Spring in Full Swing

This little gem is a yellow wonder alpine strawberry. They are creamy white with yellowish-green seeds and creamy flesh. No wonder you can't sell these at the market. They are so soft, they melt in your mouth. I bet they would turn brown quickly with bruising. I've read that they have a bit of a pineapple taste, but this one was deliciously tart with a creamy mild aftertaste. It is definitely a strawberry and was worth all the fuss of growing them from seed. It looks like we'll have just enough to snack on all summer unless they don't like the high heat. 

Here's one that is almost ripe.

The Sea Breeze strawberries are going nuts! I wonder if it is because we grew borage next to them last year and there are a bunch of borage volunteers growing up with them this season. Apparently the birds don't notice the yellow wonder alpines, and I can see why; they fruits grow on perfectly down-turned stems that aren't visible from above.  I helped Kyle build a strawberry "hutch" out of wood frame and chicken wire for the Sea Breeze strawberries.  Oh, and I picked the first ripe one of those and we each ate a half. It was perfectly tart (as per the variety) and had no white styrofoamy middle. Home grown are the best. The white dust you see throughout the garden is animal and human safe Zamzows Zone for garden plants. You can actually put it on a dog for fleas with no worries. We are using it for pill bugs, carpenter ants, slugs, and earwigs. The honeybees don't seem to mind at all.

The peas are finally blooming. I made sure to put labels in the ground, because we are growing three kinds. Note: Do Not use popsicle sticks and sharpie. the labels won't last though spring, and you won't remember what is where. 

These are the first pea pods spotted this spring!

Stock tank pondtainer newly planted in the late evening sun.

The red russian kale seeds Emily gave me are doing well.

Kyle is going to have to thin his french pumpkins down to two plants soon. Mine aren't coming up well near the compost bins. The soil there is pretty dense. I may need to transplant a few we have starting indoors. 

The sage is blooming for the first time.

We have about 8 new black krim tomatoes starting.

Chives in full bloom. The bees love them.

The delphinium from last year is now four feet tall and has several flower stalks growing out of it. This is a closeup of the first one to bloom. Wow, true blue and violet.

The dragon tongue beans sprouted today.

We have at least three lilies coming up. I love my little reflecting pool.

Kyle helped me set up drip irrigation for the porch planters. I love the simplicity of how I can set them and I can't wait to see how big the container plants get this year. They always dried out too much to flourish.