reading material:

it's getting warmer but still not quite time to be actually planting, which means reading up as much as i can with some delicious jasmine green tea. (teavana = delicious, by the way.)

i like these books, and you should, too, if you have any interest in growing your own, yummy, organic veggies to eat all summer long:


organic crops in pots, by deborah schneebeli-morrell. this one has great really easy plants to grow in containers if you don't have much space. peppers, tomatoes, herbs, even potatoes on a patio?? who knew!

creating your backyard farm, by nicki trench. if you like to pretend you actually have the space to do this. (i am in firm denial that my yard isn't actually five acres of farmland waiting for me to fill it full of chickens and bunnys and watermelon vines. in actuality, i'm pretty sure my walk-in closet is larger than my backyard. oh, well. my delusions continue.)

the dirt cheap green thumb, by rhonda massingham hart. really good tips for starting up your garden without sinking a ton of cash into it, recycling materials and containers, choosing the best plants for what you are able to spend on them, dividing and propagating plants, etc. a very small cute book...my bathtub book currently.

and, finally, gardening for small spaces, by john cushnie, has really good basic designs and the framework for you to fill in with whatever plants you want. things like figuring out if your site is north-facing, south-facing, what plants are best for small spaces, lists of dwarf varieties. this is a good reference book for small yards, in general, and you can apply a lot of his tips for flower beds to veggie gardening.

i am getting my seeds started, have the grow light on them. heirloom tomatoes, cilantro, and beans are already sprouted and stretching towards the light. very exciting. also got tons of packets of zinnias, cosmos, sunflowers...all to sow directly into the yard in about a month. 

look: coconut ice sunflower. this is a new hybrid. i am obsessed. the only thing i have never cared for about sunflowers is the yellow. burpee fixed a new sunflower for me! :)

on that note, happy almost-spring! (so happy the daffodils are coming up, i saw some this morning.)