Well I thought I would start a garden thread for 2026. I always enjoyed the Les garden posts over the years and learned alot. Not much to look at here yet. In Ohio I really don't start anything until after mothers day due to early spring cold, frost, wind, and rain. So This weekend I thought I'd get a picture of me getting started as I pulled the tomato cages from last year. This is the time of year you don't know to have your tractor setup to mow, spray, or till and you have to be ready to do any of the above knowing it just depends on what the conditions are when you get home from work. Were still drying out from a rain last week but its about time to start hitting it. Weather wise I should have my hardy cold items out already but I haven't prepped anything yet and am just getting started.

Day 1: - 30-60 minutes, wreck last years gear out of the way. Prep site. Usually a wet day waiting for it to dry out. Its cold late this year.
May 2026:


May of 2024: Warmed up a little earlier that year.

Weeded and fertilized the strawberries. Planted candy onion sets. It was about 50 degrees just before dark. I struggle this time of year b/c its still so early with lots of wind and rain but if you don't go buy plants now they will be out of stock when you go to get them... but its kinda too early to plant too... but its also gonna rain and if you don't get going now you may have to wait a couple weeks for it to dry out. Gotta get that tilled up before the rain. I think some stuff does better if you wait for it to warm up though instead of being stunted at the beginning of growth. Like I wouldn't buy cucumber or melon plants yet. Anyway, I try to get some out now and some out later and the later stuff may even be a second planting of what I tried to get out early it just depends if the wind and rain beats it to death or if it freezes out or not.

Day 2: - 30-60 minutes.

Looks like you may have a cat using your raised bed for a litter box. Some extra fertilizer.

Still getting frosts and freezes here the last few days. Supposed to warm up next week sometime.

Same here, still having overnight freeze warnings the past 7 days. I know everyone is anxious to get started; but history says to wait at least another week.

I have brussels, egg plant, cpl toms,

and bean seeds in.

rhubarb, onions and garlic almost ready,

Cuc starts are struggling bad.

Trappers gamble.


The May full moon date is the watch-it for here.
This year there are two.

Cat? Gross. No cats around here. No thats me pushing in onion bulbs planting the candy onions.

Full moon? We shoot for mothersday and if this week would have been a full moon it'd be sketchy for frost but its later enough in the month for us this year that it should be fine.

The pictures should look like were rocking and rolling soon. I just thought I would try to capture that its not a ton of work all at once, its just 30-45 minutes everyday or so right now to get going if you start soon enough.