First harvest of 2013 -- Spinach

I picked my first spinach on April 21, a full three weeks later than last year. I used it as a bed for a potato salad made with chives and a red onion I'd overlooked diring the harvest last year, and which came back as two scallions:

Many more crops are coming on fast, including more spinach, radishes, arugula, fiddleheads and asparagus.  Spring is delicious!

My red friend

I took down my bird feeders last fall because there were so many mice in the garage, and when I found their nests they were full of sunflower seeds collected from under the feeders.
Instead I have been putting out peanuts in the shell on the deck for the blue jays, cardinals and other visitors who stop by every morning.
One male cardinal has been particularly attentive, perching near the deck and waiting to sneak a few peanuts out from under the more aggressive jays. I have often found him on the doorstep when I open the slider, and he only retreats to the nearby shrubs when I toss the peanuts.
Here he is waiting one recent morning perched on my fig tree:

 There were no mice in the walls this winter (it's been a persistent and very annoying problem), and very few caught in the traps in the garage, and I may never put a feeder up again.
 Even without a feeder, my yard, which is  is planted with many mature berried shrubs, is prime bird habitat. The adjoining woods and fields mean that I see a wide range of birds in the garden throughout the year.  But the cardinal on the deck every morning has become more than a passing resident of the yard -- he's become a friend.

Potatoes are in the ground!

My potatoes, both wintered over in the crisper and bought in (more Blue Adirondack from Lowe's!) were laid out on paper in plastic trays pre-sprouting for almost three weeks. Here's what a tray of russets looked like just before planting-- they should look a bit wrinkly and tired because the energy is moving into the new growth:

I plant potatoes outside the fenced garden, because they are rarely nibbled by my resident rabbits and woodchuck, and grow back fast.  I am also careful to plant them only where no other nightshades (including tomatoes and eggplant) have been grown for 3 years.
Here's a raised bed, deeply dug, and dusted with a generous handful of bone meal:

The seed potatoes are stuck into the trench with the sprouts up, than backfilled with about half the soil-- the rest will be hilled up from the sides as the plants grow-- here they are just before backfilling:

Yes, I can buy potatoes easily, but the fingerlings and blues I grow are expensive, and  the russets and Yukon Golds are largely trouble free and very productive. And I love the treasure hunt of digging them up in the fall!

Here's a basket full of last year's harvest:

Spring planting update

I spent the day in the kitchen garden adding manure to the beds (bagged this year, since I never made it to the horse farm this winter)  and weeding and adding straw to the paths.
Here's a pic of the tidy garden with Sol waiting patiently for his dinner and walk:

I've already got peas, onions, arugula and two patches of spinach in the ground.  Inside I'm finally getting some sprouts from the tomato and pepper seeds, while potatoes are 'chitting' up nicely. I always take my seed potatoes out of the fridge and pre-sprout them for up to three weeks. It really makes a difference!

I also sorted through my seed packs to see what else I can plant in April.

Here are my selections:

The radish seed packs are both quite old-- 2009 and 2010. I think I'll stop at Ann and Hope on the way home for more radishes.  I really enjoy radishes, tops and all, sauteed in butter with a splash of vinegar added at the end!

Planting mail order onions

It's been a cold spring, but the two companies who shipped me young onions decided that March is the right time for planting in my area. I held them for a week in the garage near a window with their roots in water, then headed out into a windy march day to plant.
I bought two varieties: Candy, a sweet onion best eaten fresh, and Red Zeppelin, a red storage onion.
Here are the Candy plants waiting to go into the ground:

I loosened the soil in the bed with a spading fork, incorporating some 10-10-10 granular fertilizer.
Then I made rows about a foot apart, about 3 inches deep.

Next I gently laid the onions into the rows, spacing by eye (about 4 inches apart).

I like to straighten the plants and fill in around them by hand-- it is just too delicate a job for any tool. The idea is to have the soil come up to where the white ends and the green begins, and for the plant to be relatively upright and firmly planted.

Here's the onions planted and labeled:

Finally, I spread straw lightly on top of the planting, to protect it from hard rain and the weight of snow ( yes, we are still getting snow...).

Only time will tell how my little onions survive this chilly spring, but I've given them the best start I could. If they don't survive I will try again with some onion sets in a couple of weeks.

Seed starting in the library

I started my pepper and tomato seeds this week, using my upstairs library (the warmest room in the house) as the nursery.  I went all hot with the peppers, since they are so productive and pickle well- we are just finishing our last jar from 2012.  Here's the line up for 2013: Hungarian Wax, Jalapeno Gigante, Bulgarian Carrot and a few pots of Slim Jim Eggplant. I have a heat pad on low under the flat because peppers and eggplant really need it hot to germinate.

In the bookcases (fitted with lights) I have started Mortgage Lifter, Roma VF, Celebrity and Sweet 100's tomatoes.  Here's a pic of Sol observing the pots from his favorite chair:

Snow and Sunchokes

Well, Spring is not here yet. What a difference from last year! Right now it is snowing again.
Here's a pic I just shot looking out the slider into the yard:

The snow is wet and heavy because temps are just above freezing.

Last week I continued my tradition of planting my first seeds in February.
 I sowed Razzle Dazzle spinach under a makeshift coldframe:

Last year I sowed spinach ten days earlier, and by the 28th it had sprouted! We'll see how long it takes this year.

Despite the snow I harvested some fresh sunchokes from the garden this morning.  Under the snow the ground is thawed, and I easily stirred up the soil and pulled out a handful of golden tubers.

I scrubbed the sunchokes clean, then sliced them thin, and added them to a winter salad of cabbage, potato and carrot. Then I splashed olive oil and sherry vinegar on the vegetables, seasoned with salt and pepper and mixed them up thoroughly.  The final touch was decidedly not locovore  -shaved Italian parmesan. Sometimes a little compromise is worth it!