Breath of Spring

The light at the end is Spring.

Did you feel that first breath of Spring?  Between the continuing sobs of Winter?  That is when you know it's time to start seeds.  If that's your thing. 

The seed selection at your local garden center or hardware store is overflowing with tempting experiments.  What more could you hope for?  Purple cauliflower?  Got it.  Yard long beans?  Got 'em.  Red  okra?  Yep.  Details on exactly what order to get those done? Tomorrow. 

First, every good garden needs a fluffy foundation.  By all means, get those seeds.  But don't leave the store with babies and no bedding.

The best thing about the pre-Spring days tempting you to plant things that can't survive that last cold snap, the cold snap that will come even when it's been warm for weeks and you are convinced this year will be different?  It gives you the energy to do what the plants need before they nestle all snug in their beds:
groundwork.

Go buy whatever soil amendments you want.  Splurge and don't feel guilty.  It's an investment.

No money?  Find an abandoned lot with a big tree and mow it.  Bag up the leaves and grass and dump it on your garden.  Cover it with plastic, preferable black, and let it start cooking.

When the ground is soft, but doesn't suck you under like quicksand, turn all those crumbly organic yummies into the soil.  If you can't (or won't) turn it over with a shovel, then your garden is too big.  Don't set yourself up for another round of I'm-not-good-enough by over promising in the garden.  There will be weekends this summer when you want to go canoeing.  If every weekend is taken up with canning and weeding, well, you have just grown yourself more work instead of a hobby that pays for itself.

Balance.  All garden and no play makes you a farmer.