Ready, Set, Go!

And so it begins...

I've read plenty of books, blogs and websites. TastefulGarden was by far the most helpful as a beginning gardener. Some helpful books were; "You Bet Your Tomatoes" and "Mike McGrath's Book of Compost" both by Mike McGrath.

We finished both of our raised garden boxes last weekend. Each measure 4x8 feet. The last bit of dirt is going in this weekend. The plants are here, waiting patiently to be planted. Here in Virginia I think we are all hoping today will be the first day of the rest of spring. The attic fan turned on today, that's always a good sign it is warm out!

We had a little aphid scare today. A first for me. I was keeping the plants inside until we planted but apparently that makes them more prone to having aphids attack. How did I know I had aphids? The plants leaves started to curl and if I looked closing I could see little white and green specs, only about the size of a well sharpened pencil. I called and spoke with Cindy at Tasteful Garden and she explained what I had and how to fix it.

First, get the plants outside. They come to us ready to be left outside as long as we don't have a freeze warning. Second, dunk them in mildly soapy water (I used Dawn) that is cool-warm. Rub the leaves very gently to loosen the aphids. Let them dry in a shady place (very important or their leaves may burn). At the end of the day, rinse them in cool-warm water and let them dry. It worked! I didn't see any more aphids. The watermelon beefsteak is looking a little sad and droopy right now but I hope that will pass.