Is It Spring Already?

The weather has been so incredibly mild for quite a while now - in the 40s, 50s and even 60s!  It's supposed to dip down again toward the end of this coming week and act like proper winter.  Every day that's nice, I feel like going out to plant something.  Since it's still too early, I've managed to feed my need by ordering the bulk of my seed for this year's garden.  Most of it I get from Baker Creek Seeds, and since I just did some ordering this morning, I thought I'd share the new (to me) things I'm going to try this year.

Since I did all that work last fall to create a rose garden at the border between my vegetable garden and the wildflower garden, I decided to start planting more flowers, and even begin to rework some of the wildflower space, all of which is becoming overgrown with grasses and weeds.  There's one large patch that has completely gone to grass, which I thought I'd turn into a poppy patch.  I'll plant seed from last year's poppies: 'Lauren's Grape' and 'Hungarian Blue'.  Unfortunately, none of the 'Oriental Scarlet' that I planted last year germinated.  This year, I'm going to add 'Tangerine Gem' and 'Black Peony'.  Fingers crossed for success.

June 6, 2016

Baker Creek says this poppy "does better in cooler regions", so it might not be a great success, but I couldn't resist trying it to mix in with 'Lauren's Grape' and 'Hungarian Blue'. 

There were a few flowers I wanted to try that I couldn't get from Baker Creek, whose floral offering is minimal. I ordered them from The Garden Studio via  Etsy.com. 'Tangerine Gem' poppy is one that I think will make that blue and purple poppy patch sing.

 Another thing I'm going to try is to actually get a French or Spanish type lavender going.  Last year I purchased small plants of what were labeled as Spanish lavender, but they were not.  So this year, I've ordered two types of seeds: French 'Purple Ribbon' and Spanish lavender.  The difference is the French and Spanish types have sweet little rabbit ears. 

Purple Ribbon French lavender - Photo: Etsy

I don't see these types of lavenders often around here, so maybe they don't do well.  We'll find out.

I ordered the following seed specifically for integrating into the wildflower garden (again, from The Garden Studio via Etsy).

Blue Lupine - Photo: Etsy

Tutti Frutti Lupine mix (Gorgeous!) - Photo: Etsy

Verbascum, Shades of Summer - Photo: Etsy

You may know verbascum as mullein.  Common mullein is not very ornamental, can grow very large, and is considered a weed around here.  

Courtesy Wildlife of Hawaii

I didn't find any description of the size of  'Shades of Summer', but I'm going to assume it will be a fairly large plant.  If the seed packet (I got their last one) doesn't tell me, I'll put it at the edge of the wildflower garden where, in case it isn't particularly large, I'll still be able to see it.

Also, I've always wanted to have a garden for cut flowers, and I never have.  It takes a lot of work - more, I think, than vegetables - so I'm going to need some luck as I try my hand at dahlias.  Since buying them as tubers (the typical way) is quite expensive, I thought I'd get seed, and if I have any luck growing them and saving tubers over the winter, I'll be happy.  If not, then I won't have incurred a big expense for nothing.  The seed isn't particularly cheap, however, so I'm starting with a mix, and one variety I couldn't pass up.  I got these directly off Amazon, along with a very interesting zinnia.

What have I gotten myself into?  It's what happens when you start gardening.

Back to Baker Creek and vegetables...

After last year's good tomato experience, I decided I would try two that I didn't have such good luck with my first year but were tasty: 'Black Krim' and 'Mr. Stripey'.  I also said I'd always plant 'Golden Jubilee'.  However, I ordered none of them.  Those decisions gave way to desire to try something new (a lifelong itch), and so, the only repeat this year will be 'Missouri Pink Love Apple'.  I ordered two varieties new to me as well:  'Black Beauty' and 'Gold Medal'.  They should make a lovely plate of slices with the red of 'Missouri Pink' and hopefully compare in taste.

Complementing those tomatoes, I've ordered seed for two varieties of basil.  I'll have no shortage of basil this year unless the weather is bad.  I'm expecting volunteers coming out of my ears like I had last year, and in addition to 'Purple Ruffles' (which seed I'm waiting on from an earlier order), this year I'll plant Lime basil (I have some lemon basil seed saved which I hope will be viable) and Cardinal basil.

Something else I ordered this year new to me, not just as a variety, but as a vegetable, is shiso.  I've been happy with the Oriental greens I've grown in the past (particularly tatsoi, which I'm growing again this year), so I thought I'd give it a try, because - and this is important! - it's also pretty.

Pink rice!

I'm going back to 'Jing Orange' okra this year, and I've chosen 'Shiraz Tall Top' as my red beet. I'll plant golden beets again and hope for a better year.  Last year was a bust, and the years before that were okay, but the tops have always been hit pretty hard by a leaf disease.  

A sad bit of news: my 'Shazam!' rose cuttings that looked so promising with the root callus and roots gave up somewhere along the line.  I shall try again in the spring.  The bush is so small, though, that there's not much to work with.  

Fingers crossed for another year of beautiful flowers on the 'Pink Enchantment' roses.

And good luck to YOU this year.

Till next time.