Vegetables in the garden

Well it's been a while but a lot has been going on. First I did something this year that I have never done before. I started tomatoes, from seed. I start my seeds after valentines day. Some people tell me it's to early but by the time they get large enough to put in the ground and start bearing fruit it's really too late to start the seeds. It took the plants about 4 weeks to get large enough to put in the ground. Well they are in the ground and they are going to have to be stakes today. The tomatoes I planted are called boy-o-boy hybrid. They came in a pack of seeds that I got at Dollar General. I've also started Beefsteak and Delicious tomato plants. The Delicious variety can get up to 7 pounds. I don't expect it to get that large but you can never tell. I also planted peppers but they are from a carnival mix so I have no idea what color they will end up being. It will be a surprise. I also have potatoes planted in the yard. My husband planted seed potatoes and they are doing well. We have a compost barrel and in it we throw kitchen waist (especially potato peelings) and other waste materials. well this year when I looked in the barrel I saw several potato sprouts and yes I dug them out and put them in the ground and before you ask They are going well, not as well as the seed potatoes but, then the seed potatoes have been in the ground about a month longer then the compost potatoes.

A New Year, a new diary

Stating now I am going to start making a garden diary. It is something I have wanted to do in the past but never got around to. Well this is a new year and I figured it's a great way to start the new year.

Entry 1
Back in November 2010 for my birthday I received several Amaryllis bulbs. Absolutely none of them bloomed. They all sprouted leaves but no bud. To be honest I was disappointed. Well this year they are more than making up for it so far. One of the bulbs went as far as to grow an offshoot. I can't complain about that. I excited to see the flowers when they bloom I just hope they are as beautiful as the pictures on the package. I was somewhat disappointed when the Black Pearl was more of a maroon color instead of black but hey it still bloomed and for that I am thankful. I may even get some seeds from the pod of the Black Pearl as soon as it dries out and pops. The one thing that gets me is the room, bu that I mean I am getting cramped with all the Amaryllis bulbs I have growing. My husband has let me keep the bulbs I started in 2009 in his shop because it gets cold in there but never freezing. Which is exactly what my bulbs need. Unlike other bulbs (tulips) Amaryllis bulbs should not be frozen, they should just be cold like a refrigerator, I was not about to throw all my food out just to get a bulb to go dormant. If I am lucky the bulbs may bloom this year. I have my fingers crossed.

My Black Pearl Amaryllis in Full Bloom

It doesn't look that Black does it?

Black Pearl Amaryllis update

Novmber 28, 2011

November 27, 2011

November 23,2011



November 19, 2011

Well here are the pics of my Black Pearl amaryllis as it has started growing. I think the bulb was simply waiting until the Zombie bloomed before it decided it was going to start. That way it would allow the zombie to show itself and not be upstaged once the jumbo black pearl started. I have seen many pics of Black pearl amaryllis and the color of the bloom vary. I might be the flower or it might be the photographer's use of light. The one thing I can say it that the flower is a dark red and I mean DARK.

I am looking forward to seeing what this one will be. I have nine other amaryllis that I have recently forced into dormancy. The colors that I have range from white to pink. I have quite a few that I started from seeds but I have no idea what color they will be. If the parent plant was a hybrid (and I really think it is) there is no telling what color the flower will be once the bulb reaches bloom size. The base of some of the leaves have been red so I am predicting that the flower will be red. I read in the book Hippeastrum the gardener's amaryllis that when the bulb has gone through it's second winter you have to make it go dormant. So I have twenty bulbs in pots going dormant. I tell my little girl that they are taking a nap.

Black Pearl Amaryllis 11-17-2011

Well this is my Black Pearl Amaryllis. If you look closely you can see the bud just starting to show itself. I am hopeful that it will be a beautiful as I have seen in photos.

Zombie Amaryllis 11-17-2011

This is a picture of my Zombie amaryllis. It is growing faster than I expected. I will be posting other pictures as it grows taller and eventually blooms.

Zombie amaryllis 11-13-2011

This is a picture of the Zombie amaryllis I potted. If you follow the succession you can see just how fast it is growing. I'm going to take a picture of it every day so that I will be able to show you just how fast it is growing.