Entering the Hunger Gap
I’ll use the term garden loosely, since my gardening right now is concentrated in the greenhouse. We’re right in the hunger gap season when fresh stores from last year are just about running out or bolting, and we’re a ways from harvesting anything new. Imbolc is the time halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox, and halfway is an apt description.
Joi Choi
Some plants are taking the extra light of the longer days as an excuse to bolt or send up their seed stalk. While others are content for a bit.
Tat Soi bolting
I’m taking this cue as time to start some seeds. Not much as I can’t really plant much yet anyway. But some slow growers like celeriac, onions, shallots, flowers and herbs. I also seeded a flat or two of cool weather greens to take the place of what we still have that is harvestable from late fall plantings. My heat mat real estate is limited, so once these flats have germinated I can move them and start more flats.
Finding the rhythm of seeding again feels good. Come on Spring.
Love your filthy hard working hands! c
C. that is given around here. You know how it goes 😉
With no greenhouse here and a May 31 frost date, it’s still too early to start things. My first starting date is March 1 for beets, kale and onions. But my kale seed was backordered. :((
I start every 2 weeks so the next one is March 15 for celery and leeks. March 1 for herbs: none. March 15 for herbs: mints, rosemary, sage. Only verbascum for March 1 flowers, and several others for March 15.
I’ve found here in Western Mass that the later starting times, per John Kempf, has meant more productive plants once planted. Less stress on them = more production.
Pam, here we have to deal with soil too wet to work in the spring delaying planting. I try not to start to early because I don’t use lights, so the natural light has to do.
You have quite a system there. You are keeping yourself busy, as usual, but we will know you are really busy when your calving begins. How soon will that be?? Bev
Not until June, lots of time left there for playing around in the garden 😉
Noticed just yesterday how my shelves suddenly have gaps and there is actually room in the freezer. Now I’m racing to cook up and freeze the last of the stored winter squash, after finding one soft with mold…ugh. How I hate waste, and when something isn’t good enough for the hens, it really IS wasted.
Quinn, I noticed the same thing in the freezer! What is that? A shelf? Winter is over here for all intents and purposes, we may get a snow or a frost but it won’t last at this date.
Do you just buy potting soil for seeds? Everything here is soaked and I don´t have a poly tunnel or a seed starting set up. I did have some luck in the past setting the trays on top of the fridge, but sun is at a premium. We´re going to have to build an ark soon.
Coco, I do buy potting soil for starts, at the scale we use it that works the best.
I’ve been babying starts to get me through the stir craziness of late winter. Cannot wait to be out in the warm sun again!
I don’t have light enough to start plants inside so I delegate that to a friend with a greenhouse and go help.
Good plan! I wish you lived closer you could come help in my greenhouse 😀
I’ve begun schlepping starts back and forth from the south facing windows(on sunny days) and the grow lights. So happy to see them pop up! 🙂 It was fun to guess what kind of seeds you had in your hands in the photos. Not certain of the first one.
Ooh I hate that. I seeded these on my bench in the greenhouse that is still uncovered, so I did the schlepping transporting them to the heat mat which is in the chicken brooder/winter greens greenhouse. They will stay though, I’m not that patient 😉
Sweet Peas! What a range from them down to the oregano!
Ok, I’m going on a guess what that seed is contest! #1. some sort of pea? #2. marigold? #3 celery? #4. don’t have a clue! The only one I’m actually pretty sure of is #2. 🙂
Close Chris, Sweet Pea, marigold, Queen Anne’s Lace, and oregano. 🙂
Wow! I almost won! Do you plant the Queen Anne’s Lace for the pollinators? The dried flower reminds me of a little bird’s nest. Also what kind of oregano do you plant? I grow Greek to use fresh and dry! Love it!
Chris, I planted this for the flowers. Greek here too, and I treat most of my perennial herbs as annuals and reseed each year. I’m am not a good perennial grower 😦 Or weeder I should say.
Here is the Chocolate Lace flower:
http://www.floretflowers.com/shop/daucus-carota-chocolate-lace-flower/
Gotta love Floret!
Beautiful! I didn’t know there was a Chocolate Queen Anne’s Lace! I will have to get some of that seed! 🙂
Thanks for the reminder – it’s time to bust out the seed stash!
Oh- I just recently saw that post from Floret and knew I had to get some of that gorgeous Chocolate Queen Anne’s Lace for myself! Only thing growing in my green house right now are the strawberry starts I planted a month ago. Standing tall and proud…I can almost taste the first berry. Almost.