Rain, rain, rain! It seems as if April and May got swapped around. I went to considerable effort (including some prodding of family members to do the tilling and reposition the pea fence) in order to plant cold weather crops earlier than I usually do. And then all it did was rain. My late April/early May plantings did not all thrive. The peas and potatoes came up eventually, but the radishes, kohlrabi, and beets did not sprout well. The carrots are finally coming up, and perhaps the lettuce, but it is too tiny to differentiate from the weeds. Furthermore, most of the seeds I started in the house did not come up, so I may have to purchase cucumber and squash starts.
Yesterday and today I planted more things. We are in the process of re-configuring the garden, and have temporarily eliminated most of the raised beds and square-foot frames. Four large tires are still in place, so I planted the lettuce, carrots, radishes and dill in them. I use dead raspberry canes to discourage the cats from digging in the freshly-stirred soil.
When planning the garden, I forgot to choose a spot for my gladiolus. Oops. I have grown them for many years, and would be sad if they weren't in the garden. So I figured out a space and set the corms out to see if they would fit. They do!
The new strawberry starts were planted in mid-April and are doing well. I am experimenting again with companion planting, so there are onions in there with them.
The two lilacs have only been in place for two or three years. One of them had two blooms last year, and I'm hoping they both bloom this year. As part of the garden re-configuration, they are likely to be moved in the fall.
The blueberry bushes are looking good. This will be their second summer. And I see a couple of blossoms!
I love my gigantic rhubarb plant! It looks so impressive! It was supposed to have been moved this spring, but it grew too quickly and we didn't get around to it in time. So it gets to stay where it is for now. My son put up the "teepees" for the pole beans over the weekend, and I planted the bean seeds this morning. And now it's raining again. How convenient! The temperature is supposed to reach the 80s later this week, which will be a bit of a shock to my system if it really happens. But the garden could use the warmth for sure.
All photos taken on my Android phone.