Hi There
I am new to the forum. I assume it's OK to post on ongoing message threads
Being in SW Washingotn, we have mostly wet chilly winter with a few episodes of freezing into 20s, sometimes snow or ice storms.
I've gone through my seeds and organized them. I don't know why I keep all of the old packets. Last year, I diluted new ones with old ones of the same varieties, since they would need thinning anyway.
I also bought mail order seeds for most of 2018's kitchen garden, plus some for rows of flowers. Mostly ones I am sure, or think, will be rabbit and deer resistant, like zinnias, marigolds, cosmos, poppies, and gladiolus corms. I also have a box of gladiolus corms in the pantry, waiting to be replanted.
So now, I can mull over what went well and what didn't, in 2017. I am getting older, and take medications that make me fatigued and achy, so one big change is make maintenance easier. That will mean the raised beds are further apart to allow mowing with a riding mower. My orchard has deer fences around each young tree. I'm working on how to eliminate those,to make for easiler mowing. The big plan is to have all branches above 6 feet off the ground. The deer in our area don't browse above that height.
I did order some new fruit and nut trees. The first, another hybrid chestnut, went into the ground 2 weeks ago, and got immediate protection from voles and deer. I think the others will come in Feb or March.
Meanwhile, I am getting the plant stand ready to start. The first will be onion seeds, which I started last year in Jan to great effect, and daylily seeds that I stratified in the fridge. Those daylilies have shoots after only a few days out oft he fridge. Also some persimmon seeds. I don't know when to take them out and plant them. Maybe in Feb.
We have hens and ducks who need ongoing feeding and attention. The Indian Runner Ducks are especially entertaining.
That's a lot of rambling.
Daniel