In January and February I get the itch. The gardening itch. I begin thinking and planning in my head. On warm days, I go out and shovel wheelbarrows of goodness from the chicken coop and pile it up in the garden. I cut back the asparagus bed, and other twigs of last year’s garden that need to be cut back.
My chickens have had access to the garden since production ended. In January, I usually begin dumping our kitchen scraps into the garden area. The girls work hard in January & February, moving the mulch around, working in the piles from the coop, scratching where I’ve thrown the scraps, and pooping all over everything.
It’s like magic. Chicken magic.
Chicken garden magic.
But now it gets serious. February is here.
It’s time to kick things up a notch. Seed catalogs began to arrive in January, so the daydreaming intensifies. It will soon be be time to set out onions! I ordered my Baker Creek seeds a few days ago! I’ll start tomatoes indoors as soon as the seeds arrive!
I need to check my garden fence and chicken-proof it again, so I’ll be ready to put onions out. (And then I’ll probably need to clip wings until they get accustomed to the fence again.)
Here are the tools I’m using during this preparation time:
- Clyde’s Garden Planner – This is a new tool to me, but it looks like it’s going to be a great help!
- Texas Gardener Magazine – I hang onto my back issues because they’re full of great info!
- Seed Catalogs from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, Willhite Seed Inc (a Texas company), and any other catalogs that come in the mail! They don’t have a paper catalog but I’ve had great success with the seeds from Heirloom Seeds for years.
- Premier 1 Poultry Solutions catalog – Great options for feeders & waterers, banding, portable electric net, and other chicken needs. I’ve got my eyes on their temperature sensitive outlet for next winter.
- I promised myself I’m not buying any chicks this year, but if I did, I’d order them in February as well, from Ideal Poultry (another Texas company).
- Triangle U-Pin in black nickel, as seen in the first photo, is an easy way to twist my hair up when I’m outside working.
The Growing Hale 