The presents are wrapped, the tree is lit and the tomato plants are ripped out. I took the plunge and ripped them out today even though they were still green. Green but not so fresh looking. Right now the artichoke plants and parsley are looking fabulous but that's about it. The cover crops and leeks are about 6 inches tall and the garlics are about 4 inches. I might add that the weeds look great too.
I was happy that I had some helpers to get the dead marigolds, eggplants, peppers and half dead tomatoes out as well as the weeds. None of the weeds have seed heads this time of year so we simple turned them under. My thought is that they will decompose and add nutrients.
The soil was dark and rich and full of earth worms. The soil is also full of marigold seeds. Oh am I going to have a mess of volunteers on my hands next spring! I received a few seed catalogues this week and I've been thinking a lot about the early spring. Now is the time to think about it. Get your stellar plan in order now so that when the perfect day comes, you can set everything into motion.
As I said before, I'm not messing with the peat pots and indoor germination this year. In my eyes it was a waste of time, money and energy. Direct sewing is the game plan for me in 2011.
Here is my current list of most wanted plants for next year:
Asparagus (1 year crowns of both Purple Passion and Jersey Supreme)
Rainbow carrots
Fennel
Tomato (I saved a lot of seeds but I'm going to get a green one)
Jalapeno
Okra
Eggplant
Cucumbers
Corn
Beets
Butternut Squash
Zucchini
Blue Hubbard
Watermelon
Sugar Pumpkin
Chard
Spinach
Leeks
Onion (I totally forgot about these this year and I'm missing them.)
Tomotillos
Blueberry
Raspberry
Hops
Horseradish
That's all that I can think of for now but I'm sure I'll add to the list. I also need to remember what plants I would like to provide to my bees next year.
Besides dreaming of my plant list, I'm thinking about rotation of crops and watering solutions. I think the water situation was a bit lackluster. The soaker hose didn't work so we had to hand water...which also didn't work. I'm thinking more mulch and a drip system on a manifold for next year. Raised beds? Maybe ones that are about 6 inches off the ground - I don't know if you can consider that a raised bed or not. A fence? I sure hope so. The neighbor's peacock is setting up a major camp in the garden and is very destructive. I'm considering putting up a fence or planting the giant 5 foot marigolds all the way around the perimeter to create a living fence.
I hope that everyone is enjoying the holiday season, however you celebrate it. Charlie is celebrating in her own way. She is loving the new toys she has access to (the decorated tree and my active sewing machine) which adds new meaning to cat TV...she considers it 3D cat TV and likes to help sew and decorate the tree. Right now she's sleeping in a an empty plastic box that used to hold ornaments. I think she has the right idea - it's a chilly night and I'm feeling tired too.
Take care and take time to enjoy the downtime in the garden,
Daphne
