What did you do in the garden today?

[BReeder!]

I mentioned getting a pergola. Here it is. My hands froze putting it together yesterday even with a torpedo heater going. I added the lights today. I'm very happy with it.

 

[TJAnonymous]

Some of the casualties from the freeze last night.

My grapes

Squash

Watermelon

There were some others too but I'm most upset about the grapes. My mom lives 2 hours north of me. She has had her grapes wiped out by sudden freezes the past 3 years in a row. She said today that she gives up on them. Very disheartening....

 

[vall]

I am impatiently waiting for my cabbages to head up and my sweet potatoes to start making slips. I grow purple and white sweet potatoes, the purple ones grow like weeds but the white ones are always tough to sprout.

 

[NewBoots]

The last couple of days have been awesome. Got up early (for me) the last two days and got right out in the garden. Shoveled out about 100 gallons of litter from the chicken run and added it to the compost bins so it can age before I put it in the raised beds. Got started on the up-potting of my seedlings. Pulled out and repotted a whole bunch of borage seedlings. Up-potted the scarlet monkey flowers and Jerusalem sage that over wintered in their 4" pots. I think I'll order another wire shelf unit to keep on the shady side of the greenhouse to have a large hardening off space for new transplants and things coming out of the greenhouse.

Just finished lunch and about to head out to get the mowing done then back to up potting. My mail order pots haven't arrived yet but I should be good between all the used pots and the yogurt and sour cream containers, my real concern is running out of fresh potting soil. I'm going to need more big (8 or 10 gallon or so) pots so I see a trip to Fars in my future.

Just finished dinner. Got the mowing done and some tomatoes repotted. Moved the Tokyo Benkana (like bok choy) out to the raised beds. Dug out under the coop to be sure Glyness wasn't laying her eggs there (she wasn't). They're saying we might get some rain starting late Friday, man I hope so.

 

[TJAnonymous]

Came across this article today which talks about the Easter Feeze of 2007. It could have EASILY been talking about the weather event many of us just experienced, right down to the wind. The resemblance is uncanny. It also explains why it happened in 2007. I wonder if the underlying mechanics were the same....

https://viticulture.unl.edu/newsarchive/2012wg1001.pdf

 

[WthrLady]

Nope. Not the same system dynamic. Simply a cold front that's slow to move. Many people are planting early due to feeling cooped up and the supply of early plants readily available at shops.

 

[BReeder!]

Came across this article today which talks about the Easter Feeze of 2007. It could have EASILY been talking about the weather event many of us just experienced, right down to the wind. The resemblance is uncanny. It also explains why it happened in 2007. I wonder if the underlying mechanics were the same....

https://viticulture.unl.edu/newsarchive/2012wg1001.pdf

I worked at Guaranteed Rate Field (then called U.S. Cellular Field) that Easter. I was just 16 and my sister and I worked at the park and then had to take a Metra train out to the suburbs for a family gathering. It was a brutal day of working outside and traveling public transit in horrible weather.

 

[BReeder!]

Not much gardening today. I did notice more seeds popping up in the starter trays. I spent time hanging lights under the new pergola and then digging up and moving flag stones and gravel to make an area to move our two smokers off the patio. I made my way into the garden just to check the kale and brussel sprouts. Those that the rabbits didn't get previously were thankfully looking fine after the frost, snow and hail. The peach tree lost some flowers, but most looked alright still. Tonight is another frost, and hopefully the last one of the year. Hoping everything survives this.

Pic of the smoker area:

 

[AmeliaBedelia]

Attacked more ivy again today. I have a couple plants en route with USPS right now...hoping they don't arrive frozen!! Got most of the plants covered or brought indoors tonight...so far so good?

My current fun mental project is planning what I will grow under the rose of sharon and dogwoods after the ivy is gone (you know, I can dream). I think I want a low ground cover mostly, since it's right next to where we park. One of the reasons the ivy had to go was I found a snake in it when I was trimming it back (the other reason was it constantly tries to take over the driveway and trees, and thus required regular trimming).

 

[TJAnonymous]

I have an old grill that I want to repurpose as a gardening station like this:

When the weather warmed up, I moved a bunch of seedlings out to the grill. It was nice when the cold snap came through because I could just remove the upper grate and shut the grill to protect the plants. However my chickens have discovered that I'm keeping plants up there so they keeping jumping up there and plowing through my Solo cups like a bull in a china shop. I've lost at least 2 seedlings because of their shenanigans. GRRRRRRR