Seed Lists and mutual advice swap

[Opsa]

Sounds like yours is really coming along. Is it smoking, yet?

You'll probably have black gold by autumn.

[Aggie]

Steaming, when disturbed.  The pile volume has probably dropped by half since I started it.  I need to go give it another flip today.  We've had tons of rain, so it will need some extra air, I suspect.

[Opsa]

Well, who can blame it? Sometimes I get steamed when disturbed.

Speaking of which, I tried to move a few crowded lettuce sprouts, but the heat was too much for them. May they rest in peace in that big veg bed in the sky.

[Roland Deschain]

Speaking of which, I tried to move a few crowded lettuce sprouts, but the heat was too much for them. May they rest in peace in that big veg bed in the sky.

It will be time to move and thin out my broccoli soon. May they have more luck than your lettuce.

[Opsa]

They probably will. The reason I moved some of the lettuce sprouts is that a neighboring plant had grown over them, so they were in the shade. The move was followed by a dreadful heat wave- near 100F, which was fatal to the tender little lumpkins.

I think of broccoli as being more sturdy than lettuce.

[Roland Deschain]

Ah, the weather. The weather can be a real pain at times.

My broccoli have partial shade, so hopefully they'll fare better if it gets that hot here.

[Aggie]

Veggy-growing weather has been soggy but marvellous over here. A little more sunshine and things will go BOOM quick.

I hauled home about 3/4 of a feed bag (1 m₃) of grass clippings over the last two days, and picked up a full feed bag of hay today.  Tomorrow is Compost Day.

[Opsa]

How did you celebrate compost day, my dear Aggie?

Weather here has been dreadfully hot and humid. The weeds are pulling ahead!

[Aggie]

Shredding and piling and moving.... 

The pile is still too nitrogenous, but some careful attention and frequent flipping should take care of that. It's a good workout.

The weeds...?  I'm just in damage-control mode on those now; pull anything with a flower, and eradicated immediately anything going to seed.  Some of the 'weeds' have revealed themselves to be quite pretty flowers.

[Opsa]

I quite agree, and usually let some of them stay. Especially if I can't quite reach them! The downside of this is that they come back in droves.

[Opsa]

Opsa's new seeds for spring 2013:

Capitan Bibb lettuce
Lettuce Leaf Basil
Nicotiana Rustica
Breadseed Poppy
Petunia
Zinnia
Cosmos 'Bright Lights' (yellows)
Sunflower 'Mammoth Russian'
Bachelor Button
California Poppy
Sweet William

I have the lettuce in all ready, but am waiting for the colder weather front to pass before sowing the others.

What you got?

[Aggie]

No new seeds yet this year, although I've a hankering to try out a walking stick kale... 
http://www.thompsonmorgan.ca/product/Kale-Walking-Stick


In the garden, I've got lots of snow peas, last year's garlic, chard and kale, some multiplier onions and the usual gang of brassicas (radishes of several varieties, mustard greens, arugula, etc).

[Opsa]

I was just reading in the paper today about kale as a mood lightener. That one you pictured ought to lift anyone out of the blues!

I saved a bunch of seeds from last season. But the other day I was in an antique shop and there were some Ferry-Morse seeds available for 25 cents a pack. They were packed for 2012, but I kept thinking about them, so I went back and bought them. I figured that they would be good to dream on, if nothing else.

They are:

Iceland Poppy, mixed colors
Oriental Poppy, red
Sunflower, Evening Sun (warm colors)
Sunflower, Velvet Queen (red)

I don't know why I keep trying to grow poppies here, I've never had any luck with them. I am charmed by their crinkly paper petals, which hold light like a lantern.

[Aggie]

They're a danged weed in my garden, you can have 'em!

Haven't started seed-shopping yet but am thinking about thinking about getting some seeds ordered soon.

[Opsa]

Hey Aggie!

I forgot: I have had little orange field poppies in my front beds. They became weeds, so I pulled them all out one year. they never came back, and I missed them!

Today I made the mistake(?) by passing the garden section at the store. I bought some seed starter pellets and more seed packets: nasturtiums, bib lettuce and purple basil. I ought to stop, but am obsessed.