Design

It's getting close to time to start think about planting a first round of peas (in the next few weeks). It's time at least for us anxious Southern US gardeners, who are ready to get out there, but have been delayed by cold and wet this winter. It's always dicey planting in spring; the soil's cold, it's been exceptionally cold and wet, the seeds probably will just rot, etc. etc. But, hot weather comes on its own schedule, and you never know whether we'll have a long cool spring, or a brutal arrival of summer in late April or early May. The bigger mistake is to wait too late and have pea vines shrivel in the heat. So, successive plantings from mid-February to mid-March spread the risk, and up the possibilities of harvesting some nice garden, snow, or snap peas, but even then, I'm delighted to have a decent harvest. (Hmm, I just thought about the ROWS of snow peas I saw this winter in Dalat, in the Central Highlands of Vietnam, a perpetual spring-like clima...

It was a perfect late winter day here, temperatures in the upper 60's (°F), sunny and warm. It felt more like spring. The winter honeysuckle was covered in honey bees foraging for nectar. After a weekend away largely spent on indoor house activities (yuck), it was nice to return home and spend an hour or so turning over the remaining beds, sowing a first series of snap peas (Sugar Sprint) and garden peas (Wando and Maestro), a round of arugula, and a flat of mixed lettuce, to go in the cold frame when the weather turns cold again. I replanted some favas (broad beans), too, mainly as an experiment, since I think there may not be time for a crop to mature before it gets too hot. My fall planting of favas had a few blackened survivors still with healthy-looking roots, but it was really way too cold this winter for most normally winter hardy greens. Even collards show signs of frost damage. This week looks like it will be mild; I'm going to continue to put in onion sets and so...

I'm so glad that we're finally beginning to think about winter vegetable gardening here in the Southern U.S. I just listened to a podcast this morning from BBC Gardens Illustrated , where Sarah Raven talked about how in the U.K., folks are growing more crops through the winter. Uh, we get a LOT more light in the winter that British gardeners do -- why not take advantage of it? I put together a new cold frame today (it's a good thing I don't earn my living as a carpenter), but I'm thinking about coaxing some of the more tender winter greens through colder times. I'm delighted that my English (garden) peas are flowering profusely now. I may actually be able to harvest some English peas this fall (I've already harvested about 10 peas -- whoopee!)

It's fun to try new things. All it takes is some seeds and prepared soil. I've had a number of spots ready, and now, after 4 days of rain (thankfully due to Tropical Storm Fay), the soil is well-hydrated for now, at least. I thought I'd try shelling peas this fall -- 'Maestro' and 'Wando' look like good varieties to try for our climate. So I pre-germinated this first batch, and have just finished tucking them into the soil. I think that I'll try succession plantings over the next month, just to see what timing might be best. It's supposed to be back up to 90°F on Friday; young peas won't like that heat, but hopefully it will cool down before the seedlings emerge above ground!

Is it fall yet? I feel like a kid asking, are we there yet? August days are trying for gardeners and nature watchers in the southern U.S. It's the worst time of our gardening year, actually -- even in 'good' years, it's hot and often dry. This year, we've already hit 100° in the first week of August. And hardly a drop of rain in the forecast. The cutting from the hardy rose at the corner of the house is flowering beautifully, two hummingbirds are chasing each other outside my window, and I'm harvesting tomatoes, squash, and yardlong beans (the regular beans are sulking in the heat), so I'm grateful for that. And, the dry weather, unlike our usual humid summer days, makes mornings and evenings quite pleasant, instead of sticky. But I'm enjoying thinking about fall vegetables, tough fall-flowering perennials, and fall color. The lettuces, mustard, and mesclun mixes in flats are doing well, although I'm waiting to sow some other t...