Behind the seeds
Sometimes I almost wished that they would stop offering free shipping. There are enough different kinds of seeds in my collection to keep me busy but the April Fool’s Day offer was another difficult one to resist. These are the seeds that arrived today (in no particular order):
Oriental Poppy. At the last house I lived in, my immediate neighbor had a cluster of these growing in his garden. They looked amazing and seeing them assured me that they will grow in my area. I tried my hand at growing these and purchased seeds (from a seed company different than the current). It took a few tries before there was successful germination. In fact, it was not until I moved to my current house did I see poppy seedlings. The seedlings grew happily in a pot until one day to my horror I found that they had been mowed down by a cut worm. To say I was heartbroken would be an understatement. Afterward and as I had hoped, they regrew. I believe that was three years ago. The surviving plant is about 8-inches in diameter and it has yet to flower.
That plant may never flower so I hope to get a new start. This time I will also direct sow the seeds as it is written that they prefer that over being transplanted. Continue Reading
Building my first raised planter
Located close to the house and features of the house (like the brick succulent planter that it is adjacent to) aesthetics was one of the primary concerns when planning out this new ground to work and plant on. Raised planters with their long and symmetric lines are more aesthetically pleasing than say a row of nursery containers. Needing more growing area, it was time to finally install a more formal looking planter. Continue Reading
