Week Two - More Questions

The good news is the plants are stil alive.

Now, I'm not such a bad gardener that i expected anything to go wrong in just seven days, but there have been a few setbacks provided by mother nature.

First of all, the cold weather that had promised to be gone for the winter decided it was ready for one last fling. Temperatures so cold that snow actually fell in some of the outlying areas of Las Vegas, followed by howling wind and even icy rain.

I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do... did I need to cover them? With what? Towels? Plastic bags? I wasn't sure, and ultimately they seemed no worse for the wear so I stopped worrying.

The strawberry plants are already beginning to bear fruit. I have two different varieties in the basket, and both seedlings had tiny fruit when I purchased them. The "regular" strawberry plant has about four little fruits that have nearly doubled in size since planting them last week. The fruit on the Chandler berry plant, however, remain tiny and uninspired. Maybe some of the nice weather Spring promises to provide in a few weeks will help.

The cilantro has rebounded nicely. It sits beneath the strawberry basket, proud and virile. I read somewhere that you need to trim cilantro before it starts to flower, or you have to replant more. If this is true (why didn't I bookmark that site?) then how do you know it's about to flower? Should I crop some off bit by bit, or do I need to shear the entire crop at once? Anyone?

As you can see from the photo, there are four little areas on the herb pot that are empty at present. If all goes well, those will be filled with oregano, parsley, mint and maybe basil (also not a fave, though fresh in small doses is OK).

My tomatoes are superstars. The Early Girl is sprouting new growth like mad, the Mortgage Buster has grown a few inches and the cherry has a few blossoms already starting to form.

I'm starting to worry about my onions, though.

First of all, the instructions wrapping the Walla Walla onions indicated that I should plant the entire peat pot in the garden, which I did. However, the yellow onion bulbs said they needed to be planted a couple of inches apart, in well-drained soil. These are both bulb onions, right?
 
After a quick check with Google,  I realized that I will have to transplant the Walla Wallas soon in order for them to thrive. In the meantime, a few of the stalks look a bit droopy and sad. I hope it isn't too late.

I used the long, low planter I had grown strawberries in a few years ago for the yellow onions, but I totally forgot that inproper drainage was the reason those plants didn't thrive. I only planted a few of the bunch, planning to get a larger planter in a few days, but those few seem really waterlogged to me. Of course, it has been raining quite a bit, so maybe it just hasn't had time to seep out.

The jalapeños have gotten a few new leaves as well, and are looking a bit larger. Maybe it's a good thing the Walla Wallas are vacating soon, so they can take up that space. All in all, my worries about my erratic care and the strange weather have proven fruitless. Here's hoping the same won't be said of these plants.