Done and delivered!

Saturday was a happy day. That was the day I delivered 30 pots of basil to the A∆K state convention.

At times it was a "long haul" from March 2, when I painstakingly planted approximately 60 miniscule basil seeds, one by one, with tweezers, to April 28, when I turned the basil plants over to their new owners.

One mistake I made was planting some of the seeds in peat pellets, which yielded much larger and healthier plants, and other seeds in tiny pots filled with seedling starter, which yielded the smaller plants. Had I known there would be such a difference in the final product, I'd have used the peat pellets exclusively. Lesson learned, and I'll now start my own seeds (squash, cucumber, etc.) with only peat pellets. They're worth the 12¢ per pellet, definitely.

I had fun, though, watching the seeds sprout, babying them, keeping an eye on sun and water. Along about week six of the project, however, after I'd placed two or three plants in each 4" pot, I began to grow a little weary of carrying them outside on warm, sunny days, positioning them at windows on cool, sunny days or just plain cool days, and worrying that the smaller plants just wouldn't be up to snuff.

This past Friday was a big day, because it signified the almost-end of the Basil Project. I placed each pot into a gift bag, attached a label to each bag with directions for caring for and using basil, and patiently waited for Saturday to arrive.

Saturday morning my ever-helpful and supportive sidekick, Lynn, helped me transport the basil favors to a restaurant in Old Orchard Beach, where the convention was held.

I'm sure some of the ladies, the ones who maintain they kill every plant they try to nurture, were, let's say, less that overjoyed to receive a basil plant, but the majority seemed to be pleased with them. Several asked questions about keeping their plants healthy and happy, so I feel the majority went to good homes.

And yesterday I planted squash, zucchini, cucumber, and thunbergia seeds for my own garden. I can't wait for them to pop through the peat mix.