What are you trying to grow in 2023?

My publisher, Sourcebooks Fire, started a Goodreads Giveaway for my book, THE WARNING. Please add it to your Goodreads! It’s fun and weird to see an old idea of mine from 2014 awaiting readers in 2023. I hope it gets a chance to grow.

My seed order came in the mail from Baker Creek this week! Really cute packaging.

Here’s what I got:

Dragon’s Egg cucumber—I bought these solely for the name, and because I like eating cucumbers in the summer. I plan to direct seed these after my last frost in zone 7a, which is mid-April.

Gomphrena—two gardeners on YouTube swear by these. They recommended direct seeding them in late April, and they said they are easy to grow and stay in bloom a long time. We’ll see.

Wild Thyme—I wanted to plant this between some stepping stones. A little concerned with the term “wild” that it’ll become a bully in the garden. Not sure if I should start in pots and transfer.

Marigolds—I want to use these for companion planting. They help ward off some annoying insects from eating my vegetables. Starting them in winter sowing jugs.

Ground cherries—another gardener on YouTube loves ground cherries. I’ve never eaten one, so we shall see. Supposed to be sweet. I have no clue how to grow them. I’m trying the winter sowing method to see if they’ll start that way.

Lemon Balm—I heard lemon balm tea is good for anxiety. Trying to start in winter sowing jugs.

Amazing Grey Poppy—I have a feeling this was a mistake purchase. The flowers look gorgeous in the picture, but the seeds were so freaking tiny, I couldn’t get them to stop sticking to my hands and the inside of the packaging. I tried to directly sow them in the front of my house near two boxwoods. I made sure to move the mulch and sprinkle them on soil, and then I didn’t cover them since they don’t like that. It was drizzling out at the time. That could be good or bad. I’ll take pictures if I actually get any blooms.

Mizuna—They sent a free random package of seeds! Anyone with experience growing or eating these? I plan to direct sow it in late April and see what happens.

I have four raised beds in a weird layout thanks to a huge cherry tree in my backyard that shades the other half. I keep the beds (and most of my garden) organic and use it for food items. Last year was a crappy season due to drought, so I’m hoping for a better crop this year. The beds already have some garlic and onion starts, some asparagus starts from seed that I’m debating moving for space, some perennial sage, oregano, and lemon thyme, and strawberries.

Here’s what I winter sowed in jugs last week since someone asked: (most seeds were from Johnny’s and two from Burpee)

• Echinacea Purple Coneflower

• Queen Red Lime Zinnias

• Jalapeno Early peppers

• Sweet Peppers

• Black Beauty Eggplant (tried this for two years and failed. One last shot)

• Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa)—orange flowers. Good to support Monarch butterflies. I tried direct seeding last year and it didn’t work.

• Genovese Basil

• Beets--I probably should’ve just direct seeds these since it’s a root vegetable, but I wanted to experiment.

• Cherry Brandy Rudbeckia

• Big Beef Tomatoes

• Sungold cherry tomatoes—these were great two years ago. Then last year the crop fizzled out. Hoping this year to get a better result.

• I also have white potato and sweet potato starts. I might put these in separate containers rather than the beds. Plus peas, sunflowers, cosmos, and mixed zinnias to include later. I have a bunch of dahlia tubers and geraniums stored in my basement from last season.

What are you growing this year—in the garden or in your creative life? Let me know in the comments.

I had a snow day from teaching, the only one this year, so I took some time to care for indoor plants. I repotted the avocado pit I sprouted last year to a larger pot. Fun to see how long I can keep it alive.

On the writing front, I’m trying out some ideas to see what calls to me the most. It’s fun when you are at a new stage and not afraid of failure. Maybe that’s what I like about the seed stage. It’s all future potential, but the risk is low. Wondering if I should dust off old manuscripts to see if there’s any life there. Dahlia tubers don’t look great now, but they’ll be gorgeous in the right conditions. Curiouser and curiouser.

Oh, I also bought myself a new USB backup for my manuscripts. Couldn’t resist.