Gardening Journal

Why do I keep a gardening journal? For one thing it helps me keep track of my gardening chores and the best time to complete certain garden tasks. I also use it as a way to remember what I've planted from year to year and how the various plants grew. That way when I run into a bad year or a plant that doesn't do well I can look at previous journals to see what I have forgotten. And why do I share this all with you? It's my way of making friends. Hopefully you'll see that even The Gardening Girl has plants that just won't grow and I hope you'll see too the joy I get from working in the garden!

March 5, 2004
It's 70 degrees here in Virginia and the daffodils are just starting to bloom. Last weekend was the time to plant peas, under a bit of black plastic just in case we get another frost. A walk around the yard shows that the squirrels didn't find most of the spring bulbs so we should have a lovely show in a week or two. The forsythia is also starting to bloom and the camilla's have just broken out with yet another crop of bright pink blossoms! They never really stop blooming around here but still the new blooms make it seem like Spring is finally coming!

On the writing front Cooking From Your Patio has been sent off to an illustrator in Australia. There are a few more recipes to write up and then it will be ready for publication, hopefully at the end of the month.

I started a bunch of seedlings for the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Spring Plant Sale last weekend too. There are still more to start so I'll be busy over the next few weeks.

March 8, 2004

Well so much for warm spring weather! A heavy rainstorm last night and now I think we'll have a frost tonight. Oh, well spring won't get here any faster by complaining. The Gardening Girl Store went up on the website today, and I'm thinking about adding a newsletter to the site too. We'll see. It all depends on how much time I have to work on this stuff. The peas aren't up yet but they are under black plastic for warmth so I'm not too worried about the frost tonight. The dogwoods are starting to bloom. There's a really lovely one near Forest Hill Park. I'll post a photo soon or you can just go for a drive and check it out yourself!

March 9, 2004

It may be chilly out but there is still work to be done in the garden. Now is the time to decide what varieties we will plant this year. I'm also digging beds for this year's seedlings. Digging the beds now helps cut down on weeds later. The constant swing from warm to cold weather causes the weed seeds to start to sprout and then freeze and die. It's necessary work but I'd rather be curled up with a pot of tea and a seed catalog!

March 10, 2004

I finally found the missing screws for the shelves I'm using to start plants on in the house! I have to put them up or the cat gets just a little too interested. It's blustery again today, but I'll probably go out and do a bit more digging anyway. Hurry up warm weather!


March 11, 2004
My gardening blog is finally up! I'll be putting my journal entries in there now so click here to read The Gardening Girl's Gardening Blog!