happens though!
Remember the dirt patch by my front door? That is now the herb garden. I have cilantro, thyme, oregano, parsley, and pineapple sage planted there along with the mint that’s still trying to take over. We have really enjoyed having the cilantro. I love cooking with it but never seem to have it, so now that it’s outside we actually eat it a lot more.
I realized last week that I should probably get more than one cilantro plant because this one barely has any time to grow before I’m cutting it back again.
I’ve never cooked with pineapple sage before, has anyone else? The flowers were so pretty I figured they would attract bees which are always good to have around in a garden that needs pollinating.
Those ugly cinderblocks that lined the back patio are now filled with strawberry plants. I think I have 4 different varieties now. Every time I see a different variety I pick up a few to add to this growing collection. We go through so many strawberries at our house at least now I can offset that cost a bit. I harvested my very first one yesterday. It was sweet and wild tasting. Like only homegrown strawberries can be.
Those seed pots are full of tri-color beans, cucumbers of various types and cat grass for my grass loving cat. Every spring Costco sells tomato plants in large pots and I always try to grab a couple. This year I snagged the last two available ones. I was super excited to have a couple patio tomatoes until I realized the varieties they planted in those pots are not really suitable for container gardens and they planted three to a pot! So I need to replant them into the garden so they can climb and grow large. Then I’ll just buy a couple patio tomatoes to plant in those bigger pots.
The garden itself doesn’t look like much right now. Since its a brand new garden being built up from scratch I am trying to be as cheap as possible. Which means utilizing boxes, which make fabulous shallow beds by the way and will naturally erode and become part of the soil over time. Another perk is they stop weeds from growing up from the bottom of the beds and help retain more water. 
The chain link is ugly right now, but there is nothing I can do about that at the moment. I plan to use it as a very awesome and free trellising material. The tomatoes, beans, and cucumbers will love growing up those links. Tomatoes need a lot more room than these boxes provide so I’ll be building wooden beds for those. I’m even thinking of growing some pumpkins and other melons this year. I have the space and no critters to bother them. What do you think? Are melons easy to grow? I don’t think I have ever grown any!
The broccolini and swiss chard were originally planted in the front yard garden. Remember those cool garden boxes in the front yard? One day I saw a cat use it as a bathroom and that was the last day my plants were in that box. I transplanted them to the backyard where they will be safe from any cat poo. Ewww!
I also have some spinach, a basil and some peas planted in these. Everything seems to be doing well and actually is thriving with more sun.
What have you been doing in your gardens to prep for Spring planting? Tell me about it in the comments or if you have a post about it please leave it for me to read!
Shoots and Roots 