xylem

Also just getting started! The only edible fruiting plant when I moved here in 2023 was a black raspberry bush. A year ago I added two apple trees (though the honey crisp may not have survived the winter, we'll see). I had a very successful annual garden last year, hoping to continue that this coming season and try out the three sisters companion planting method.

For perennials, this year I'll be adding two blueberry bushes, inoculating some logs with shiitake and oyster mushroom spawn, and encouraging some volunteer black raspberries that have popped up elsewhere.

Pruning hasn't been an issue yet, but I will need to more actively manage the raspberries this year.

In the future I'm hoping to add lots more edible native shrubs, and maybe more trees if I can find good spots for them.

I'm in the northeast woodlands bioregion of the US, zone 5. I have two compost bins going with leaves, grass clippings, shredded paper/cardboard and kitchen scraps. Last year one bin produced enough to cover about one and a half of my 4x8 ft garden beds. I'm planning to order a cubic yard or two from a local business again this year to top up the annual garden. I don't really expect to get fully self sufficient on compost anytime soon, but I'll keep producing as much as I'm able.

These lil dudes are also starting to pop up

It's glazed ceramic - I do pottery as well, this was someone I know from the studio I go to. Trading for stuff is so much more satisfying than paying/being paid for it.

That's a great idea for reusing vinyl blinds, wish I'd thought of it when I lived somewhere with blinds that kept breaking!

Got some stuff starting to come up (:

Need to do the majority of my summer crop seed starting this weekend, I think

I'm happy to get to use the plant markers I traded someone I know for - I designed/3D printed a "cookie cutter" so she could make these faster, and in return she made me a set

Last weekend I planted peas, kale, arugula, and radish outside - just the tiniest hint of some arugula coming up so far, but an indoor tray of radishes are germinating very nicely.

I've been eyeing the native trees and shrubs in an email I got from Fedco - I think in the future I'm going to have to plant a bunch of viburnums! Need something to replace the invasive buckthorn that pops up all over here.

@LallyLuckFarm I also just planted and scattered some of those milkweed seeds - thanks again for that!

The snow is almost all gone further south here, and I'm gleefully watching the garlic I planted last fall start to pop up. The pot of chives is also starting to show some green.

The six weeks before average last frost date has snuck up on me, I really need to get my seed starting started!

I went with a "Bluejay" and "Blueray" to start with, though I'm hoping to add more (and other berries) each year.

The beets were a few different colors, but here's one of them -

As far is fun veggies go, I grew some "carnival" beets last year that had really fun patterns when you cut them open. They were very tasty roasted!

My seed order from Fedco recently arrived and I'm thinking about planting some radish and/or lettuce inside to get things going. Also eagerly awaiting some high-bush blueberries coming later this spring!

The solid ice we've had for the last couple weeks is finally melting, and I biked to work for the first time today since before the holidays, so that was nice! I'm excited to see things start to come up again soon, and to go on another crusade against the garlic mustard once it starts showing its face in my yard

I love this idea! Looks fantastic

freesewing.org has a boxer briefs design if you're interested in making your own.

:D glad to hear it!

Loofah/luffa is so fun! I've posted pictures of mine here before, but I recently did a writeup of my experience growing them on the little personal website I've been making for fun - https://xylemphloem.xyz/blog/luffa/

This week I brought in a pot from outside to plant some pothos cuttings, forgetting it was the pot I had grown dill in last year! So now I have some baby dill seedlings popping up alongside my pothos!