Fig tree and Easter lily, tomatoes and pumpkins and Hubbard squash, red currant cuttings and trailing sweet peas are all chilling out of Maia's reach, counting the days till the sun comes out so I can de-buttercup the garden and get protective hoops and trellises up. There are more seedlings on the back deck; the sugar peas are trying to climb the columbine, the flax and parsnips are demanding room to spread, and my experienced neighbor helped me dig the dahlias one partly cloudy afternoon, so the tubers are all under a bench awaiting their return to the ground.
I didn't know that rotted dahlia tubers would turn a disgusting caramel consistency and shoot rot-juice at you if you stuck your thumb into one by accident, but it turns out they do. Fortunately for our splendid purple dahlia, however, exhuming the tubers and cutting the rotted ones away is the best way to protect the healthy ones from the spread of decay and death.
I didn't know that rotted dahlia tubers would turn a disgusting caramel consistency and shoot rot-juice at you if you stuck your thumb into one by accident, but it turns out they do. Fortunately for our splendid purple dahlia, however, exhuming the tubers and cutting the rotted ones away is the best way to protect the healthy ones from the spread of decay and death.
Meanwhile, Maia has discovered that houseplants are good for something besides digging up and chewing. I've been running the baseboard heater beneath my seedling shelf whenever I've been home, giving the fragile little things some extra heat, and she's spent most of this chilly, wet week luxuriating underneath the black cherry tomatoes. As long as she stays out of them, I'm all right with this, although it means she's scorned me for an electronic device as a source of cuddling and warmth.
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| It looks like the plants are in danger, but the shelves are laced closed so she can't jump into them. |
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Three-year-old niece: "Can I give my Aunty Jen a radish from my garden?"
Sister: "Yes, of course."
Niece: "I want to give my Aunty Jen a radish because I love her."
Me: *heart melting all over the place*
It was a good radish.
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| Spring salads are the best—fresh dandelions, chives, salad burnet, and the end of last year's kale. And early radishes, of course. |
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Music of the week: A little Mendelssohn.
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Happy weekend!
...Maia has discovered that houseplants are good for something besides digging up and chewing. I've been running the baseboard heater beneath my seedling shelf whenever I've been home, giving the fragile little things some extra heat, and she's spent most of this chilly, wet week luxuriating underneath the black cherry tomatoes. As long as she stays out of them, I'm all right with this, although it means she's scorned me for an electronic device as a source of cuddling and warmth."
ReplyDeleteCats are good for letting us know what our true value is & where we rank in relation to other priorities.
Not kidding. They have no fear of humbling humankind. :P
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