Hello hello, and welcome to Episode 112 of Life On the Brink!
One of my favorite things about April is that it’s the start of growing season where I live. It’s finally time to put seeds in the earth and watch them grow! I’ve spent the past several weeks preparing and planning this year’s garden, and it feels so good to finally execute some of that plan.
Of course, I’m keeping things simple this year, as I’m currently 7 months pregnant, and will be busy with a newborn for most of the summer. The goal is to have a lovely space that requires minimal tending but will provide flowers and yummy things all season.
What’s in my teacup? A classic earl grey today.
Let’s get into this year’s garden plan.
Here's the basic notes from the things I talked about in this podcast...
SPRING UPDATE: what grew back from last year
-So many herbs! I have nice new sage, rosemary, oregano,thyme, mint and lemon balm that grew back after I transplanted them last year. Fingers crossed the lavender grows back healthy as well.
-All our hydrangeas and azaleas are full and green again, as well as the butterfly bush.
-Several rose plants are alive and healthy. My favorite one is the Don Juan red rose that climbs up a trellis on the side of the house.
-The irises and daylilies have grown new leaves, I can’t wait to see these bloom again.
-Finally, I planted a whole lot of daffodil bulbs in various containers last fall so they could overwinter in soil. Well, they all came up! Some are even double daffodils and have a lovely fragrance. More on them later…
2024 GARDEN PLAN:
This year’s main focus: the front garden bed!
-so far: moved all living roses to the back of the bed, planted 2 daisy and 1 chrysanthemum plants, and transplanted daffodil bulbs to the front
-still to do: add new stones to border the bed, and add annuals. I’m thinking of seeding zinnias but still thinking.
Veggies and Herbs: I’m keeping it simple this year.
-I’ll plant 2 tomato plants like last year and plant basil around them.
-As far as other vegetables, I plan on growing some radishes from seed and maybe doing a few hot peppers (I did jalapeno and habanero last year).
-So many herbs came back from last year! I just need to replenish with new dill and chamomile plants.
New Project: edible flowers.
-I’ve planted pansy and nasturtium seeds in order to organically grow edible flowers for decorating dishes (I’m thinking cakes, fun desserts, salads?). I garnish with herbs quite a bit, and I was inspired by Manon Lagrève’s cookbook, “Simple French Baking” which is filled with simple and beautiful desserts that are decorated with flowers. Since I’m starting these flowers from seed and growing all organically, they’ll be pretty to decorate with and good to eat!
This Week’s Little Joy: Josh and I had afternoon tea at the Willard Intercontinental Hotel in Washington D.C. last week, and it happened to be their seasonal cherry-blossom-themed tea in honor of the cherry blossom festival. It was absolutely gorgeous and all the pastries were very springtimey and floral. I had a lychee rose green tea that was wonderful!
What I’m Listening To: Blossom Dearie’s album “Give Him the Ooh-la la,” which features the very seasonably appropriate “They Say It’s Spring.”
Thank you so much for listening! Feel free to leave a comment, or head to Apple Podcasts to leave a star rating or review. If you have any suggestions for future episodes, send an email in the contact form on this site. I’d love to hear from you, and I'll be back in two weeks!