Transplanting Station and More

Sorry for not getting my Friday post put up. I did get a great freebie last week that I cannot wait to share with you. I will be sharing about it on Friday since I did not have time to get a post put up last week, so be watching for that. 

Today I want to share just a bit of what has had me so busy lately.   

As you probably know in May I had to give up a volunteering job that I loved because I value breathing fresh air. It was difficult at first but I am so glad that since that time God has led me to try and do things I may not have tried had I been busy volunteering. When doors close, God has some special doors just waiting. Up potted some tomato plants today. I have never started seeds early and inside before. Most of the time I have bought plants and gone from there. This year I have thoroughly enjoyed watching my little plants grow. God is amazing in how He created things- you can see His handiwork in all of His creation!

This year I started quite a bit of things from seeds. I started with these awesome 6 pack planters - they came with a plastic cover like a mini greenhouse. This week I had some of plants getting big enough that it was time to up pot them. So I got some solo cups. My husband drilled some holes on the bottom of them. It is a fun quick job - when you turn the stack over and drill a good amount at a time - depending on how long your drill bit is. This was a great tip I got from a youtuber. One of the many reasons I love watching youtube video's the potential to learn so much! 

Here are some of my beautiful cucumbers! 

And my tomatoes! 

Something cool I have noticed when a lot of plants come up they have 2 little leaf's and if you give them a little more time and keep watching them you will notice that they begin to get their true leaves. It has been so fun to watch them grow. 

So here is a tomato plant up potted into a solo cup. 

Something else I have learned that I would like to share with you another tip that I have learned - it is a great idea to water from the bottom - once the plant begins to grow. It helps protect the plant from getting damaged by the water and it also helps draw the roots down. 

Here is a bit of my transplanting station in my sun room. It is the desk that I had thought I would be getting rid of but where it sits - it is perfect for all sorts of jobs. I am SO very thankful that I did not rush to get rid of it. 

I don't know if you can see them - but I had some chickens watching me through the window. 

My chickens have really enjoyed having more space in the yard. And their original chicken yard - seems like it might actually grow some grass this year!! It was bare last year. We had a drought and then the chickens ate it before it could grow very much. But now they have a larger section of our yard so they have plenty of grass to eat and bugs to find! They are so much happier now and laying better as well. Bonus for us! :O) 

So this week I will begin the job of hardening off my plants. So if you start seeds inside - it is not wise to just take them directly out to greenhouse or even directly plant them into the garden without hardening them off. So you can look up the proceedure - but basically it is taking your plants to the greenhouse for 2 hours the first day, then 4 hours the next day. And if you are planning on planting them in the garden - then you will want to take the plants outside for a couple of hours the first day and then 4 hours the next day and so forth. So you are giving the little plants time to get used to their new environment. I am so very thankful that I got an email from Farmers Almanac and that was one of the articles that the email was telling about - I am thankful for the reminder. 

I want to be successful in growing my plants and I am so thankful for all of the awesome resources - youtube videos, websites, emails, and books. Gardening is a trial and error thing for sure - but it is very helpful to learn from others. They have tried things and share what worked for them or what did not. All this information is very useful. I hope that you are able to learn something from me as I share little tidbits hear and there that I have learned. Don't let gardening overwhelm you. There is SO much to learn, but you won't learn if you are not willing to try. 

Plants are another blessing from our Creator. And it is amazing to watch them grow! 

Be blessed! :O)