Sunday, May 19, 2013

Green, green, every where green!

The plan was to mostly chill and relax today, but I really needed to get my veggies planted. I'd used up all the top soil I'd bought in the front gardens, so I needed to run out and get a few bags.I planned to pick up some containers for planting, since my knee wasn't really up to digging out the a garden plot this year.

However, when I got to the store, they were sold out of the ones I wanted - and the others we're priced well out of my budget - especially since I only planned on using them this year. But I guess that's what I get for leaving it to the last day of the major planting weekend in this area.

So, I grabbed an extra bag of soil, and resigned myself to digging the garden on one knee (or on my butt - that worked too!)

The hardest part was clearing away all the weeds. The area was definitely a garden at some point, but apparently the last tenant or two had no interesting tending it. There was quite a bit of mint mixed in - hard to say if it was deliberate or not - wild mint does grow around here. Pulling all the weeds took the better part of my afternoon - but it smelled good while I was doing it!

And in the end, I ended up with the most adorable little veggie plot...
I started out of just cherry tomatoes and yellow beans, but some vidalia onions, purple peppers and strawberries may have found their way into my cart with the new soil.

Honestly, it's probably going to be too much for the little plot (and I've been told tomatoes and strawberries don't always mix well) but it was fun! I'll expand and sort everything out properly next year. I've hung onto all the containers from the garden centre, because I'd really like to stat from seeds next year.

I put up the little green wire fence to keep the boys out - but hopefully it will keep the neighbourhood bunbun away too.

In addition to gardening, I managed to finish up the first sock of a pair.

The pattern is Pair of Hearts. It's a freebie that's been in my queue for quite a while.

The skein of olive Celtic Cat has been sitting on my table, staring at me since we moved in. It needed something nice and simple (the hearts show up much better on my foot than the blocker), and I haven't made myself a pair of socks in quite a while.

It was destiny. I change the cuff to a picot instead of ribbed, and went down to 60 stitches to accommodate my narrow feet.

The Celtic Cat looks very rustic, but boy is it ever soft! I've been thoroughly enjoying knitting with it. Mom and I agree we'll be ordering more soon - though there's still a few skeins left in the shop.

And don't forget about the long weekend sale - on until Monday! You can use the code FREESHIPPING for free shipping on orders over $50, or you can use VICTORIA15 for a 15 percent discount

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Cute socks!

Araignee said...

I always over plant our garden too. I can't resist all the yummy things I want to harvest so it always ends up a tangled mess. Ugly as it is, I usually get plenty of good things to eat out of it. We had kale, chard and spinach tonight.

Minding My Own Stitches said...

I've been using the black earth top soil from No Frills/Loblaws in the garden for the last several years. It's usually about $2 a bag and we've had good results.

Also, in Toronto the councillors have environment days where residents can pick up free compost from the city's leaf and green bin recycling. People fill up the back of trucks! It's awesome for the garden.

I can't be bothered with veggies though. I'm not convinced it's worth the trouble. Usually you get not enough or too much of any one thing ... and right when the local produce is cheapest at the supermarket. I save my garden space for flowers and shrubs. You can never have enough daylilies!

Nice sock. Look at you finishing a sock! I'd better get my butt in gear and finish up some of the knitting piles around here!

lexa said...

Nothing I planted seems to be growing yet. Well, there are a few signs of life from the peas, but nothing else. And that's weird cuz I usually get gigantic zucchini plants in the tractor trailer tires I use, and my beans always grow, too. So far nothing. It turned cold again, maybe they froze, lol. I also planted some flower bulbs I bought last year and totally forgot about them. They were stored in a box in the garage, some were in boxes in the basement, so they should grow. But knowing my luck they won't, and I'll have to rebuy them (and NOT forget about them this time!).

Zenitude said...

I'll plant tomatoes in a half barrel on my deck and that's about it for me! Your little garden looks great!