06/05/2026
Old Home Day Tomorrow!
And the colorful annual flowers will begin returning to the Porch and Mary gardens! Now that the 40 F nights and the cold rains have stopped, it is safe to start planting the marigolds, the zinnias, the coleus, and the tender perennials such as the Four O'clock, also known as the "Marvel of Peru", and the salvias.
The easy part of starting seeds is planting them in a pot, growing them under lights and keeping them watered.
The hard part is getting them outside into the garden. They have to get used to outside air, out side temperature- both day and nighttime-, and to the direct sunlight they must gradually be introduced to.
Some people move them outside for an hour or two , then gradually increase how long they stay out day by day for a week or so.
I put the pots in totes. I put them in morning sun, then put three old window screens on top for shade. I leave the screens on two days, then over the next week remove a screen at a time. After that, I watch them a day.
Then out they go into the big world of New Hampshire's beautiful summer.
Happy Old Home Day!
Photo is of the old timey Four O'clock flower, a favorite of the Hummingbird moth.
