Dreaming of soil while looking at snow...

All the gardening blogs I read are talking about starting their seeds.  This, I think, is the one thing I don't like about Alaska... our short growing season.  Our average last frost date is June 1, so most things don't get started until the end of April.  I suppose I could let things grow a little longer inside, if I can get my seed shelf set up properly.  I am just itching to grow something. 

I'm a little nervous about trying to start everything from seed this year.  I haven't had the greatest success so far.  But I do learn a little more each year, and this year will be another learning experience, if nothing else.  This will be the first year that I will be in control of the seedlings... in years past I have always started them at my mother's house.  It will be nice to be able to check on them daily and to make sure that the lights and other growing conditions are really to my specifications, rather than depending on someone else to remember/care enough to do it properly.  I'm not saying Mom has done anything wrong with the seeds in the past, just that it will be nice to have that daily control.

I was watching a video earlier today of an interview with a woman who sells seedlings at the local farmer's markets.  She was talking about how everyone wanted heirloom tomatoes.  She said she tells everyone that yes, the heirlooms taste better and look prettier, but "you don't want to spend $5 per seed".  She repeated that about 5 times.  First of all, the seeds DO NOT cost $5 a piece.  And second of all, initial cost is not the only factor!  Yes, you will spend SLIGHTLY more the first year, but then you will be able to save the seed each year!  It just amazes me how people can find one tiny little obstacle and refuse to look beyond it.  YES, I want heirloom tomatoes, and if you don't have them, I will simply buy them somewhere else! 

Speaking of seeds, if anyone locally has some seed they want to swap, I have some Blue Shrimp Flower seeds I saved from last year, and I would be willing to trade half of them.  I originally got the seed from the Alaska Botanical Garden when I did some volunteer work there a few years ago.  They did beautifully last year, and I'm sure they will do well again this year.  Leave a comment or email me if you are interested!

Still thinking about next summer's gardens...

This morning, the compost pile is definitely on my mind. I am really looking forward to being able to turn this lovely stuff into my garden, and to get some healthy, organic vegetables out of it. Depending on the state of the oldest compost pile next spring, I may end up using it a year early. I have discussed my 3 year compost plan before, but I think I may not have to wait that long. Even if there is still a little bit of identifiable material left, it will still help out my soil immensely.

I have come to the conclusion that the nutrient-poor soil in the garden beds is probably the main reason I had such an unsuccessful garden this year. Next year I will scale back the sheer number of different plants I will be growing, and try to concentrate on 6 or 7 items that are the most important to me, and with a little luck, and a little compost and cow poop, maybe I will actually have something to can at the end of the season!

No one ever claimed that organic was easier, but in the long run, its soooo worth it!

On another track... I can't believe that the farmer's markets are already starting to wrap up for the season. I was a little disappointed by the selection in the farmer's markets I visited this year. I expected to be able to find more than zucchini, but that was really the only prevalent vegetable. Everything else was very hit-or-miss. Don't get me wrong... I love zucchini, but Alaska has so much more vegetable potential! One of the markets I attended had over 100 vendors, and only 2 of them even had vegetables. The rest was all just deep fried foods and tourist items. I guess when things go more mainstream, sometimes people miss the point. Hopefully this will change in the future, as more and more people find the benefits of eating locally grown foods.

Fall is quickly upon us, and today is the first day of school! Time seems to go by a little faster every year. Stephen is starting kindergarten, and he is excited for the transition! Hopefully his good attitude about school will continue. I always loved school, and I'm sure he will too.

I'm not quite sure why I find this so funny...

One of my eggplants is actually producing flower buds all of a sudden. I had given them up as a total loss, and now this! Of course there is not enough time for it to produce a mature vegetable, but now I'm curious as to what it will do. The garden is a crazy place, indeed. Now if only my zucchini flowers would do something productive... they are pretty enough, but I really would like to get at least one squash for my effort!

We hit up a farmer's market while we were in Anchorage today. I bought a huge yellow zucchini, a few snow apples (white turnips), and some fresh green beans. I will be making homemade vegetable beef soup this Friday, and they will add so much to the flavor. I LOVE homemade soup, especially in the fall and winter. Nothing like healthy comfort food! YUMMY!

I also just ate 2 of the reddest, most amazing tasting strawberries ever, out of my 3 tiered raised strawberry beds. Absolute heaven!

Finally some rain!

I was starting to get worried. We have had a very dry spring this year, reminiscent of the spring of '96... The Miller's Reach Fire. I actually lost my home to this fire, so you can understand why I am a bit paranoid! Thankfully, it has been raining most of the night and is still raining as I type this. Everything is going to stay in the greenhouse for the day because its only about 44F outside right now, but the soil is getting a good dose of mother nature, which will be much appreciated when I plant the garden this weekend! The only bummer is that it is raining for the first day of the farmer's market we are attending today, not that it is going to stop us!!!

They're in the ground!!!

I just finished planting 48 strawberry plants... the first outdoor planting of the season! I've also gotten the greenhouse completely emptied out, which means I can bring my seedlings home from my mom's house. I'll also be looking for some seedlings at the farmer's market this Friday. I'm excited because I've never actually been to a farmer's market before. Should be lots of fun!