Finished planting, mostly

MAY 25, 2009

Finished planting, mostly

Garden with lots of seedling in the ground Got nearly everything planted today, just about. As is my tradition, I celebrated with a bottle of Great Lakes—Commodore Perry IPA this time.

It doesn't look like much now—the little plants are nearly hidden by the straw mulch—but there are peppers, tomatoes, zucchinis, eggplants and more in this picture.

I really went overboard when buying pepper plants—I have about ten in the ground with a couple still waiting for a home. Then I walked past a plastic bag on the back deck and found three poblano plants that I bought on Saturday.

This year I chopped holes in the corrugated cardboard that covers the ground rather than digging up the whole garden the way I did last year. A lot less work, and I don't see why it won't be just as good. For each plant I dug a good-sized hole and filled it with a mixture of compost, topsoil and Miracle-Gro Organic Choice Garden Soil, which includes manure and natural fertilizer.

Robin with worm in beak As I dug, my little robin buddy stayed about two feet away. It paid off: she got a couple of worm snacks without having to ruffle her feathers. Today the little ones weren't dogging her footsteps. I saw them later doing some pecking on their own. It's about time.