Still too wet and chilly here to do much of anything. Most of my ws babies are still in their little house. I did plant out my sunflowers and morning glories last week when we had a few nice days before the week end storm but now everything else is on hold. Have cannas that sprouted over the snowy week end that are growing like crazy.

Penny

I planted out some tomatoes in wall-'o-waters, and I let my kids plant pumpkins and squash early this year (w-o-w's around them too). I transplanted some ws amaranth, nicotiana, and cosmos into individual cups, and planted out some sunflowers by the tomatoes. I need to plant out my hunks of alyssum. I have some other things I have to wait to ID - I thought I'd protected my labels from fading, but I was wrong, and I have quite a few noids to sort out now. Oh, well, live and learn. The garden clean up is relaxing and pleasant, and the first of my catalog orders arrived last week (a lilac, and a mockorange), so got to plant some shrubby stuff too. Sprouting peonies, budding bushes, tulips in bloom - what could be better??

Laurelin

Laurelin, can you tell me what wall-of-waters planting means? It sounds like you really enjoy gardening, I find it so relaxing too. My husband built me a small greenhouse last year, so with ws and the greenhouse I'm so excited about the flower and veggie garden. Only wish the season was longer.
Penny, what kind of cannas do you have coming up?

Mulchy,
There is an easy way to make a wall-of-water: Surround your tomato plant (or any tender one) with plastic bottles (1/2 gallon size works well) filled with water. During the day, the water absorbs the heat and gives it back to the plant at night. I used this protection around my tomato plants last year. You can also buy fancy "wall-of-waters" from various garden suppliers such as Park's. See link.

Good luck,
Anne-Marie

Mulchy,
The cannas that are up are the Canna Indica which is a small flowered species. I also have 2 Robert Kemp cannas that germinated very late last summer so I brought them inside for the winter. THey went completely dormant but as soon as the days started getting longer they started to grow again. so they are in front of the french doors in the kitchen now b/c it is still a bit too cool to put them out. The Indicas have been outside since I sowed the seed on around the first of the month.
Penny

I've gotten up the nerve and started planting out A LOT of my winter sown sprouts. They are doing fine in the ground and no one has come along and dug them up or eaten them yet, so that makes me happy. I was nervous at first, but now that I see they are truly very hardy, I'm planting as many as I can as soon as I can....we've had a bunch of rain on every day I have available it seems, but at least I have to water less :))

~Deb

Deb,
My ws sprouts that have been planted out are also doing well. I really need to get more planted but the weather just won't co-operate enough for me to go digging in the cold rain! My amaranthus are about 2 inches tall now and I know that the roots have to be a tangled mess. THe same with my nicotiana. Yesterday I repotted my salvia azura and it took me 15 minutes just to dig out the first seedling. If I could just have one or two days to get some stuff in the ground I would be in pretty good shape.

Penny

Mulchy,

'Wall-'o-water' is a brand name for a water-filled plant protector (a circle of joined plastic tubes you set around your tender plant and fill with water). Using jugs or other 2L containers would work the same way. This is my first year using them, but I've heard they really help tomatoes and peppers and other tender growers that need extra help here in the Northeast. I figure they can't hurt the squash etc. (And if the germination is poor for the seeds the kids just planted, we can sow some more - but I'm hoping for warmer weather soon. It just HAS to be warmer this summer than the past two - doesn't it?? PLEASE tell me it will be warmer!!)

Yes, I love to garden. Therapy is where you find it. My husband plays the pipe organ, my father flies model airplanes - to each their own. My husband and I have a joint dream: someday a new house with a huge great room for a pipe organ, set on 2 acres of land to garden. . . .
Hey, dream big!

Laurelin

Laurein--It's ok to dream, someday you will have it all. Thanks for the reply on walls of water.
We had a better day today, cool and windy but no rain. I worked out in the gardens all day, I'm tired but I enjoyed every minute of it!!!