First Food

Thanks to Mike taking the girls out to Osler to see his family, I had a relaxing day spent almost entirely in the yard. I worked with two of my former students to prep for debate Nationals from 9:30-10:30, but other than that, I was out from 9 until 2. It was lovely weather and I spent it in a lovely way.

Thanks to that mighty wind storm, my first job was re-raking the yard. While doing that, I uncovered all sorts of baby plants just getting ready to be born. Since two of my sisters are due to have babies this week, it felt like a year of birthing (I feel free to say this because when I used to talk about dealing with Leora as a baby, Teela would always compare Leora to her dog Jessie).

My mother used to go around her yard poking into the partially frozen ground to see what was ready to come up. Since I spent many a good James evening teasing her about this, I am a little nervous to admit my raking time was a least half occupied by poking the ground. Since it was not frozen, my behaviour in no way resembles my mother's.

I found a number of things already up, but I was most excited about the Cranesbill Geranium (great smell) and the tulips I planted last year. The very tips of the hyacinths I got from my mom are up in the full sun bed, but no daffodils yet.

I also did some re-potting and pruning, and then I decided it was time to harvest our first food of the season - parsnips. Our neighbour, pat, told me to just "leave them in the ground in the fall and dig them up when the ground thaws in the spring." They were her husband's favorite when he was still alive, and she's been planting them "forever", so I trusted her advice. She said not to eat any that get mushy.

I dug up a small patch of ours, and two of the ten were mushy, but I am using the others in roasted veggies and am exciting to be eating our first meal with some fresh garden in it. Last year that was the asparagus, which is not yet perking this year. I also have chives, and will be harvesting cilantro and spinach in small clusters from the greenhouse soon. Check out the pictures of all the green things, especially my upside down tomatoes.

I also spent a nice couple hours reading in the hammock, which made it a great day in the yard. On Tuesday I am headed to Teela's to help with her new baby, and she tells me it is air conditioner weather there.

Still growing

The first part of this week was spectacular weather, and since I was off school, I expected to get lots of gardening done. However, I had my right hand wisdom teeth out, and then developed dry socket in both extraction points. This slowed me down a bit. I could work slowly for an hour or so, then lay down for two. Just like my mother, I worked every time I felt a bit better and may have extended my infection just a tad.

On Thursday, I was out in the greenhouse re-potting in one of these times of feeling better. I had the girls help me plant some upside-down tomatoes and planted artichokes, green onions and cucumbers. I also re-potted a number of my perennials, and my astilbe are even ready to bloom already. I have so many plants that they don't fit in my grow table anymore. I moved some tomatoes and all my perennials up to the sliding door area so then can have the most light possible. I am nervous about their proximity to the cats, who love to graze on a little green, especially in the spring.

By Friday, the lovely weather I had been enjoying was gone. 90 km hour winds and snow made it pretty unpleasant to be outside. I haven't been out to check the spinach and cilantro that had been doing well in the greenhouse, but I have a bad feeling. Luckily, Mike had added a hook and eye lock to the door of the greenhouse, which the wind and/or our cat Pip had a habit of opening. The outside of the greenhouse seems unscathed, although our phone went down and large branches fell on the canoe. I wish I could say the same for the tarp that roofs the girls' fort. Mike had also attached the rain barrels, so we hope the taps aren't damaged by the heavy frost.

In about 10 days, I will need to start the various gourds - but I am nervous about space under the grow light. I will be gone to Teela and Peff's at that point to help when my new niece arrives, so I guess it will be Mike's problem!