April and May Plantings for My Phoenix Vegetable Garden
Photo taken May 17, 2020
I’m a little late (I usually start planting my spring garden at the end of February), but happy to have time to tend my vegetable gardens again! So far, the onions seem to be keeping the rabbits out. They bypass the garden beds to munch on the lawn, and I haven’t lost a single transplant.
Vegetable bed with Egyptian Walking Onions planted around the perimeter
New additions to the garden include Glacier Lettuce (aka ice lettuce) from my friend Heather, a grower and owner of Twisted Bee Farms. She knows how much I love this unique succulent with its lemony brightness and juicy texture and I am so excited to be growing my first plants!
I had also picked up a few plants in April from Home Depot and our local Fry’s: Herbs were sweet basil, Thai basil, purple basil, mint, German thyme, sage, dill, and parsley.
Sage
For vegetables, I planted Chocolate Sprinkles, Defiant and Husky Red tomatoes, Shikou eggplant, Early Flame jalapeño pepper and poblano pepper.
Chocolate Sprinkles tomatoes
The rest are all from Vilardi Gardens, a favorite grower who supplies local nurseries like my go-to, SummerWinds. You can also find her plants at the Roadrunner Farmers Market.
Vilardi Garden herbs this year include Golden lemon thyme, Mrs. Burns’ lemon basil, Genovese basil, African Blue basil, rosemary, tarragon, epazote and Mexican oregano.
Mexican oregano (Poliomintha longiflora)
I’ve also planted Vilardi Gardens Millionaire eggplant, Armenian striped cucumber, lemon cucumber, Padrón, Facing Heaven and Wenk’s Yellow Hot peppers, burgundy okra, green and purple tomatillos, cape gooseberry, Red Beauty bell pepper, and Brandywine Pink, Green Zebra, Bonnie’s Best, and Cream Sausage tomatoes.
Cream Sausage tomato
Armenian cucumber
My bay leaf bush needs a hard pruning.
And happy to say that my Vilardi Gardens caper plant, which I thought I lost over the winter, is putting out new growth. I’m glad I left the stump! It’s surrounded by self-sown marjoram and oregano that I have to pull up.
To see my plumeria collection (also known as Hawaiian lei plants and franigpani), click the photo below.
Cancun Pink plumeria on May 28, 2020