Highs in the 50s and lows in the 30s! That's the current temps here - perfect for the cool season crops. The lettuce and mesclun are responding to the cooler temperatures now, whereas when it was in the 70s they stalled. I know - it's all about the temperatures. Not just the ambient air temperature, but also the soil temperature. I check these often, but you know, there's not too much you can do when the weather changes, especially so drastically. The peas have popped up and will need support before long. The broccoli looks like it is thriving and even the red cabbage (I bought starts at the market!!!) looks happy in the garden. The chives and oregano are up and being used in our nightly salads. And the tomatoes -- those poor cold tomatoes shivering in the hoophouse -- seem to be surviving. We'll see how they do over the next few weeks. After one below freezing night, I removed the heater thinking that it was ridiculous to heat a plastic hoophouse. So they are on their own. The older tomato plants are fairing better than the younger ones. When I look at last year's tomatoes at this time of year, not only did they survive, but went on to produce a bounty of fruit.
The windowsill rack is full of vegetables starts, flowers, herbs and decorative garden plants, slowly growing, waiting for their day in the garden. So we are in full production mode at this time. Recently I checked out Burpee's website and found that they have a very useful garden calendar that is specific to your location. Just enter your zip code and up pops a timeline, similar to what I already have created for myself, with information of when to start seeds inside, when to transplant and when to direct sow into the garden. It also has information for fall crops. Unfortunately I couldn't print the page, but I did use it to create a page of my own. Check it out. It has proven to be a very useful tool.
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