CANADIAN REGION:What are you doing January to March 2020

EllieK, Here's your thread. But, it is fine to write in this thread also.

Still not doing anything.  I went out yesterday to clear a pathway alongside my beds that are in a line between the edge of the lawn and the roadside, but the snow is still frozen as although the temps rise just above freezing during the day, it plunges to -7C .

At least it is less cold than the 12C we had been having. Still the night time temps      had been nearly up to the freezing level  but has dipped down again. 

Every year is different, but I wanted an early spring so I can clear my beds as it looks as though I may be staying in Canada longer than I had planned.

I did wash out some seedling trays.

KJ thank you for the recent e-card you sent to me. Much appreciated.

So sorry that your plans to move to England may be disrupted.

I am starting to think about doing some SFG again this year. After my diagnosis last August I lost the drive and thought there would be no SFG for me in 2020. But with Spring on the way and the need to grow more veggies the interest is coming back. I will however have to really pace myself. We are expecting +13C (56F) on Friday before the cold reasserts itself the following day with a high of only -1C (30F) and low of -14C (7F).

Yes, TD, I feel that getting back into gardening even a little bit will do wonders for us.
We have no idea how long things will take, keep hearing months now, so gardening will be good for us providing we do not go overboard.

Better than sitting in front of the TV listening to things beyond our control.

Take care, TD.  

Thank goodness for my seedlings and small garden projects. They give me something to nurture and fuss over. After all, there's only so much housecleaning, cooking, dishes and laundry anyone can stand. I'm basically house bound right now as I am 71with some asthma and COPD. I read that Target is open for the first hour for only seniors and other compromised people. Nice, if it's true.

sanderson wrote:Thank goodness for my seedlings and small garden projects.  They give me something to nurture and fuss over.  After all, there's only so much housecleaning, cooking, dishes and laundry anyone can stand.    I'm basically house bound right now as I am 71with some asthma and COPD.    I read that Target is open for the first hour for only seniors and other compromised people.  Nice, if it's true.

Be careful sanderson.  I too am house bound except for the occasional walk in the neighbourhood and crossing the street when I see other people approaching. What a crazy upside down world we are living in.

trolleydriver wrote:

sanderson wrote:Thank goodness for my seedlings and small garden projects.  They give me something to nurture and fuss over.  After all, there's only so much housecleaning, cooking, dishes and laundry anyone can stand.    I'm basically house bound right now as I am 71with some asthma and COPD.    I read that Target is open for the first hour for only seniors and other compromised people.  Nice, if it's true.

Be careful sanderson.  I too am house bound except for the occasional walk in the neighbourhood and crossing the street when I see other people approaching. What a crazy upside down world we are living in.

I am in the same situation.  I had to cancel 3 doctors appointments and 1 dentist appointment that were scheduled for the next two weeks because I did not want to get anywhere near anybody.  My daughter uses Kroger curb pickup for groceries and Amazon Prime for most other things.  She is a teacher and school is out for her and the two grandkids.  We are self quarantining as much as possible.  Except my son-in-law is still going to work but he told the other two workers (computer programers) in his office to work from home.  I would like to go to Home Depot or Lowes for a few garden supplies but not worth the risk.

We have the Spring Equinox to cheer us and the daylight hours will increase for the next three months.

Even though I cannot detect the daily difference, one suddenly notices that a week or so later the curtains will drawn later in the day and earlier in the morning.  That is, of course, in the Northern Hemisphere.

Our fellow gardeners in Australia will be going the other way. but there is nothing we can do about that.

yolos wrote:
I am in the same situation.  I had to cancel 3 doctors appointments and 1 dentist appointment that were scheduled for the next two weeks because I did not want to get anywhere near anybody.  My daughter uses Kroger curb pickup for groceries and Amazon Prime for most other things.  She is a teacher and school is out for her and the two grandkids.  We are self quarantining as much as possible.  Except my son-in-law is still going to work but he told the other two workers (computer programers) in his office to work from home.  I would like to go to Home Depot or Lowes for a few garden supplies but not worth the risk.

I also had a dental appointment for next week, but they cancelled ME!  Rescheduled for May.  I can't think what the world will be by then as everything is happening so quickly.

Thank goodness we have our gardens and I hope most of us can get out there safely and get some sunshine.

Today the weather is Zero right now, but due to go up as much as +8C with chance of flurries or rain.  Then I saw that where I am in the B.C. Interior, the flurrey will be as much as 2cm.

These last two days I have been shovelling the surface snow off a couple of my beds so that the sun will melt it a little quicker. I went only as far as the packed snow but this morning I noticed that the beds are showing more of the surface, but with another two cms still I will have to wait.  At least I got a little exercise

Menwhile I prepared a tray of sunflow seeds for sprouting and this morning I see seven seeds poking up, and know that the rest of them their rotts will be busy down below out of sight.  Time to prepare another trya so taht I can have a continues supply.  I have foudn some other seeds in a packet, I think they may be mung seeds so I will try them as well.  Meanwhile most of my garden still has snow on it but the snow on the grass near the house is finally melting.  Progress.  It is never the same from year to year.

Hi everyone! Long time no chat, I set up my first SFGs about 4 years ago and live about a 10 minute drive away from TD. Gardening seems more important than ever in these crazy times. Glad to be back. I think I may have been called Trentp before.

Mir-eh wrote:Hi everyone! Long time no chat, I set up my first SFGs about 4 years ago and live about a 10 minute drive away from TD. Gardening seems more important than ever in these crazy times. Glad to be back. I think I may have been called Trentp before.

Welcome back, Mir-eh!

Mir-eh wrote:Hi everyone! Long time no chat, I set up my first SFGs about 4 years ago and live about a 10 minute drive away from TD. Gardening seems more important than ever in these crazy times. Glad to be back. I think I may have been called Trentp before.

 back Mir-eh.   

What have you got in your garden?  Had you given up gardening before and now starting again?

Today I hauled out my rather battered collection of seed packets and set up some dishes to sprout them to see what percentage of good ones there are. 

If not much success, I will open a can of survival seeds and use them.  I think the can contains about 25 packets of the most useful ones.

Hi Kelejan, I've still been gardening all these years, I just wasn't here. Last year I grew tomatoes, peppers, strawberrries, asparagus, kale, lettuce, snow peas, raspberries, blueberries, spring onions, rhubarb, red and black currants, corn, cucumbers, different herbs, etc with various degrees of luck and bounty. I have about 5 raised 4x4 sfgs and some raised beds. The perennials come back year after year. I've started a variety of tomatoes for this year. I've also ordered some seed potatoes, and plan on growing a similar variety of vegetables as last year, plus carrots, plus onions, plus potatoes, and maybe some squashes.

Well, Mir-eh, you certainly have it covered, I am sure that I for one will learn something from you.

I started with two beds some years ago then discovered this site and have enjoyed the years spent here and the lovely people. My very first year I kept myself in salads all summer and I was hooked.

I was going to return to England this year but this virus may have put paid to that so I am continuing to be the Canadian Host until such time one can travel again but I fear that we have no idea how things will turn out.  So I am gardening and I may have to leave it all behind but then I will be starting again sometime.

We don't seem to have many SFG gardeners in Canada even in British Columbia so you are most welcome and I hope you love writing about what you are planting and the results.

I find this SFG Forum one of the most friendly and helpful places on the Internet and I think gardeners are the salt of the Earth. Along with people who love animals; I like cats, dogs and elephants for a start.

We love our dog. She's a great comfort at this difficult time.

I also loved my little dog and I keep him as my Avatar.  At this time I have a foster-cat, a grey tabby named Pal.  He is a special needs cat and was and was a mess when I first had him. With this isolation business he is proving to be a Godsend.

One good thing is that he does not dig up the SFG beds as he is confined to the house.

Hi  Mir-eh.  Welcome back. Glad to hear you are still gardening, especially SFG. Hopefully this social distancing will end by summer and then perhaps we could visit each other's gardens. Stay safe.

I wish I lived near someone else's SFG garden.  I must look around my own small city and see if I can locate one or two and introduce them to this SFG site. That will have to wait until we are let off the leash of home confinement.

The snow is melting and I can now see more green instead of white.  Byt the end of the week the snow should be gone.  Fingers crossed.


How's your snow cover, TD?

KJ our snow is almost all gone in the front yard but still quite a lot of ice and snow in the back yard.

Very much like mine, TD.  We are forecast rain from Monday onward with all temps above freezing. 

Then time to rake the grass of winter debris and so many others things to do that will keep me sane.  So lucky I have a garden and do not live in an apartment.

My garden is almost clear of snow now that it is pouring with rain and the night time temperatures are above freezing and that will remain so for the rest of the week.

This makes the ground too soggy for preparing the beds for seeding, so if the rains cease I will be cutting down some of the that wild stuff that grows so quickly,  I think they are called salmonberries and they grow so fast and could take over the whole garden if not contained.  They produce through runners plus the berries.

The seeds I have placed on tissue to see if they are viable have yet shown signs of it.  Give them a few more days.

Kelejan wrote: I think they are called salmonberries and they grow so fast and could take over the whole garden if not contained.  They produce through runners plus the berries.

We had salmonberries in Oregon, but I don't remember them -- probably because the blackberries were soooo awesome! So, do you like the salmonberries?

countrynaturals wrote:

Kelejan wrote: I think they are called salmonberries and they grow so fast and could take over the whole garden if not contained.  They produce through runners plus the berries.

We had salmonberries in Oregon, but I don't remember them -- probably because the blackberries were soooo awesome! So, do you like the salmonberries?

I have never tried them.  Perhaps I should. Probably because everyone else treats them as a noxious weed.