March in the N&C Midwest!

Goosegirl 3/8/2014, 6:00 pm

Well, HELLO again everybody! I have apparently managed to miss the entire month of February due to health issues, but I am on the mend in time to start some seeds and get some weather above freezing. Onion seeds are going in today - a week or so late according to my schedule, but since nothing this winter seems to be according to any schedule, I don't think it will matter much.

What is on the agenda for all of you out there in the N&C Midwest for March?

GG

jmsieglaff 3/8/2014, 7:46 pm

Hope spring brings you good health and melting temperatures! My onions have gotten two haircuts and will be due for another in a couple weeks. Today we did inside sowing of 3 different sprouting broccoli/broccolini, 2 varieties of hot peppers, 6 varieties of lettuce and some herbs. These will go under the lights and eventually cold frame. I moved my sow date of hot peppers up a week since they grow slower than the sweets. This is my typical sow date for broccoli and lettuce. Looking at the 12-18" of snow on my garden maybe I'm crazy.

FamilyGardening 3/9/2014, 12:42 am

Glad to see you Goosegirl!!

hope you are feeling better and the weather gets warmer!! the sunshine sunny

and getting in the garden always helps me to feel better!

hugs
rose

Goosegirl 3/9/2014, 9:47 am

Thanks Rose and Jimmy! I can breathe and walk again, so things are looking up! Supposed to be in the 40's and 50's for the 7-Day forecast (after being -20 just last week?!) so as soon as the snow melts off the boxes I want to start cleaning them up and getting ready for planting in April. Hopefully I will be able to get my potatoes in on time this year.

GG

**sanderson** 3/9/2014, 2:17 pm

GG, Welcome back. Glad you are feeling much better.

Goosegirl 3/9/2014, 5:32 pm

sanderson wrote:GG, Welcome back. Glad you are feeling much better.

Thanks Sanderson!

GG

Rick Seeger 3/9/2014, 5:51 pm

Just got some new grow lights from the home improvement store today, will be setting them up, getting my heat mat out and sprouting some flowers (maybe a little bit later than I had hoped), onions, tomatoes and peppers. Hope you keep feeling well GG!

gettip 3/12/2014, 12:23 pm

Just planted collard greens seeds, mustard greens seeds, and turnip seeds yesterday! This next week lettuces, spinach, and radish seeds!

R&R 1011 3/12/2014, 2:56 pm

I started onion seeds, but had them in the basement so kids/ cats wouldnt get into them. I found myself forgetting about them and yep, most got fried from me leaving the light on. I just moved my seed station upstairs and thinking I can hang plastic over them to keep kids/ cats out.

I started cleaning off my boxes yesterday, but half my mix was still frozen. My compost pile was also still half frozen.

All of my baby fruit trees & bushes survived our horrible winter. Thought we lost a baby pear, but the creek just uprooted it.

I think thats about it. This month just plan to gather materials to make more beds and start seeds.

**llama momma** 3/12/2014, 5:31 pm

Get well GG!

Yesterday I sanitized plastic flats. When I leave the forum in a bit I'm seeding 2 varieties of broccoli along with some fussy stevia. That's it so far.
It would be a lot easier if mother nature would read and learn our 1st and last frost predictions.
tongue

Kate888 3/12/2014, 7:06 pm

It's really awful when you are sick so long you feel like you lose a month (or two). Hope you're feeling better now.

I've got a few starts - broccoli and cabbage going under the lights, and some more hopefully sprouting soon. I was supposed to have onions, too, but funny story - apparently when planting that day I grabbed the cabbage seed packet instead of the onions. Now I have a little tray full of cabbage seedlings. LOL So today I planted the onion seeds, don't know if they will be ready in time, but I'll just buy some sets if necessary.

I was planning to plants my peas next week and prepare the bed for it this weekend, but given that we got a bunch more snow today, we'll see when I get THAT done.

Goosegirl 3/12/2014, 7:51 pm

We just got another round of snow as well. Just a reminder that spring is still a few months off.....

GG

DorothyG 3/12/2014, 9:31 pm

We had about a half inch of snow during the night. When I got up at the crack of dawn it was gone from the ground but visible on raised surfaces. The temperature yesterday was knocking on 80 degrees.

I built a 4'x1' TT salad box this week and got all but the bottom of a 2'x1'x12" carrot box put together. I need to find two more kinds of compost before I make my mix and fill the boxes. Hopefully that will be tomorrow.

Space is at a premium around here, (in the house)! Seed starting isn't something I'm going to be able to do in the near future, if at all.

landarch 3/12/2014, 11:53 pm

we had a pouring rain last night...then light snow...day started at 73 degrees...what a tease.

I need the warm days coming up later this week to transplant my tomato, pepper, and tomatillo seedlings. Need to be prepared to harden them off by moving outside for some shady light, then full sun.

herblover 3/13/2014, 8:52 am

Given that it was 12 degrees this am; nothing happening outside for me! I do need to check to see if my garlic has survived this winter.

landarch 3/13/2014, 12:29 pm

herblover...concerning fall planted garlic...what do you look for in the spring to know that things are going well vs. not well?

I planted a several squares of garlic last fall and had green tops appear before the winter set in for good. Will garlic take off once warmer weather arrives? Are cloves forming now? When do know when to harvest?

I also have to move my fall planted garlic...does it transplant well?

herblover 3/13/2014, 2:41 pm

landarch wrote:herblover...concerning fall planted garlic...what do you look for in the spring to know that things are going well vs. not well?

I planted a several squares of garlic last fall and had green tops appear before the winter set in for good. Will garlic take off once warmer weather arrives? Are cloves forming now? When do know when to harvest?

I also have to move my fall planted garlic...does it transplant well?

The original tops will die off; you should see new green growth when the weather warms up. No cloves yet; it would have been developing its root system last fall. If you planted a hardneck variety you can harvest scapes in the spring (look like the tops of green onions with a bit of curl at the top; cut about half to 2/3 the way down). Harvest usually around July; you will no because the tops will brown and wither like onions do. I have never tried to move mine; hopefully someone else can answer that question.

jmsieglaff 3/13/2014, 10:51 pm

landarch wrote:I also have to move my fall planted garlic...does it transplant well?

Please let us know how this goes. I'm connecting a few boxes together once the ground thaws, so I may be moving a couple cloves as well. You'd think if early enough, when it just starts growing again and you get most of the roots it would transfer ok, but who knows.

landarch 3/13/2014, 11:07 pm

I actually have garlic in two different boxes I need to move. One box is about 6" deep and the other is 12" deep (carrots love the additional depth).

I should be able to get enough garlic root mass from the deep box...I'll try to get as many roots as I can from the shallow box.

I'm pretty sure that the Mels Mix is loose enough that the soil will immediately fall from the root mass...not sure if this will hurt or I should try to grab entire shovel-fulls and keep as much soil intact as possible.

Goosegirl 3/15/2014, 6:02 am

I missed the window for planting my garlic in fall, so I will have to try spring planting. Planted my onion seeds last weekend and they are now over 1/2" tall! Can't wait until they are sturdy enough to need their first hair cut!

GG

landarch 3/15/2014, 3:22 pm

Well, I moved a bed today that had a few squares of garlic that was planted last fall...transplanted to the new bed.

I think all went well...new green tops were growing and decent sized root systems for each plant...root masses with soil were large than a grapefruit. Mel's Mix is so friable that it wasn't easy to keep the roots undisturbed. Only time will tell.

March in the N&C Midwest! Garlic10

Here are the new bed locations...moving from atop the stone wall to the lower yard due to a city street project this spring. The stone wall faces south...better warming in the spring...less air circulation in summer...may need protection from the errant soccer ball.
March in the N&C Midwest! Beds10

**sanderson** 3/15/2014, 3:34 pm

Major project you have going on!! What a Face

Goosegirl 3/16/2014, 5:49 pm

I just filled up my 36-cell starter pack with starting mix and have it soaking now. Hopefully by the end of the evening it will be moist all the way through and I can get some seeds in!

GG

Goosegirl 3/16/2014, 9:53 pm

Goosegirl wrote:I just filled up my 36-cell starter pack with starting mix and have it soaking now. Hopefully by the end of the evening it will be moist all the way through and I can get some seeds in!

GG

Well, I did it! Put in six cells of each:

King of the North Sweet Bell Peppers

Etuida Sweet Peppers

Sweet Brandy Plum Tomatoes

Russian Big Roma Tomatoes

Purple Russian Tomatoes

Sweet Orange Roma Tomatoes

My basil is trying to get its first true leaves, my onions (Yellow of Parma) are 1 1/2 inches tall, I stuck 5 Serrano seeds in the bare patches of the Basil Bowl, and for good measure I stuck the 3 avocado pits from my guacamole into a bucket!

Now, if I can find what my cats did with my package of St. Valery carrot seeds I will be set for the season.

GG

PS - Just found the carrot seeds! Cats had batted them under Hubby's recliner!

Marc Iverson 3/16/2014, 11:37 pm

By the looks of your tomato choices, you do a lot of canning, or eat red sauce quite a bit.

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looking forward to spring!

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transplanted garlic

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