The State of the Garden is Strong

 

Curb Appeal Weekend

The Memorial Day weekend was a doozy. We moved dirt. We planted something in every bed. Memorial Day is a big one here. Stuff needs to be in the ground. And while it wore us to nubs, we got it done. And a 20 mile run to prep for the next marathon. (Note to self: Planting large garden and marathon training are not necessarily complimentary activities. Consider a fall marathon next year.)

And so, intrepid reader, we move on to a visual tour of Steepmeadow as it stands today:

Above, we can see the landscaping. That's a whole lotta mulch and dirt and a large number of hostas moved from the side of the house where they dwelt under the abuse of the Hated Previous Owners (HPOs).

The Teeny Weenie Free Zucchini Garden, planted by Kiki & and a passel of neighbor kids. We shall see what comes up.

The new raised box over the remnants of the felled shabby decorative tree left by the HPOs. It's got Hubbard squash and flowers in it.

The three year old blueberry bushes and some tulips at the side of the garage.

The fruit berm. Three new blueberry bushes and two new dwarf Honeycrisp(TM) apple trees.

Inside the Pepper box. A variety of hot peppers, protected from the seemingly endless damaging winds by a cover.

The spice bed. Thai basil in the foreground. No sandworms below.

The tomato bed. Wisconsin Chief variety in the foreground, Delicious in the background. Carrots interplanted.

The new in front of the deck bed. It's full of hollyhocks, a variety of sunflowers, and pumpkins.

The snap pea and cucumber bed. So far, the snap peas are doing well, and the cucumbers not so great. The latter may require a replant this weekend.

The zucchini bed. 9 plants are up. It needs some marigolds to brighten it, and the greenhouse crop of marigolds was disappointing. We'll have to purchase some this weekend.

The strawberry bed. June-bearing in the front, ever-bearing in the back. Fortunately, some dill has self-seeded from last year, and should rise soon.

The messy salad bed. The rocket is up. We ate some last night. Beets and kale had a disappointing germination rate so far, but the weeds are thriving. Hard to tell what's what at this early stage.

The Megalith bed. More peppers & onions in the foreground, more salad in the background. 

The onion bed, with some supplemental buttercrunch & merlot lettuce. The "Red Zeppelin" and yellow onion varieties both seem to be thriving.

Hubbard squash & nasturtium bed.

Raspberry bushes. There are some new runners this year.

Before the new bed in front of the deck.

After the new bed in front of the deck.

The now installed wood burning fireplace insert for green heat this winter. 26% tax credit. Still waiting on the blower, but it's ready to burn. More on this innovation soon. Must order a couple cords of wood.