A few soil block crops ready to be planted after about 9 days. The soil blocks are so fun and so fast. You can start things inside, harden them off quickly, because they don’t take as long as bigger plants, and then into the garden they go. This is lettuce, lettuce, and some bok choi going in. A couple of grow bags of cilantro and my spring gardens are alive and doing well.
I don’t have a soil block so I put together a homemade version. And it works perfectly. In 17 days, or sooner, these will be ready to plant right into my sun box. After about 10 days they go right into the garden, where they will grow very quickly. What the difference between a sun box and a cold frame? A lot. I’ll be teaching a class on how to have the earliest spring garden possible in zone 6.
I love my garden in February. Really? Oh yes, for sure. Even in the difficult winters of northern Utah. We’ve had a pretty cold and snowy season, but I try not to let that slow me down. Today I transplanted 24 heads of lettuce into the square foot gardens, with a lot more to go in the next 2 weeks. Class coming up on how to do it so quickly.
How early can you have a garden? Is it easy to do, and what if you don’t know anything about gardening? Those are all questions that will be answered in an upcoming class that I’ll be teaching in a couple of weeks. With a little work and planning you can have an early spring garden and be harvesting by the first of April-when everyone else is just beginning to think about roto-tilling. You’ll be learning about a few things which will be new that’ll help you on a very fun adventure. And, an incredible lesson on how delicious food can taste when harvested just 5 minutes earlier. You can read more about the class here.
Try to bag as many leaves as possible if it’s not already to late. I’m able to get about 15 of them which is a few more than I actually need. I like to push back a few inches of growing soil and then add a layer of dried leaves. By the time spring arrives they will be gone. They’re a great soil amendment, and the best part? Its free!
I’m also sure to cover my bagged leaves with plastic. When rain and/or snow get in from the top the leaves get messy and soggy. You can still use them but it gets to be a lot more work. For those looking for a way to make extra money for kids at home, contact me. It might be too late for this year, but you can certainly start next year.
7-8 lbs. of potatoes per square!
Minimize the effect of inflation on your food dollars
