Post 17: Bma’s Birthday

My grandmother, who we called Bma, would have been 100 years old today. She’s been gone for several years now but I still think of her on a daily basis.

I think it is very fitting that her 100th birthday fell on a “blog post” day. When I’m planting or doing anything in the garden I think of her. I think of all my grandparents. I know they would have loved to see my love of all things gardening grow the way it has.

I think of my grandfather (Dedo) when I am doing anything with flowers. He was a florist and a pretty good one from what I’ve been told. I think of my other grandmother (Baba) when I am harvesting lavender. She passed when I was 4 but for some reason the smell of lavender is an instant reminder of the beautiful woman she was. I think of my grandfather (GP) when I am doing anything in the main garden. Those beds were built with the wood from his dock on the eastern shore. And I think of Bma the most when I’m tending to my raspberries. I have such wonderful memories picking raspberries with her when I was a kid.

Gardening is so much more than plants and food. For me it is also a trip down memory lane with some of my favorite people.

Today I have a few updates.

First, it snowed yesterday because technically we are still in winter.

I picked up some broccoli and brussels sprouts seedlings the other day and placed them in the cold frame for safe keeping. It got down into the teens yesterday and today so I had to move them indoors temporarily.

My seedlings are doing great! I took off all of the domes now that 90-95% of them have sprouted and I added fans. The fans help to keep them from growing mold and they strengthen the seedlings while they are indoors.

To be fair and honest, not all of my seeds have germinated. Hot peppers are especially finicky when it comes to germination so I made sure to sow at least 2-3 seeds in each sponge insert. Sometimes even with a dome, consistent water, lights, heating mats and multiple seeds, some just don’t want to budge.

I also had some seeds go bad. For some reason my Fatalii seeds did not want to germinate and started to rot. So I took them out of the sponge inserts and added some cherry tomato seeds that I’ll use for my school garden club (which I’ll tell you more about later).

My herbs are still hanging in there. I was able to get a whole bunch of parsley and basil for dinner last night. And they still look super healthy. Even both basils bounced back!

This blog post is dedicated to all of my grandparents.

I love and miss you Bma. Happy 100th birthday in heaven.