The exceptionally warm days earlier in the month gave a boost to many of the garden veggies. The first planting of corn is looking respectable and the squash and pumpkins are filling in.  Meanwhile the tomatoes got off to a late start due to most needing a second planting after the birds nipped off the tops of the first plants that were put out. The cages look a little silly at this stage. Time will tell how much they will be needed before the summer is over.

The nasturtiums are volunteers from last year, mostly growing at the base of the beds. Hopefully they can be established elsewhere to fill in on the hills instead of the boring mulch.

Likewise, volunteer calendulas also sprung up.

One of the blackberries along the fence. Thick new shoots for the next crop are coming up. They are much more robust than the older branches and full of nasty thorns.

The deer have managed to poke through the fence and do some pruning of the blackberry bushes. And they do not seem to mind the thorns.

Seriously, how can the deer munch on something with such vicious spines?

The garden for 2014 got started a whole month earlier than it did last year.  According to the guide I found for my climate zone, it could have been done a month or so sooner.  Since we had such a warm winter, that actually might have made a difference in when some of the veggies will be ready for the table.  However, as soon as it was officially spring, the weather returned to more normal (cool, coastal foggy mornings) and I could just imagine the corn and green bean seeds shivering in the ground instead of sprouting.

Last year I tried planting similar things together thinking that would make care easier.  It probably made little difference in helping things and was not so good in other ways.  Having snow peas, snap peas and shell peas all planted next to each other meant that there was a tangled mess of peas and it was hard to tell which was what kind when it was time to start harvesting.  The tomatoes also turned into a tangle outgrowing their cages and the more vigorous ones strangling the others.  It also meant that any problems such as aphids or powdery mildew had lots of hosts nearby once it got started.

So this year I am trying to mix things up a bit in hopes that the results will be better.  However, the season has not gotten off to a great start.  The tomatoes should have been started inside a lot sooner. The tiny seedlings were snipped off by the birds requiring a second batch getting an even later start.  The birds also seem fond of the pea leaves and a few emerging green beans look like they have been nipped off. 

Next year I must start more inside and plant out only when they are much bigger.  Or perhaps have a winter garden that will result in plenty to share with the wildlife.  If we get a nice wet winter for a change, there will be lots of native greenery around and the garden veggies may not be as much of an attraction.

Planting phase two of the orchard was not nearly as big a chore as was the initial row planting last year. Primarily because the ground had been prepared and holes dug out (and refilled loosely) during the summer months.

The plan for what was to be planted changed several times between last January and when the orders were placed in late October / early November. The first change was the decision to make the orchard two terraced rows instead of a hillside. It started with leveling out some of the ground around the initial row. But it became pretty clear in a short time that walking back and forth across a hill was a lot harder than walking on a level surface. Thinking about the odds of a misstep in the future, a lot more shovel work went into the preparation and a terraced plan emerged

Then there was the huge chunk of sandstone discovered just below the surface in the center of the second row of the orchard. There was no way a self-respecting fruit tree could exist with that where the roots should go, so it was excavated, the soil added to the terrace and perhaps it will eventually seem decorative.

The bench graft apple trees ordered in March were yet another change to the plan. They filled most of the terrace to one side of the rock outcropping. A trip to the local demonstration orchard created another influence on what was to be planted this winter. There was a grouping of peach and nectarine trees in full bloom. It was lovely, and there were also daffodils planted in the orchard under the trees. The daffodil part was a simple addition. I would have been looking for a place to plant those. The flowering trees turned out to be varieties I had not seriously considered, yet they seemed to have good reviews for taste and had other good qualities.

So the Asian pears, quince and persimmon were preempted in favor of more peaches, nectarines, plums and apricots. It was supposed to be a three to four year plan. I will probably find spots for the ones that got bumped off this year’s list before I am done.