Organic. Period.

Perennial herbs are coming out of dormancy, and it is time to divide or transplant them in most areas of the US except the northernmost states.

Thyme is a woody little plant, almost like a little shrub. As soon as I see some of the tiny leaves beginning to green up, I divide last year’s spread of rooted plants and get them transplanted for the new season.

This thyme is ready to divide and transplant.

 The soil is workable, so the divisions were transplanted to a new area of the herb garden. Even if the soil seems moist, water the transplants a little to help the roots make contact.

Transplanted thyme has been pruned
to promote new growth.

I’ve been removing the winter mulch that covered many of my perennial flowers and herbs. The coneflowers are not actually showing any green yet, but it was time to get them open to the sunlight and warmth.

Coneflowers are the source for “Echinacea”. They are a lovely, purple daisy-like flower that is well-loved by butterflies and bees. Divide your clump of coneflowers every couple of years, and they will spread even faster. You can divide them in the spring, or in the early fall, before dormancy so they can establish a good root system for the winter.

This is a small clump that was a small division done last spring.
It sure doesn’t look like much yet!

Spring brings so much to do in the garden, and the busy days are not even here yet!

The yard is dotted with small patches of crocus blooms. They are here for only a day or so, and then gone until next year.  But what cheerful little blooms they are.

When my daughter was small, she said one day that they were little smiles all over the yard. I thought that was very perceptive for a four year old. (She’s in her 20’s now…)

The mounds of jonquil leaves are just filled with buds, and some of them are even beginning to bloom. I have naturalized them throughout a large area of the woods near the house, and they are really lovely. I’ll estimate about 10 days to full bloom for them.

Kale is a very hardy crop. Even here in the Midwest where we had temps below zero a few times over the winter plus ice and snow, my kale is back this Spring. It had been covered with about 4-6 inches of loose leaves and grass mulch. Some years it comes again in the spring, and some years it doesn’t. You know Spring is here when you uncover the kale and see little green sprouts coming along.

Plant kale as soon as you can work the soil in the spring. Choose a sunny spot where water won’t stand. If you’re afraid of late snow and ice, keep some mulch handy, and you can just give seedlings a quick cover-up.

Saturday afternoon was perfect for planting peas. The ground was a little cool, but not wet and muddy, so it was very easy to open a furrow with a hoe and get the peas into the ground.You should plant peas as early as you can work the soil. Space them about 1 - 2 inches apart in the row, and about 1 inch deep. Keep some mulch handy in case the weather turns freezing again and you want to cover them with it. Peas are very hardy, but a little TLC never hurt them.

I put out Maestro, a variety I have good luck with. It makes nice long pods, about 4″ long, with 10 or more peas in each pod. I also planted some snow peas, the sugar snap kind. I pick some of them when they are flat, but they are surprisingly good, pods and all, if left until the pods are rounded out.

It is time to plant your indoor starts for tomatoes and peppers and the other transplants on your list. I got mine in last week on the 4th.

I used some jiffy peat pellets in planting flats, and kept them in a warm place to speed germination. The top of the refrigerator works for gentle warmth, and so does the top of the tv. Most of the tomatoes are up, and the WAVE Petunias are just showing their tiny little pin-point leaves.

The WAVEs were pelleted seeds, so they were easy to handle. So far 11 out of 15 petunias have germinated, and I hope I can keep them growing. Everything tends to get leggy because I don’t have much window space.

A warm spell these past few days has brought out my planting instincts. In an earlier post, I planted lettuce on the snow, a technique that usually works. There was so much ice and snow for so long that some hungry juncos picked most of the seed off the ice and ate it before it got a chance to grow.

So one day last week I planted more lettuce, and this time I planted spinach and radishes along with it. I used a small raised bed that is my starting bed, and as I mixed in some compost and stirred it all together, I caught a whiff of basil that was the last thing I had started in the bed last summer. There were some basil roots in the mix…and what a breath of fresh air!

So I used some dried basil to make my youngest son’s favorite soup. He uses a can of condensed cream of tomato soup, adds a can of milk, one can of diced tomatoes with all the juice, then he stirs in about 2 Tablespoons dried basil and 3/4 cup instant rice. Stir often over medium heat until the rice is tender, and serve with your favorite grated cheese on top.

Note: If using home canned tomatoes, use one pint of tomatoes with all the juice, and  rice equal to the amount of tomato juice. i.e. one cup of juice, use one cup of rice.

Spring Salad with Bleu or Gorgonzola Cheese

Dressing:
1 tablespoon Dijon or brown mustard
3 tablespoons light colored organic vinegar (not balsamic or dark vinegar)
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice. Lemon juice is ok.
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a jar or tight-lidded container and shake well. When it thickens and becomes creamy, store it in the fridge until ready to use. This dressing will keep for several days.

Salad:
8 cups mesclun lettuces, or your favorite lettuce
8 oz Gorgonzola or bleu cheese crumbled into small bits
1 cup chopped almonds (or pecans or walnuts)
            1 apple or 1 pear, sliced or cut into chunks

Place all salad ingredients together in a large bowl. Pour just enough dressing to coat, toss and serve immediately.

 Variations:
This salad is delicious made with buttercrunch lettuce and spinach fresh from the garden. If you buy lettuce at the supermarket, look for romaine or tender leaf lettuce.

Grapes are also a fine addition with the apple or pear. A few raisins or dried cranberries work, too.
 

Two women from Michigan have invented a little garden gadget that may help you decide what kinds of plants to place where. They call it the “SunStick”.

The SunStick is a plastic green and red flower with a light sensor in the center of the flower. To use the SunStick, you poke it in the ground in the early morning at the spot you want to monitor. The sunlight causes a chemical reaction to the center of the flower, and it tells you whether the area is sun, part-sun, shade, or part-shade. Then you can match the light requirements to the plants you want to grow.

SunSticks are available in a package of 3 for about $8.99. Ask for them at your garden center.

OK, I’m talking about a grapefruit tree indoors here in the north. I had some of these several years ago, and they were great. When fall came, I gave away all but one, and when I brought it indoors for the winter, my cat liked the large pot. Enough said.

So I’m starting more grapefruit trees. You can do this with any citrus, lemons, limes, oranges, tangerines. Just get old fashioned seedy varieties of fruit at your market, and save some seeds. Our local FFA sells Florida citrus every year, and I buy casesof it. It comes straight from the groves.

I plant the seeds immediately, and don’t let them dry out. I’ve had the best luck using a large pot and planting them about two inches deep. It takes a bit longer for them to sprout and reach the top of the soil, but the roots develop deeper in the soil and the trees are sturdier than shallow-planted seeds. I put lots of seeds in a large, deep pot and wait to see how many sprout. Not all will. Some will be scrawny, so thin them out. I like to end up with about 3 good seedlings in a 12 inch pot. The taproot is quite long, so use a deep pot.

It takes 10 days or more for the seedlings to appear. Keep the pot warm and watered. I don’t cover it for fear of mold growth over the long germination time. Alternatively, you can keep citrus seeds moist and warm in a paper towel until they sprout, and then carefully plant the strongest seeds in pots, but I have had limited success with this.

Here is one of the sprouts about 5 days after it appeared. As the days grow longer, it will grow faster. Late winter is the best time to plant citrus seeds in the north. Just keep them warm, away from cold drafts, and give them plenty of light.

There are many factors that affect bloom and fruit production, but here in the north the trees make beautiful houseplants that thrive on a summer patio.