Let It Snow!

We haven't had much snow this winter, but the storm that rolled in last night dropped 5-6 inches before tapering off around noon. The garden is covered in a blanket of snow, and the birds are nestled into the white pine trees amid the sheltering needles.

The ground is frozen again, so no additional work in the raised bed this weekend.  I did do a couple more winter sowing jugs -- one with marigolds and one with blue flax.

I spent Friday and Saturday down at my parents' house.  For my dad's birthday earlier in the week, I got him an elevated raised garden on wheels.  Mom and Dad both love gardening.  Mom grew up on a small family farm, and Dad worked in a nursery/greenhouse all through high school and college.  Mom and Dad are in their late 70s, and both have bending problems.  So I think they will enjoy this.  Dad and I had a good time putting it together -- it was easy and straight-forward, but Dad is recovering from cataract surgery, and needs a new reading glasses prescription now.  So he couldn't see the heads of the screws!  We just got to laughing about it, and I told him I was his seeing-eye dog.

Since this is a "hurry up and wait" time for the garden, and I can't do much till it starts warming up, I've been pondering building a large cold frame so I can grow some things over next winter -- carrots, parsnips, winter lettuce, and the like.  I found a fantastic article about cold frame gardening online, and I'm really intrigued by the idea.  When seeds go on sale at the end of spring, I'll stock up on a couple of the recommended varieties, and maybe we can manage to have greens all winter!  I will have to contemplate where I'm going to put it.  The best choice is our south-facing back yard, which is where the raised beds are already.  I also think the easiest way to do the lights (the clear panes on top for those of you not up on the lingo), is to just get an inexpensive storm door.  It's by far the least expensive way to do it -- I can get an inexpensive storm door at Menard's for less than $60, and the lumber isn't expensive, either.  The most expensive thing will likely be an automatic venting device.  Otherwise the cold frame will overheat on warmer days.

I'll have to get help from my Dad because I have no way to make the angle cuts I need for the side slats on the frame.  I mean, I suppose I could with a hand saw.  HMMM.

I'm also looking through my plant schedule.  Once I can REALLY start planting things, I'll need to adjust the schedule accordingly, and extend it through the summer and into fall.