The greening of thumbs continues

Voles, wandering onions and venetian blinds.

There isn't much they would appear to have in common, unless you attended tonight's Lettuce, Turnip and Wine gardening group meeting.

OK, well, even then finding what they have in common ? other than being tonight's topics of conversation ? is a stretch.

We all talked about what was growing well in our yards or under our grow lights. Peas seemed to be the clear winner, with Shirley One offering this sage piece of advice: plant them in a southwest direction so the wind doesn't knock them over as they grow larger.

Maybe next year, but for now, I have an excuse at the ready in case my peas perform dismally. Sure was a windy summer. Yup, that's it. The wind.

If voles could talk, they would be thanking Shirley Two for the smorgasbord she served them in her garden last year. Apparently voles were everywhere taking a bite out of her veggies. These were bold voles, too,  cockily cantering past her with their full bellies.

She has sprayed blood meal this year to keep them away, and, she hopes, fend off the cat who is making a litter box out of her raised bed. We'll keep you posted how that experiment goes. Still, Shirley Two is advocating for prospective growers to give the raised bed a whirl. Not only does it mean less bending and kneeling, the soil is looser and heats up faster, making working it "effortless."

"It's a civilized way to seed," she said.

Holly's garden is home to an unusual aromatic called wandering onion. If Linda Crago came with fine print, it would read: 'Warning: Knowing me could result in growing strange vegetables in your garden or experimenting with seed.'

When the purple bulb arrived in Holly's CSA basket last year, it prompted the question 'What is it?' Linda's answer: plant it in your garden and see what happens. Apparently, it's true to its name, spreading and seeding more onions the longer it takes root.

Me, I'm trying to turn a Holland Marsh carrot to seed, inspired by Linda's ability to save and start her own seed. The carrot is stuck in a pot in my backyard and has all the greenery needed to indicate that so far, my Linda-like experiment is on track.

But then spring always is such a hopeful season...

Other good advice offered tonight: if you don't want to put labeled stakes in your garden, plant in a grid and draw a map so you know what's growing where. If you're more a fan of labels than a talented map maker, old venetian blinds make excellent labeled stakes and are sold dirt cheap at second-hand stores. Just cut the slats to the right length and label away. Or, you can try Holly's suggestion of slicing up a large yogurt container. The stakes can be recycled at the end of the season.

Lettuce, Turnip and Wine meets again May 26 at 6:26 p.m. at the Wildflower in Fonthill. Anyone with an interest in growing anything is welcome to come out and vent ? er, join the discussion.