Mulched Fall Garden, fig harvest, & Fall greenhouse beauty

 Last Friday was bitter cold. It was down in the 30 degrees F. In the evening, I made sure to cover the garden plants to protect them from frost. The next day, I uncovered them and heavily mulched the veggie garden. I was able to get a truck load of mulch to cover the arden of broccoli, cauliflower and kale. The remaining bit of mulch, I placed around the fruit trees and some fruit bushes. In order to mulch the rest of the fruit bushes, I'm going to need another load of mulch! 

Below are pictures of the veggie garden I mulched Saturday.

The greenhouse I went to to get the mulch, was colorfully decorated again, this time with some new flare. A couple posts back, I showed the cute fall settings at the greenhouse, but I'm adding more here..

I was also able to pick some figs too last weekend. Of course, they were delicious!

Veggies and flowers in April garden

Work is never done--especially, not mine! Not only am I transplanting and sewing veggies and flowers in my garden, but also in my grandparent's neck of the woods.

Yesterday I bought my grandparents 6 pansies, a gerbera, 3 tattoo black cherry petunias, a Vermillion rose begonia, and another type of pink rose geranium. I transplanted the pansies today in large pots at their house.

Additionally, I tilled and mulched a flower bed against their house where I also planted 65 gladiolus bulbs. Then I dug up a couple spots where their rose bushes are and planted over 10 Hollyhock roots.

Then, I also worked on the structure for my hardy kiwi plants. I have a male and female and need another female kiwi to plant with them. I hammered in 4 metal posts and tied 4 swing set poles to the posts and then tied fencing up as a support for the kiwis. Honestly though, the kiwis are growing in such a tangled mess, I'll have to full with them this fall by cutting them back completely. I have had them growing here for over 5 years and have yet to see blooms.

All these projects today drained all my energy, but yesterday I managed to buy some mulch and sheet mulch over the mint and oregano patch, including the Hibiscus and Phlox patch, and one of my garden beds. I mulched around the artichoke and okra seedlings and put mulch in 14 potato bags to prep for planting potatoes on Good Friday.

I'll take a break for the rest of the evening and start working in the morning to finish laying the mulch.

Mulched artichoke, okra, hibiscus, and phlox

Mulched mint and oregano bottle garden

The six garden beds are full of arugula, spinach, radish, lettuces, peas, and cilantro, and I have been picking them here and there to eat. I harvested some radishes to make room for the other radishes too. With these, it's important to keep them watered throughout the spring.

Onion and lettuce bed

Strawberry bed

Lettuces 

Compost pile of squashes!

cilantro bed and radish, arugula, spinach bed

Cilantro 

spianch and arugula 

Pineapple sage

Radishes and lettuces 

blueberry, raspberry, and goji berry patch
With plastic sheeting

You might say all these pictures of flowers are repetitive but I am in love! These flowers are my babies! Everyday there are new flowers, angles, the sun hits them a certain way--I can't help but take so many photos...

I transplanted Dahlias too with my mother today. It's the little things like planting flowers with your family and showing gratitude, making memories mean more to them than anything, so dont take that for granted and do something for someone everyday. That's what flowers have taught me in growing them.

Mulching garden beds, fruit trees and flowers

As the spring proceeds, I am continuing to garden prep. On saturday, I bought a truck load of mulch and mulched around all the vegetables that are growing in the garden beds.

Additionally, I used the remaining mulch to put around the 5 Peach and nectarine trees. I expanded the surface area of the mulch around the trees and created a rock boarder to contain the mulch.

Then the last bit of mulch went around some of the flowers that were in desperate need and hadn't been mulched in awhile.

I'm excited to see the tulips blooming, as I have planted more out in the beds. Sadly, I have noticed many tulips are dying off. I caught wind of some information about growing tulips that is useful: to dig them up, separate them and store somewhere cool and dry until next Spring. Tulips die out in damp environments, and I believe this is happening here but I also speculate that animals are eating the bulbs. 

I will keep you posted of all the upcoming beautiful flora and fauna.

Garden beds planted and covered with swiss chard, spinach, lettuces, radishes, and arugula

Plum flowering

Peach trees blooming