A cold spring means no planting, but garden clean up can continue.
Greetings fellow gardeners,
We seem to be having a cool spring. Not to worry, some of those seeds might take longer to germinate but our lettuce will taste sweeter for the wait.
More about starting seeds
This week I had an emergency with a tray of seedlings. One of my dear pussycats thought that despite the netting around my plant stand he would see if he could balance along the edge. He knocked over the entire tray. The little guys were just popping up so there was no saving them. Fortunately, a friend of mine had extra seed so I was able to replant. Replanting is something we gardeners do! Be sure to continue to water your seedlings without letting them sit in water. Too dry they will shrivel and too wet they will rot. We are about two weeks away from starting your tender plants. So far, I have had several little seedlings develop their true leaves and I potted them up. When you pot up your seedlings, go up slowly. A tiny seedling in a huge pot will not do that well.
Outside I have been slowly collecting fallen branches and pruning roses. Remember not to take more than a third of the growth off your roses. Remove all the dead branches and clear the base. In a couple of weeks, I will add compost to each rose. I love roses and I use their flowers and hips for jams, jellies, and teas. In addition, you can cut back last year’s perennials. Cut back to about two or three inches. Pick up all those old hosta and daylily leaves as well. Old hosta flower stocks look almost like straws and can be bundled together to make solitary bee homes! If you step on the soil as you do this and there is a big squish, or you are leaving big footprints just wait for a while for things to dry out.
I am enjoying the colours of crocuses and scilla that are popping up everywhere and soon the daffodils and tulips will appear. A dusting of snow will not deter these beauties. My peas are up and although they are not impressed with the snow, they will grow quickly as the world warms up. Along with peas you can be planting radishes, swiss chard, spinach, and kale.
Hardening off
You have probably heard this phrase ‘hardening off’ before. It is very important. The spring sun is strong, and the wind and the soil are cold. Your seedlings are tender as are many of the plants that you buy in the spring. Place these new seedlings and plants in a sheltered area out of direct sun and wind and protect them at night for about a week before you plant them out. This helps them to adjust and get tough. Gradually introduce them to your garden and watch for signs of stress. If you are planting these seedlings and plants in planters, the hardening off time is reduced.
I ran out of potting and seed-starting soil this week so I contacted Green Thumb Garden Centre https://www.greenthumbgarden.ca/ . I placed my order and was able to pick it up curbside. If you want soil or tools you can contact a nursery you like and do a curbside pickup as well. We have a lot of local nurseries and we want to keep them in business! If you are looking for plants, pansies are starting to become available. Pansies and violas are very forgiving in these weather conditions and are also edible. Candied pansies are so pretty around a springtime cake.
Next week I hope to be adding a new section to Veggie Bites called Composting with Arlene. Arlene Rowe was to be our May speaker and she knows a lot about composting. She will be addressing a number of composting questions
Enjoy your week – Judith (email: lapisdragonarts@gmail.com)