Completing the First Winter Garden Project

Winter was passing quickly . . . and then slowly . . . and now is it speeding up again? Winter garden projects are progressing . . . steadily. I suppose that's the way it goes; it goes the way our attention goes, whether the enjoyment of the moment or the anticipation of the future. I'm finding my best remedy for winter blues is work--working on my physical well-being by riding my inside smart bike and walking on our treadmill; and by planning and executing my winter garden projects. About six weeks ago I wrote my last blog gardening post: 
"Planning Next Year's Garden During a January Winter Storm," where I laid out a series of winter garden projects for myself. Let's see how I'm doing on that list.

This spot in the garden has been my first planting, three days ago. I planted French Breakfast radishes, spinach, arugula, kale, a lettuce blend, claytonia (miner's lettuce), mache, Creme de Brulee shallots, and tatsoi. Below I've included three photos, before and after shots of the cold frame situated on the south side of the garage, and then the planted area.

Cold Frame, about 18 years old

Cold frame rebuilt with new bottom 2x4 and new plastic

Planted cold frame

I've added a new cedar 2x4 to the bottom of the cold frame, replacing the old, rotted wood, and have added new plastic to the lid. I also have sealed the wood (after around eighteen years!) with a food-grade safe sealer. I tried the "square-foot gardening" planting strategy this year, including three new cold-weather crops: mache, tatsoi, and clatonia. It's never for sure how the plants will do, especially with new crops, but we'll see! A last cold snap is coming in three days, so I plan to cover the cold frame with a blanket that night.

This project is now complete, and I hope I will be eating salad greens from this small plot by the end of March if not sooner. And now on to two other projects, planting indoors using a grow light and building some covered hoop frames for the main garden.

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