Fresh starts

It's a sunny though cold day (0C) at the farmette. Hard to believe the forecast is for snow flurries later today. Yikes.

As we move into the thick of spring, Rob and I have done some updating.

First off, we leased a new Honda CRV. It's our second hybrid because the first one worked out so well. We lease and we've gone semi-electric because we really don't do a lot of traveling any more. We went with blue instead of the traditional red this time. Both of us have had a go at driving it, and we approve.

Above is Rob beside the new vehicle in his best Canadian plaid finery on Wednesday at the dealership. Ashim, who owns Owen Sound Honda, has been very good to us over the years, actually reducing (by a little bit) the monthly payments each time we take a new car. Bonus.

Because we were ready with the paper work, and already old hands at driving the new-fangled type of car, we only took 1/2 hour for the pick-up.

So we stopped by Westside Nursery, which is just up the road from the dealership. It was soooo great to visit the lovely, humid greenhouses and see the plants in bloom.

Tempted as I was to scoop a bunch of new greenery, there's no putting anything (especially annuals) outside for another six weeks up here. June 1st is the earliest. I've learned the lesson from the hard experience of losing a succession of tomato crops to deadly frosts at the end of May. I just couldn't wait to get going. Boo.

The harsh climate doesn't prevent me from trying to grow seedlings indoors,

though. I got inspired by the visit to start my own tiny grow plot on the card table in my office.

Roma tomatoes, four o'clocks, cosmos, calendula and these wee orange miniature tomatoes that will grow on vines in pots on the deck are all now happily reaching up to my new grow light. I'm determined to get some real plants to put out in my newly built greenhouse.

It's fun to start projects and see where they go. Hope springs eternal. Especially in the spring. Until next week.

Gratuitous cat photo courtesy of Fred (lap) and Wilma (floor), who got to her annual check-up at the vets with no blood letting from me this time. Good girl.