Radish seed pods ~ they're great!

Letting the radish crop go to seed has several bonuses... Radish pods taste just like the radishes they spawn from, but more concentrated in flavor. ... All radish plants form edible seed pods, and there is even an heirloom variety called Rat's Tail radish grown specifically for its large, tender seed pods. Bees and other pollinators love the blooms and so do I. Use in stir fry, salads, pickle them for garnish and eat them right in the garden. From root to pod, they are delicious!

Radishes in bloom

Raised beds, for vegetable, herb and fruit

Raised beds, for vegetable, herb and fruit, at our daughter's house, created out of Douglas fir, peeler cores. What a great job!! Love the way they turned out; the seating area and the octagon bed are fabulous!!

Morel Season is finally here!

Most years we can start hunting (not always finding) for morels in late April, sometimes as early as mid April. Usually have a few good harvest by at least mid May. This year has been so cold, with late snow and lots of rain, that the season has started late. Hopefully that means we will still be picking in July!  Oh, and the huckleberry bushes are starting to bloom! Looking forward to a good season for them.

We did beat the storm, yes were headed right into those clouds!

These were 4 inches long and 3 1/2 inches across at the base

Goji berry, or wolfberry

Since the first goji berry plant is now 2 years old and has not yet bloomed, I've added a 2nd goji berry plant to the landscape. The new addition already has blooms on it and hopefully will bear fruit this year. The weather has not been the best as the night time temperatures have been below freezing several times over the past week. Plants for the garden are chosen for their hardiness and fruiting. Grow what you eat, eat what you grow.

Goji berry, or wolfberry, is the fruit of either Lycium barbarum or Lycium chinense, two closely related species of boxthorn in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. Both species are native to Asia, and have been long used in traditional Asian cuisine. 

And then there were... New raised beds!

Finally! The weather has been very uncooperative but we have the two raised beds/cold frames built and in place. They have chicken wire tops to keep the stray cats and birds out and, when needed, we can add plastic covers for the tender plants.

Bed #1, has rutabagas, turnips and garlic planted so far. When the weather warms a bit more, the pepper plants will be planted.

Bed #2, has 3 varieties of carrots and beets. Planning to add garlic to this bed as well as a companion to the root crops and to the tomatoes that will be added later.

Garlic reseeds in the walkway every year, so handy when you need some fresh garlic leaves for cooking! It's the tall grassy looking plant in front of bed #1

And the Ginger is coming up!

After the ginger went dormant, I withheld water for two weeks to let them rest. Last week I started the once a week watering again and added a very small amount of liquid fertilizer. This week there are little green sprouts!!

It is very exciting to have the new growth on the ginger and hope that this means I can have a sustainable supply for my home use. It's doubtful that I'll get enough to sell, ever, but now that I know it can be grown successfully indoors the possibilities are endless!

This season I will get pictures of the ginger and turmeric as it's growing!! Still can't believe there isn't one picture of them from the 2018 season!! How did I manage that?

Signing off for now! Happy gardening!!

Are we there yet? Still freezing at night!

With all the late winter snow, ice and colder than normal temperatures, I was beginning to wonder if it would ever be warm enough to start planting seeds. Thinking that I was way behind had me a bit worried, but looking back to 2017, I was just starting to plant seeds on March 12th.

Now that the snow and ice has somewhat melted away from my storage area and I can get to my planting trays and pots it's time to start some of the hardier crops!

The plan this year is to expand the raised beds and move some of the flowers (crocus, tulips and such) to other garden beds. Guess time will tell just how much we can get done.

The daffodils and tulips are up, but not yet blooming. That said, here is a peek at some daffodils from a few years ago just to cheer us up!