I see dead people!

Kidding. Actually, I see live sprouts. Bean sprouts!

I walked through the back yard when coming home tonight and peeked into my flower bed. It's blooming something crazy. Everything's finally taking root I think. Everything looks healthy and strong. And my huge square of pea plants was covered in green sprouts! Must hurry and go buy stakes and strings and things for these little sweet peas to ggrow upward on ... at least that's what I've been told.

Can't wait to show the kids.

Sprouting sprouts and grassroots efforts

The sweet peas I had my kids push into the ground are beginning to sprout. It's so sweet to see.

Of course, the whatever herb my hubby planted in his makeshift indoor greenhouse (reused plastic insta-dinner container) is also sprouting, and at a speedier rate, even though he planted it later. But it is a makeshift greenhouse.

Which only makes me eye the corner of our property with even more greenhouse-lust. Year-round gardening. It would be lovely. We could curb our Pioneer Organics subscription to every other week instead of every week perhaps. Save ourselves a few bucks and have fun doing it.

Plus, it's fun to hook the kids on this kind of thing.

And if the backyard doesn't work -- and, actually, even if it does, we plan to join the resurging BUGS (Bridging Urban Gardens Society) -- a group of community garden enthusiasts who are forming a sort of guerrilla work party. Don't have time to monitor a plot on a weekly basis? Already have a backyard haven but want the other benefits of a community garden. Then this is the group for you ... come help weed or otherwise take care of another established community garden, and take advantage of the community aspect, being in the garden, and feel good about helping some folks out. It's a good thing.

Want to know more? E-mail me and I'll make sure you do.

Some help from the hubby!

The grass has been growing so thick and lush that I haven't been able to keep up. Plus, our push (reel) mower needed a bit of oiling and such. Which my darling husband took care of this weekend. Yay!

And while he was out and about and the kids were happily playing in the yard, digging big holes in the designated hole-digging area, and daredevil biking and triking down the alley hill ... I was able to replant all the flowers I'd yanked out of the flower box when I planted my herbs and veggies, and plant flower seeds I'd bought two or three years ago, and TAGRO-ize the heck out of all open surfaces of dirt. And planted some roses and lavender that had been sitting around since last summer waiting to be planted.

It felt good.

And I was oh, so sore. But I think this is still a record for me as far as getting started on our corner of Tacoma's great outdoors. Usually it's a bit of Easter or Mother's Day inspiration which quickly fizzles once my "let's go outside" guests/assistants go home.

Not this year. I'm motivated to stay the course. And the kids are motivated to do lots of outdoor playing.

Score.

GardenSphere: A world of wonder

Nothing like a bit of sun to make even idiot gardeners like me crave the earth, some seeds and a bit of dreaming about what could be. Last week's blink of sun got me moving, grooving all the way to GardenSphere on Proctor where the friendly folk offer advice and knowledge to those of us who wish our gardens looked as lush as their displays.

Not only did I pick up a plethora of seedlings, including yellow strawberries, spinach, beets, chives, Walla Walla sweet onions, rosemary, thyme, lavender, chocolate mint, cilantro, and so much more ... but my eldest chickadee picked out plenty of flowers to brighten things up.

And, the icing on the cake, or whatever similar gardening-like analogy might work, was that they had packets of seeds from Territorial Seed Co. What better way to satisfy my gardening urges than the ability to get my hands on the seeds I dream of RIGHT AWAY?!?!

I went a little nuts. Two boxes of plants, a bag full of seed packets (peas, pumpkins, tomatoes, corn, sunflowers, peppers, flowers, and more I'm sure I'm forgetting), a couple of knee cushions, some kid-sized gardening goodies and gloves later, and we were finally home.

And for the first time I think ever, I planted all the seedlings the day I bought them. And now, instead of staring out at a sad, sad raised flower bed, I have a happy, hunky dory raised veggie garden bed. I'm looking forward to picking up my salad ingredients from the backyard.

Hmmm ... a mini-greenhouse is beginning to look more and more necessary. Our kitchen windowsill is only so big ...

Mother Nature's feeding my yard!

A day of springy 70-degree weather and some morning rain has pushed my grass sprouts into overdrive. I will have a great lawn by spring break! :) My neighbor has jumped on the bandwagon and borrowed some of my extra TAGRO and done her lawn as well. Looks like everything will be nice and green this summer. Now, I just need to hit the plant store today. I'm itching to plant. Now, as long as the plants don't make me itch, we'll all be good.

Feeling ambitious

I got home later than normal, but then went outside with the kids and decided that the plant life in my flower box was hardy enough to deal with some temporary transplanting, or else I'll just replace it. So I dug up the daisies and irises and other flowers that were once upon a time transplants from a neighbor and starting mixing that TAGRO into the dirt. Dug up some interesting old pipe and pieces of pottery, but otherwise got quite the workout turning over hard dirt and mixing in the biosolids in hopes of getting some really good soil going. The kids even grabbed little buckets and helped out. Next on the docket: replanting the pulled up flowers, planting potted roses and lavender that have been sitting around since last fall, and buying some new stuff and actually having a flower bed. And then hitting the other area that needs to be dug up.

But needless to say, progress is being made. And, elsewhere in the yard, more and more grass sprouts are sprouting! Woo hoo! It's all working! My yard is taking shape!

I'm ecstatic.

Delusions of greenery?

I see grass sprouts! Pretty grass sprouts.

Go AWAY, raccoons ...

Bloody raccoons. They're back. Pulling up the edges of the sod they've basically already killed. Grrr ... don't mess with my grass seed. Grass seed I'm still waiting to sprout. Sigh. I was afraid I'd do it too soon ... it's been so cold lately nothing's germinating yet. Though the existing grass is looking phenomenal thanks to the TAGRO. And with a little TLC, the lawn is coming back to life. I just need a few warm days to wake up the grass seed. Wish me luck ...