The texture of green

Why I don't weed when it is wet...

A friend and I were chatting after class the other day and she was commenting on the great rain we have had recently.  "At least it makes weeding so much easier, I bet your thrilled!"

Oh, how I love my flower growing friends!

I didn't have the heart to tell her that vegetable gardeners view rain with a kind of love hate relationship.  Yes, in the moment of the downpour we are thrilled.  Plants that looked droopy or tight suddenly give of the impression that they are smiling.  Worms are everywhere and the color is indescribable.  I will agree, the dirt is soft and inviting to both walk on, and dig in.  Don't.  Trust me on this.  The few weeds you will get out as the dirt turns to something akin to biscuit dough on your fingers and shoes just isn't fun.  This, coupled with the number of diseases that spread particularly in beans and tomatoes, and the fact the dirt where your feet are will turn to some sort of brown rock when it dries, is what keeps me out.  I even cringed stepping on the soft springy soil to take the photo above.  Neurotic, I know. Go to your garden.  Love your plants from afar.  Look, but don't touch!
Sonja

New things coming up

Ahhh.  Onions.  Always one of my first happy, hearty plants to emerge in the garden.  I have selected a few more beds to plant in the square foot method this year and onions were one of the obvious choices this time.  For those of you unfamiliar with square foot, check out their website squarefootgardening.org  It is a beautiful site with lots of photos that will explain things in much greater detail than I will right now:

1.  Make a 4x4 grid
2.  Use it as a spacing guide to plant your seeds

That's it.  Like I said, visit the site, you will get much more than that, because obviously it is much, much bigger than that...