In like a lion?

Have you ever heard the saying, "In like a lion, out like a lamb, in like a lamb, out like a lion"?  I have heard this all my life, to describe the weather for March.  I know it is not technically March, as of yet, however, I am hoping that this is the "in like a Lion" portion of the program.

The first two photos are courtesy of my Aunt Lois, that were taken this morning.  

 The following photos were taken this afternoon here in our gardens.  Either we did not get as much snow as our aunt, or snow had melted considerably by the time I looked outside.

 

I am not sure you can tell from the photos, but this is one seriously soggy mess.

 

 I have so much to do before spring.  I am just going to go with the whole lion scenario and continue on with my gardening endeavors hoping that winter is toast.  Besides, I have so much to do that has nothing to do with planting and growing anything.  Clean up, clean up, clean up.  Oh and btw, since I did NO fall prep, I have tons of fun ahead of me.  Wish me luck.

Quick update

I thought I would show you the completed greenhouse. It won't take long before this is busting at the seams with my plant hoarding. lol

I almost took down the two trellises, but was talked out of it. They are on the north side of the greenhouse, so blocking the sunshine is not a problem, however, they are on borrowed time.

Gloomy skies today, but perfect for yard work.

I started some seeds today. I have about 30 Canna Lily seeds, and a variety of Peppers, 20 in all. I will spare you the photo of a seed tray with dirt.

Greenhouse Makeover

Time to get out in the yard and get busy. It was a beautiful day today. I have no idea what the temp was today, but it was nice enough to work in the yard in a T-shirt and never be chilled. Hell I actually broke a sweat today.
The greenhouse was ready for her makeover.
First on the agenda, clean up this damn mess.
The first two photos were not taken today, but they show the condition of the greenhouse.

Disgrace, lol

My aunt Mel came over today for coffee, and thank god she did. lol She was quite the help today, and I want to give a big shout out to her, so, "Thanks aunt Mel".

I think I have plenty of seed starting trays, and even quite a few of the peat pellets. Yes, I know, I should use clean sterile soil. However, this is ghetto gardens, and we do things on the cheap.

Things are starting to look up.

I have plenty of polar cups from last season. In case you are not familiar with Polar cups, you can see them on the top shelf in the photo. They are 32 ounce Styrofoam cups.

Time for a well deserved rest. Here is your close up aunt Mel.

Plenty of plastic. To be honest with you, I was a little worried that either I would not have enough plastic, or that it would have been brittle and no good. But no, and no.

And Yeah!

After this photo was taken, I managed to get the doors rehung with the plastic covering the bottom of each door. I am doing a little something different for the tops of each door.

Canna Lily seeds

I did a little research on propagating Canna Lily seeds. Turns out it is quite easy, once you get the seed chipped. So they say. I found all kind of suggestions online, everything from using a Dremel tool to boiling the seed. I was a little nervous about boiling my seeds. That had disaster written all over it. But after trying to chip 30 seeds, boiling was looking a lot better.

In the smaller jar, I nicked each of these seeds, then soaked them in water. Now this sounds easier than it was. I had to hold the seed with a pair of pliers in one hand. With the other hand, I had to use a paring knife to chip the seed. I did not want to go too deep for fear of damaging the seed. My paring knife is sharp as hell, and I had to really work to get the job done. I managed to get 30 seeds done, and that was enough. My fingers were spent.That is why I decided to boil the rest.

In the larger glass jar, are the seeds that I boiled. I waited until the water started to bubble, then I added the seeds and removed the pan from the heat. It was almost immediately that I heard them crackling. I then added cold water to the boiling water to stop the boiling process.

Only time will tell which, if either, will be successful.

Seed time

I wish I were one of those gardeners, that has everything organized. Harvesting my seeds promptly, and storing and labeling them immediately. Everything in its place and all, but I am not. I know it is time to get prepared and take stock of what I am working with. First order of business, gather up all the seeds. I found some that I had actually put in jars, in the closet. The rest of all the seeds were in various locations. From the utility room floor, to numerous junk drawers, and I am sure I will find more next year. lol

This is going to be a big experimental growing season for me. I cannot commit to anything this year, other than, I do not want to spend money in the yard. Seeds, compost, starts, free, play, these are the words I would use to describe the coming season.

Reflecting back and looking forward.

The other day was groundhogs day, and the groundhog did not see his shadow. This means an early spring. I can only hope, but more on the weather a little later. I wanted to let you see how the plants were doing in the house. From the time I bring them into the house, until I take them out again, they are usually on a decline. Some years more than others. Sometimes keeping them alive is a challenge. The next couple photos were taken the second week in December. Notice how leggy and pathetic the Chenille plant is looking. This makes me a so sad. It is time for action.

Not to mention, I had to put more plants in here to allow room for the Christmas decorations.

After a little attention and some overworked pruners, they all had a day at the salon. The Chenille plant got a drastic cut. And she is showing good signs of recovery. Come on spring, she needs the rejuvenation.


The parlor plants are all doing well. This is a west facing window. I enjoy having my coffee here, watching the wildlife outside.

So far, the grow lights have really helped in keeping the plants looking fairly good.

Here is a close up of the Hibiscus blooming. She has bloomed all winter.

This is one of my coffee buddies. She has a nest in the tree right outside the window. I am thinking I need to give her a name. Oh, I know, I will call her Rosie. She sorta looks a little Rosie. I don't know if you watched the Rosie show, but in case you missed it, she had a story about a squirrel that was hilarious. So here's to you Rosie.

And here is Rosie's condo on the right. Fabulous location with sweeping views.

The weather in December was snow, snow and more snow, intermittent with bone chilling temperatures. Great. ugh lol I do like a white Christmas, but then it can be gone before the sun sets.







What a disgrace. LMAO OMG what can I say about this. She is in desperate need of a makeover.

A few more things that are a disgrace. Leaving the patio furniture outside, uncovered, all winter. OMG once again, time management was needed this past fall. But lets look on the bright side. I will have less to carry out this spring, its all out there.

I could not even get the trash picked up. Really?

When the last big storm came through, she brought some serious ice with her.

Awe, the poor furniture.

I cant even comment. All I can say is, in a couple of weeks, she will be reborn.

I did not even cover her.

She laid in the ground for 30 years hopefully she can take one more season without protection.

She refused to bloom this past spring, maybe a little ice pack will make her feel better.

The trees sounded like a giant wind chimes. Beautiful but scary.

The weight of the ice on the limbs would bring tree branches down, and sometimes the entire trees. I was worried about the branch, and the driveway.

Here is a photo taken that night, right before the nasty storms portion rolled in. When the winds picked up all of the ice would end up slamming into the house and windows for hours. I thought for sure that a big branch was going to come through a window at any time. I was especially worried about this branch below, falling on the shed, or worse, one of the vehicles.

This photo captured the moment the best. The calm before the storm.

And here is what it looks like outside over the last few days. Hey, no weeding this week.

When I look at this photo, all I see are the things that did not make it to the shed.



Do you see the pond?

Spring cannot get here fast enough. I feel like we live in the Arctic circle this year. Cold, cold, cold, snow, snow, snow, ice, ice, snow, cold, freezing cold, snow, ice, really? I have had enough.
Time to focus on spring and to do an inventory of what seeds that I have to work with this year. I refuse to buy anymore seeds. LMAO, OK, maybe a couple of packets, but that is it. Seriously. If I grow all of the seeds that I have on hand, it will be quite sufficient. I have a few projects in the works for this season and a big idea for one serious project. Another greenhouse. How I can even tell you about this big idea, when I have just shown you photographic proof, the condition of my first greenhouse. Well right or wrong, the following is going to be my inspiration for the future, whenever that happens.


How cute is that? This sits on a one acre plot of land she calls Wyndyacre. Built out of scraps. Now this sounds like the perfect project for me. If I can build something close to this, I will be in seventh heaven. Wish me luck.