Spring Bloomies and Edibles

Iris and paperwhites

Daffodils

August Pride peach

Ferrarria crispa

Freesia

Copper Spoons, Kalanchoe orgyalis

Chasmanthe Duckittii

Chasmanthe aethiopica

Plectranthus

Calla lily

Dragon Arum, Dranunculus vulgaris

Bulbine

Stock, Matthiola incana

Borage

Grape sprouts

Perennial artichoke sprouts

Cymbidium

Lush nasturtium "ocean"

Nasturtium overgrown in beds is pulled up and spread into pathways as mulch to smother weeds

Grape Hyacinth "waterfall". White freesias at top are super fragrant; supposedly the species from which all colors derive (but sadly lost the fragrance)

Following all that wonderful rain – with commiseration to those folks who sustained damage – our gardens are not only waking up with lots of greenery but sending up blooms galore.  What glorious color and lushness as we walk through our gardens! 

​The weeds are lush as well, however, so make a point of getting them out of the garden while the soil is still moist so you can remove the entire root systems so they don’t resprout.  The wonderful part of the frequent rains over the past several months was to help the California poppies and other wildflowers germinate and then continue developing into sturdy plants.  We’ll see whether the weather continues to be moderate so the plants can grow steadily and strongly and hopefully produce a great bloom season.
 
Edibles
 
Edibles we’ve been enjoying the continual harvest include lettuces and chard and kale that overwintered so well.  Peas are continuing their blooming and setting and picking sequence.  Bok choy and beets and carrots are just attaining harvesting size. Broccoli, cauliflower and kohlrabi are developing into sizeable plants.  Cilantro and parsley are just coming up. 
 
Broccoli Raab has come and gone with just a few plants, just like last year.  I just can’t seem to get many of them to germinate well even when I sow them so early and repeatedly, despite the “perfect” rains keeping soil moist and the warmish temperatures.  Maybe I’ll have to start the process even earlier next September.
 
I’m doing another sowing of Wando peas, which are tolerant of warm weather both at the beginning of the sowing season in October and at the end of the harvesting season in June.  The time between these beginnings and endings, I sow all the other varieties of peas that love the chilly growing temperatures.
 
Even though the weather feels like we’ve turned the corner to warm spring and summer, hold off on transplanting summer vegetables except for tomatoes.   Tomatoes are the only summer vegetables that can tolerate the garden’s still-cool soil. They’ll thrive even more successfully if you’ve amended the soil with organic matter and fertilizer prior to planting, spread their roots and watered them in well. 
 
This magic, however, doesn’t work with other summer veggies like cucumbers, eggplant, melon, peppers, and squash, which will just sit and pout if planted while the soil is still cold.  They may not even recuperate ultimately once the soil has warmed in another month.  Best to just wait a good month before getting them into the ground. Then, they’ll take off and develop more successfully.
 
For more garden tasks, go to March.
 
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