December 20

2010

Gardening in the High Desert

• Separated the Ivy into 4 coir 6" pots.  One has lovely long branches - I should cut some and make even more plants.
• Wet, relatively warm weather means more weeds are sprouting.  Good for fallow beds - turning them under.  But not so goo for the garlic.
• Have not planted tomatoes yet, the the urge is strong.  Soon.  Soon.
• Turned my damp compost. It smells so sweet.  Need to sift it and hoe it into my beds.
• Collards are pretty much kaput.  I wonder when I should winter sow them.
• Probably I should start a new JAN-FEB-MAR [hand written book] journal for 2011, but there is still some bit of space to fill in the one started in 2006.  Not so much as to be frugal, although there is that - but more for the companionship of year over year notes.
• Farmers dream of the deep, slow rains of this past weekend.
• Fall planted spinach still small, still green, still growing at a tiny pace.  Will they go crazy in the spring?  I need a LOT of plants for daily salads.  Survived negative temps, they did. 
• Will empty snaffle bottles lined up like wall-o-waters help protect early toms?  Or, if all danger of freezing, really freezing, is past, perhaps I could fill them.  I am thinking that since they are heavier than plastic, they won't blow over.  They should be a decent mini-heat sink and wind break.  And maybe help keep critters out, too.
• Looking forward to spring daffodils.  I wonder if the ones for forcing have had enough chill hours yet?
• DONE - Make new labels for my garden books [journals]