It's been awhile since I've posted. It is hard to get excited about planting when it is still so cold. We have put in some sod in the back yard hoping that it could stand up to the boys. It looks great but no matter how much we water the dogs urine has already done a job. All four seem to pee in the same spot so maybe the rest will be OK.

Since I've been home all day getting ready for tonight's Seder I spent some time in the garden. I am still concerned about planting peppers and tomatoes but hopefully the early crops will make it. I started alot of plants from seeds and I'm sure how that is working. It's really hard to get those tender little plants out of the tray and into the ground without tearing them apart.

Is winter over?

OK I know winter is not over. We had a great day with sun and temp over 60 Monday it will get close to 70. It looks like the week should stay above freezing, but we can have frost as late as mid April. This means you can plant but you have to be careful that you plant frost tolerant plants and be ready to cover if Jack Frost comes around.

With Joy out of town I decided to spend the day working in the garden. It's not as much fun but it keeps me out of trouble. But really the only trouble I would get into would be cooking pork ribs or shrimp on the grill. If Joy keeps leaving me alone it may come to that.

I've got 51 squares ready for crops. If you are like us and don't have a lot of space and want fresh veges with as little work as possible I believe that Square Foot Gardening is the way to go. We raised the beds 3 feet not just to keep the dogs out but so we don't have to bend over or get on our knees. We aren't old, but the joints aren't as fluid as they once were.

So far I've planted 19 of the 51 squares. I'll have some tomatoes and other large crops in spaces other than the squares in our raised bed. we have 6 Blueberries in a bed by the house.

In the 19 squares we have 12 beets, 8 Bibb lettuce, 4 strawberries, 2 cilantro, 4 onion chives, 4 garlic, 2 broccoli, 32 carrots and 4 mustard.

I used chop sticks to space the plants and dig the hole. This will be 9 beets

These plants will be planted outside in 2-3 weeks, but today I let them enjoy the sunshine and fresh air, also known as "hardening".

Another snow day

Not a great day for gardening here. The white sheet is an attempt to protect the buds on our apple tree. We bought trees that bloom early, which is a problem when we have so much frost after the fake spring we had a couple of weeks ago. I should have known that there was some reason why these two trees had been at Pikes for so long.

Our first plants have started to sprout under the grow lights. The lettuce and cauliflower are out of the dirt first. The tomatoes, peppers and egg plant should be coming out soon.

The snow and ice caused a serious problem. I was being the good husband and taking the garbage out when I slipped on the icy steps. I went down hard and my ribs landed on the step. I was in so much pain I couldn't get up. I had to crawl inside to get to Joy. I had to lay on the kitchen floor until the ambulance arrived. Since I had fallen they strapped me to a board, loaded me on the ambulance and took me to Piedmont Hospital. It took them over four hours to tell me I had a broken rib. If you don't think we have a problem with health care then you have not spent any time in an emergency room. The ER is filled and backed up not with real emergencies, its filled with people who have no health insurance and have to go there for minor issues.

Hopefully I'll be mended soon and able to work the garden. For now I'm on the couch being thankful for my wonderful wife and for pain medicine.