Awesome, Steve! I know you've put a in lot of work with that greenhouse heater and I'm glad it's doing it's job.

Your dad, helping out at 101! Clearly some good genes and with that longevity you'll be with us a good, long time. I'm glad for us!

My first flat of eggplant, peppers and a few tomatoes sown 3/15 has all sprouted, most actually came up last week except one stubborn pot of Round Mauve eggplant. Brand new seed, so I'm not sure what the issue is. I'll keep it on the heat mat a while longer, but may just resow that variety.

It was a beautiful day here, 75+ degrees but just a bit too windy to take seedlings outside. I'll sow a second flat this weekend, mostly tomatoes this go round. I'm glad it's greenhouse time for you!

Barb

Wow! Your Dad is 101 and still helping out! That's Awesome.

I've moved a fair amount of cool season stuff from the indoor grow area to the cold frames or tunnels. The warm season stuff is going to need to stay in the basement for now.

My germination rate indoors seems a little low this year not sure what's up with that. Some can be attributed to some older seed but also started lots of new seed. The trees and fruit bushes that I'm trying to start from seed have not done much yet besides the ground cherries but it's only been about 2+ weeks.

The germination in the new high tunnel has been really good. Everything has started within 11 days. Now I need to finish the rabbit fence before the tunnel will need to be left open. Just another 100 feet of digging a trench in heavy clay soil.

Dad is asleep on the couch in the living room. He said to "let me know if you need any help." But, he was a little impatient when he was told the other day that he wasn't needed to put soil in flats ...

I was just spooning a little extra soil mix into some cells around plants, thinking how he must have under-filled some cells. Then, I remembered that I'd nearly dropped a flat taking it out of a basin of water - sloshing some soil over the edge. Yep, it was mine.

Dad was very pleased how his transplants have recovered and are standing up, searching for the sun. He mentioned that 3 times!

Steve

The temporary hoop house has been up and a few days of sun has been warming the 2 backyard garden beds in there. We have had some recent clouds and wind with a little rain but the daily outdoor temperatures haven't cooled off. Inside that structure, it's something of a different story.

Not to worry! Temperatures are more easily moderated in that 9' by 20' temporary structure than in the 9' by 20' greenhouse. Of course, the greenhouse has a furnace and fans. The hoop house is just passive at the moment, a door and window to open or close. Ya know, I think that the cultivated beds in there help. Maybe even my 2018 composting-in-place ...

Seed for bok choy and orach has gone into the beds. I bet that there will soon be seedlings breaking the soil surface.

Steve

who may decide to move some first-sowing tomatoes from cell packs to pots this morning ...

Those early sown tomatoes grew enuf in their cell packs to be moved into pots about a week ago. Later sown moving continues. That all means that plants 48 in a flat nearly triple their space requirements!

The tomatoes and peppers haven't left the greenhouse but other things have transitioned to the hoop house. The night before last, I had tender babies in there and set up an electric heater and fan. With outdoors nearly hitting the thirties, it would have been too big of a step for plants that had never experienced anything below 60°f. The hoop house retains practically no heat, overnight.

I set up a "hoopie" on the lawn, yesterday. Some things like the cabbage are already in there. Then, we had 69° and the warmest afternoon of the year. This morning's low, 55°! Who needs heat?? It might be sprinkling out there but the clouds are holding the warmth for the warmest 2019 overnight low.

Maybe, sprinkling or not, the garden soil will finally be dry enuf for some tilling.

Steve

And, right back in the 30's ...

3 AM - the electric heater and fan in the hoop house have been turned on.

Dad asked me last night, "we don't have to get up early tomorrow, right?" No but it's my habit, welcome and useful, or not.

Steve

Haha that's so cool about your dad. Gardening does keep one young. :)

I sooooo wish I had a greenhouse! Don't know if I have the oomph for hoop houses this year. I was going to rebuild them, but we might be putting in a deck in that space, so....

I have a couple of tomato plant starts I pity-rescued from Ace Hardware last September (just 50 cents!) that have been overwintering in a south-facing spare room upstairs. They somehow survived and are now HUGE and I'm loathe to put them out in June, as I'm not sure how they'll take to the Great Outdoors after being coddled since 2018.

Maybe I'll just keep 'em inside as an experiment.

That was beautifully said, Steve!

2 inches of heavy, wet spring snow has landed here in the last hour. It'll be 32 degrees the next few nights. I haven't been able to get the plants out for more than 3 hours at a time here and have scorched a few working up to that this season. It's been a wiiindy spring, too.

I've got a lot of seedlings to up-pot and this weather is the perfect time to do it.

Barb

Ah, plant guilt. I know how that feels.

Four inches of snow fell here in Fort Collins over the last 24 hours, and it still has yet to melt much. Guess I'll keep 'em indoors, after all! ;)