Planting Season

It’s planting season and I’ve had significantly less time to write.  Two weeks ago it was Mother’s day, and for those of us in Denver that means we can put roots in the ground.  My evenings and weekends have been filled with soil. 

There was a lot of work to be done in the garden before I could think about planting.  The first step was to clean out the existing vegetable beds.  One raised bed had been haphazardly planted in mid-March with lettuce, arugula, cabbage, radish, and swiss chard.  Already in that bed were chives, parsnips, strawberries, and at the other end some raspberries as well.  I still haven’t decided what I’ll plant in it for the summer season. The raspberries are a challenging companion for many plants, and are slowly expanding their range in the bed.  The other raised bed hasn’t been touched since last fall, and was filled with dandelions and happy little seedlings from the neighbors Siberian Elm tree*.  This raised bed is one I built in my first spring in this house, and it is a pain to work in.  I threaten to dismantle it every year.  It’s too deep to reach across.  Strawberries have constantly attempted to overtake it, and this year I’ve decided it is time to let them win.  The strawberries share their space with 2 chive plants, and these plants will need to be divided later this summer.  I’ll let the entire 32 sq ft space be until then, except for adding some spinach seeds to the mix.  By the end of summer, there will likely be strawberry plants throughout the bed, and maybe next spring there will be enough for me and the squirrels.

All of this is to say, I didn’t have enough space to plant this season.  I built 3 raised beds Mother’s Day weekend, adding more than 75 sq ft of planting space.  In that space I planted butternut squash, cucumbers, and zucchini. I added shishito peppers to the butternut squash bed, lipstick peppers to the cucumber bed, and garlic to the zucchini bed.  The garlic should’ve been planted last fall, but I forgot about it in a box.  In each bed I also planted calendula (marigold) and sunflowers. 

There still wasn’t enough space.  I had more tomatoes, another variety of squash, and an entire flat of basil left.  I’d already filled hanging baskets with kale, mustard greens, salad mixes, and swiss chard.  I’d filled my remaining pots with tomatoes, herbs, and peppers. 

So...I built more raised beds this weekend.  Another 20 square feet.  I think I have enough, for now.  Well, I need more for flowers, but for veggies at least I am set.   * Don't plant Siberian Elm Trees.