Sowing the seeds of love

The combination of J's whimpering of "when are you going to plant lettuces" AND the fact that I actually meant to plant the first spring veggies last weekend AND a sunny window of opportunity in a day of very changeable weather forced me outside after work (at home today and after getting a pot of beef daube simmering on the stove.

One hour of work (and one hour of worrying that gusts of wind would blow my precious seeds away) allowed me to sow:

• Cabbage ("Ruby Ball" and "Derby Day")
• Broccoli ("Small Miracle")
• Swiss chard ("Rainbow")
• Wild Arugula
• Spinach ("Teton")
• Endive (frisee)
• Wild garden mustards
• Cilantro
• Lettuce (a mix)

All seed (except the cilantro) was from Territorial Seeds. While I drool over many seed catalogs, I trust Territorial the most, since their research gardens are, like my garden, in the Pacific Northwest, west of the Cascade Mountains (albeit in Oregon's Willamette Valley, which does have slightly warmer summers than Seattle).

Since this year I am trying to garden according to the phases of the moon and other astrological signs (sounds kooky, I know, but I think there is actually something to it), I have to grab my planting windows when I can, which can be hard this time of year when said windows may be filled with soaking rain. Today was one of the best days of the month for planting, period, and it was in the right moon phase for planting crops that grow mostly above ground. So, whew, I'm glad I managed to get it done!