Starting seedlings

I am going to start our farm blog.  I am not sure how often I will blog, maybe once a week.  I purchased this book called Week-by-Week Vegetable Gardener's Handbook by Ron Kujawski and Jennifer Kujawski.  It is nice because you can personalize it based on your last frost free date.  I used May 23rd for my frost free date in north Idaho.  However, you have to realize that this is just an average and I have seen in snow here in June. So, always be ready to cover crops when the temperatures get low at night.

Once you have your last frost free date, you put that in the book and then you start counting weeks before and after that date.  It tells you different things to do each week before and after the average date of last frost.  For example, March 14 is 10 weeks before average date of last frost and the book suggests that this is a good time to start cauliflower, broccoli and cabbage seeds indoors for transplants.  It also reminds you to tune up your power equipment.  My vegetable gardening areas are 2 raised beds that are 4X8 feet in size.  So, I don't have any power equipment. 

We have had a crazy warm winter here.  So, last week, I decided that I would try to plant some leaf lettuce and spinach OUTDOORS.  I have a cover ready in case it gets too cold.  My book suggests you can plan the outdoors beginning 9 weeks before average date of last frost.  So, this is a bit early to be planting things outside, but again, things are unseasonably mild this year.  I had covered my garden beds with dry leaves last fall.  I was hoping the worms would pull down the leaves and mix them in over the winter...I guess this was wishful thinking because I just had a bunch of dry leaves on the top of my beds.  So, I just used a shovel to turn over the soil and incorporate the leaves a bit.  Then, raked it smooth so I had a nice area to plant the lettuce and spinach.  I will let you know if I get good germination...

Last fall, before I put the leaves on one of my beds, I planted A LOT of garlic.  

See all those green things?  It's all garlic coming up through the leaves!!!

 Here are the seedlings I have started.  I like to go to the Dollar Store and buy the covered cake pans and use these are miniature greenhouses to get things going.  I take my plants outside each day and bring them in at night.

Look at these tiny, baby kale!  Aren't they adorable!  I think they look like 4 leaf clovers!  

May the luck of the Irish be with you this week!