The arugula went to flower, and then created green pods that finally dried out. The dried pods burst open easily and the little black seeds dumped right out. Hopefully they’ll germinate next year!

For this planting, I purchased some seed potatoes from a garden store. They say not to plant potatoes from the grocer, because they aren’t certified “disease free.” Pictured here are Yukon Golds, a red potato whose name I can’t remember, and some fingerling potatoes. The fingerlings I left alone — these little guys weigh just a few ounces and have plenty of eyes, perfect for planting. For the large potatoes, I cut into pieces with 2 or 3 eyes each.

I dropped each seed shallowly in the soil and covered with loose compost. Once the vines sprout and grow, I’ll “hill” them up — that is, mound dirt up around the vines — to encourage potatoes to grow in that mounded earth. I planting them a little bit more shallow this year, so we’ll see what happens and maybe I’ll adjust my strategy for the second planting.

Why plant potatoes? They’re so cheap after all. I do it for two reasons: 1. Home grown potatoes are delicious and are a good opportunity to bring carbs to the home-grown table, and 2. They are the most fun vegetable to harvest. It’s like digging for buried treasure.

Today I prepped the first bed for seeding in the next couple weeks – peas, spinach, maybe chard or potatoes.

I prepped the bed with: Approx. 2 cups of organic fertilizer, a couple inches of compost and a healthy sprinkling of lime (calcium carbonate). I used a shovel, then a manure fork to loosen and mix to a depth of about one shovel length. I could go deeper (and I will where I plant the potatoes) but for peas and spinach, this will be adequate. The result is a bit messy, but I’ll clean it up and lay a top layer of compost when I plant.

The straw is a remnant of a “lasagna” gardening technique I tried last fall. I layered newspaper on top of the bed with droppings from the chicken coop, straw and lime. It has reduced weeds for sure. I may do it again this fall… we’ll see. With chickens constantly disturbing it, a lot of the straw didn’t decompose.

Here’s a good article about fruit tree pruning and training from Oregon State University Extension Service.

I planted some seeds today in an egg carton. I cut of the lid and wrapped it in a plastic produce bag, then nested the lid under the carton for a moisture barrier. Then I filled the egg slots with soil from the garden (didn’t take much) and a bit of castings from the red worm bin. In this carton I’ve planted peas, butterhead lettuce, mesclun salad mix, and I’m trying some thyme for the heck of it (although I’ve heard thyme is notoriously hard to grow from seed). The carton now sits on the window sill.

One decision I have to make this spring: whether to just give the clover a “haircut” and let it continue to keep root, preventing weeds while my vegetables grow out right from under it, or whether to till it under. I think I’ll try both options and see what happens.

The OSU extension service has a wordy but very useful article about cover crops for home gardens and their benefits for building healthy soil.

My friend very lovingly gave me two broccoli plants.  They shot up stalks and flowered, and now they look like this.  Nothing like any broccoli I’ve seen.  Broccoli should grow kind of like cabbage or cauliflower, kind of like this.  Right?  I’m really confused.  I’m wondering if I have an unusual variety.  Maybe they’re mutant.  I’m becoming a little impatient but I’m going to wait it out and see what happens.

I’ll have to read up on this. Then get over it.

But I also noticed a PURPLE coloration in between the curds. I thought it was a fungus or something. It’s not. Here’s one explanation. I guess it’s just harmless pigment, again, related to sun exposure. It doesn’t seem to be affecting the taste.