We're already into the second month of the spring planting season, and I have little more than a few onions, and slug ravaged cabbage starts in my garden.
It's partly because our great ski season has kept me in the mountains as winter just keeps on going, but mostly because the ground is too cold and wet for seeds to sprout, or starts to thrive.
And it's a good reminder for both skiers and gardeners that the weather should guide your activities, not the calendar. Planting season in Oregon will last into November with crops like corn, greens, and beets needing to be planted multiple times for a continuous harvest, so if you haven't started yet either, you have plenty of time to catch up when the soil warms and dries - or you can even find the soil under the puddles.
Fortunately, nurseries do plant on a predetermined schedule, and while I prefer putting seeds in over starts when practical, I noticed a few five for the price of one sales on broccoli and cabbage seedlings.
There were five or six plants in each cell, and you can separate them if you're careful. I take the plant clump and swish it in water until all the soil is washed off. Then the plants come apart much more easily. You can put the individual plants in the ground for the slugs, or better, put them in small pots to wait until the weather, not the calendar says it's planting season.
When it's this cold in the spring, I like to plant beets, lettuce, and even peas in little pots, or in the plastic six pack vegetable trays I saved from last year. Once they sprout, I move them into the sun outdoors during the day, and back inside to stay warmer overnight.
And there has been a side benefit beyond fresh snow to the extended winter. I haven't had to mow the lawn - yet.
I'm John Fischer with Good Gardening.
