Seed Starting Begins!

 

I finally started by tomato and pepper seeds today! As you can see, I had a little help from Ginger. (If he fits, he sits.)

I haven't bought any new seeds this year. I had plenty from last year. I am trying to practice restraint here. I am sure I will buy some seeds eventually. 

I used larger seed starting pellets this year. I got them on Amazon. The trays are just pans from a local Dollar Store. As you can see, I am using heat mats to help them out. 

What started out as a rainy morning turned into a sunny, beautiful day! I got a little repotting done and now to catch up on my reading. (Feel free to visit my other blog, Free Spirit Books. The link it on the above right.) Thanks for stopping by!

 

Tuesday Thoughts

No, he isn't stuck. Ginger (or Gigi, as I call him) is learning to get himself out of a tree. It's quite a handy talent if you think about it. Hopefully, he won't need to deal with enemies in his own yard, but you never know. Ginger is a "daytime outside cat". At night, we make him stay inside because of the coyotes. It's about time for me to start tracking him down. Sometimes he hides and refuses to come inside. He is far too naive.

I fully meant to start my tomato and pepper seeds today. (I also fully meant to do it last week.) Last week's excuse was that the weather sucked and my daughter was sick. Today's excuse is that the weather is perfect, my daughter feels just fine....and now here I go with the sniffles. (Yes, I hit the elderberry!) 

I hope to be up to starting the seeds tomorrow. Last week would've been ideal. However, gardening isn't a race. You just want to give those babies a good start. I love seed starting! It gives me hope for spring. Nothing warms the cold, grey days of winter like seeing your garden plants popping their little green heads up! 

Tune in tomorrow to see if I start those seeds..... 

Spring in February

 Will there even be a winter?

It's over 70 degrees here on the mountain today. Started off the day with my daddy and my cousin having to repair a leaky faucet in my daughter's bathroom. (You haven't had fun on a late Sunday night til your kiddo comes into your room and says, "There is hot water running in my bathtub and it won't stop!") Up here, we only call in the professionals as a last resort. One quick trip across the mountain to town and we are good to go!

It was too beautiful out there to stay inside! Look at this sky:

Excuse the satellite photobomb on the left. I love living in a clearing in the woods. We have our own little private world here.

After picking up sticks that January's storms left in the yard (finally the mud has dried up), I worked on my raised beds. I need to get them cleared and ready. Today I pulled weeds and straightened them up a little. 

It felt so GOOD to soak up this sunshine! And I was wearing SHORTS, y'all! I can't believe it is this hot in February. I took a little walk around the yard to look for signs of spring.

I found these baby buttercups. Look at those little buds!

This one sat alone underneath a tree. I have gathered all my buttercups (daffodils to some of y'all) from old home places out in the woods. They aren't native to the area but came with the first settlers. Finding them in the woods is like looking through a window back in time. They show us where a home place once stood. A woman planted these with pride. A family once lived on each of these old home places, their faces now lost in time. But the buttercups return every year. Never take them all--just take a few. They will increase in number year after year.

One last photo today. I got bit by a blackberry bush when I was trying to take a picture of this one. This means I have weed-eating to do this week, evidently.  Wild blackberries are great, but they will take over your yard if you let them. 

I have more pics, but I will save them for my next post. Time to see what needs cookin' for supper.

By the way, do you call them daffodils or buttercups?