We've been home a week now and it's been so warm and sunny that this is the first chance I've had to update the blog. We left California knowing that there would be snow showers in the Siskiyou Mountains. 
We made it past the town of Mt. Shasta and Yreka with the pavement still bare, but by the time we got to the pass before Ashland, it was snowing hard and it was sticking in the left hand lane where there was not as much traffic. Fortunately we made it down and into Medford before dark.
The next morning it was mixed clouds and sun. One of those beautiful spring days in southern Oregon.
We arrived safely back home to a cold house and two months of mail. Thanks to Susan, our neighbor, the plants were all watered and every thing was as it should have been in the house. We did find evidence that we had one uninvited visitor. A mouse had found a piece of candy on Marlene's desk. All that remained was a chewed wrapper and signs that he had been there. We haven't seen anything of him since, but he probably is somewhere around. Who knows how he got in.
Marlene got right to work on her garden. Actually she had started her planning while we were still on the road and had ordered some of the seeds she needed. She was ready to go when the sun came up.
By the end of the first day she had seeds in the potting trays.
The rest of the week was spent cleaning up the beds in the garden.
We have been amending the soil in these raised beds using our own compost for the last 12 years. Before we had raised beds, we used to rototill this area and plant a more traditional garden. We discovered the ground water is very close to the surface in this area so I built these raised beds and made the paths out of crushed hazelnut shells.
The green house is in a dormant stage right now. We have carrots which wintered over nicely, but they don't seem to have the nice sweet flavor that the outside carrots have. The flowering pots will be moved back to our deck. Marlene has already seeded radishes and arugula and soon English cucumber seedlings will be in the ground. Last year we havested over 125 cucumbers from 3 plants. The plants produced from April to September.
In the spring, our window seat becomes the sprouting area. These pictures were taken yesterday and you can see the results of the work Marlene did earlier in the week.
These are oriental vegetables, pac choi. The make wonderful stir fry when sauteed in olive oil.
These are Marigolds which will be used among the vegetables to keep the slugs at bay.
The rest of the week was spent cleaning up the beds in the garden.
We have been amending the soil in these raised beds using our own compost for the last 12 years. Before we had raised beds, we used to rototill this area and plant a more traditional garden. We discovered the ground water is very close to the surface in this area so I built these raised beds and made the paths out of crushed hazelnut shells.
The green house is in a dormant stage right now. We have carrots which wintered over nicely, but they don't seem to have the nice sweet flavor that the outside carrots have. The flowering pots will be moved back to our deck. Marlene has already seeded radishes and arugula and soon English cucumber seedlings will be in the ground. Last year we havested over 125 cucumbers from 3 plants. The plants produced from April to September.
In the spring, our window seat becomes the sprouting area. These pictures were taken yesterday and you can see the results of the work Marlene did earlier in the week.
She uses heating pads under the trays and the combination of spring sun and heat below causes the seeds to sprout quickly.
These are oriental vegetables, pac choi. The make wonderful stir fry when sauteed in olive oil.
These are Marigolds which will be used among the vegetables to keep the slugs at bay.
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