This Week (Seedlings, Critters, and Community)

True to my prophetic word last week, we opened this week with a snowstorm on the vernal equinox. But not to worry, very little accumulated and the temperature was back in the 70’s by Tuesday. (You know you’re in St. Louis when...)

A few things around the garden are sprouting. My raspberry canes are starting to leaf out, and the peas in my Square Foot Garden have sprouted! The pepper and cabbage seedlings in the basement haven’t died yet, and I’ll be transplanting both of them pretty soon.

With this blossoming of tender seedlings, a new chapter has developed in my life. A few days ago, after examining my plants I marched into the house and told Zach in a dark and gravelly tone, “And so it begins.”

“Did a rabbit get into your plants?”

“I think it was a squirrel,” I said in the same dark voice. “It uprooted my thyme. I had to replant it.” With that, I turned about-face, grabbed the spice jar of crushed red pepper, and marched back outside to douse all the soil around my thyme with these critter-deterring flakes. It’s working so far, although something has been nibbling on my oregano, too. And yesterday I discovered that some sort of animal decided to give our Arkansas black apple tree an additional pruning by chewing off its single branch. I am currently researching ways to defend against their attacks (any ideas from you all would be helpful!). I’m also considering buying a pet harpy eagle.

On Thursday I attended a neighborhood meeting at the Frenchtown Heritage Museum. I was one of seven people there, but the leaders were very excited that I and a couple other younger folks had shown up, and they listened enthusiastically to our suggestions and comments. I’m excited to continue these meetings and learn about how I can work together with my neighbors to revive the Frenchtown neighborhood, which is a historic district with a lot of unrealized potential. I’ve been trying to plug into my local community more, and this is a great first step!

Tomorrow, Zach and I are hosting Easter for both our families, so our house will be buzzing with a dozen people coming together to celebrate the Resurrection. Happy Easter to all you guys, too!

~Lisa