A Gardener's Diary

[Monksdream]

Feb. 26-A new sound while sipping morning coffee on the apartment patio. The rat a tat of a busy woodpecker. Didn't see it, just heard it. Sunday bus service is limited. I had to wait maybe 15 minutes at 6th. Something new. The project manager who has a camper on the ledge left a dish of food for the cats. In exchange I tilled up two patches of bare ground on the ledge. The soil is so hard now, due to the lack of rain. My thinking is planting garden peas. Little Marvel doesn't put out long vines that need a trellis like Green Arrow.

I'm up to 118 lettuce plants. I added another row of parsnip seeds. They took weeks to germinate. And will they?

I'm thinking maybe I can sell tomato plants to Jerry like I did last season at the public market on 7th. I've already seeded 51 cups with Cherokee Purples with another 12 tomorrow morning.

I will need more room for the pepper seed which should be started soon. I'll probably end up with containers on window sills all over the building.

One more Rosa Bianca eggplant germinated, bringing the total to 5. Without a heat mat I have to be patient.

Some lettuce seedlings in the greenhouse are ready for transplanting. The next two mornings are close to freezing so I'll hold off taking the trays outside. This Merveille des Quatre Saison lettuce is so tiny and so slow to grow. You never know about different varieties until you try them.