8r4d The tomatoes have made the leap from my cozy basement with a gro-light into the fate-tempting climate of my backyard #garden this week. The whole thing is now planted and in the hands of the garden spirits, but I’ll do what I can to help.

8r4d Da tomatoes are getting anxious about the impending #garden introduction. Still nearly a month to wait tho.

8r4d Survival of the fittest in the #garden sprouting game, eventually only one plant per pot will prevail.

8r4d How does my #garden grow? Right now it mostly looks like a bunch of tomato seedlings basking in the lcd growlight glow.

8r4d I’ve got four different crops going as of this afternoon. It’s time to plant yer #garden already…. but which i mean pre-sprouting your tomatoes and peppers indoors eight weeks out from potentially planting outside.

I’ve upgraded my setup this year with some grow lights rather than hoping for a warm window sill. And I harvested half’s my seeds from the fridge this year, too, drying seeds from the tomatoes we buy and eat. I’m banking on the assumption that they’re fertile of course (which is not a given) but my backup plan was a package from the store.

castironguy #plums in the #garden

castironguy It’s #saskatoonberry season in our yard! #garden

castironguy The second #haskapberry haul of the season, which is good news cuz the Kid devoured that jar of jam I made with the first mini-haul a few weeks ago.

No, i’m not bleeding from the effort—they are a little leaky when they pop if you’re not super careful picking. I pulled off about 3 cups worth and they are super tasty. #garden #summer

8r4d They say never pick a fight with a #magpie but how about a family of five who are trying to eat your #garden and built a nest in the neighbours tree? I enlisted a small army to help. I thought I’d put my art skills to the test and painted eyes on a variety of objects like rocks, wood discs, and clay pots in an attempt to give the little birds the creeps when they contemplate their next visit. Will it work? Who knows. The worst case scenario is that I have a dozen little garden critters painted in the yard. Best case, my carrots might actually make it to harvest.

castironguy It was at least a dozen years ago when I first planted a pair of #haskapberry bushes in the backyard #garden and in that time the productivity of the crops has varied widely. Often we miss the harvest entirely and the birds chomp down on these tart little berries. This year I spotted a few purple glorbs catching the afternoon sunlight and realized that there was a small bounty of berries ready to be picked. These are rare little fruits that I’m sure have some storied history and lineage dating back to how they found their way into my yard, and I know it has something to do with adaptive breeding at the University one province to the east, but beyond that they are rarely anything more for us than bird food. Not this year, I guess.

8r4d Day one of #garden 2024. It’s May long weekend and that means one thing here in the Canadian Prairies in suburban backyards: planting your vegetable garden. Sue there’s not much to see today, and I’m not putting out the tomatoes and peppers for another week or so, but all my seeds are in the ground and the bird netting is up.

8r4dsfeets A bit of thatching as we kick into some #garden time and #yardwork