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Tuesday, March 29, 2016

February - March 2016 Garden Journal

Hi all!  This is just a mini post - and no pictures this time... sorry.

Basically it's a list of what I did this February - March 2016 by date, what I tracked in my garden journal.  This is to give folks an idea of what can be done in the garden this time of year, as well as to keep track of things for myself.  So here it goes:

Note: All sowing and germination done indoors under grow lights and in windows unless otherwise noted for February-March 2016. 

FEBRUARY 2016

Feb. 1-7: No gardening done
Feb. 8: Germinated: rhubarb & white sweet peas (previously started in Jan.)
Feb. 9: Germinated: evening scented stock (previously started in Jan.)
Feb. 10: Germinated: bluebird forget-me-not (previously started in Jan.)
Feb. 11: Brighton Garden Club talk by Jonee Debruhl of Stone Coop Farm, Brighton, MI., pinched pepper tops, put comfrey seed in the freezer.
Feb. 12: No gardening done.
Feb. 13: Germinated: blue pimpernel, lobelia, Chinese forget-me-not (previously started in Jan.).  Sowed: colored sweet peas.  Stored Jerusalem Artichoke in soil in garage.  Potted comfrey root.
Feb. 14: Germinated: cosmos.
Feb. 15: No gardening done.
Feb. 16: Germinated: celery/celeric. Sowed: Comfrey seed (this never did germinate!)
Feb. 17: Sowed: Comfrey seed after soaking (this never did germinate!)
Feb. 18: No gardening done.
Feb. 19: Purchased at Meijers: seed potato - stored in basement, fig - potted and put in south facing window.
Feb. 20: Re-potted: Heliotrope and alpine strawberries.
Feb. 21: Sowed: Sage, lemon balm, lime balm, parsley, catnip.
Feb. 22: No gardening done.
Feb. 23: Sowed: alpine strawberries, leaf celery, echinops.  Of re-potted previous alpine strawberries 4 out of 6 died.
Feb. 24-27: No gardening done.
Feb. 28: Germinated: echinops.

MARCH 2016

March 1: No gardening done.
March 2: Germinated: lemon balm, brassicas, catnip & sage.
March 3: Germinated: betony, migonette strawberry.
March 4: Germinated: celery.
March 5: Sowed: basil caraway, eggplant, pepper & tomato.
March 6-7: No gardening done.
March 8: Germinated: broccoli, red acre cabbage.
March 9: Germinated: basil, cherry tomato, boxcar willie tomato, roma tomato, yellow plum tomato, beefsteak tomato.  Sowed: anise, summer savory, costmary (never germinated), coconut geranium.
March 10: Brighton Garden Club talk by Susan Bete "Magical Moons and Seasonal Circles."  Sowed: chard, celeriac, dill, fennel.  Germinated: cauliflower, kale, Taipai red cabbage.
March 11: No gardening done.
March 12: Leaf clean-up in 1/2 of garden beds outdoors.
March 13-18: No gardening done aside from starting to harden off: brassicas, onions/leeks, chicory and sweet peas.
March 19: Freezing temperatures - accidentally froze 50% of brassicas that I was hardening off. Onions survived as did chicory (started in fall) and sweet peas. Re-seeded brassicas in evening. Spring Vegetable bed prep done (forking, fertilizing and raking).  Planted potatoes and Jerusalem artichokes in half-whiskey-barrels outdoors and covered with plastic and old storm window for protection. Noticed crocuses are all blooming, one pulmonaria bloomed.  Other bulbs and perennials sprouting. Some weeds already invading (creeping Charlie!)
March 20: Spring Equinox / First Day of Spring. Re-potted: Blue pimpernel, sage, celeriac, Chinese celery, tomatoes.
March 21-25: No gardening done.  2 heliotrope died.
March 26: Germinated: brassicas that were re-seeded after frost kill.  Planted outdoors under polycarbonate cloches:  carrots, rutabaga, arugula, parsley root, celeric leeks, beets, radish, peas, & calendula.  Seeded outdoors without cover: crimson clover & red clover.
March 27: Easter.  No gardening done. Got a pink hyacinth as a gift!
March 28: Repotted: blue pimpernel, basil, lime balm.  Thunder storm!
March 29: Garden bed clean up.
March 30: Planting outdoors (seed only): Forget-me-not, lobelia, blue pimpernel, borage, columbine, larkspur, and flax.

My next post will be about how I made the polycarbonate cloches. So stay tuned!

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