Planting...

...six new Royal Raindrops
Flowering Crabapple trees
(very appropriate name for here in the PNW!)

A birthday gift from my Gentleman Farmer

to replace the six that the naughty deer

decimated!

Not so pretty, but protection for

a few years. Allowing the deer

to devour the trees was

a costly mistake that will not

be repeated this time!

~*~

Do you remember the Avocado pit that I started

a couple of months ago?

Well, it is ready to be potted up.

Washing the pots

Introducing the Avocado to the pots!

Filling the pot with soil

Planting the pit

(I think I remember that part of the pit is to remain above the soil level)

Ready to be placed in a bright window.

These were my planting adventures for the week!

~*~

Joining Jami for

Tuesday Garden Party

Heidi for Country Garden Showcase #16

Deborah Jean's Farmgirl/guy Friday!

I'm in the Greenhouse...

Preparing for the gardening season ahead.

Preparing for the harvesting season ahead.

Preparing for the preserving season ahead.

I always feel like I'm on 'pins and needles'

when I wait to see what little seedlings

will pop up in the greenhouse each spring!

Our Spring has been cool and wet,

very cool and wet even for the PNW!

I have been having a hard time getting

some of the seeds to sprout, even in the

greenhouse with a heat lamp going

night and day!

I've huddled all the flats together on the side

nearest the heat lamp and even put a sheet of

styrofoam between them and the walls

for a bit of added protection from cold.

The cabbage and cauliflower are up and growing nicely.

The broccoli, too, is up even at the end of the

bench farthest from the heat. They don't seem

to mind a cooler environment.

I was very surprised to see pumpkins poking through

even before the tomatoes!

Three kinds of broccoli.

Not all of these starts are for me ~

I give many to my daughter and

several people at church.

(And this is only half of the seed! I do

have difficulty restraining myself from

planting the entire package, but I was

running out of pots. Lots were given away

last year with plants.)

I thought perhaps the tomatoes were not

getting enough warmth, so I stacked them

over some newly planted seeds, closer to

the heat lamp. And guess what?....

A few hours later the tomatoes had started poking

through the soil!

We may have tomatoes this year after all!

But I won't 'count my chickens before they're hatched'.

Last year I had 40 beautiful tomato plants,

but with our cool summer and fall

they yielded very little fruit.

I'm not easily discouraged.

Like the ant (Proverbs 6:6)

I am preparing for a bountiful crop

to put by for winter.

Joining:

 Amy for

Preparedness Challenge!

Jami for

Tuesday Garden Party

March Madness or....

...how to garden in the fickle Pacific North West!

So ~ how's a girl to get any planting done when one day (or hour!)

the sun is shining brightly

and the next, this---

This is what I woke up to this morning!

I was hoping to get some seeds planted out in the Spring garden.

But one would only be making soupy mud holes

and the seed would rot. I'll have to wait for awhile yet

for the ground to dry out some.

So... I went to plan B.

I remembered a little indoor seed starting "greenhouse"

that I had rescued some time back. I dug it out and

cleaned it up.

I found some small terra cotta pots that I had for another project...

Filled them with some organic potting soil and a few herb seeds...

... set them in a bright window (not direct sun).

My gardening urge is satisfied (for today)!

And now the snow has stopped and the sun is shining! :~O

Ahh, well! Such is life for the gardener in the PNW!

Joining this week with these fun blog hops ~

Amy at Homestead Revival for

Barn Hop #53

Jami at An Oregon Cottage for

Tuesday Garden Party

Susan at A Southern Daydreamer for

Outdoor Wednesday

Kathy at A Delightsome Life for

Home & Garden Thursday

Sherry at No Minimalist Here for
Open House Party

And

Deborah Jean for

Farmgirl Friday!

It's A Start!

A couple of weeks ago, there was snow on the ground

and some ripe Avocado's in my kitchen.

I couldn't do anything about the snow, but

feeling the gardening urge, I tried (for the 5th time

this year!) to sprout and avocado pit.

As you can see, this time it finally sprouted.

I guess the others just weren't ripe enough.

Have you ever sprouted Avocado for a

house plant?

I got all of my seeds ordered and even won a

terrific giveaway over at The Redeemed Gardener!

Quite a grand assortment of heirloom seeds to

start the season off right!

Thank you so much, Mr. Baker!

They will add to my gardening enjoyment immensely!

The sun decided to peek out for a few hours the other day,

so I took advantage of the bright, although cold, day

and pruned my neglected grape vines.

Today I enjoyed seeing some of the pansies and violas

that survived the winter in the pots hanging from the

driveway fence posts.

This 'Jack Frost' Brunnera was a pleasant surprise ~

I didn't think it had survived it's repeated onslaught of

the marauding deer last year!

Rhubarb is always one of our first harbingers of Spring!

I still have a couple of jars of sauce in the freezer,

but I have been sparing them for special treats!

Hoping for another great crop for putting back

for next Winter!

I spent the afternoon raking up the blanket of leaves

and chicken house litter from the Spring garden ~

getting it prepared for it's initial planting of the season.

I had a little help from my friends!

(They seemed to think I was doing all this just for them~

unearthing some tasty chicken treats!)

After all the strange weather this past Winter,

it feels good to get out and get busy ~

just like this pollen covered Bumblebee!

~*~

Joining Jami at An Oregon Garden for

her first Tuesday Garden Party

of 2012!

Thanks for hosting, Jami!

AND
Susan at A Southern Daydreamer for
Outdoor Wednesday!
Thanks Susan for hosting!

And
Kathy at A Delightsome Life for
Home & Garden Thursday!

Dreaming.....

...of gardening days gone by

and

days yet to be.

As I pass by my forlorn little greenhouse,

empty of any growing thing

and home to only the dormant

twigs of grape starts, lemon verbena

and a tub of red wiggler composting worms...

and outside in the garden proper,

 the ever growing heap in the compost bin,

cause me to dream of the days ahead, full of promise

for a bountiful harvest of

fresh fruits, berries and vegetables.

The colorful seed catalogs that are arriving

almost daily in the mailbox,

dazzle with their

coffee table worthy photos of

produce displaying every shape, size and

color imaginable.

I dream of the seed trays bursting with

new growth in the sheltering greenhouse...

Spring rains ushering in the cheerful blooms of

daffodils running wild along the edge of the

woodland and charging up the hill of the old

apple orchard...

...the exuberance of the pink dogwood.

I dream of the Swallowtail as she dances

from blossom to blossom,

satisfying her thirst for

the sweet summer nectar,

and of picking and 'putting up' the

delicious jeweled goodness of

my favorite berry...

...crafting with flowers and herbs...

...gathering and filling vases with

blooms in colors of wondrous variety.

I dream of the inspiring towers of beans

that bestow their multitude harvest

to join in the ever growing variety in the bulging pantry.

I dream of the surprise at each newly discovered

pumpkin in the fall garden...

...and the gathering of the last of the unripened

tomatoes...

...only to come full circle, once again, with the

gathering of seeds to save for the next

gardening season.

Though the winter seems long and dreary,

garden time is swiftly approaching.

Time to make decisions,

place orders

and prepare the beds and

pots and trays

so that my gardening dreams may come true.

Joining Kathy for Home and Garden Thursday.

And

Etsy Cottage Style's

Cottage Garden Party

And Homestead Revival's
Barn Hop #45