Pea time

After a week of being quarantined in the house due to a virus I finally got out into the garden to get the cold frame together.  I needed to harden off the brassicas and make room for my tender vegetables indoors under the lights.  Over two days I  turned over all the beds, added more compost, and covered them with plastic to heat the soil.  The cold frame was put together and placed south facing against the fence.  It did take me a bit to figure out the automatic opener, but after a few calls and bringing it in the house to acclimate the interior wax I managed to set it to open at 70*.

The cold frame seems to keep the temp about 10* warmer at night and is venting at 70*.  I didn't realize how very hot it gets in there.  Highs up to 100* even when outside temps are 48*.  I have all the seedlings on self-watering trays which typically need water once a week inside.  In the cold frame they needed water after one day.  Fortunately, the soil temps seem to be consistently 68-74*  I put the broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage in the cold frame and they have done quite well.  I had lettuce seedlings from the 26th which really didn't have their true leaves yet but I was anxious to make space indoors so out into the cold frame they went.  I also had a flat of coleus and alyssum that I thought could go out.  The coleus suffered a bit from the cold weather... I think they will recover but I learned that coleus are tender.  The alyssum on the other hand are doing great.

Friday's April Fools' snow storm provided much needed moisture to my beds.  Today the beds soil temp was 68* and ready for planting.  

Bed #1 Sowed carrot and beet tower

Carrot: Berlicum 2 

Carrot: Cosmic Purple 
Carrot: Jaune Obtuse Du Doubs

Beet:  Gourmet Medley

Bed #4 Sowed greens

Spinach:  Bloomsdale Long Standing

Rocky Top Lettuce

Wrinkled Crinkled Cress

Endive De Meaux

Bed #5 Transplanted brassicas and sowed peas and greens

Sowed:

Spinach Merlo Nero

Mache

Arugula

Golden Sweet snow pea

Sugar Ann snap pea

Transplanted:

Broccoli Calabrese Green Sprouting

Broccoli Romanesca Italia

Cabbage Early Jersey Wake

Cauliflower Purple of Sicily

The newly planted beds are now covered with blankets that let in 60% of the sun and all the water and protect the seeds and transplants from their predators.  Meanwhile the greens that are in the cold frame are growing and I'll transplant them mid April into Beds 2 and 3.  I'm trying to stagger the greens and brassicas so I don't have everything ready at once.  

Updating my spring cleaning list:

1) Build the cold frame

2) Repair the tomato trellis connectors

3) Clear away space for another 2x6' raised bed for melons

4) Repair the roof of the Y9 arbor

5) Repair the Y8 gate

6) Replace the shed roof with a shallow box that can hold soil for wildflower mix

7) Change position of front layered boxes to allow for carrots/leeks

8) Add compost to each square of Mel's mix, water throughly, and cover with greenhouse plastic to warm the soil

9) Build potting shed

10) Add more mulch to the areas between boxes where the weed blocker is showing

11) Pull the wild onions that continue to grow through the weed blocker :(

12) Build trellises for beds 2-5

13) Remove excess rocks from Y8 flower beds

14) Remove holly bush and rose bush from Y8 rear fence

15) Relay brick patio with fine gravel base parallel to rear fence after holly/rose removed

16) Set up potato bags