Stepford Plants Report

Well, tomorrow I plan on going out and mowing, but today I finally got around to transplanting most of the windowsill seedlings into larger pots. And I've learned a few lessons for next yet. Number one is ONE SEED PER POT. Seriously. I can't bring myself to kill a plant I've grown from seed, so I should just put only one in a pot to begin with. Number two is that I should never ever ever use outside dirt, only potting soil. I'm actually having to weed my seedlings because the outside dirt I used had some weedseeds in it. And number three is that the windowsill can just fit seven pots, so that's all I should try at a time.

Ok, well, I guess it's time to do the actual update of the plants. You can see previous reports here, although I put the pictures of some behind a cut so as to not clutter my front page too much. I'll be doing that here as well, after my first report:

This week let's start with the plum stick. That's the friendly stick I got on May 6th of last year and planted while feeling like a fool since it was literally just a stick with a blob of dirt on the bottom. But, as you can see in this picture, it's now survived its first winter in its new home and is once again growing some leaves. I'll admit to some relief after seeing the leaves, as I wasn't entirely sure it had made it through. I guess I need to stop worrying and let the plants just do their thing.

Ok, cut time. Follow the link if you can't see the rest of the post.

Next up is the garden plot and the attempt to discourage the neighborhood cats from leaving "cat seeds" there by putting bird netting over the ground. It didn't work. The little suckers just left their mess on top of the netting. I'm ready to set up a motion activated spray. If I had the money for such a system, I'd already be setting it up. Bad enough that they fight in my yard in the middle of the night, I don't want their cat seeds next to my food. I didn't care so much last year because I really doubted anything would grow. Now I'm actually annoyed. *sigh*

Ok, back to the plums. The other plum tree, the grafted one from Costco that I only planted March 19th is also budding. Only one of the grafts, the Santa Rosa I think, but hey! Leaves!


I'm currently doing a deep watering of both the plum trees, which needs to be done about once a week or so. During the summer, when it's hotter, I'll be watering them very regularly. For now a deep watering is more important. Or so I've been told. I almost suspect that as long as I water them at all they will grow. The soil here is amazing.

The windowsill continues to grow, although I waited a bit too long on transplanting the zucchini. But today I went ahead and made sure that each living plant was in its own pot. So first up are the Tiny Tim Tomatoes, still in the shade in this image (not for long). One is definitely doing better than the other, but they are both still growing. They were the easiest to transplant, as the roots hadn't gotten tangled yet.


Moving on, the pepper plant is growing, but I had to check my last picture to be certain of that. I left the dying sprout where it was, because I haven't quite got the heart to pluck it out. This plant apparently doesn't like cold and shade at all, and I suspect the cold cloudy weather we had may have negatively impacted it. I'm going to make sure it's big and hardy before I replant it outside.


And now I get to the triffids. My Moneymaker tomatoes are growing just fine, thank you, and I'm certain they will be happier in their own pots. After last year's fiasco, I don't think I could kill these if I tried. While I'm still worried about the other plants, I don't have any concern for these guys. I still need to talk my friend into taking one...


Last up are the zucchini. I waited WAY too long to transplant them. They should have been transplanted the day I took my last pictures. I won't make the same mistake next year. There's a chance I may lose one or both of them this year, although I tend to doubt it. Zucchini is one of those plants that grows whether you want it to or not. And while I certainly want one, I won't be heartbroken if they don't make it this year. I'm just being practical. I'm the only one living here who really like zucchini, although Eric doesn't mind bread and cookies made from it.


Well, the water needs to be turned off, and I need to get myself ready for a yard mowing and cleanup tomorrow. It's a beautiful day outside here in Churchville, and I'm hoping tomorrow is similar. So, more when I have more to write... later.