Spring Cleaning

2 months ago

It has finally stopped raining long enough for me to work in the gardens a bit. Besides general cleaning, I:

gave the Oregano and Thyme a haircut;

cut back the Lemon Verbena;

cut the Chives back to their growing base;

and planted some Dill seed - I hope to do a succession planing and see how that works.

I have a "wild' stand of Italian Parsely and I'm wondering if it self-seeded for another year. If not then I guess I will buy some new plants later on.

I didn't get any seed last year from my Presto Pesto Basil, so I will also look for that. Except for that one variety, I always just buy my Basil plants from the local nursery.

The Lavender and Rosemary are looking very good, and both are getting ready to bloom. The bees will be happy.

What are you doing for Spring?

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intwilight z6a KS

27 days ago

May 3 was the first day I felt that I could start seeds outdoors, because the night before was the last below 40. Then this weekend it has been 95F. Very rude.

I have all my herbs started. My lavender didn't make it through the winter. Now I'm doing standard yard cleanup, weeding, and will be planting some "wildflower mix" seeds that my brother-in-law sent me. Also considering if I want to go to a couple plant sales next weekend.

I have this weird, narrow strip between the road and sidewalk on one side of the house, and had turned it into a flowerbed. I have some extra sage and chocolate mint planted out there, they look great. Starting some lemon balm in a different part of the strip.

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Comments (8)

intwilight z6a KS
2 months ago
Still too early to do much here, but I started some seeds indoors today. I have several things planted outside in the winter seed starting with milk jugs idea (https://extension.psu.edu/starting-seeds-in-winter).

The oregano and thyme have little bits greening up at the bottom. The first hyacinth is blooming today, and a few crocus.
CA Kate z9 thanked intwilight z6a KS
CA Kate z9
Original Author
last month
Maybe excited. I said earlier that I didn't save seed last year from my favorite basil. I was going to put more soil in the planter it had been in and there were babies just starting to peek from the soil. I gathered those up, refilled the pot and replanted the babies. Now I need to hope that they are indeed Presto Pesto Basil. Then I'll be excited for sure.

Warmer weather also has many Italian Parsley growing wild, and I'll have plenty. I did buy a Curley Parsley and 3 more English Thyme plants.

Our new warm weather has caught everyone's attention.
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I rarely pull them,I always let it grow out a bit to be sure first,but,Gramma on the other hand is her own worst enemy,she pulls out at least 3 different things a year! She is 71 and has not gotten any better over the years! She knows the difference,it just usually when it's too late! :O My suggestions is that of the medo and Linda,don't pull unless you are sure! I observe the seedlings as they grow,so if it is a weed,the next time around I know what it looks like at different stages. Don't feel bad,lots of gardeners sabotage them selves...lol..
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You might be interested in the FlyLady system of cleaning. Essentially she doesn't do a "spring cleaning" but rather works everything in on a rotating schedule. Naturally there's extra chores depending on the season but not the massive top-to-bottom house cleaning since you're continually doing a portion of the house every week and move on to another section. I thought her ideas were motivating. I don't follow everything and don't get the reminder emails, although I made a cleaning list from the reminders for little 15 min chores that need to be done on occasion. This is similar in concept to the way my cousin painted his house. Every year he painted one side of it. His philosophy was that although the job is never finished, it's only 1/4 the work and thereby not so overwhelming, always looked pretty good, wasn't as weather-critical and was easier to do the job. To each their own. Here is a link that might be useful: Flylady
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Cyn, we have a thick row of evergreens between the road and the house. The road is on the north side of the house and I'd say the majority of wind we get is from the south, which is good for us, but dust is still in the air that gets here. When it's from the north there is a bit of dust that gets through the trees and it lingers between the house and trees. The county can't do anything, we don't live on a "street" it's a rocked/dirt road. When we moved here I kept calling our road a street and the locals kept correcting me. Hey, I'm a city girl! lol Some days there's no traffic except for the local farmers. Days like today and tomorrow I doubt anyone drives down the road because it's raining. Which means no dust! Here's some info that gives you an idea. " Dust is a price many of us pay to live in the country. Some 70% of U.S. roads are unpaved, and the EPA says about 40% of dust particles come from these unpaved roads right in front of our homes. All gravel roads give off dust. The U.S. Forest Service estimates that one vehicle traveling one mile each day down an unpaved country road will generate nearly a ton of dust over the course of a year. Multiply that by the number of vehicles that pass over the dirt road each day and you'll get an idea of the tremendous amount of dust that enters the atmosphere. This dust will travel up to 500 feet before it finally settles down. "
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Thank you socks. They sure did better than I expected. I will gradually acclimate them to full sun and then plant them back in the ground by Mother’s Day (in my zone that’s when its safe to assume danger of frost has passed). Pic below was from last October.
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otcay
last month
On Easter I planted kuri and kabocha squashes along with the cowpeas for the first time.
CA Kate z9 thanked otcay
intwilight z6a KS
last month
That's great Kate. I had Emily Basil seed itself one year, which was nice. I finally ran out of it and bought a purple basil this time.

I think I should go ahead and plant the native miner's lettuce. Looks like after this coming weekend (not quite freezing one night) I should be able to go ahead with everything else.
CA Kate z9 thanked intwilight z6a KS
CA Kate z9
Original Author
last month
OHHHHHHHH! I love Miner's Lettuce. We had it growing on our land when we lived in the country. The little grands and I would collect baskets of that and use it like Spinach. Everyone loved it. And, it was special because it only was growing for about a month and then disappeared until next Spring.
intwilight z6a KS
last month
I meant to plant some where it will reseed, not just in my pots, I forgot about that! Will do so soon. I got the miner's lettuce from Baker Creek Seeds if anyone is interested.

I had planted some extra sage and chocolate mint in a narrow awkward strip between the city sidewalk and road on the north side of the house, both are coming up well.
CA Kate z9 thanked intwilight z6a KS
CA Kate z9
Original Author
28 days ago
I reworked the Potting Bench Area and found that things were growing nicely:

I ended up pulling all the thyme - which was ratty after 11 years. The new three plants seems to quite happy in their new home, and already spreading.

After 11 years the Lemon Verbena was in a sad state and got cut back hard. It seems to be happier and putting on a lot of new growth. And, it smells wonderful!

The self-seeded Italian Parsley is everywhere and looking great.

I didn't take a photo of the Oregano that I gave a severe haircut. It is also looking great.

I guess our cooler Spring is being enjoyed by some.

Spring Cleaning

intwilight z6a KS

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