Spring, the Season of Change!

Lots of change in the air….

I got a new job! I start next week. I’ll be going from a slow-paced/academic/think-tank environment to a faster-paced organization where I’ll be more involved with public policy, and hopefully get back to doing more international work, which is something I have missed. I’m very excited for the change in pace and the chance to do something new. My schedule is going to change quite a bit, though. Right now I can set my own hours and usually work from ~7:30 – 4. At the new place the hours are set at 9-6, which will leave me plenty of time for going to the gym in the morning. The downside is that I’ll have no excuse not to go to the gym in the morning. :(

Posting may be sporadic as I adjust to the new schedule. This is part of the reason I've been wanting a "low maintenance" garden this year. Work on that is still underway. Wherever you are, I hope you're enjoying the changes of Spring!

Earth Day 2013

Last week was a difficult week. As someone on Twitter pointed out, you know it's been a crazy week when the story about an Elvis-impersonator sending a ricin-laced letter to the President is not the top news story in the U.S.  Here's to hoping that this week is more peaceful than last week, not just in this country but all over the planet.

For Earth Day, I like something that CNN's Eatocracy blog posted last year: Try to grow something that you can eat, or join a CSA, or support your local farmers' market. Do one thing to keep your resources in your community. I think it's a nice way to focus on our environment, and to remember that old slogan-- "Think globally, act locally."

Seed Sowing: Onions

The only seed sowing I've begun so far is my onion seeds. I started these back in February:

• Bronze D'Amposta red onions (ordered from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds)
• Sweet Spanish  (Ferry Morse, purchased at local garden center)
• Red Burgundy (Ferry Morse, purchased at local garden center)
• Hybrid Granex Yellow (Ferry Morse, purchased at local garden center)

I planted 5 of each seed. I got a good germination rate from the Baker Creek seeds-- 3 out of 5 germinated. I'm most excited to try these onions. They're described as "sweet...A great variety for fresh eating, as it is not too hot tasting." I think that means I won't repel my husband when I move in for a kiss.

Germination rates:
1 Sweet Spanish onion germinated, 3 out 5 Red Burgundy onions germinated, and only 1 of that wacky hybrid one germinated, but it promptly shriveled and died. Hybrids!

I think red onions are so pretty and I hope that my red onions seedlings pull through.

I mentioned weeding out my onion patch in my last post. I planted this onion patch in Fall 2011, and last summer harvested about 2 pounds of onions. I left the others in the ground (show in picture above) and they survived the winter. It smelled really good when I was weeding last weekend!

 {{Here's what I harvested last summer from the onion patch.}}

Sadly, I cannot remember what variety they are!! That really bugs me because I'd love to grow more of them. They are mild and slightly sweet, and the flavor is very concentrated. A little bit goes a long way when I'm cooking and they're OK when eaten raw.

I also have a small garlic patch, which happened by accident. I call this variety Farmers' Market garlic because I bought a head of garlic at the farmers' market last fall, put in it in the ceramic garlic house when I got home, and forgot all about it. A couple of weeks later I went to use it, and the cloves had sprouted little stems. So I broke them apart and planted them in my raised bed out back.

Are you growing onions or garlic?