Upper South: May Day 2011

No, that is not a typo! What a wet spring we've had! But despite all the rain I've managed to get a lot of things planted and they are up and growing. Some more sunshine would be a most welcome sight though!

I've been talking with a lot of the locals who have traditional row gardens and many have said that it way too wet and muddy to even think about tilling their gardens. I genuinely sympathize with them because I remember what that was like and I know that many families depend on that produce to help feed their families. Between my husband and I, I think we've convinced several to try SFG'ing so they could at least get some early crops planted.

All this rain has made me doubly thankful that we are square foot gardening! With everything above the ground in a nice loamy Mel's Mix it's possible to plant between rain showers. Once advantage is you do NOT have to worry about keeping those seeds moist! In fact, I was afraid some of them would wash away. After one really bad hail storm, I thought for sure my challenge carrots would be growing in the aisles, but they have sprouted. They're a little displaced in the squares, but they are there!

In between downpours I've gotten several lettuces planted, carrots, Swiss chard, radishes, arugula and broccoli. I'll plant more lettuces soon to keep that salad coming as long as possible! The grid squares make organizing successive plantings easy. I can honestly say too, that I think my salads are the most colorful around -- and yes I am bragging!

Tonight we had a salad meal - spinach and red lettuces with some cut up rotisserie chicken. Now if I could just have some fresh cherry tomatoes and cucumbers with that! I should mention that the spinach, royal oak leaf and red romaine lived through the winter and took off again this spring, so we are getting some salad early this year! We've also been eating on the broccolini we planted last fall, but with only three plants, the pickin's are slim.

Garlic is getting HUGE. And the sugar snaps are vining up the trellis now. Strawberries are covered in bloom and I've even seen a couple of berries forming. I'll try to run out tomorrow between showers and take a photo. I have my tomato plants nearby hardening off, but we're prepared to bring them in if necessary because our last frost date is officially May 15. I have the flats sitting on pallets straddling a new 2 x 8 box across the fence. If it should get too cold we can cover both the tomato plants and the strawberries at once with a big piece of plastic straddling the fence.

Let's see. I think that's about it other than repotting a few herbs and planting some new ones. Oh yeah, and I've had to cut back the sage again. Wow, that herb grows fast!

So what's up in you SFG? Some of you I know have been getting more rain than we have here in WV, so have you been able to get some things in your SFG? Do tell!

Warmer days are ahead I am sure of it -- oh yeah!

Your regional hostess, pattipan