I created three of these wooden thermometer houses last summer. The temperature reading pretty much sums-up December around this area. Temps only get into the twenties by mid-day and generally go down to the low teens each night.
I've seen no evidence of the garlic bolting, so that's good news. My only concern is that I may have been a week or two too late in getting them into the ground. They may not have had enough time to establish roots before the ground became frozen. We'll see...
I shoveled some ashes from the stove down the center of this garden last weekend. It can only help - and I personally disagree with the experts that say to limit the amount of ashes thrown into the garden. They're wrong!
This is what's left of the seed bell that I set-out for the birds 6 days ago. There was a 2nd bell hanging next to it, but the raccoon pulled it down!
I created this birdseed sanctuary to entertain my 2 cats. The Blue Jays start early at 6 AM, then the Black-Capped Chickadees spend the rest of the day feasting on the seeds. FYI: The Black-Capped Chickadee is the official State Bird of Massachusetts.
I've also got plenty of suet hanging for the birds. This bird feeder is something I designed earlier this year. I plan on making many more of these to attract a larger bird population to the gardens.
This is as bleak as it gets as far as the big garden looks... It boggles my mind at how barren this scene appears right now - when only a few months ago it was lush and green and teaming with life - weeds & all!
Things may have screeched to a halt outside, but inside, next to a warm wood stove, the dining room table is adorned with seed catalogues. Each page teams with life and color!
A spark of hope kindles my imagination and glows within my mind - the garden planning for next season has begun!
I will list these seed catalogues (as photographed, left to right) below with links to each website. These are my favorites and the best sources for rare heirlooms in the country:
Johnny's Selected Seeds
955 Benton Avenue
Winslow, Maine 04901-2601
1-877-564-6697
Vermont Bean Seed Company
334 W. Stroud St.
Randolph, WI 53956
1-800-349-1071
Totally Tomatoes
334 W. Stroud St.
Randolph, WI 53956
1-800-345-5977
(Yes, I was surprised to see that the above two catalogues have the same mailing address!)
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
2278 Baker Creek Road
Mansfield, MO 65704
1-417-924-8917
Comstock Seeds
263 Main Street
Wethersfield, CT 06109
1-860-571-6590
Seed Savers Exchange
3094 North Winn Road
Decorah, IA 52101
1-563-382-5990
Click here to print or download this list in MS Word format.
Let's get busy and start ordering seeds!
:)
