Rain, Rain, Go away!

I'm sitting here looking outside at the torrential rain and it makes me hope that this spring will not be as much of a wash out as last one. Last year it was difficult to get out into the garden to till and prepare the soil for planting because it always seemed to rain at exactly the wrong time (weekends). Hopefully this season will be better.

Here are a couple of tips to handle rain:

1. make sure that your soil had proper drainage, clay soil or soil that has depressions that hold water can be a major downer for all of your vegetables in a wet year.
2. if possible make mounds and slopes to help deal with rainfall, I am blessed with a naturally sloped garden that takes care of all my drainage issues
3. watch for blossom rot on your vegetables, this rot happens when the leaves are too wet (especially at night time) for extended periods of time, visit your local garden store to find out how to combat this
4. weed after the rain, I love weeding when the soil is saturated, nothing makes weeding easier than damp soil, so grab your old boots (because you will get muddy) and head out to your garden for a little weeding
5. when possible, try to get seeds and new plants into the ground right before a nice gentle rain (hard downpours are not so good) that will water the plants and seeds without washing them away!