Monday Garden Club

I cannot even believe that Winter is finally (almost?) over! Of course I am thrilled that the days are getting longer and warmer. Who isn't excited to finally put away the snowboots (and snowpants and hats and mittens and gloves and heavy winter coats and extra blankets) and pull out the flip-flops and once again hang laundry out on the clothesline to dry? I hung out some towels today and almost got drunk on the fresh smell as I was folding and putting them away. Sooooo good! With that same of enthusiasm for all things Spring and Summer, I am so happy to start the 2010 gardening season!

Shall we?
I was lazy this morning and didn't feel like switching lenses on my camera so the garden is shown in 2 photos. Last year I could fit the whole thing in if I was standing on our front porch but now it's twice the size!
The Gardener spent all weekend acquiring and building a disc for the back of the tractor to use to smooth out the dirt in the garden.

While it's much too early to start actually planting anything outside, it's nice to get started on a few things, like maybe thinking about cleaning out my potting shed again.


The irises have popped out of the ground
and so have the tulips.

I have also started some veggie and flower seeds in the house.
Since this is my first year starting any seeds in the house, I had to buy some supplies.I bought these inserts, the bottom trays and clear plastic lids at a local garden center along with a few bags of starter mix potting soil, my seeds and a heat mat.

I also ordered one of these kits from Amazon (because I had a gift card) that included the whole tray system (72 cell) and heat mat.
The heat mat keeps the tray warm and with the cover on, that thing is just the perfect environment for starting seeds, especially since we keep our plants in the (somewhat cool) basement under the lights.
We had the light fixtures sitting in the barn, but I bought some grow lamps from the hardware store.


I started a flat of flowers (petunias, pansies, 4 o'clocks, zinnias, and lupines)

and a flat of vegetables (several varieties of tomatoes and peppers) 2 weeks ago
I also started another flat of veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, basil and 2 more types of tomatoes) and flowers over the weekend that will also go under the lights in a few days.

So exciting! Anyone else gardening yet? Thinking about gardening? How about sick and tired of the crappy selection of produce in the grocery store and want the Farmer's markets to start again soon???

Now for all you gardeners out there who wish to participate, either leave a comment on what's growing in your yard basement, or post a Monday Garden Club update on your blog. Don't forget to drop your link in the comments, I'll add you to this post.

Participating Bloggers:
Out In Them Sticks