an ounce of prevention...

i knew a freeze was predicted last night. i thought of bringing the salad box in, or at least covering it. but, i was really tired from getting up early to see our guests off, for their early morning flight back to L.A.

i went to bed early, and thought of the delicate little seedlings outside, not one bit.
woke up to some frost covered plants, and more regret than i can handle this morning. we'll find out later who survived. right now, it's too soon to tell.

i'll take my salad live, thank you.

cosmo is not one to eat green leafy vegetables, but he enjoys picking leaves and putting them in his mouth. lately he has been pulling up various plants from the grass and saying, "i can eat this?"
i hope i have made it clear that he needs to check with me before putting plants in his mouth...he loves eating wild onions, and, wisely, following with mint leaves from the neighbor's yard (ours are still too young for harvesting).

smells like spring

it's rainy and warm today. crocuses and daffodils are blooming all over the neighborhood. ours still haven't popped open, but we are patient. yesterday was a glorious garden day for me. i was outside for hours and hours. i transfered the tomatoes to larger containers, and gave the remainder to my neighbor, lara. i set up a trellis for the peas (though it's going to need some reinforcement) and then cosmo and i planted a row of peas. we left room for the 5 plants i already started indoors, which i am in the process of acclimating to outside. cosmo seemed to really enjoy it, and recited his little pea rhyme to the seedbed.



the first salad box is filled with sprouting loose-leaf lettuce. yesterday cosmo and i filled the second, larger salad box with soil and then planted spinach, heirloom lettuce, and purple spring onion seeds. cosmo helped me sow the seeds, and he was really good at pinching the rows to cover them. i love to find ways to involve him. he already seems to be intrigued by the natural world. he walked up to a severely pruned bush in someone's yard yesterday, and gestured upward with his arms saying "grow! grow!"

box

i visited two antique stores today, in search of a wooden crate. i had read an article in organic gardening about how to make a portable, living salad box. it's a shallow wooden box, with a wire mesh and window screen bottom. you fill it with soil and plant lettuce and spinach, to be harvested as micro-greens for salads. i liked the idea of saving space in the garden by planting greens in a box, and i also liked the idea of putting them up on a table at night, to keep the rabbits from eating them.

i could picture an old wooden coke bottle crate as having the right dimensions, built in handles, and aesthetically appeal. i was ccertain i could find something cheap that was as good, or better than one i could make. the first place had several. they ranged from $15 to $25 each. i found an old wooden drawer that i thought might work, and bought it for $10. it was a bit small, and i wasn't sure about it, so i went to the only other place like this that i knew about in town, and found another drawer that was much bigger, and perfect for only$4. the second place was a lot more fun too, it was mostly salvaged architectural fixtures, doors and moldings, plus other items for restoring furniture or interiors. i had a nice conversation with the woman working there, about gardening, harvesting herbs and greens, and the time you can find in your life for gardening. she wondered what happened to that time during the winter.


this evening i drilled holes in the bottom of the smaller drawer. i plan to also line it with window screen, as the holes are rather large. i may plant some seeds in it this week. i am very happy with the solid, weathered and handsome boxes, even if one of them was over-priced. i enjoyed being in those shops much more than i would have enjoyed making the boxes.