Greenhouse

With the help of dear friends Jim and Lois, I put together and installed my greenhouse a year ago.  I am quite happy to tell you that it survived the winter from hell.  I've been spending the last couple of days in it, and I have to tell you, it's quite toasty in there.

I spent the better part of today in there, planting seeds in grow-trays.  Tonight, I will plug in the heating mats under the trays and close the door, crossing my fingers that it is warm enough in there to allow the seeds to germinate.  Tomorrow morning, I will unplug the heating pads, water the trays, and again, cross my fingers.

Today's plantings included three kinds of tomatoes, Cubanelle peppers, eggplant, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, parsley, cabbage, cucumber, and sunflowers.  More plantings will begin in a couple of weeks, and I have more seeds to buy when I head up to Vermont next week to visit my son.  Gardeners Supply is located in his town, and they have a great selection of organic seeds.  Also, I direct-sowed beets and carrots in the raised beds today.  So it's happening.

The purchase, assembly, and installation of the greenhouse was a necessary next step in my passion for organic gardening.  For many years, I purchased garden plants from nurseries and big box stores mid-May, taking my chances on pesticides and other maladies.  And I spent a lot of money.  To now be able to start plants from seed, watch them grow, and transplant them into the soil is both an economic and an environmental plus.  It's all a lot of work, but the rewards are worth it.  Dinner tonight consisted of my garden-grown green beans (frozen from last fall) and my homemade tomato sauce (also frozen from last fall) over pasta.  Yes, the rewards are worth it.  And there is love.