I think it is safe to say that I am excited for my garden this year. I can hear you thinking that I say that every year. Once the major winter holidays are over my mind turns to what experiments I want to try in my garden. So far, I am experimenting with a new way of starting my seeds, by starting them in a seed sprouter until they have secondary roots (at least, that is what I call the little branching roots coming off the tap root) and then planting them in newspaper pots until it is time to harden them off and plant them outside. So far I've sprouted Lincoln peas and gotten them into pots. They're going crazy already, at least three inches high. I'm not going to start the entire seed packet that way, though. The other half will get planted in the garden the traditional way.
I've also started onion seeds in pots in my window sill. I thought I would try starting some in cardboard egg carton cups placed inside a clear plastic restaurant take-home box, like in a mini greenhouse. Those were pretty scraggly and pathetic-looking. The onion seeds I started in small yogurt cup pots are doing wonderfully.
The plant experiments are going to be fun too. I am trying an heirloom tomato variety called Abu Rawan tomatoes and they hail from the Iraq. I didn't think people in Iraq grew tomatoes, which is pretty dumb of me. When I think of Iraq I think of blistering deserts and little rainfall, not people keeping vegetable gardens. I ordered the seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. They've sprouted well in my sprouter and hopefully they'll soon be ready for transplanting into pots.
I've got a couple of types of sweet peppers and some green beans, but that's as far as I've gotten on the seed planning front. I'm still determined to yank out most of the raspberries so I have more sunny garden space for other stuff. My kids don't know that's an upcoming work project, so shhh!
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