April Showers? Hope So

Here it is the first week of April and not a rain cloud in sight. Great for making energy with my solar panels, not so good for the gardens. We need rain, and not just a little bit of rain but a nice gentle rain, say an inch a day for about a week. That will green up the grass for the animals and give the bulbs a good push the perennials and bulbs a decent push in the right direction.

Seeding is coming along. I think I am getting the hang of these new soil blocks. Talk about a learning curve. Hopefully by the end of the sowing season I will have figured out all the nuances, but maybe not. Only time and practice will tell. With last week’s bitter cold morning temperatures some of my seedling took a hit. The experimental cool ones that were planted in the bed seem to have weathered the cold better than the baby seedlings that were just too young. I should have brought them in for the two nights but I thought the double layer of remay would have helped. Well maybe it did, but not enough it seems. Need to sow some more tomorrow to catch up. What did do really well was the dusty miller and the Icelandic poppies, snapdragons, bachelor buttons flax and stock.

Dusty miller seedlings
Icelandic poppy

The spring bulbs are springing forth. The daffodils are slowly emerging, and the tulips seem to really like where they are because they are really growing. It would be really strange to have fresh local tulips before the daffodils. The other spring bulbs are also emerging and every walk around the gardens I see more exciting things happening.

Just look at those tulips!

Between seeding, pacing the gardens, learning on Zoom and webinars, I have been getting the beds ready for planting. Today Steve helped me get the sweet pea fencing up, I have reworked the newer flower beds, getting them straight and where they should be. Irrigations is getting laid out because in another five to six weeks I will be planting out and things do tend to get chaotic here at the farm.

I look forward to seeing you all later this spring when the blooms are a bloom’n. Don’t forget to sign up for the Lottarock Flower Club membership. Checks and be mailed to PO Box 35, Hancock NH 03449, or you can come on the first day you want flowers as well. Until next time, I leave you a photo of what is to come. Soon. I hope. I am ready.

Last years daffs on this date. Looking this todays daffs.