Starting Seeds Indoors

 Living in the Pacific Northwest in a cool climate (Zone 8), planting outdoors starts in the middle of April for cool weather plants. I start my seeds indoors 4 to 10 weeks before last frost, depending on the vegetable and soil temperature recommended for planting in the ground.
     I start my seeds in the Jiffy Peat Pellets, so I don't have to mess with soil. You can buy them in a package or purchase a starter kit. Start by soaking the pellets in water until they are fully expanded, then you place the seeds 1/4 inch deep. Make sure you put the tray by a sunny window and water to keep soil moist. Make sure the room temperature is within the required range for germination.
     If the plant outgrows the pellet before you are ready to plant in the ground, then transfer to a larger container, making sure you don't damage the roots of the plant. Use seed starting soil to fill up larger pot. Press the soil gently but firmly around the plant and water again to moisten thoroughly.


This week I will start my seeds for the following.

1.  Lettuce - Transplant into containers in full sun early spring, when soil temperature reaches 50 degrees. Slugs are a problem until the spring rains slow down. I do  successive planting every 2 weeks, so I have a continuous supply of lettuce. The summers don't get too hot, so I can plant through most of the summer. 
2. Chives - Transplant in the ground in full sun / partial shade, when soil temperature reaches 55-65 degrees. 
3. Endive - Transplant in the ground in full sun/partial shade, when soil temperature reaches 45 -55 degrees.
4. Celery - Transplant in the ground in full sun, when soil temperature reaches 60-70 degrees.

Happy Planting!

Ruby

July Harvest

Sophia, Rachel and Victoria

Harvest time makes all the hard work worth it! I love being able to walk in by backyard and pull up my dinner every evening. It doesn't get any fresher! June,July and August are my favorite months.
I harvested lettuce from April 28th through July 7th.(I just replanted some last week)
I harvested Celery and Snow Peas from June 10th through July 11 and still picking.
I harvested onions, carrots, and potatoes July 2nd through July 11.
We are 2 weeks away from harvesting our Bush Beans and Summer squash is ready to pick.

Celery and Snow Peas

Yukon Gold Potatoes

Raspberry Picking
Rachel, Catherine and Victoria

Rainbow Carrots

Sarah, Rachel, Victoria, Sophia

I like to plant something fun every year! This year it was RAINBOW CARROTS! They really are rainbow colored.  Purple, White, Orange, Red and yellow!
They were a big hit with the little kids and teens!

Yukon Gold Potatoes

Yukon Gold Potato Harvest

Harvested our Yukon Gold Potato crop today! They are worth their weight in GOLD! This year’s crop was one of my best! Planting early paid off and the last few weeks of warm summer yielded a large healthy crop.

Our first day of harvest is followed by our traditional "Potato Fry".  YUMMY!

Here is a tip when harvesting your potatoes!

Cut back the foliage when they die back. I cut foliage a week before I harvest the crop. I also make sure the soil is dry or slightly moist. Dig them up carefully not to cut with shovel or pitch fork. Place your potatoes on a flat surface to dry. The skin is very thin when you first dig them up,  so handle carefully! DO NOT WASH THEM. Cure about 2 weeks at 55 degrees in humid conditions, and then store in a root cellar, or cool dark place. Do NOT store with apples, they give off a gas that initiates potato sprouting!

Snow Peas

Oregon Snow Peas March 31, 2012

Never got around to blogging about Snow Peas, but I plant them every year. Last year I decided to try something different, and planted them in hanging baskets. I was amazed at the outcome. I planted them in baskets in a sunny place and they trailed up the sides and produced tons of snow peas! This gave me more garden space to grow other vegetables, and once again, by limiting the amount of trellising in your garden you have more sun on other plants. I foliage feed them every 3 weeks with seaweed extract.

Oregon Snow Peas May 27, 2012

This year I planted 2 hanging baskets and wish I had planted more! I have lots of sunny spots on my fence and play house, and with the success I am having, next year I will expand. My family loves stir fry and these sweet pods taste great. They can get large, so I pick them when they are small to medium and they are tender!  The more you pick the more you get! They produce through out the summer!

Planting: I planted March 31, 2012, but you can plant earlier if you have them in baskets and cover to protect from frost. I plant 3 per hanging basket. Since you are planting in baskets you don't need to worry about good or bad companions!


Watering/Fertilizing: Water moderate until blossoming, then keep moist. Foliage spray with seaweed extract every 3 weeks

Harvest: Pick when pot is small to medium. Check every other day, they grow fast and when they get too big they become stringy. I pick and keep refrigerated until I have enough for a meal.

Enjoy!
Ruby

Lettuce Update And Photos

Green Leaf Lettuce

Rain, sun, and longer days are perfect for success! My flowers are in bloom and the lady bugs have arrived! They seem to like my Green Leaf Lettuce.

Lady Bug on my lettuce

It is beautiful and bug free thanks to my little Lady Bug Friends. It was slug free thanks to a dry April and May.

 Green Leaf and Buttercrunch Lettuce 

Not sure why I find the Lady Bugs on the Green Leaf and not the Buttercrunch, but I will be planting more Green Leaf! I planted the above lettuce April 2, 2012, started harvesting May 18th and still harvesting. I cut the outer leafs of the green leaf lettuce and continue harvesting until it starts to go to seed. The Buttercrunch I harvest when the head is ready to pick...TASTY

Red Sail, Green Leaf and Buttercrunch Letuce

I always plant some lettuce in pots in early spring. If we have a wet April and May the slugs won't get to the lettuce. It is risky to put in the ground this early, although this year was dry and my lettuce I planted in the garden was slug free. I planted my pots March 30, 2012 and started harvesting April 28, 2012

My favorite Green Bean!

Ed Hume French Bush Bean

    Ed Hume Seeds
    Type: French Beans Gourmet Green Bush, Baby Filet Type

     This is one of my family's favorite vegetables in our garden! If you only plant one type of green bean......this needs to be the one!
     I planted mine by seed April 22nd and May 5th they broke ground. This bush bean is easy to grow, and has a beautiful dark green color. It is very productive, tender, flavorful, and easy to pick.
     I enjoy this bush bean, because I don't have to trellis them, and they don't hog the sun for the rest of my garden.

How to plant - I start by adding Dr. Earth Premium Organic 5 to soil before planting. Plant seeds 2 to 3 inches apart. Lay the seeds on their side and cover with about 1 inch of fine soil. Plant with 2 to 3 feet between rows, this makes it easier when you harvest. I enjoy them throughout the summer, so I plant every 2 weeks. You will have more green beans than you can eat, and I always enjoy sharing with neighbors. Plant marigolds nearby to help control pests.

Watering - Water plants lightly, evenly and regularly. Do not water overhead. This wets the leaves and can promote disease like bean rust. Increase watering from germination to flowering, and from flowering to the first pods and through harvest.

Fertilizing - After plant sprouts I start foliage spray with a organic fertilizer, like a fish emulsion, every two weeks for 6 to 8 weeks.

Harvest - This French bean is very slender and ready to pick when it is about 1/8 inch in diameter or 4 to 5 inches long. They can get stringy if you allow them to grow larger. I pick every other day and can't keep up with the quantity this little bush grows.

Ed Hume Seeds
Type: French Beans Gourmet Green Bush, Baby Filet Type

Good Companion: potato, celery, cucumber, corn, carrot, strawberry, chard and cauliflower.

Bad Companion: Basil, fennel, kohlrabi, onion family.

Enjoy!
Ruby