Of course it was very cold and raining this morning, the First Day of Spring. I don’t believe I realized it was the First Day of Spring (probably due to the weather and it is still very dark when I make my way to work) until I hit my emails and saw all the First Day of Spring Sales.
I am celebrating it a little different. I have been planting seeds in my seed trays, trying very hard not to get them going too early. I have a terrible habit of not wanting to wait and seeing green stuff growing in the midst of Ohio’s worst cold and grey. This invariably leads to stringy, long, unhealthy looking peppers and tomatoes (especially those poor tomatoes). This year I promised to pace myself and enjoy “little successes”.
My Cole crops are about a week old and coming along nicely. I have seeded my long growing hot Tabasco and Cayenne peppers. This is based on last season’s results in which by the time the season ended, the peppers weren’t even close to being harvested. If need be, I will pot these up in larger pots and hold them before putting them out. I have found peppers to be much slower growing in the early stages. I love to make Tabasco sauce (am I allowed to call it that) and this year I am going to try a Cayenne sauce. When the peppers are ready in the fall, I harvest the red peppers, put them in the blender and mash them up. Note: if you are going to try this, I wear full surgical gear and do everything outside. The fumes, although enticing, can burn your nostril hairs. I then take the mash and put it in quart mason jars; half filled and then fill the rest of the jar with salt. The lids are put on loosely and I put them in the closet to forget about them. I let them ferment for about a year. Once ready, I remove the salt, strain the mash (panty hose are awesome for this- awesomesauce), and then cut the juice/sauce with malt vinegar until the desired heat is reached. A lot of experimentation and burnt tongues. I have found that one third juice to two thirds vinegar is around the right mix. I use Malt vinegar because my parents are English; you can use any vinegar that you favour. The results are incredible- try it!
For tomato transplants (I went off on a tangent there), I will start them around April 1st. I have enough going on that I can be a little more patient. I know I will try something weird and screw something up later, but the base of my plan is sound!
Happy Growing (on the First Day of Spring)!
Craig
Seedlings in our Seed Starter Greenhouse
