All the little seedlings have moved to the garden.  We started some early and some late, but all of them seem to have survived the seeding and then the transplanting.  It always feels a little scary when you plant the seeds.  You put them under the earth and then it’s up to Mother Nature…amazing as they push through all the cover to begin this journey.  It’s that unknown part of life where we just continue to wonder at the “largeness” of it all.  There is something incredibly happy about a garden.  It is as they say “the salt of the earth”.   Where else can you create, nurture and release.  Its therapy, Prozac and meditation all rolled into one spectacular event…

it's all in the dirt...

So this year at Garden In The Koop, we are beginning our Seed to Seed garden.  We start with a seed and will harvest the seeds and next year those seeds may be in your garden.  For us it’s all about the celebration of the garden and what better way than to keep the garden growing.  Garden to garden seed to seed, it gives more meaning to celebrating the garden and the food we eat.  Heirlooms and incredible edibles-that’s our gift.

Every year, year after year, it’s a learning process.  Too wet, too cold, to dry, too late- all of it happens, but the garden keeps growing.  Less tomatoes, more lettuce, earlier turnips, but still a garden;  lessons a lot like everyday life-continuing, growing, changing and accepting-all part of life’s garden.

This year, according to the almanac, we will have a “drier spring and a cooler summer” (at least for the Southeast) we shall adapt- more beans? Less watermelon?   See never a dull moment.  All I know is that this year the garden has been more fun, more creative, more like popcorn-always new ideas.  We have the Giggling Garden growing this year-Tiger melons, Casper Eggplants, Leprechaun lettuce, green zebra tomatoes, it all here.  See why we love what we do?    So check back-it will be a wild and wooly ride this year, but at the end we can promise you a feast!

garden surfer

Suddenly it’s spring-really suddenly. Actually it feels more like summer today 82 degrees.  Tuesday it will be 90 degrees. If I’m confused and scrambling for my tee shirts imagine those lettuce and spinach plants wiping their many brows.  I know there is a big debate about global warming, but this local warming gives me pause.  Enough on that however, back to the plants, the cool weather veggies. 

Oh dear here we have these wonderful little garden kits that we are busily packing and shipping filled with lettuce and spinach and kale and sweet peas and it’s 90 degrees.  What’s a gardener to do?

great for containers

 My solution I check the Farmer’s Almanac.  They have an online resource that gives you two months of weather predictions and so far they have been pretty good. You just plug in your city and state and you get the scoop.  Try it http://www.almanac.com/weather/longrange   For my area, the Southeast, they are predicting a warmer spring (3 degrees warmer) and a cooler summer.  So it’s back to the packing because there are all those folks up north who keep calling and as for around here, there are all those tomatoes, peppers, watermelons and squash.  Besides, my favorite gardener Sue always planted what and when she wanted.  She told me her plants couldn’t read so they did quite well in her garden.  She put the cool loving ones in the cool areas and the heat loving ones right out in the sun.  This has been my philosophy ever since.  I grow lettuce late in the Spring-just in a more shaded area and I plant ones like Red Leprechaun or Freckles that are more heat tolerant. 

lettuces we love

The garden boxes are getting good reviews and it is so much fun when people send us pictures of their new gardens.  Feels very friendly and I like that…  Here s some pictures we’ve received and a few of our own.

seedlings waiting to move to the garden...seedlings day 2

seedlings day 2

More coming soon!