What to do on a cold cold winter day? Clean the basement of course. I will not be starting my seeds down there until April, but nevertheless, the big tables have become cluttered. (What to do with all the damn books!) Nevertheless, I start the clearing process - put away the camping and fishing gear and books! and get ready to put up the shop lights.
On the computer, (Microsoft Word file) I make a list of seeds and seed starting information. Each type has its own protocol. Some germinate in the dark; others need light. Some need heat and some cool. In a home growing situation, one does the best one can. I use the information I have collected over the years and the information in the seed packet. I note here the seed packet info is often vague or just plain wrong. For instance I start most seeds inside even though the packet says "plant outside as soon as the soil is warm." I want my flowers fast, not in August. The only seeds I plant outside are nasturtiums. I tack the list to the wall of the back basement room and I put up the calender with the start dates marked.
What else to do on a cold winter day? Toss out the hyacinth and iris blooming from the bulbs I planted in October. Put the amaryllis in the cold room. Water the house plants and give each on a quarter turn. Read my book in the heated back porch and watch the finches, sparrows, chickadees and starlings, and big black squirrel attack the feeders.
Last fall, I set out newspapers on a patch of lawn beside a garden bed. I shovelled compost onto the papers and in this way, the turf is broken down and a new section of garden can be created. But what to put here? I am very partial to giant hosta. I have a huge hosta bullying its way under the Explorer Roses. The giants are not easy to find but this year, T&T advertises Empress Wu Giant Hosta. Mmm. On the other hand, hostas attract slugs and then they look raggedy unless I constantly strew coffee grounds all around them. Maybe another rose? Or a hydrangea?
