a windy saturday in march

plans for today:
visit local aquarium stores
go to nellysford

i need a grow light. i could buy cheap sockets and bulbs, but boy will eventually need an aquarium. it's also really easy to find aquarium light tubes. they cost as much as incandescent bulbs and last a lot longer. so we'll buy an aquarium light and i'll use it for my plants. eventually, boy will have it for his aquarium.

i also need good chocolate, specifically Valor's 38% milk chocolate with cocoa nibs. those are only sold hereabouts in Nellysford, which also happens to be the home of the Blue Ridge Pig. the Pig is where one can get some of the finest barbecue in the region, which will make explodingcat and nothingoth very happy. if javafiend likes bbq, she'll be happy, too.

gardening. my thumb got bitten and now it's green...

A couple weeks ago, I started several seeds in peat pellets: Bells (i can't remember if these are Cathedral Bells or Bluebells or what), Morninglory (tricolor), Moonflower (evening glory), Delphinium, Liatris, Parsley (dark green flat), Lobelia (crystal palace), Foxglove (white).

Tonight, I started some more, in seed trays and peat *pots* and peat pellets: Bush Tomato (Ace), Sweet Willian (extra dwarf mixed), violet Cathedral bells, lamb's ears (for boy's fondling pleasure), ipomopsis (maybe... can't remember)basil (greek spicy globe, butterfly flower, lovage, hyacinth bean vine (ruby moon), and red perilla/shiso. also--yellow pear/cherry tomatos, and italian roma tomatoes. and... dwarf morning glory (mixed colors). i also planted a purple pole bean or two.

The moonflowers are so big (sprouting second leaves soon) that I had to move them into larger cups (they were in a peat pellet flat/house). I've never had them so much as *germinate* before.

We need to ready the garden plot. I bought a soil test kit (boy's excited about it) so that we can figure out just what it is the soil needs. My tomatoes had some kind of blight last year which I think was magnesium deficiency. i can't test for that, but sprinkling some epsom salts out there won't hurt.

Soon, I can plant radish and raab directly outside. And then the parsley can move outdoors, followed by direct sowing of the bachelor's buttons (i noticed the ones from last year reseeded and are now coming up), sweet pea... and planting the nasturtiums directly in their pots and keeping them inside for a bit. This is all before the last frost. I'm excited.

I've never had much luck growing flowers other than lobelia, morning glory, and nasturtiums. I guess the bachelor's buttons and love-in-a-mist grew well last year... i didn't really touch them, but they seemed happy. my butterfly flower bloomed, too. that was happy making.

I'm going to grow my tomatoes properly this year. I know that they need a lot more room now. and I should mulch the rows more heavily to prevent weeds. Boy is going to learn the meaning of physical labor soon. ;)

And I hate to admit this, but... i still don't have an almanac

i know, i'm a bad terrorist.