Ready To Get Ready
January and February were rough here in central Massachusetts. There was snow, sleet, freezing rain, gale-force wind, and an extended deep freeze. We have all enjoyed complaining about it. It should be stated that this has been a typical New England winter. We have gone a few years without a typical New England winter, so this winter felt especially rotten.
It is now March. Warmer, milder weather might be on the way, or it might not. Either way, it is time to start planning the 2025 Food It Yourself Garden. This is not a political blog, but I am going to plant sunflowers. I was going to plant sunflowers anyway, but in 2025 I am going to plant sunflowers especially. Mr. Food It Yourself and I have discussed seed bombing some local vacant lots. This is not a political blog.
I really enjoyed the leeks I grew last year, but they were not as robust as I would have like. This year, I am going to try green onions, also known as scallions. Like leeks, they can take a little shade. Unlike leeks, they grow quickly and we may get a few crops if I keep on a schedule and plant them successively. (If you are familiar with this blog, you know that is a big “if”.)
There will definitely be tomatoes. I am going to try tomatoes from seed again, but if I have to buy some from the local garden center I will not feel bad. That is a lie, I will feel bad. However, I will soothe myself with homegrown tomatoes on toast.
Cucurbits are in the plan again, too. Yes, there will be zucchini, and probably yellow summer squash, too. Mr. Food It Yourself found this really interesting technique for maximizing summer squash yields. It reduces the chance of mildew taking your plants by utilizing a vertical growing technique. Again, it looks high maintenance. However, if it gives us a bigger harvest I am willing to give it a try. I am on the fence about winter squash. I love it, Mr. Food It Yourself could take or leave it. It uses a lot of space. At this stage, I do not feel like I need to make final decisions. I am going to try pickling cucumbers again, for sure. Last year my plants were beautiful but never bounced back from an early heat wave. Maybe this year will be different. The possibility of home made pickles is tempting enough to make me want to try. While I am thinking about it, I should buy some cucumber beetle traps.
Oh how my strawberry plants have served me. I can hardly wait for this summer’s crop!
I am looking forward to string beans. I still have a large supply of seeds from prior years, and beans have a long shelf life. I have heard of a “chaos gardening” technique where a bag of store- bought dry bean mix is just tossed into a prepared bed. I am in favor of chaos generally, but I also like to know if I have bush or pole habit beans sprouting. I will stick to the Provider and Goldilocks seeds I have on hand already. I might plant some sugar snap peas, also.
I am trying very hard not to buy a million different herbs. I have active populations of mint, lemon balm, thyme (regular and lemon scented), and chives already. It is too soon to tell if the oregano I bought last year survived the winter. There are just so many different herbs, and they are all so easy to grow. I need basil for my tomatoes and parsley for just about everything. I love sage. I have not grown rosemary for a few years and I miss it. I enjoy cilantro (but I respect the fact that not everyone does). I could do so many things with summer savory, hyssop, tarragon, shiso…I have limited space and need to make well-calculated choices about what I grow. Or I need to figure out how to have more growing space.
There is no hard-and-fast way to determine that “spring” has arrived in The Bay State. Sometimes I can plant peas in early April, sometimes we get an ice storm in May. I am sure my plans for this year’s garden will have to bend, stretch, wiggle, and flex to meet the conditions Mother Nature throws at us. What are your plans for the 2025 growing season? If you live where the growing season is coming to an end, how did it go? Share in the comments section!
