It’s finally May!  Hopefully this will mean the weather will continue to warm and we won’t have weeks on end of rain anymore.  May also means two birthdays in our house, Neve (at the end of the month) and Maddie.

My  baby sister turned 21 this past week (and her sweet boyfriend John graduated college!).  Aren’t they adorable?

Now that it’s almost summer I’ve been missing Europe pretty hard, and thinking about surrounding myself with herbs and flowers again.

I’ve got potted herbs started on the deck, and my veggie seedlings are finally starting to outgrow their pots and will be ready to transplant into the garden soon. Neve and I started a few dozen basil seeds, and I’m hoping we get a decent amount of grown plants. Right now I’m a little overwhelmed with basil sprouts, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

My grape plants are budding and starting to leaf out:

I was pretty concerned about these, I’m not going to lie. When I planted them they looked like dried-up sticks and nothing more. I had a hard time tilling the soil where I planted them, and though I used a bit of compost when I put them in the ground, the area where they are planted is in full sun and the dirt is very rocky and poor. Now, I did that purposely after reading many, many articles about how and where to plant grapes. Still, it felt counter-intuitive, and I’m relieved to see how well they are doing.

Likewise, my elderberries are growing like mad! I’m pretty excited about these; looking forward to elderberry jam!

I’ve finally got a few pea plants growing – I only planted them like a freaking month ago – and I’m hoping it doesn’t get too hot for them before they grow pea pods. I’ve also finally got some beet sprouts and chard.

In the back garden I’ve got cucumber, cantaloupe, watermelon, zucchini, and yellow squash sprouts, and I’m very excited to say that in the pumpkin patch there are several rows of pumpkins, sunflowers, and corn sprouts.

This year I’m prepared with industrial quantities of diatomaceous earth! I’m getting a decent harvest this year if it kills me.

While we’re talking about lovely things growing, check out the back pasture!

What a difference from the rocky, barren field it once was! I’m not sure when we are going to put the flock back out there. Initially we were going to try and give it more time to really grow in, but since there are still lots of rocks out there we really can’t mow,  we may need our four-legged mowers out there soon!

Wild irises along the stream!

On the other bank, these wild daisies!

Peonies

The ducks are finally all feathered-out, and patiently waiting to be let out of their pen to roam the garden.

The little chicks have also made a transition – from the brooder to the tractor!  I still worry they’ll be warm enough, but they are almost completely feathered, and 7 weeks old now. In addition to the tractor itself, I’ve placed them in Orzo’s circle of protection. I can’t wait for these babies to be egg-laying ladies!