March 2012, in the Pacific NorthWest

Furbalsmom wrote:Nice compliment Lavender Debs, but totally undeserved. That is not a list of what I am growing at this time, just recommendations for this month's plantings in the PNW.

I have germinated two types of broccoli, cauliflower, kohlrabi, onions and two types of lettuce, some is now on my enclosed porch getting acclimated to the cooler temperatures so they can be transplanted into the Table Tops soon. Of course I started many, many too many and will donate some seedlings to the Master Gardener in charge of our community garden. Does anyone else think they could use 32 Calabrese broccoli and 12 Veronica broccoli for a family of two or even 18 Parris Island Coos Romaine and 18 Frizzy Headed Drunken Woman butterhead lettuces? There are 24 bunching onion seedlings, basil, parsley and stevia started. The Mammoth Melting and Super Sugar Snap peas were planted outside a few days ago before the horrendous rains but the seeds swelled up and rose to the surface of the cold soil. I have pushed them back in and recovered them with MM. Hopefully they will stay where they were planted this time.

It is hard to stop isn't it?

The other day I was browsing the seed aisle looking at heirloom tomato seeds.

Black Krim, Amish Paste, Brandywine, ect.....so many varieties so little garden space!

Its agony to have to choose between them all!

I think I have might have ended up with more seed packets than I can use.

FamilyGardening, I've seen several people on the forum post here about Yukon Golds specifically, only getting potatoes at the bottom and so no need to go extra deep with those. You still need to hill up enough to cover them as the potatoes on that first layer develop of course. But I think it was boffer who grew them in just 6" of Mel's Mix one year?

LavenderDebs, congrats on the truck! I didn't know about your Honda (before my time here). Have you been without your own vehicle all this time? What a sweet husband to surprise you like that. Having a truck is so nice when you own a home; you'll love it. And I actually heard a good review about that greenhouse that Harbor Freight has, on an Amazon forum of all places. So I hope it works out for you! Plus I got seed potatoes at my local nursery yesterday. Only 99 cents a pound, I couldn't believe it. I'm so used to everything at the nursery costing more, and these were considerably less than anywhere I could have ordered from, even less than buying at WalMart. It was help yourself too - so I could have bought just one little potato if I wanted to, and paid just a few cents. *lol* I got German Butterballs, which was on my wishlist. Yay!

Daniel9999, Hi and welcome! Yay a new PNW'er! I'm not a tomato fan, which hardly makes me welcome on any gardening forum, but I'm trying Brandywine this year since everyone raves about them. We'll see how it goes!

Thanks for the welcome everyone!

LavenderDebs,

Ohhhh Watermelon Radishes! I plan on growing those myself.... I hear they a have a nice mild sweet flavor for a radish and they look quite stunning.

I have also found myself seduced by a few other plants this year.....a pair of carrots, one a purple variety known as the Dragon Carrot and the other a white carrot variety known as White Satin, a beet called Chioggia, a funky little garlic variety known as Black Garlic (the cloves really are black in color!),a pumpkin known as Rouge vif D'Etampes aka Cinderella, and a hard to find Mexican culinary herb Epazote.

I really enjoy being the local gardener that grows the "strange" plants.

In addition I am looking to expand the small container garden I have next to my apartment this year. It is a small collection of scented culinary herbs, Cinnamon Basil, Orange Mint, Pineapple Mint, Chocolate Mint, Lemon Thyme and Orange Thyme. I am looking to add to that this year with an Apple Mint and Lime Basil and possibly some other varieties if I come across them.
I must say that the plant that I have most love out there in the container garden is not is not growing in one of the pots but grows on the dirt underneath and around the pots....Corsican Mint.

Its a attractive bright green, tiny little mint that occasionally produces itty bitty purple flowers....but the most amazing thing about it is the smell. It smells very strongly of mint..... much, much stronger than any other mint variety I have come across before..... it truly is fantastic. I found it at the local Wilco retail store being sold under the Stepables brand last year.. Its doing very well and is spreading very nicely....I will have to help it along a bit by picking up even more flats of it at Wilco this year....

All all the plants I have I am most in love with a plant used as a ground cover.



gwennifer

Brandywines are consistently listed as being one of the top tasting tomato varieties around....the flavor might make a tomato lover out of you yet.

Then again Heirlooms tend to be a bit fussier to grow than Hybrids...you could get so frustrated growing them that you give up on tomatoes for ever!

We will see how it goes.

Anyway I wish you luck on your tomatoes...mine did not do so well last time..... the weather was horrible for tomatoes last year in my little corner of the Pacific Northwest.

I really enjoy being the local gardener that grows the "strange" plants

Daniel, you will get along fine here. Many of us enjoy trying the less common veggies and the "strange" varieties. Last year, in the Children's Garden nearby, we grew All Purple, White Satin and some red and yellow carrots, along with watermelon radishes, golden yellow beets, All Blue potatoes, kohlrabi, Cheddar Cauliflower and other colorful veggies.

I am hoping to get seeds for Indigo Rose, a blue tomato developed by OSU. Need to get to Territorial Seeds in Cottage Grove for those.

Ow great...now I find room in the garden for yet another Tomato variety!

Curse you Furbalsmom.....

Furb Indigo Rose, a blue tomato wow!!

that sounds amazing.....really....wow...gonna go look that one up.....

hugs

rose....who is telling her self that she has enough babies growing under de lights... really....you do rose...

well the weather has been so nice that we were able to get our potatoes in to our new raised beds 2-3'x5'....hubby did most of the work....

we took a bunch of pic's of before and after of the new remodeled back garden....its really looking good....still have some more work to do....asparagus bed is next...i hope will post the pics as soon as i learn from hubby how to from this computer im using....my old computer is on the blink

hugs

rose....hubby still telling her he can only do one thing at a time....

FamilyGardening wrote:...snip...hubby still telling her he can only do one thing at a time....

Thats why there are honey-do lists.

Lavender Debs wrote:

FamilyGardening wrote:...snip...hubby still telling her he can only do one thing at a time....

Thats why there are honey-do lists.

Hmmm... I'm pretty much the honey that does here. I get quite a bit of help sometimes, but if it needs to be built, I'm the one with the power tools.

curio wrote:

Lavender Debs wrote:

FamilyGardening wrote:...snip...hubby still telling her he can only do one thing at a time....

Thats why there are honey-do lists.

Hmmm... I'm pretty much the honey that does here. I get quite a bit of help sometimes, but if it needs to be built, I'm the one with the power tools.

+1!

GG