Comments on: Column: Seeds & Stems

By: Pete Richards

Pete Richards — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 21:00:05 +0000

Agreed, March is one of my favorite times in Ann Arbor as the sun gets high enough in the sky to truly dispel winter and the day stretches into early evening. How about consolidating February into March, we could call the new month Farch and add the leftover days to Indian Summer.

By: Lenadams Dorris

Lenadams Dorris — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 19:08:25 +0000

Sowing seeds of temperate vegetables (almost all the leafy ones, almost all the root ones) on the surface of reasonably open soil once the snow melts allows the seeds to sprout when ready, emulating what their ancestors did in nature.

Mid-March may be early in some years, but all around me I see natives and weeds already sprouting. Part of being a gardener is flexibility!

And is there really someplace in Ann Arbor with a Neighborhood Association that would dare outlaw vegetables in the front yard? Wherever it is, it sounds painful in ways I won’t even begin to elucidate.

By: Donna Estabrook

Donna Estabrook — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 18:58:11 +0000

What neighborhood do you live in, JCP2, that does not allow vegetable gardens in the front yard? Perhaps the neighborhood association would do well to learn about the local food movement.

By: jcp2

jcp2 — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 17:08:10 +0000

February is time for skiing, skating, sledding, and snow forts. I got my March gardening fix in October, actually. Now I’m waiting to see if the crocuses I put in the lawn will come up. Daffodils and alliums tide me over in April. Would a trellis of snow peas in the front violate the neighborhood association’s rules against vegetable gardens in the front yard? I’ve gotten away with sunflowers and a pumpkin before.

By: Vivienne Armentrout

Vivienne Armentrout — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 15:31:36 +0000

I have been successful every one year out of two in planting lettuce and spinach around St. Patrick’s day, covered with non-woven row cover. By April 1 I can pull back the row cover to be greeted with seedlings that grow quickly to give me an early salad crop. We’ll need a few dry days in the near future for me to work the soil.

There is a lot of work being done now with season extension and one of these years I’ll try the mini-hoophouse idea (install hoops over individual rows).

Meanwhile, I need to start my cole crops now so I can plant those transplants in early April. (They are frost-resistant.)

By: vicki honeyman

vicki honeyman — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 15:30:53 +0000

thanks rz! great article.