Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Getting started

Monday was a fabulous day.  Perfect temps, perfect winds, just perfect for working in the garden.


This year we expanded our garden to nearly twice its previous size.  Hubby did a lot of tilling while I staked and stringed out the new beds. 


This is the other end of the garden.  You can see garlic patch in the center, surrounded by straw.  The brownish color of the foreground soil is due to the chicken litter we spread over it last fall.


I ordered lots of asparagus crowns this year, hoping to get a large bed established. 


After the asparagus was planted, we put in the potatoes.  Number Three Son helped.


After the potatoes we broke for supper.  But right after supper I and the two littlest monkeys went right back out to plant the peas, shell and snap.  The boys liked putting the peas on the soil and pushing them in with their fingers.  They felt unrestricted by bed borders, however, and thus I will have pea shoots growing up everywhere in my garden this spring.  Which is just dandy. 

Tomorrow plans to be another beautiful day.  On top of the garden to-do list: planting the 50 raspberry canes that came in the mail yesterday.  After weeks of cold wet weather, spring has finally arrived.  Temporarily, at least.

7 comments:

fiona@fionacampbell.ca said...

Your garden looks great! I'm looking forward to watching it grow and progress.

adkmilkmaid said...

Oh, how I envy you that beautiful soil! Your garden looks lovely. I may get there in another ten years! :)

Erin said...

Congrats on the asparagus bed! Your soil looks amazing and makes me so homesick! We were digging up the bare ground the other day, planted some shrubs and as we filled the little wells with water hubby and I both commented on how our chalky clay/sand looked like newborn baby poop... I think I might bookmark your soil pic so I can look at it whenever I want LOL!

Mr. H. said...

May you have the best gardening season ever...looks like you are off to a great start.

Jo said...

Fiona -- Thanks, it looks great now, wait another few weeks when it's filled with weeds!

adkmilkmaid -- You envy me for soil, I envy you for your mountains and your gorgeous animals. If I send you a load of black dirt will you send me a new heifer?? :)

Erin -- Baby poop - ha! Although perhaps newborn baby poop should be touted as the new thing in soil amendments. It probably would be a great fertilizer!

Mr. H -- Thanks, we gardeners are always hopeful for the best season ever. I think you have to be an optimist to be a gardener, otherwise years of disease, drought, flood and bugs would have sent us packing years ago!

Leigh said...

Your soil is gorgeous! I grew up in Illinois, and took that beautiful black stuff for granted. Here it's red and sticky! I planted asparagus for the first time this year too. So much fun to plant perennials like that.

Lucky Lizard Ranch said...

Gorgeous job that nice big garden Jo!!
Wow! I can hardly wait for the next update when everything is coming up!
Happy Spring!