The (Garden) Plot Thickens

Wow. Have you ever read over your blog's past entries? Maybe you have kept up with your blog like a good little do-bee, but then again perhaps you have even turned into a little slacker like me.

Like, I used to post pictures of myself as a toddler? Who knew?

Or post 21 entries over the course of ONE month!?

Dream Memes of me?

I have really let my blog go to...well, why am I in this handbasket and where am I going?

The GREAT news is - there was an extra garden plot in my school's courtyard and I snagged that baby for myself and three of my unsuspecting colleagues. Heh, heh. An entire plot! For me! And three of my closest co-workers! Without the aid of Green Husband! To plant! To tend! To weed! What the heck have I done! Hopefully my old standby, KidsGardening, will help get me through. I need a garden theme, dear readers, that should include literacy and art.

Warm Southerly Breeze

For those of you who live north of the Mason-Dixon line, you are going to laugh when I tell you how miserable the cold is making me. Not to mention The Cold of The Century that I have and the two little petri dishes I have (in the form of children) who are at the doctor's office as we speak (no, Green Husband has taken them there; I am not live blogging from the waiting room), no doubt being diagnosed with strep throat (again).

So you can imagine my sheer joy and almost shedding of tears when I heard this on the weather report: "Today may be the last cold day of the season, with a warm Southerly breeze bringing a warming trend to our area with highs tomorrow in the upper 40s." Warm Southerly Breeze. Upper 40s.

And please note that I am aware that I am driving you crazy with my almost weekly changes in blogger templates. I am itching for a real change. Can anyone suggest someone who will design a new blogger header for me?

I am so excited, not just for the upper 40s, but for all the greenness that is coming my way once again. I have an upcoming review of a new book from Barefoot Books (with a giveaway of said book), a new book from the Reader's Digest family on organic gardening, and, shall I mention it again, Gift of Green's Clothesline Challenge 2009!

And if you are having a rotten day, just look at Mary Beth's photo...doesn't it just bring a Warm Southerly Breeze to your face?

Can We Pleeeese Go Back to PB and J?

We are going through some serious PB and J withdrawal at the Wanna Greenies. So, what is the deal with the peanut butter recall? What brands? What are you buying? I mean, can someone give me the Cliff Notes version of this?

Grown Woman Weans Herself Off Facebook!

Yes, this just in... I have finally weaned myself off Facebook which I found was a huge time-sucker - not to mention I had slight misgivings over their privacy policies. I have to admit that I reconnected with some very long lost friends (from elementary school, no less), but personal emails have been exchanged, so voila! Time to get back to my first love, Gift of Green.

Mom Go Green has some good questions in her comment on my last post. I made some suggestions in the comments section - any other suggestions for the newbie gardener? Please feel free to post here.

I am considering...dare I mention it...the Second Annual Gift of Green Clothesline Challenge. Would any of you be interested?

And, remember how I posted about Garbage Gardening? I deep-sixed cucumber and pepper seeds after making some crudites in the kitchen, and son of a gun, two weeks later, I have pepper sprouts popping up! I simply buried them in a small pot of potting soil and have left them on my kitchen window sill to see what would emerge. Give it a try!

And...wearing my school librarian hat, I just have to tell you about an absolutely delightful book I read to my Kindergarteners this week: Isabel and the Hungry Coyote/Isabel y el coyote habriento (Bilingual)
I read it four times in a row and still could not get enough of it.

I read with amusement that someone had their feed to GiftofGreen bookmarked under "dying feeds". As F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote, I have the familiar conviction that life will begin again in the summer. Spring is just around the corner - I can feel it and it's great to be back as Gift of Green!!!

This Year's Garden

Here are the seeds we are planning to sow this year. We don't usually use transplants unless there is some kind of massive crop failure! We don't use cold frames; we are lucky to be in zone 7 so we have enough time to start from seed in starter pots. This list seems ambitious but it will be the first time I am off for the summer so I will have plenty of time to weed. Hahahahhhahaha, oh, hahahahah, I crack myself up. (Green Husband is looking at me like I'm nuts). With the first burst of warm air today, I am looking forward to Spring!

Strawberries (plants have been in the ground for about four years)

Radish
Broccoli
Lettuce (Deer tongue, Amish, black seeded)
Spinach

Sugerboy watermelon
Red peppers
Green peppers

Italian tomatoes
Brandywine tomatoes
Peas (snap, sugar)
Cauliflower
Lima beans
Cantaloupes
String beans
Cherry tomatoes
Cucumbers

Herbs (All are perennials we've had in for about three years.)
Basil
Lavender (in the ground for about three years)
Fennel
Sage
Oregano

Moon Flowers
Four O'clocks

Ramble on Rose has her list up too. What about you?

Getting ready...

to order my personal picks from Seed Savers. What are you ordering this year?