Sow and Sew

Daylight Savings Time is taking a little bit of adjustment, but it's nice having light so late in the day again.  I planted lots of containers for Wintersowing last week.  I had good luck with it last year, so thought I'd try another round.  Some plants were 2 lavenders, including an Alba, forget-me-nots, Hollyhocks Queeny Purple  and Summer Carnival Rosy Pink, and a hibiscus Joseph grew at his house.

The above pic was my first attempt at sewing burp cloths.  They were part of a gift I recently brought to a friend's baby shower.  I used a towel for one side, laid it face to face with a colorful cotton fabric and sewed around the edges, leaving about half of one of the short sides unsewn to be able to turn it inside out.  Once I turned it inside out, I topstitched around all the edges, then embellished with ribbons.  I thought they turned out well for a first try.  I forget the finished measurements.  They're folded in half for the picture.  Next up, I believe will be a table runner.

I know there are folks who read my blog who are not on my facebook, so thought I'd let you know I've been working on a new page, and would be delighted if you'd visit, and "like" me, if you're so inclined. https://www.facebook.com/#!/AbelaBodycare  Thank you kindly!

Of Green Growing Things

The Wintersowing is pretty exciting. Even with one setback. The Cosmos Sensations seedlings grew fast, reached the top of their "greenhouse" and many rotted. I've opened the containers up for the remaining ones. But, there are other seeds up, including some Bells of Ireland, which I've wanted to grow for years.
Yesterday, I noticed my first indoor seedlings up. Broccoli Calabrese were the first up. This morning, some Catskill brussels sprouts have joined them. Yay!
I had told you about the calla lily J gave me for Valentines Day. The pansy picture tells more of the story. Can you see the sticks in the left foreground? It's one of six roses J gave me, planted into a rose garden! Is this man a keeper, or what?!

Seed Starting Fun

Seed starting has begun in earnest. J has planted carrots, kohlrabi, beets, spinach and rose orach in the garden. The orach is similar to spinach, though more heat resistant. It is the first time we've grown it, and in reviewing directions, he may have planted it a bit early, as it should be planted 2-3 weeks before the last frost. That is rather optimistic, but you never know! I started seeds in pots.

The varieties planted were:

Tomatoes:
Homestead
Marglobe
Brandywine
Tiny Tim
Stupice

Tomatillo:
Mexican Husk

Eggplant:
Pingtung Long

Brussels Sprouts:
Catskill (Long Island Improved)

Cabbage:
Early Jersey Wakefield

Broccoli:
Calabrese
Pinetree Mix

I also planted Viola Yesterday Today and Tomorrow and Lavender Hidcote Blue. The Wintersown plants are still looking promising. The photos were taken last week, and more have come up since. Daffodils, forsythia, scotch broom and one of the hellebores are blooming. I need to get all my pruning finished up, as many buds are fattening up around the homestead.

I should clarify yesterday's reference to our new "toy". J had been dealing with an abominably slow laptop, whose screen darkened to black whenever it took a notion. This spiffy new model is fast, and enables him to do drawings, which he's already used for fab shop jobs. Very cool. *Sorry about the post layout in the beginning. I played with it, but never figured out how to fix it.

Green Business

The fab shop got spiffed up by J, with a coat of green paint on all the trim. It's coming right along. I planted green peas this week- a mix of Little Marvel, Pioneer and Early Alaska. This morning is warm and rainy, so I'm hoping the peas and all the cold frame greens will be encouraged to grow. We haven't gotten much from our cold frame this winter, except for some lettuce, a couple picks of spinach, and parsley for soup, sauces and potato salad. The kale, swiss chard, mixed winter greens and broccoli are doing very well the past few weeks. I have high hopes a winter salad is in our near future. We had a couple early in the winter, made with mostly volunteer garlic mustard, but it just wasn't the same. Bring on the greens!

I've been soap wrapping up a storm, and have recruited help for the weekend. Though I haven't managed it daily, I have had some one-hour paperwork sessions. It's amazing what can be accomplished in a focused hour. Hooray for organization.

Several things are up in my Wintersown containers. So far, I've seen Cosmos, Bachelor Buttons and Poppies. High hopes, I tell ya! Have a happy weekend, everyone!

WinterSowing and A Touch of Spring

I hope you've all been having a good week. A touch of spring is in the air here. It's got me thinking of all the things I need to do!

-Vegetable seeds to start. I did give wintersowing another try with at least a dozen different flowers, and am hoping for the best. This year, I have the pots where the chickens can't reach them, so I'm hoping for beautiful things. I'm going to try doing the vegi seeds differently this year, being I'm at home most days. I'll put them outdoors during the day, instead of spending all their time under grow lights. I'm hoping for nice strong plants!

-Plant peas. I think I'm pushing the limits with this one.

-Pruning. So far, I've only managed to get my butterfly bushes and 4 apple trees pruned. I've got a long ways to go. Also have flower beds I've not yet cleaned up.

-Spring cleaning. I've been noticing lots of cobwebs lately. There's no hiding them when you heat with wood!

Yesterday, I canned mushrooms for the first time. I hadn't really used canned mushrooms until recently. Since I've quit nursing, I'm at the grocery store less and less. I like to have some on hand for pizzas, sauces, etc., and had been keeping the thought to possibly can my own. When I saw some at a good price yesterday, I bought 3 lbs, and canned them last night. It's the second time I've used the reusable Tattler lids, and today was dismayed to find 6 out of 13 jars did not seal properly. I expect it's user error. I often have a learning curve with new things. I gave it another try tonight, and will check tomorrow. I figured out I spent 34 cents for a 4 oz jar. Not bad, when Walgreens charges 1.19 for theirs.

When I went to write this post, I noticed it was my 250th! So, to celebrate in a small way, here's a link I found this week : Air Tap! This young man reminds me of a Summer's night I was up close at an outdoor concert in L.A., enjoying Michael Hedges. Both are pretty amazing guitar players to listen to. The picture is one of the gifts my sweet man gave me for St. Valentines Day. More to come!

*Update*- All jars sealed perfectly this time. Yay!

A Little Warmth

The weather is warming a bit. Weekend plans include soapmaking, Wintersowing some more seeds, sorting through and purging some of the contents of my shed. It will be lovely to spend more than a few minutes outdoors. Happy Saturday, friends!