The seedlings in the winter garden are sprouting and they look so cute. These little ones are one of the varieties of lettuce I planted. The wire mesh is protecting them from neighborhood critters (including kitty cats that think everything is a litter box).
I'm usually not as timely or organized with my winter garden as I am this year. I kept feeling the need to remove a brick planter box from under the front window. It was pulling away from the house and causing a crack between the mortar and the stucco of the house that was getting larger and larger. I decided that it wasn't a good idea to have it collecting water right up against the foundation and that it needed to go bye-bye.
So out came "Sledgehammer 1" and "Sledgehammer 2" with their little friend "Pick-Hammer". As I demolished the box, I found that it was very ill-conceived to begin with, and it was a very good thing that I was taking it out as it was seriously compromising our home's foundation. Although I had to sacrifice the rosemary that was growing in it, taking down the planter made room for me to move my 4x8 raised planter from the back garden to the front. The eastern exposure under the front window is perfect for growing veggies in the winter and pretty pollinator annuals in the summer.
First, I moved the planter box from the back where it's served faithfully as the tomato bed for a number of years. It looks like painted wood, but it's actually made of a composite material produced from recycled milk jugs. It's very sturdy and stands a foot high. Once I had it positioned, I filled it with lots of good compost-filled dirt from the nursery and then planted my rows of winter veggie seeds.
Although we get frosts in December and January, there are many vegetables that grow well here in the winter which won't grow in the summer heat. So I put in a number of lettuce varieties, parsley, scallions, broccoli, snow peas, spinach, and some bread seed poppies. The cute little rows are sprouting in the warm October weather we're having. Until today, it's been around 80F (27C) everyday since I put in the seeds--good sprouting weather.
It's been fun to watch the lettuce sprout because this is the first time I've attempted growing lettuce from seed like this. Both Hubby and I are enjoying this new garden area with all the wonder of two small children.
