I highly recommend it!
This is Part 2 of my January task list. In Part 1 I was preparing the soil and fertilizing the lawn, right before a big storm was expected. Now I’m ready to plant something!
Today I planted annual transplants. Specifically, 33 snapdragons. My gardening book says to plant spring-flowering transplants. Truth be told I’m not sure how much longer these snapdragons are going to hold on – maybe 3 months – because I believe they are considered a cool season annual here. But I love them so I’m planting them!
I would love to say the sun was out and birds were singing but this was not the case today. It began to rain just as I went outside to begin planning my garden beds. Big drops of rain fell all over my hair and my flannel shirt. Not to the point of soaking but just enough to feel the rain’s presence. If I were back home I’d just throw on a hoodie but as it stands I dashed inside to get a shell jacket. I didn’t want to call it a day yet because as a mom of two little kids, finding time to garden is a challenge. I have to take and treasure any time I can get to pursue my hobbies. So I pressed forward through the rain with my planning and planting, and I’m so glad I did. There have been studies about the benefits to mood just by digging in the soil. Smelling the soil and dampness and gently laying something beautiful in the ground and patting the soil all around it in the hopes that it will flourish was just what I needed today. My jacket became overkill as the sun came out and a rainbow appeared, reminding me of God’s promise like it always does.
I just read in my gardening book about how to plant annuals. You can plant them in a row, which I’ve always done, or you can stagger them. I chose to stagger them this time because I really want to create a layered effect with many flowers.
The plan is to plant sunflowers in the back, then zinnias, then snapdragons and California poppies, then nasturtium. I want to create layers of annuals and lots of color.
What better way to start than with snapdragons? I didn’t know this before but my father in law mentioned getting seeds from his snapdragons and they seed themselves too. Awesome – less work and/or free seeds. I checked out some existing snapdragons we have in the front yard and sure enough, they have brown seed pods on them. I investigated and they are full of a ton of seeds! I saved some for later. Maybe next year I won’t have to pay $3.98 for 6.
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