Waiting for spring...

It certainly doesn't feel like spring is just around the corner, especially when you look outside, but the grow room is already filled with germinating seeds waiting to make the trip out to the greenhouse, as soon as it warms up a bit of course!

This year I was actually able to start seeds on time so we can enjoy some early crops of kale, lettuce, spinach, cabbage and swiss chard. 

Blue Curled Scotch Kale

Lettuce

Red Express Cabbage

For the first time in several years I was able to start the artichoke and celery seeds on time as well. The taste of store bought celery just doesn't compare to celery fresh from the garden, but then again I guess that's true with just about anything!

Globe Artichoke

Utah Tall Celery

There are also trays of onions, leeks, broccoli, cauliflower and eggplant, as well as flowers and the herbs for medicinal and culinary herb garden. I think it's time for a larger greenhouse!

Lemongrass

Thyme

I can't believe it's been almost a year since I posted last, but things have been really busy and I have been spending more time to doing and less time talking about it. The school garden project has been consuming a lot of time, but it is well worth it. I have been working on crop planning, plant & harvest schedules and whittling down the 300+ varieties that I have in my seed collection to include only those varieties that we have had success with and want to keep growing year after year. 

This year there are some exciting projects planned, like the completion of the garden shed and construction of a self sufficient greenhouse at the school garden. I am also planning on {finally} building the garden shed for our home garden as well as a larger, more permanent, greenhouse so I have the room to grow enough vegetable seedlings and flowers to sell at farmers' markets. 

The big goal, as always, is to grow enough food for my family so we can eat mostly from the garden and spend less at the grocery store, and it looks like we are well on are way to doing that this year, weather permitting!

Stay tuned...

~Rob~

A peek into the greenhouse - May

Today is a bit dreary. It is windy and we have been getting some well needed showers. I am having a hard time concentrating on work because I just don't feel like working, so took a break and headed out to the greenhouse with my camera to see how the seedlings are doing.

The plants have grown quite a bit since the last "Peek into the greenhouse" post a month ago. It's amazing to look back at the pictures to see just how big everything has grown in just a month's time!

Bell Peppers

Purple Tomatillo

Lettuce, Romaine and Butterhead

Collards

Sunflowers

Marigolds and Petunias

Zinnia

Kale

Purple Tomatillo flower.

Basil

Cucumber, Squash and Pumpkins

More Sunflowers

The greenhouse is pretty crowded right now, especially with the extra trays of flowers, pumpkins and squash that I started early. I am now anxiously awaiting warmer weather so I can get the seedlings into the garden and the direct sow seeds planted!

What's seeds have you started already?

~Rob~

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From the Farm Blog Hop

Taking time to enjoy the day ...

No matter how hard I try to schedule my time, life always seems to have other plans for my days. I have been trying to write some posts, build the duck house, and complete a whole list of things, but my business has been extremely busy and we have been completely consumed by the garden project, both of which I am definitely not complaining about!

Most of the seeds have now been started and the seedlings are growing like crazy now that the warmer weather that has finally arrived. There are plenty of photo opportunities with the all the plants springing to life the greenhouse, so I took some time out of my busy day to head outside with my camera!

Romaine lettuce.

Marigolds, starting to flower!

Cucumber seedlings.

Petunias!

Pumpkins!

Basil - I wish you could smell it!

Peppers!

Squash!

 

 

More peppers!

Kale!

Today was sunny, warm, and in the 70's!
The ducks were happy that I took the time to cleaned and re-fill their pool.
I sat and watched as they took turns bathing before drying off and taking a nap in the sunshine!

Ernie waiting his turn to use the pool.

Bert drying off after his swim.

Ernie proudly strutting in the sunshine!

Sometimes it's important to stop worrying about the things that need to get done
and just take time to get outside and enjoy the day!

~Rob~

Germinating seeds ...

I am always amazed watching the process of a germinating seed.

It is incredible to think that the energy to grow a plant and the potential food that it can produce is locked away inside that small seed just waiting for the right conditions to begin the germination process.

Nature is truly amazing!

Great things can happen given the right conditions!

That's how I feel about our school garden project.

The seed has been planted an it is starting to grow into something amazing!

This weekend my wife and I are working on the garden proposal. We are outlining every aspect of how the garden should be used, what lessons it will teach, what it will incorporate and what the garden should represent. The proposal will be used as both an operating plan for the garden and to obtain our funding. We both get excited and emotional when we look at the potential of this project and what great things can come of it for the school and the community.

The seed has been planted and has begun to germinate,
I can't wait to see what it will grow into!

~Rob~

A peek into the greenhouse ...

My days have been extremely busy and I haven't had too much time to post or work in the garden. 

It has been a chore just to keep up with the seedlings. moving them from the basement to the greenhouse each morning and then back inside in the evening. It is still too cold to leave them out at night, a mistake I made a couple weeks ago and lost all of my kale, broccoli, cauliflower and most of the lettuce.

I had to re-start some of the seeds, hopefully the kale will have enough time to come in.

Right now I have tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, lettuce, kale, fennel, basil, marigolds and petunias in the greenhouse. I still have my sage, thyme, rosemary, parsley and oregano in the basement on heat mats as they aren't big enough to block up yet.

This weekend I plan to start the sunflowers, zinnias, zucchini, cucumbers, pumpkins and squash all in 2" soil blocks. Those will be the last of the seeds that need to be started indoors, the rest will be direct sown in to the garden.

Basil

Romaine Lettuce

Bell Peppers

Cherry Tomatoes

Marigolds, starting to form buds.

Kale

Tomatoes

The weather is supposed to start warming, so hopefully I can start turning the beds and edging the new gardens. I also need to get to work on building the duck house, something I was hoping to do last month!

Looks like it is going to be a busy year!

~Rob~