Babies!

Tomato plants are up, six days later:

And there's a blossom on the strawberry plant that lived in this pot out in the yard all winter:

Big storm!

Not sure if our poor little peas we planted are going to make it. This is the view in the garden bed right now after an hour of tornado and thunderstorm warnings in Columbus. It also generated a fair amount of hail and flooded the street.

What's Coming Up - Mid-March

Some views from around the house in this warmer than usual March. Almost all the flowering bulbs have come up, the hellebores are in full bloom and some of the perennials are starting to grow leaves.

Purchased last rhododendron

Purchased one more PJM Rhododendron, this one with broader leaves than the last two purchased this week. It will go in the center of the garden bed in what will be position 3 of 5 plants total.

Now we have 5 spots for flowering bushes, planted as follows:

1. established PJM (broadleaf), started in 2006
2. new planting - PJM
3. new planting - PJM (broadleaf)
4. new planting - PJM
5. established PJM (broadleaf), moved from position 2, started in 2007 or 2008

Built strawberry bed

Prepared new planting bed - 2x2 wooden box in full sun. Filled with 1:1:1 mixture of potting soil, peat moss and topsoil, with 8 scoops of plant food added. Planted 4 sets of Tristar (20-root) containers, an everbearing variety.

Variety: Tristar
Day-Neutral

Acidified soil around blueberry plants

Acidified the 4 established but so far unproductive blueberry bushes with an organic sulfur treatment - 2 1/2 cups spread around each plant and watered thoroughly.

Not much to look at. A few leaves so far, hopefully acidification will help.

Rhododendrons

Transplanted one established PJM compact broadleaf rhododendron to space at far end of west planting bed. Planted two new PJMs (with thinner leaves) into spots in the middle.

Now we have 5 spots for flowering bushes, planted as follows:

1. established PJM (broadleaf)
2. new planting - PJM
3. open
4. new planting - PJM
5. established PJM (broadleaf), moved from position 2

Garden Helpers

Charlotte and Veronica, 3 1/2 and Ellinor, 12 months.

Started tomatoes from seed

Planted heirloom tomato seeds in seed starting potting soil, indoors, 3 seeds to a pot.

Planted peas in the garden

Planted two rows of peas in the main garden bed, which was amended with compost in the fall.