March in the garden is shaping up to look an awful lot like February in the garden this year. We had a couple of nice 50 degree days two weeks ago, and I really thought I’d be able to plant my peas by now. But winter returned last week and we got another 6 or 8 inches of snow. As of this afternoon there was still an inch or two on the ground. I stood there for a while staring at the snow, as if I could will it to melt away if I stared hard enough.
Inside we have lots of seedlings that will be ready to go as soon as the weather starts cooperating. The onions and leeks are coming along nicely. This was my first attempt at using soil blocks, and so far I’m pretty happy with them. As long as you water them gently, they hold together well. If the weather warms up a bit I’ll probably transfer them to one of the cold frames in a week or so.
A week ago I started all of my tomatoes, tomatillos, and chile peppers. I started way more than I’ll have room for, so we should have some to share with family and friends. The homemade heat mat has been keeping them nice and warm in the chilly house.
Most of the tomatoes and tomatillos are up, and yesterday I noticed the first of the jalepeños just barely beginning to poke up out of the soil. I also started my first round of kale and some other brassicas. They’ll go out in the cold frame soon too.
Filed under: Gardening
