So I am experimenting for my first time in growing things...Crazy that at 27 years, I am just trying this now...but better late than never?!?
Mike and I went to Southern States yesterday and almost had that "kid in a candy store" feeling. He basically wanted to go in order to get stuff for the grass/yard...
But I had bigger things up my sleeve!
I wandered over to the seed area and "pigged out" if you will on seed packets - do not worry, I didn't literally EAT them, I just wanted them ALL! Luckily I had a list of items we like to eat and tend to buy from the store so often that it would be GRAND to make them ourselves, save a lil $$ and pass out extra to friends and family (if we can actually grow these items...please, oh please, let me have a green thumb!)
I started off looking over the vast number of shelves and displays that had all kinds of seeds, you name it, it was there...guaranteed!
My list was comprised of several things-lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, carrots, cucumbers, onions, cilantro and basil. Of course, there were multitudes of other items such as flowers and other herbs and squash and radish and watermelon and...and...and...(I could go on for days here...) I was sorting through all these things, trying to find the best looking ones (with nice pictures and explanations of how to "make this grow!" on the back.)
It was VERY hard to choose...It felt like I stood there for hours (hopefully it was 15 min or less!)
There were SOOO many different brands and different types of the SAME thing that my head felt like it was spinning. Mike was still off getting grass stuff so I couldn't bother him quite yet. So I picked out a few things that looked best and got his opinion on others...
Then there was the onion problem...
It was the last packet to pick up-I couldn't find them! Easily enough, Mike pointed them out with no problem...BUT when I flipped this bad boy over to read the label, I saw that you were supposed to plant the seeds in fall, let them grow into bulbs over the winter and then allow them to mature into the Spring and Summer...
Well, folks, we missed that train by a season or two! (oops!)
But alas, we were saved! Mike happened to peek into some barrels behind the seed packet area (that I was naturally blinded by and drawn to all at once...) and saw that we could buy bulbs of different onion varieties by the pound...so that solved that problem!
After checking out and spending some $$ that will hopefully turn into some yummy produce later on, we headed home (after going to the grocery store and buying some of these items...counter-intuitive much!)
Now came the next task
The peppers and tomatoes need to be planted indoors 8-10 and 6-8 weeks (respectively) prior to being transplanted outdoors and surviving (hopefully!). We had bought a mini-seed starter and soil for 72 seeds (which I didn't think we would need that many...but...)
I planted seeds IN EVERY SPOT - yes, 72 plants! (I'm crazy)
I know that not all will live, but I am praying that SOME make it so we can continue planting them outside! I am hoping to take some pictures to catch the progress, but since 6-10 weeks is a ways off...it may be a while before I have any footage of it all. If we are lucky, we will have some amazing plants (and some to share!) and lots of yummy food that WE worked hard to make :)
I do have once concern though...
As much as I love my mother and she LOVES plants, she has always had a hard time "keeping them alive"...which is truly sad. She really loves to get outdoors and work hard in her yard and plant things and watch them grow and enjoy the flowers/fruit/food that comes with them, but she really has a hard time with the survival of the plants...luckily, that's where my dad comes in-he seems to have the green thumb and can grow things out of anything (in my opinion)...my sister can also grow stuff like crazy-she even had tomatoes and other plants COME BACK the following year...so I am worried she got all the "green thumb genes"...
So again, PLEASE let me have a green thumb!
