Peas and Bees

We have our first real big snow storm of the year and it’s February! It started coming down this afternoon and should last until sometime tomorrow, with about 14 inches dropped on the ground once it moves out of here. One thing that I loved about today was that while there were snowflakes falling I was outside planting vegetables. I added some cauliflower seeds to an open bed, turnip with the peas and garlic along with some carrots into the smaller bed housing the rest of the pea plants. I have been toying around with companion planting am trying it now with my winter veggies. I have read that peas don’t grow well with garlic, but they are already planted so we will see how that crop compares to the bed that has the carrots and peas together. The latter two are supposedly friends. I added radish to my lettuce bed as I have read they make them more tender.

Before the greenhouse, peas were one of the first things I would grow, as soon as I could work the soil. They remind me of the beginning of spring when it’s still cold around here, but for gardener’s you just need to get something into the ground to make you feel like the winter is behind us and that soon our yards will be filled with bees, butterflies and all the vegetables we can fit. I am famous for planting too early, I know I do this, but I still I can’t resist. While the heat loving tomatoes may not be so forgiving of my impatience, pea plants are ready to withstand a little cold weather before enjoying the summer sun, a true New Englander at heart. Two things to note about peas is that before I plant them I soak them overnight in warm water to help with their germination and then right before planting I dust them with a powdered legume inoculant. I plant each seed about 1 inch deep, spaced 2 – 3 inches apart and will support with a trellis. I am using a tomato cage in the greenhouse because I planted them in a circular format to keep space for other plants. I was thinking about the way I grow pole beans and decided to give it a try. Anyone have any good recipes? Hopefully, I will have plenty of peas to use up in a few months.

While the snow is coming down outside I am already thinking about the warmer weather that is still months away. I have already started sorting through my seeds, ordering catalogs, making list of what I want to buy, and working out my garden designs on some graph paper. One new thing that I am excited about is making a tea and medicinal herb garden. Some of the herbs I want to grow are holy basil, rosemary, sage, thyme, calendula flowers, echinacea, chamomile, chickweed, lavender (I never have any luck growing this), St. John’s Wort, lemon balm, peppermint, hyssop, and spearmint. Along with that I will make sure I have lots of bee friendly plants, like borage, marigolds and bee balm, growing throughout the whole yard and a few places for them to stop and get a drink. Hopefully my efforts will result in lots of happy bees zipping through the garden. More bees, more pollination, better food. Bring on the buzz! Until then, I will enjoy the time I can spend in the greenhouse while watching the snow fall down outside.