I started off with great intentions... even starting my seedlings early (in February!) to get a better head start on the year. It gets SO hot in the summer here in Arkansas that plants are usually totally dried up by July. So if you can get things in the ground by March... you've got a fighting chance for tomatoes!
Problem is, I was pregnant. And in February when I got all seedling-happy I was only 3 months pregnant. By June I was 7 months pregnant. And as much as I resisted the stereotype that being pregnant meant I could be lazy, the garden was one area where I was just plain lazy! I didn't want to go out in the heat. I never even moved the darn seedlings out into the ground!
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Sot this year I thought, "It's just not gonna happen. I'm having surgery the first week of May and then I'll spend the next month recovering."
Buuuuuuuut I just couldn't leave well enough alone!
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This is a very modest crop of seedlings. A few bell pepper plants, a sage plant, and five tomato plants. I realized this year that it really isn't necessary to plant thirty seedlings assuming 2/3rds will die. (Which the package instructions for seed starter kits will tell you to do. Hmmmm... maybe trying to steal my money?) Anyway, that just isn't the case... a few may not grow, but certainly not 2/3rds. And then I feel terrible tossing the ones I don't have room to plant!
Another tip this year: In the past I have started seedlings in tiny little containers of peat moss... then moved them to larger pots after a few weeks... then moved them outside. This year, I skipped that first step and went straight to the pots. These pots are made of natural dried peat moss (Bonus: They can be buried with the plant! Just wet and tear off the bottom/base at planting time.) I did this because I realized that the step of moving the small seedlings to the pots was labor intensive and was deterring me from wanting to plant seedlings this year. So I scrapped it! Instead, I just doused these pots with water, filled them halfway with composted soil, then filled the top half with peat moss, and planted my seeds. (Don't leave out the step of soaking these pots first. They are so dry they will steal ALL the water from your soil otherwise.)
I'm hopeful that if I can get these bad boys in the ground before my surgery (so... in the next month) then they can do some growing while I recover and not need too much maintenance until June or so. I'm also going to plant carrots because they're soooooo easy to grow and I use them all the time in my cooking!
For next year... I really want to try growing kale and spaghetti squash too. We eat both of those foods constantly so I think it'd be great to grow them. I've heard kale is easy and withstands a variety of weather conditions. But spaghetti squash I'm not so sure about. I swore off growing squash and zucchini after the first year I tried them because it was so much maintenance to try and keep the disgusting squash bugs and larvae at bay. Ew!
Anyone out there ever grown kale or spaghetti squash? If so, comment and give me the down-low!
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