New England, March 2019

Hi, Everyone!

Or maybe I should say...where *is* everyone?!!

I know, I'm one to complain. I suddenly dropped off the face of the forum a few years back, but I have a very good reason to have gone AWOL.

The Cliff Notes version is that DH suffered a terrible accident in January of 2017 which he survived, thankfully, but only after months in the ICU and then many more months of rehab to walk and talk and do all those things we take for granted again.

SO needless to say, keeping up the garden was the last thing on my mind (but the first thing that I thought of every time I came home and saw the weeds getting taller and taking over everything).

The summer of 2017 the weeds were up taller than my head. No joke. They just LOVED the MM. Last summer they weren't so tall, maybe because I was able to get out and do a little weeding but that was about all I could manage.

This year, DH says he's feeling up to the task of helping me get out there and tackle the mess, so yesterday I broke out the seed packets for the first time in years.

I'm thinking of keeping it very simple: just some tomatoes and peas, maybe.

He wants to plant the usual cornucopia but I'm feeling so daunted by the task of weeding that I'm wary of starting too many seeds.

What's everyone else up to?

Molly's back! So glad hubby is do well enough, now, to be to help in the garden. It sounds like it was a major journey for recovery. To you and hubby . . .

PS: How to tackle the garden? Just like doing dishes where it is one plate at a time. One square at a time! :

Hey Molly!!! SO glad to see you! And glad DH is doing better....

Welcome home....

Heeeey, girls! Thanks for the welcome back!! It's good to be home, lol!!!

Yes, DH is doing much better than anyone thought he would, so it's all good, though it was an incredibly difficult and loooooong road to get this far. And he's not done with his recovery yet. At least we hope there's more good to come.

What have the two of you been up to these past couple of years?

Oh my gosh, Molly... I wish I had known sooner. I would certainly have been sending healing thoughts to him!

What I've been up to is work. And that's about it. Have not really had time to garden at all. I'm HOPING that will change this spring. I REALLY want to get back out there! And I really want to make sure the pantry is stocked with organic items I'VE grown....!

Molly, What have I been up to? Well, this attached thread about covers it. I created a new thread covering a year in my urban garden. The good, the bad, and lots of ugly. https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t22075-sanderson-s-urban-sfg-in-fresno-california

Holy moley it's Molly!!!   


Good heavens, you have been thru quite an adventure, haven't you!?  My best wishes to you and H that his recovery continues and he is strrrrrong like bull! *c'mon girl...roll those r's*

I've been up to strange things myself.  Don't know if you were still here or not when I got my hip replaced in spring of 2017, then last March my neighbors 50' pine fell across my SFG.  SMASH!  Nice thing was, he took care of it all and I was able to plant in a couple of boxes that weren't hit until he finished the cleanup and repairs. Then Mom died last Sept  (and all that goes on beforehand), now I'm trying to pull it all together to get some seeds started but it hasn't happened yet.  I pick up my 'new to me' Tesla tomorrow so it won't happen tomorrow either, and probably not even this weekend.   At lease the garlic got shoved into the MM end of Oct.

So that's it on ol' Cape Cod where there is snow on the ground and we're living in the mid 20's for a few days.  

Hope you can stick around but will understand if you are busy.
Take care.  Great to see you!
CC

Welcome to Wednesday, "Marchuary" 6, 2019! Only in the 20s, even when Springfield, Vermont is in zone 5!

"Marchuary"

RJARPCGP wrote:Welcome to Wednesday, "Marchuary" 6, 2019! Only in the 20s, even when Springfield, Vermont is in zone 5!

Good one, RJ!  I hear that March IS the new February.


Soooooo cold...last year was the same with storms every weekend along with power outs.

Well, it felt like January! Possibly one of the coldest early-Marches since 2009! Today felt like February at best.

AtlantaMarie wrote:Oh my gosh, Molly... I wish I had known sooner. I would certainly have been sending healing thoughts to him!

What I've been up to is work. And that's about it. Have not really had time to garden at all. I'm HOPING that will change this spring. I REALLY want to get back out there! And I really want to make sure the pantry is stocked with organic items I'VE grown....!

Thanks, AM! It's not too late to send those thoughts because he's not back to 100%...maybe at 80%? which is better than anyone expected, but he's not really back to normal...better in some ways, worse in others...so we'll see how things progress this summer.

I'll make a deal with you about your garden: let's be each other's cheerleader! I have so much cleanup to do that I don't know if anything will actually get planted but my goal is to at least tame the garden this summer and grow a few tomatoes in 5 gallon buckets since the beds are a disaster...I think I can manage that.

So...wanna grow some tomatoes with me? Or pick something else if you prefer. How about it?

sanderson wrote:Molly, What have I been up to? Well, this attached thread about covers it. I created a new thread covering a year in my urban garden. The good, the bad, and lots of ugly. https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t22075-sanderson-s-urban-sfg-in-fresno-california

Holy Guacamole!!! I've missed a lot!!! Your garden is looking AWESOME!!! You've really expanded it from what I remember. Really inspiring how you've made so much out of a small area!!! Can't wait to see how it continues to expand and evolve. I really like your modular trellis set up. Very clever!!! I might have to borrow some of your ideas...

CapeCoddess wrote:Holy moley it's Molly!!!   


Good heavens, you have been thru quite an adventure, haven't you!?  My best wishes to you and H that his recovery continues and he is strrrrrong like bull! *c'mon girl...roll those r's*

I've been up to strange things myself.  Don't know if you were still here or not when I got my hip replaced in spring of 2017, then last March my neighbors 50' pine fell across my SFG.  SMASH!  Nice thing was, he took care of it all and I was able to plant in a couple of boxes that weren't hit until he finished the cleanup and repairs. Then Mom died last Sept  (and all that goes on beforehand), now I'm trying to pull it all together to get some seeds started but it hasn't happened yet.  I pick up my 'new to me' Tesla tomorrow so it won't happen tomorrow either, and probably not even this weekend.   At lease the garlic got shoved into the MM end of Oct.

So that's it on ol' Cape Cod where there is snow on the ground and we're living in the mid 20's for a few days.  

Hope you can stick around but will understand if you are busy.
Take care.  Great to see you!
CC

Hi, CC!!! Thanks for the welcome back!!!

Yes, I remember that your hips were giving you trouble, but you hadn't yet had surgery. Sounds like that part went OK?

I'm sorry to hear about your mom. I always enjoyed you saying "I grow 'em, she eats 'em". I hope you can find the wherewithal to "pull it together" and get your seeds started. You know she enjoyed your garden and would want you to continue to "grow 'em"...even if she's not around to physically share them, she is in spirit, you know?

So did the tree falling cause you to reorganize the garden or is it still in the same footprint?

And how's Miss Lilly? She's such a pretty girl!!!

(If I could figure out what happened to my emoticons I'd post a big hug, but I can't find them...Sanderson? Help?)

Mollyhespra wrote:He wants to plant the usual cornucopia but I'm feeling so daunted by the task of weeding that I'm wary of starting too many seeds.

How about trimming all the weeds down to ground level, leaving them there for mulch, then jamming in peas all over the place. Let the peas climb on the weeds. Voila! Instant garden! If that's still too much work, stick the peas in with the weeds and let them duke it out. Whatayagottalose?  

I'm Suz from CA. Welcome back. (I came in after you left -- been struggling ever since.) My story is in Butterfly Junction. https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t20471-butterfly-junction

I'm so sorry about what your hubby is going through, but it sounds like he has a great attitude, and gardening is awesome therapy.

Molly, Do you see the emoticons now?

mollyhespra wrote:So did the tree falling cause you to reorganize the garden or is it still in the same footprint?

And how's Miss Lilly?  She's such a pretty girl!!!

(If I could figure out what happened to my emoticons I'd post a big hug, but I can't find them...Sanderson?  Help?)

My neighbor replaced the smashed boards around the piles of Mel's mix, so it's the same footprint. 

Miss Lilly is still as beautiful as always and as prissy. She's 16 years old now and still hogging the heating pad although I'm thinking we won't be battling over it because I'm just not motivated to start seeds this year. But I've received so many gift certificates to so many nurseries in the area that maybe I'll just buy starts. I've always been hesitant in the past because it seems that when I used to do that I brought in bugs and such. I'll just really check them over this time and hope for the best.

Let's do this, girlfriend!

countrynaturals wrote:

Mollyhespra wrote:He wants to plant the usual cornucopia but I'm feeling so daunted by the task of weeding that I'm wary of starting too many seeds.

How about trimming all the weeds down to ground level, leaving them there for mulch, then jamming in peas all over the place. Let the peas climb on the weeds. Voila! Instant garden! If that's still too much work, stick the peas in with the weeds and let them duke it out. Whatayagottalose?  

I'm Suz from CA. Welcome back. (I came in after you left -- been struggling ever since.) My story is in Butterfly Junction. https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t20471-butterfly-junction

I'm so sorry about what your hubby is going through, but it sounds like he has a great attitude, and gardening is awesome therapy.

Hi, Suz! Thanks for the welcome back!

Your idea is a tempting one, but I think it would drive me crazy, lol. I actually enjoy weeding. I find it very therapeutic. It's just that there's so much to do that it's a daunting task. DH just wants to cover the beds with plastic and let the sun take care of it, but the problem is that there's some perennials in there amongst the weeds that I'd like to try to rescue, so we'll see.

I took a look at your thread and my goodness!!! It sounds like you've had quite the busy life these past few years as well. Have things gone back to some semblance of "normal" after the fire?

sanderson wrote:Molly, Do you see the emoticons now?

No, it's really weird. I see on the right hand side where

HTML is ON
BBCode is ON
Smilies are ON

but no actual smilies table like there used to be and no bar menu up top where you can switch to HTML, or click on the icon to insert a picture. Just a white space for "post title" and then this white space that I'm typing in. Could it be something on my end that I'm supposed to install on this computer? I didn't have this laptop before when I was active, it's new since then. Thanks for your help!!!

P.S. I've been using Chrome, and I just went and logged in with Firefox and still nothing. :-(

CapeCoddess wrote:

mollyhespra wrote:So did the tree falling cause you to reorganize the garden or is it still in the same footprint?

And how's Miss Lilly?  She's such a pretty girl!!!

(If I could figure out what happened to my emoticons I'd post a big hug, but I can't find them...Sanderson?  Help?)

My neighbor replaced the smashed boards around the piles of Mel's mix, so it's the same footprint. 

Miss Lilly is still as beautiful as always and as prissy. She's 16 years old now and still hogging the heating pad although I'm thinking we won't be battling over it because I'm just not motivated to start seeds this year. But I've received so many gift certificates to so many nurseries in the area that maybe I'll just buy starts. I've always been hesitant in the past because it seems that when I used to do that I brought in bugs and such. I'll just really check them over this time and hope for the best.

Let's do this, girlfriend!

Yes, lets! I always find it easier to tackle a big task when I've got a "buddy" near or far cheering on.

So, do you actually want to start your seeds and just can't get motivated to do it or is it that there's so much else to do that the seeds just have to get put to the side?

If you have nursery gift certificates, that might be the way to go, though I'd be wary of the bug issue also. Maybe create a "quarantine" area to keep things contained just in case?

mollyhespra wrote:
Hi, Suz!  Thanks for the welcome back!

Your idea is a tempting one, but I think it would drive me crazy, lol.  I actually enjoy weeding.  I find it very therapeutic.  It's just that there's so much to do that it's a daunting task.  DH just wants to cover the beds with plastic and let the sun take care of it, but the problem is that there's some perennials in there amongst the weeds that I'd like to try to rescue, so we'll see.

I took a look at your thread and my goodness!!!  It sounds like you've had quite the busy life these past few years as well.  Have things gone back to some semblance of "normal" after the fire?

First it was the fire.
Next came weeks of foul air.
Then it was the snowstorm (worst in 50 years).
After that the power went out for a week, which is difficult since Hubby is on a CPAP machine.
Did I mention all the downed trees and branches that we couldn't get cleaned up because of the wind, rain, and flooding?

Define "normal."

Actually, I think the worst is over until next fire season. Thanks for asking.

Wow, Suz.  You've definitely had your hands full!  Here's to wishing you a relatively boring growing season!

Another cold night expected! Possibly as low as 11 F, if not as low as 10 F and if not as cold as sub-10 F!

mollyhespra wrote:Wow, Suz.  You've definitely had your hands full!  Here's to wishing you a relatively boring growing season!

Ah -- "bor" -- what a lovely word.