Meet Blue

2015-03-30 08.00.16 As those of you in the District know, there’s been a terrible resurgence of winter. The last two weeks we have had some beautiful days of 70s and sun – and then yesterday we got a few flurries of snow. Last weekend I planted some cool-weather veggies in the garden outside – radishes, beets, and three kinds of lettuce. Sadly, I have no sprouts to report on yet. I hope that the weather is to blame, and that I didn’t just plant a garden full of duds. Only time will tell.

I did start some basil, green beans, kohlrabi, and zinnias inside, some of which have sprouted. I’m going to save those longer posts on my whole garden plan and starting seeds inside for later, though. For now, I’ll tell you about one of our first plants, a 2015 impulsively-purchased blueberry bush named Blue. Ok, so “bush” was an overstatement. Blue was pretty much a tiny stick in a box. But, it was only about $10 at Johnson’s, and it was a chance we were willing to take for fresh blueberries. Doesn’t the picture on the box look appealing?

2015-03-22 12.13.26 We brought him home, named him Blue, and put him in a terracotta pot I had spray painted maroon (terrible idea by the way – it’s covered in chips now). Blueberries like acidic soil, so we got some Miracle Gro made for acid-lovers and figured we were good to go. Then, about a week later, I realized some critter had eaten off the few leaves that Blue had been able to sprout. I made a netted cage around him, and he was off again! He grew a bunch of leaves, but sadly never made any fruit.

This past few week though, Blue is back and going strong. He has grown a lot and started sprouting leaves. I have high hopes for fresh blueberries in my future! Keep it up, Blue.