Well the jury’s out on the ladybug’s overall effectiveness, but that didn’t mean I could rest on my laurels.
Again the siren call of my discount…
The Kentucky wonder beans I’ve been growing from seed look awful. Not surprising after all, they were planted during a sluggy season and they all got nibbled to death.
I re-sowed them but they still look rough. Anyways it doesn’t matter, because the haricot vert starts came in!
So I planted them and built a trellis.
4 six-foot stakes, some netting and 16 soft ties is all you need for one season’s trellis. The stakes and soft ties are reusable, the netting not so much. Hopefully the new beans take as well as the blue lake I got earlier.
As you can see those are positively bushy.
Speaking of terrible segues, the African blue bush basil has come in, and I have a plan to make at least one of them perennial.
The trick was to buy two. One goes where it always goes, replacing my Thai and purple basil that never really got anywhere, and the other goes in a large pot.
The idea is- if we have a mild winter both should survive just fine outside. But if it’s a cold windy rainy mess like this year, I can leave the bedded basil to its own devices- but the potted basil can be taking indoors at night.
Now that’s using your noodle.
I also finally ripped out the bolting chervil and replaced it with my favorite herb, lovage!
I’m not taking out the bolting parsley as it has bugs and ladybugs so I’m leaving it alone. I’m looking forward to having lovage to cook with again.
I’m also still taking cuttings in an attempt to corner the mint market. I got a specialty fancy soil I’m going to use for cuttings from now on- in an attempt to give them a boost.
It’s one of the foxfarm ones, this one’s called ocean forest and it’s filled with goodies.
I’m trying my hand at propagating the Yerba Buena for gifts. Since it’s so rare it would be really cool if I could grow them from cuttings, so I’m trying the ocean forest to maximize my chances.
It’s already starting to get on the sunny side when it’s not cloudy. I think summer is coming!
Finally!
The Neanderthal Gardens 
Oh, no you didn’t! Beans from seedlings?! They are too easy to grow from seed, and cheaper too. I suppose there is nothing wrong with seedlings, but they take a moment to recover, and are not that much farther along that seed. Watch them though, just so they don’t get tired like your seedlings did. (Of course you watch them.) I know they were only tired because of the weather, but I hope it is not because of all the ‘new’ media.
so! my trionfo violetto are from seed and they were fine- its these kentucky wonders which I think came from an old packet. I’m so busy with work and I get such a discount… that haricot vert, my mother’s fav bean made sense. But in general I agree!
hmmm . . . age should not make a difference if they germinate. I mean, they are either viable or they are not. Once they grow, the age of the seed is irrelevant. Were the haricot vert not available as seed; or was the expense just not worth worrying about. Haricot vert is my mother’s favorite too. I would buy seedlings of them if I needed to.
I couldn’t fine haricot vert pole seeds, only bush