Lots of planting!

Did a lot of planting the last few days. Transplanted all my tomatoes (17 total - 7 varieties), basil and the last of the lettuce. Also sowed cilantro, green onions and more carrots. Both the bush beans and pole beans have germinated and are growing fast.

Here's a tour of the boxes...


I'll start harvesting some spinach in the next couple days.




Some leaf lettuce is just about ready for some harvesting as well.


I finished my Self-Watering Containers and planted Roma tomatoes in one and Rutgers tomatoes in the other. The jury is still out for me about these things. They are expensive to make, what with using 2 totes and and 2 cu ft of Miracle Grow Potting Mix, which isn't cheap. In the end, for the cost of making these two, I could have built another 4x4 raised bed filled with Mel's Mix and had more planting area. I'll see how it goes with them this season. It did allow me to plant 4 more tomato plants than I would have otherwise.

Transplanting

I forgot to take pictures today, so this will be text only. I'll try to get out there and take a few tomorrow.

Over the last few days there wasn't a whole lot to do with the garden, but I did get a few things done. I forgot to add some lime to soil when I planted my broccoli and cauliflower, like you're supposed to do to help prevent club root. So I sprinkled a little around the plants today and watered it in just to be on the safe side.

Today, I transplanted some lettuce I started three weeks ago to the garden. Some of the Iceberg looks a bit wilted, but hopefully it'll bounce back. Although we are going to have some unseasonably hot weather the next several days. I may try to rig up some sort of shade cloth for it. The Buttercrunch and Green Ice don't look too bad.

Also planted my first batch of carrots. I plan on planting a square about every 3 weeks or so.

Lastly, I had my tomatoes and peppers outside all day in the warm sun. They seem to love this weather and are growing stocky and strong.

Things are poppin'

Went out this morning to find several spinach sprouts poking through the soil.

As well as some real pea sprouts (as opposed to the weeds I mistook for peas the other day).

Transplanted my broccoli and cauliflower to the garden with cutworm collars made from cut up cereal boxes.

Lastly, I planted the first of two squares of swiss chard. Here's the garden ready to rock and roll. It's exciting to see the squares starting to fill with plants.

Construction almost finished

After a few days of cold and rainy weather, today was absolutely beautiful so I was able to get outside and get some things done. I put together the last trellis and erected it in its place. I found a pipe cutter in my toolbox and that certainly made cutting the conduit much easier as opposed to the hacksaw I used on the other ones. I wish I had found it a week ago.

Then I strung the trellis netting on the last two. What a tedious job that is -- tying all those little knots!

After that, I built the last chicken wire enclosure. I still need to put it up but have to cut some more clothesline and melt the ends first.

Lastly I transplanted some tomatoes and lettuce into some larger plastic cups.

Trellis and transplanting

Got the materials for the other three trellises and built one of them. Also test-fitted the netting on one. I still need to build two more trellises and two more chicken wire enclosures and then I'm pretty much done for the season as far as major construction goes.


Also transplanted my parsley (started 3/7) to the garden.