Today was another dreary day, but things are looking up.

The weather forecast was for 55 degrees today, but it was changed to windy and 40.

#BRRRRR

My arm hurt a bit, but for the most part, very few reactions, which is a very good thing.

So, I started getting seeds ready for the garden. My tiller is broken (again) so I need to get to the shop to be fixed (nothing to bad), so while it’s getting repaired, I’m getting things ready. I planted five different types of peppers today. Two types of jalapeños (big ones and early maturing), green peppers, red peppers, and orange peppers. We use them all year round and whatever we don’t eat fresh get cut up and put into the freezer.

Tomatoes, that’s more tricky this year. We want to be on the move much more, so do I plant many varieties? I have six I’d like to plant: Amish Paste, Kolb, Italians, Delicious, Red Grape, and Striped Romas. I also have a Tiger Paw that is a fairly rare variety I got at a seed swap (nerd alert) that I’d try to grow again this year.

Then there’s the herbs, cucumbers, beans, zucchini, watermelons, kale, and pumpkins I want to grow too.

#damnson

Yeah, I get carried away with all this, but it’s something I truly love to do. I find the work cleansing, getting into the dirt and sweat to make sure that things are weeded, watered, and healthy. BUT, it’s a lot of work. A LOT of work. This is the first step and it’s the easiest step too. I’ll get the tomatoes planted hopefully tomorrow and then work on the other stuff as we get into April. All of this stuff is NOT frost hardy, so the beginning of May is usually our last frost date, so if I get too ahead of myself, I’ll end of replanting or just buying things.

#andwedonotwantthatdowe

The flip side of all the work, there’s not much to buy afterwards. We put away a ton of food, both canned and in the freezer. My wife wants to get rid of the 1950s era chest freezer we have, and she does have a point. I’m sure Al Gore is looking for this freezer because it’s such an energy waster, but it’s always run and run well. The same cannot be said of newer freezers on the market (just ask my parents who had one quit after two years). It’s huge and that was great when we had four people living here, but now, it’s just us. Maybe a downsize is in the works.

#whatisyourpoint

Sorry. We have this freeze and purchase a 1/2 of a hog, a 1/4 of beef, then fill it to the brim with the things we grow. Frozen corn, jams, blueberries (bought from a truck that comes down from Michigan), green peas, zucchini, tomatoes, egg rolls (we buy cabbage to grow, then do our own), and other things I know I’m forgetting. With the sweat equity, we save a ton of money.

So, a gardening we will go, again.

And I’m all for it!