Sue's Cottage Garden

A beautiful garden shed

2011-10-20T05:12:00.000-07:00

All the siding is on and our garden shed is ready for its first bit of paint. It will be painted to coordinate with the studio building next to it. We need to get the paint on to protect the wood now that we are heading into winter soon. I really do like the natural wood, but we are trying to protect it as well as have it blend into its space with the potting bench, greenhouse and studio next to it.

This is the front side our new garden shed. Nice!

So, it is almost time to clean out the greenhouse so I can set up for intensive propagation of winter veggies and then spring crops.

The vegetables still think it is summer and are producing just fine. The peppers are ripening the way I like them best - red!! We are growing hot, medium and mild (bell types) and they are all finally maturing.

The zucchini plants are sending out lots of babies and some giants that hide from me. The three different types of zucchini are all small here in this picture. That is a very small berry basket. I am not sure how much longer the plants will last though because the heavy dew in the mornings is helping to weaken them.

This is a nice time of the year for growing plants in general though. The ones that don't "love" the heat of summer are just reviving themselves with a good rain and nice temperatures. Asters are blooming and roses are blooming again as well and native iris's are popping their heads out of the ground. It is a new season as we see these changes occurring in the nature around us. To garden is a wonderful occupation.

Planting Onions, Leeks and Garlic

2011-10-19T06:21:00.000-07:00

A week or so ago I planted a few of my onion starts along with a bunch of carrots I started from seed. So yesterday I bought 6 packs of onion and leek starts, as well as seed garlic.

I keep records of when I start seeds for "starts" but don't seem to record when I plant all the time. Especially with something like alliums which get planted several times a year. But it is the time of the year for onions, leeks, shallots and garlic. Or rather, it is a good time to plant them.

The onions starts are bunching onions. I like bunching onions because they last forever. They divide at ground level and remain scallions (green onions) forever. They're also perennial. Yeah! I like bunching onions!

Of course I got leeks. I bought American Flag and King Richard leeks. They really are my favorite allium! I love leeks for so many things - part of steamed veg. dishes, soups, sauteed in olive oil, and especially a thick layer of leeks on my homemade pizzas. They are the best!!!

Here is a little video about planting onions, leeks and garlic from Peaceful Valley Farms in Grass Valley CA.

The tool shed is coming along as well as the garden

2011-09-25T16:48:00.000-07:00

During the extreme heat, I haven't gone out to the garden until the sun goes down and then have so much to do in the garden that I didn't get any pictures of the shed progress for awhile.

I planted two tomatillos (since you need two for fertilization) along the fence by the nectarine (Fantasia), the lemon verbena and the Royal Blenheim apricot. They are finally making little paper balls after being in flower what seens like months. I had planted tomatillos in this area last year, but I completely weeded and changed the bed, as well as adding over 4 inches of mulch, so the tomatillos did not reseed here. I was surprised.

I was more than surprised when about 6-10 tomatillo plants volunteered in my eggplant bed which is across the walkway from the fence bed where the new tomatillos are growing. I guess I did not mulch this bed as deeply. These volunteers are very healthy and trying to take over the whole bed - which I guess they kind of are. Below is a picture of the volunteer tomatillo paper balls.

I think they are beautiful! I am going to have a lot of tomatillos this year. I will broil them in the oven on each side for 5 minutes and blend them slightly and freeze much of them in portions to use during the year as salsa, in pasta dishes and soups. Yumm!

One tip: pull the skins off as you pick them or later you may not be able to get them off because the inside skin has a sticky surface that adheres them really well. Just rinse and don't worry about the stickiness before you broil.

The tool shed now has a nice roof. Good thing because it is really overcast today and was part of yesterday. So, that means it has cooled down too!!! Yea!

The tool shed also has a very nice dutch door. It will be painted to match the studio nearby.

The trim will be pained gray and the center parts of the door will be light blue. I especially like the hardware.

Here the door is open. This is nice because I can reach lots of the hand tools I use just through this top part. I have a nice small, but long shelf on the right and lots of shelves on the left.

The next pictures will show big changes in the look of the tool shed when the siding goes on. Hopefully I will have those soon!!! I need to get this finished so I can clean out the greenhouse to make it ready for winter seed starting and keeping a few other plants happy during the winter. I will be using the solar electric for fans, lighting and a heater for warmth if need be in the greenhouse. I have more carrots starting in the greenhouse now, but need to start many more fall plants soon.

Fall is now coming on fast!

Next step in construction of the tool shed!

2011-09-03T21:46:00.000-07:00

So progress is continuing on the tool shed. Here are the latest photos.

Nice shelves of one side of shed.

This photo really shows the proximity of the tool shed to the potting bench area. And I also get a real feel of how the tool shed is going to work out.

The plywood is now covered with tar paper before it ultimately it will be covered with shingles.

The door has been cut out of the paper, so it is looking better! Can hardly wait for the next step.

Tool Shed construction continues

2011-08-21T05:26:00.000-07:00

The construction is continuing, with the basic framing completed now. This photo was taken while I was standing in front of my potting bench. The door framing is obvious in this picture. The compost pile is visible through the framing in this picture also.

Below the sheathing is on the back. And some of the detail framing is in place.

The progress of the tool shed gets me excited to have an efficient seed production venue.

So, I have been planting seeds. In seed packs I have planted bunching onions, pumpkins, zucchini, zinnias and most recently carrots. Here is one of the 6 packs of newly emerging carrot sprouts.They are so cute and delicate. Tomorrow I want to start some leeks for the garden.

We have been harvesting fruit and vegetables from the garden daily. This is the latest summer garden I have ever had in 30 years of gardening. We haven't harvested one pepper yet. As can be seen in this picture, we have three varieties of zucchini growing. The green and yellow type is new to me this year. Of course we have lemons (they are an all year harvest item in our garden). The tomatoes are so late, but they are coming on nicely and are very delicious!!

We always have plenty of blackberries from our thornless blackberry patches. I pick about a cup or two a day. We have them for breakfast and desert. We had a good raspberry crop this year too and got a few boysenberries on the new plants from my friend Nina.

But the birds (with the help of the rats) have wiped out our entire seedless Thompson grape harvest this year. I was going to bag some of the clusters, but they got to them before I could get the bags up. They were relentless, no matter how many times I would shoo the birds away from the grape arbor. We haven't gotten figs again this year thanks to the wildlife. I am saving a few, that is why we are allowing the fig branches to hang so close to the tool shed and over the whole pepper bed, just hoping to get a few figs.This fig tree was planted in 1920 and every year the figs would drop off or dry up because we just didn't eat that many. I made jam a few years, but ... We always had way more than we could use or share. The same for the grapes, we always had tons, and now last year and this year we end up with none for ourselves. Really a bummer. No more bird nests in my yard next year.

I just dug up our whole potato 4'X4' bed. I have decided to move the potato bed this year. It takes constant awareness to track the changing growth/shade patterns of the trees that surround the veggie garden. So, I am making an adjustment this year. I will be planting the onions, leeks and carrots in the old potato bed this year. I am moving the potatoes to a sunnier bed and I think I will get a larger potato harvest next year.

Potting Shed Construction

2011-08-11T18:11:00.000-07:00

The potting bench is now completed. Here it is with the new canvas awning. I chose parchment for the color so light would come through and it does. It is also waterproof which will keep the area so much cleaner. Now it is fun to start seed during the hot months of the year, as it is way too hot for starting seed in the greenhouse at this time of the year.

So, here it is - completed and a beauty and so very functional.
Started carrot seed in six-packs two days ago because it is too hot out in the garden now and I have way too much mulch on all my beds at this time of the year for a shallow seeder.

This picture shows where the new tool shed is being built next to my potting bench.

This next picture shows the roof line of the new tool shed which matches the roof line of the studio on the left (blue shingled structure). The next set of pictures (when it gets sheathing) will really demonstrate how it is going to look. Hopefully this will be in about two days.

We had Spring in July!

2011-07-22T20:13:00.000-07:00

Yes, we have had a mixed up year when it comes down to Mother Nature and our environment. After an extremely cool/cold/wet March through May we got sizzling temps in June and then July provided us with Spring time temperatures. It was a blessing. All those things we weren't able to do during our regular spring could be done (or most of them) in July.

I was able to clean out all those garden storage spots with piles of old plastic pots, some full of soil and much more. Now I am looking for a home for all those pots and I mean LOTS of pots. I cleaned out and put together all of those broken pieces of terracotta pots which we all save for planting. I am saving many of them for artistic endeavors in making homemade designer pots. Someday I will have time for those types of projects. Oh, I found all kinds of treasures in the garden and a bunch of stuff I was able to throw away too!

I designed and my dear husband built a new 8' long potting bench that is absolutely beautiful - a work of art. I already have my containers of compost, worm casting compost, seed mixture, and general soil underneath. Then there is the vermiculite, sand, kelp and other ingredients stored under the new potting bench.

The shade cloth suspended above is what is reflecting the light above. I am calling this area my potting shed because it now has a shade cloth suspended over it, but will soon have a new awning installed.

I have seeds starting for onions and zucchini squash, plus basil and some ornamentals too.

Soon we are building a tool closet/shed to the right of this photo for obviously my tools and all the things that help me in the garden. Then it will truly be a potting shed!!!

Of course now, it is time to clean out the greenhouse. There is always a list of chores waiting in the garden.

Finally planting a Spring garden in May and June

2011-06-19T04:51:00.000-07:00

So we finally got some spring weather about three weeks ago, which came right after our full day of hail! Mother Nature is not happy! It sure is very evident this year with all this crazy weather and events around the world.

Alright, back to my little piece of nature. We have a city lot with some very old fruit trees and many I planted years ago. The (white) fig tree was planted in 1920 and the Santa Rosa plum was planted some time between 1920-1950. There are two Loquots, one old and another was a baby volunteer, a Meyer and Eureka lemon tree, a pink grapefruit tree, a large Bay tree, Vitex tree, and Elder tree. There is a three year old Suncrest peach, a two year old Fantasia nectarine and a two year old Royal Blenheim apricot (replacing my old 25yr. old apricot that died a couple years ago).

We have several blackberry plants in several beds and this picture shows some of their pretty flowers that will bring fruit soon.

The raspberry bed is shown below. I have had it for several years and it is finally acting happy. Hope it bears well this year. I think I love raspberries best of all!

This next picture is of our new boysenberry bed, planted in mid April. This picture was taken 13 days ago and the plants have filled out significantly since then. I haven't built the supportive structure to hold up the vines yet. All the berries are doing well this year.

My red potatoes are looking really good in this picture. You can see the Calendula (yellow flowers) in the background. Calendula is a wonderful healing herb. Really good for the skin.

The bush beans (below) were planted as young starters. They sat here doing nothing for a couple hot weeks, but now they have buds and are happy. Since this picture, I had to separate them more, because when I planted them I thought they were climbing beans which can be planted closer together.

So this is a little abbreviated inventory of some of my sustainable urban gardens.

Planting the vegetable garden and wildlife

2011-05-21T22:32:00.000-07:00

Every season that I put in a new crop I mulch the bed, stake the starters, lay a few sticks across the bed to keep out any cats and look at my new beautiful bed with awe.

This month has been a different story.

My cat is a house cat, because cats threaten and kill wildlife. I welcome wildlife on my property. I share figs, grapes, loquats, and plums with squirrels and many varieties of birds. Possums come through here but do no damage and the raccoons wash their hands in my water features which can make it a little muddy, but they do no damage. Many birds are nesting right now and there is a army of cats that belong to neighbors (or no) that is patrolling our neighborhood. I used to tell them that they were welcome to sit in the sun in my yard, but no more. This year they took advantage of my good spirit.

I didn't start planting my heat loving vegetables until almost two weeks ago. I started with peppers, because even though we were still getting this unusual cold, they always seem to be forgiving of the weather. So, the long pepper bed was planted with the Habaneros, Jalapenos, Poblano, Anaheim, all the way down the hotness scale to Sweet Bell's or California Wonder Bell peppers.

Oh, I always love my pepper bed. It is a raised bed so I am able to crowd them in together a little and knowing the growth habits of the different varieties allows me to know who needs a little more room. I am a pepper queen, as they always do so well. They will keep producing until sometime after Thanksgiving or after Christmas in a mild weather year.

Of course they are planted with organic everything - my own compost and mulch (leaves and compost that isn't as broken down). We do have good soil to start with, river bottom soil as the river is just about a mile away. And they like getting only partial day full sun, but late afternoon shade in our hot California summers.

Back to the kicker!
After I plant a new bed I just enjoy watching it, but the next morning I went out to look at my beautiful bed and found a place where digging had occurred, the mulch was piled in an unusual pile. Immediately upon inspection I found the culprit was a cat. Cat feces are not healthy in an edible garden or any garden. Many people try: Cayenne pepper (works until the first rain washes it away) or mothballs (toxic), wiring up a low-current (non-lethal) fence or motion sensor water gun (very expensive). Cats HATE to poop in anything that is wet or step on anything that sticks to or pokes their feet, so some people use chicken wire. My neighbor Cindy resorted to chicken wire. The problem is you can't keep adding mulch or you are just covering the chicken wire and then it is useless and when your plants grow up you can't take the chicken wire out of the bed for the rest of the season.

My method of laying a few branches (saved from pruning) like "pick up sticks", did not work. So I decided to make the bed indestructible to cats. It looks like one of those torture beds seen in films from ancient times. No cat is going to want to come near my peppers anymore. Of course, once the plants fill out I can remove the weapons of torture. Unfortunately is does not look like a perfect Sunset Magazine bed, but it is a real way to keep your beds from becoming contaminated with cat poop!

For some reason it is hard to see the vertical sticks sticking up all over the bed. It is more evident on my paste tomato bed filled with Amish paste and Sausage paste tomatoes which a I planted a couple days after the peppers.

The tomato cage helps to keep them out too. It is hard to see the cage, but it is homemade (out of heavy wire fencing with 6" openings) and has been used for more than 20 years. So, this was an easier bed to secure. Here is a close-up below of the mass of upright sticks!

It also helps to have lots and lots of sticks/stakes. They are useful for all kinds of things in the garden, from this deterring cats use, to staking and supporting new starts, supporting plants laden with heavy fruit, to becoming the uprights for shade cloths (I just use a staple gun to hold the shade cloth to the stakes) during different times when a plant maybe stressed from the sun.

2011 May Day East Sac Garden Tour - for gardeners by gardeners

2011-05-05T05:31:00.000-07:00

We had a gorgeous day for a garden tour, yet it did feel warm around noon. We chose an earlier date for the tour this year to highlight different gardens, and also different plants that are in their best form. We showed 7 East Sacramento Gardens. All these gardens are cared for by their owners with love and dedication. The love and hard work showed in the beauty we were able to observe.

We started out at Nina's with her unique sustainable gardens and orchard.

Next we visited Anita's fantastic rose gardens and other perennials. The senses were also filled with the wonderful smells.

Cindy's gardens were next with her rose arbor and perennials. Her garden also demonstrates cooperation as she has a vegetable garden on her neighbor's back property.

Kim's gardens were filled with wonderful plant diversity focusing on shape, form and color. Always changing and interesting.

Then we visited my gardens. Here is a front yard bed with various perennials in a shady bed.

Next were Dave's special garden rooms. We are leaving one garden room and entering another in this photo.

And lastly we visited Noelle's pretty gardens.

The tour was a real success. We all had fun visiting and sharing and we all gained information and ideas to incorporate into our knowledge base and possibly our gardens along the way.

It is April already!!!

2011-04-08T20:32:00.000-07:00

It seems quite strange to just now be getting out into the garden this year! I had a four month job developing a huge website with no time for fun free-time activities, let alone for the garden or normal chores. So, here I am checking out my yard to see how my precious plants have survived this very long cold and hard winter.

Many plants are bursting out with new life. Yea! We have had a couple gorgeous days and the honey bees are very busy in my gardens. I sure wish everything had been pruned before this. I am doing some catch-up pruning of vines and other over-due chores.

A few invaders have decided to take over where my mulch has been utilized by the microherd and is almost showing the soil now. Well it would be showing soil if the oxalis and cleavers hadn't filled in these places. So, I have spent 5 hours over a few days earlier in the week pulling out these two invaders who thought they were 'home free' in my gardens. No, it is not gone, not by a long shot, but several beds are looking good enough to get another layer of mulch for this season or even the year depending on sun exposure and how fast it breaks down.

Yesterday, my friend Nina gave me a bunch of boysenberries canes ready to plant; that were in need of being planted soon. So, today, instead of continuing my battle with the invaders in fully developed beds, I developed a new berry bed. I had been thinking about starting this bed for the last year. This bed is on the west side of the yard and is next to the raspberry bed. The soil is nice in this new bed which hadn't grown anything productive for years. Many years ago it used to be my main vegetable garden; now abandoned for the wooden raised vegetable beds I built towards the back of my property. These beds have lasted for 25 years. This year I will need to replace a board or two on a couple of them, but the redwood has held up quite well over the years.

Back to the boysenberries. So, I got 4 canes planted before it was time to call it quits today. Tomorrow the rest will be planted and I will come up with a structure to support the new plants. My friend Kim was such a help today, she is a hard worker. Working with a buddy is very inspirational. The time flies by that way.

Ever wonder why gardeners are always such a happy group??? Well, there is a bacteria in the soil that actually generates Serotonin in our brains. It is said that this works better than Prozac and we have all heard about a town where the citizens went on Prozac to be happy. So one of the best things about gardening is the concept of being sustainable by growing food, having a beautiful garden bed full of life, getting some good exercise and vitamin D and a good shot of Serotonin that makes us happy. What else could we need?

I will add boysenberry pictures tomorrow, as it is pitch black now.

PEPPERS in JANUARY ?

2011-01-29T03:40:00.000-08:00

Did I mention that this picture was taken in 2011??? or was it December 31 at 9pm???

Yes, your thinking is correct. These peppers were just picked from the vine in my raised bed full of peppers at the New Year! We have had more than our share of cold weather this winter. Lots of nights down in the 20's. Some winters we have no actual freeze nights! I remember one year about (maybe 15 yrs ago) when we had such a bad freeze (18 degrees) that all my citrus fruit on my two lemon trees and one grapefruit tree froze and then spoiled. That was a very sad year indeed!
Okay back to peppers. In the middle of this January we picked a few more nice red peppers too and they were great!
You can see I gutted the medium hot long pepper that looks like an Anaheim pepper, yet this one is one of those whose name I cannot remember without going out and reading the tag. I believe it is hotter than Anaheims though.
Here is the next step: Ha! Chopped!

Now to make something wonderful from these beautiful peppers!

This is the vegetable side of a fantastic pasta! As you can see, it includes leeks, carrots, green garlic, broccoli, cauliflower, peppers of course, a tiny bit of olive oil and some tomato paste, I see I put in fresh rosemary and probably celery seed, freshly dried oregano and basil from the garden. I can almost smell it cooking! And to top it off, I served it with homemade sourdough whole wheat seed bread.

This is my own recipe that I have improved over time and I can tell you that it is great! So we brought in the NEW YEAR with wonderful fresh and healthy homemade food, including vegetables and herbs from the garden! Happy New Year to all of you!

What's growing in winter?

2010-12-30T03:10:00.000-08:00

December in the garden includes onions, leeks, garlic, swiss chard (of course), my new bed of potatoes and my full long bed of sweet and chili peppers. I never got broccoli or other brassicas planted in fall (of course I was out of the country much of the time).

Sometime near the end of November I went out with a huge basket and harvested all the basil late at night before we were to get a hard freeze. I also harvest lots of my beautiful red peppers that cold dark night. Fresh pesto in winter is very special. We had a lot of pesto/pepper pasta dinners around that time.

The most amazing thing is that it is December 30th and I have plants full of peppers. Unbelievable, especially because we had a streak of cold weather that we don't see very often in Sacramento California. We also have had quite a lot of rain in the last two months. Of course the rain (and snow in the mountains) is really really good since we just came out of a couple dry years.

Very soon now, it will be time to set up my seed trays and start seed for early spring planting. The solar panels on the greenhouse will generate the energy to run the heat pad and the grow lights. Now that Christmas is over, it is the time to lay out my garden plan and decide what seeds to start. My freezer has two very large jars filled with seeds waiting to be chosen this year. Living on a city lot, there are limits to the space I have available for planting. Of course I use almost every patch of ground to grow something. So, within the next couple weeks our spring seed choices will be posted.

A very late summer veggie garden

2010-11-05T01:01:00.000-07:00

I did not get my garden planted until the end of spring, early summer. And then I left for vacation in Sept. and Oct. Thank goodness I had a wonderful person caring for my garden while I was away and nothing died. That is a very special garden person for sure.

Oh, and Yes, I had a wonderful time in Ireland and visited many beautiful gardens. In fact, all of Ireland is a beautiful garden.

Okay, back to my garden. I planted it several months after my normal early spring plant time. First of all, the weather dictated that we plant a month late. Plants that sit in cold soil do not develop sooner, in fact they are set back behind plants that are put in soil at appropriate temperatures for spring growth. Then I was busy with college classes until June.

The surprising thing about this year's garden is that it is now (and while I was in Ireland) producing the fruits of my labor. The tomatoes are still on the vine, though I have picked all the red ones and only the green ones are left. The basil is still healthy. The zucchini is still producing. Well, two out of the three are still producing. Here is a picture of one that I will pick tomorrow. It is just above the large leaf that is closest in the picture.

So, here is a close-up of the zucchini that will be part of my steamed vegetable dish tomorrow night. Isn't that a beauty?!!!

While I was in Ireland, my potatoes decided to start growing. I must have left a couple little baby potatoes in the bed last time I harvested them in early summer sometime. I always say I should keep a garden diary and I do write down a few things, but never keep it up. Best intentions! Anyway, as I was saying the potatoes decided to grow all on their own without me even being in the country. Here they look pretty happy.

Oh I forgot to mention the peppers! There are lots of sweet peppers and chili peppers too. These pictures are only incredible because they were taken in the first week of November!!! Gardening fills the soul!

August greenhouse construction

2010-08-26T01:34:00.000-07:00

So, the solar panels are up on the roof. They are generating electricity. Two panels go to batteries and an inverter changes to AC power. Now the "snap" fan is installed too.

The roof vent was framed too.

So the polycarbonate installation began. The first piece was the south side which is the widest side.

And here is another shot of the south panels when they are first being fitted. You can see where the framed "snap fan" is installed on the left side.

A lot of work has been done by this picture. The sides are all in place, the roof is installed and some of the trim has been applied. What a difference a few days make. Thanks to my creative and skilled husband, who designed and is building the greenhouse.

This is a good picture of the "snap fan" installed. This fan runs off the variable DC power from one panel. We do need to put a regulator/controller on this fan to slow it down much of the time because it feels like a wind tunnel in the greenhouse.

This is one of the two temperature regulated cool intake vents. So, the greenhouse is coming along really nicely.

Tomatillo surprises in the vegetable garden

2010-08-02T04:14:00.000-07:00

Last year was the first year I had ever grown tomatilloes. I was told to have at least two plants for pollination, so I had two. I had no problem with the production of tomatilloes last year. They are those fruits that look like green tomatoes and also the ones with the paper looking skin. I had lots of them and did not get them all harvested, so many fell to the ground. The yellower they turn the sweeter they get. I understand some people only like them green and others really like them different shades of yellow. I have no preferences yet. Under that dry paper shell they are quite sticky and have to be washed before you prepare them for eating fresh or in a salsa or sauce. Other than that they are easy to incorporate into any dish you desire.

I was also told that once you grew tomatilloes you would always have them. So, when I groomed that long side bed of my yard and did not find any volunteers I was very disappointed. Then a month later in July I noticed these volunteers. Tomorrow I have to thin them, so hoping I have lots of friends who want tomatilloes.

I think they are a wonderful addition to the vegetable garden and so easy to grow. They do need to be supported. I used one of my old tomato cages made out of heavy wire wrapped into a cylinder shape. I really think I will not grow more than 4 plants this year. That is plenty for eating fresh and plenty to freeze for later in the year. Their shelf life is quite long too, much longer than a tomato.

July Greenhouse and Garden update

2010-07-30T17:13:00.000-07:00

Well my garden is growing, late as it is. Usually at this time of year I have produce coming out of my ears, but not this year. The garden is so behind because it was planted two months late. This was because of the extended cold weather and also because I was so busy with my college class. Way too busy! Obsessed!

But back to the garden. There has been drastic pruning going on for access to the exterior of the greenhouse and also to insure the new solar panels are not shaded too much. So the huge Eureka lemon and huge Vitex tree have been drastically cut back. The Vitex tree has taken the worst beating (cut to a 5th or 6th of the normal width and height of the tree). The trees in this picture are my Elder tree on the right and just a couple branches of the Vitex on the left with the large seed bunches on the very ends, and behind the roof on the left is the Eureka lemon and grapefruit tree on the right.

The panels are to power the fan for the greenhouse (DC) and the full spectrum lights, the seedling heat pad and timers. This will all be very exciting. I have had an extension cord out there for the lights and heat pad for the past couple years. But finally the polycarbonate siding is going to be put up and it will be an all "new" greenhouse.

Working on the Greenhouse

2010-07-12T01:43:00.000-07:00

Over a year ago we made our decision as to the covering for our redwood framed greenhouse. In this photo it is shown covered in 6 mil plastic which pretty much destructs after a year in our Sacramento sun. I cannot tell you how many times I have had to replace it now. Too many! So we chose Sundance Supply to purchase triple walled polycarbonate panels, which are sitting in their very heavy packing box on our patio.

Never in a hundred years would I have imagined that no one would know where to purchase exhaust fans and intake vents for a greenhouse that would close when not in use, so that all the heat built-up passively during the day would not be exhausted during the cold months and run on DC power from solar panels and batteries.

Well, a year later we have learned a lot about what is available and what is not. It was a long road with many dead ends. We finally found a fan for the greenhouse that is DC (generated by solar panels) run. It is called a Snap fan. In fact it runs straight off the solar panel and doesn't go to a battery. We still have to choose the shutters that will close to block unwanted cold in the winter. The Snap fan will be placed low on the south side (under the shade of my large Vitex tree). We found our fan at Real Goods Solar Living Center in Hopland CA.

We have a pretty large window in the roof that will open with a Gigavent (automatically opens by temperature). We got it at Peaceful Valley Farm Supply in Grass Valley CA.

Here is a picture of a panel like one of ours. I took it at the Real Goods Solar Living Center. Of course ours will not be set-up on a portable frame like this one in the picture. They will be on the roof of the studio which is attached to the greenhouse.

Ours are not up on the roof yet, but it will be exciting to see when they do get up there.

Today is the Summer Solstice

2010-06-21T18:50:00.000-07:00

Today is the longest day of the year and the shortest night of the year!!! It is the first day of summer, and it is 91 degrees, which seems pretty hot.

So, summer is here and I am still planting my spring/summer veggies. I have most of my peppers in. Would like to find 2-3 Anaheims to plant.

I have five San Marzano paste tomatoes planted. I have two organic Early Girls and a Costoluto Genovese in large pots. Still have two slicing tomatoes to plant: a Paul Robeson and Sun Gold to plant, as well as one more Costoluto Genovese.

This is what the Paul Robeson looks like - something like a Black Kim in color I think. I have never grown them before.

I have one Zucchini squash planted and one more French White Bush squash to plant. I lost a couple eggplant starts in the greenhouse and only have one left to plant. I haven't even gotten any beans planted yet, and need to look to see if any tomatillos have volunteered in a dry bed. I am watering that tomatillo bed right now.

It is pretty much covered with mugwort up to 6 feet tall. Very happy mugwort, but I don't need mugwort in that bed. It already has its own place on the other side of the house in an herb bed.

I have three kinds of Swiss Chard, the white, orange/yellow and red that are growing extra large leaves. They are not liking this hot sun as well as some other plants that are unhappy with this sudden hot sun.

And the late planted broccoli wilts during the hot of the day, but is still healthy because of the afternoon shade. The onions and leeks are in full bloom from this hot sun too. At least the round flower heads are pretty.

Oh, and the raspberries are coming on and are very sweet. I hardly get many of them into the house. Only twice have I not eaten all of them to get a bowl's worth in the house.

One of the greatest things this year is that the native bees and honey bees are very plentiful. The honey bees have been thick on my Vitex tree and my El Grosso Lavender (pictured below).

So, my ever changing garden is a very busy place!

I believe that Spring is finally here!!!

2010-05-29T18:22:00.000-07:00

At least it seems that many of the flowers believe that Spring is here.
For several years I have purchased Passiflora incarnata (passion flower) vines from reputable nurseries. I have wanted to grow one on the back side of a fence facing west. Every year they have died. I never saw a flower unless the plant came with one.

So, this last year I purchased another, but this time I put it in a pot and set the pot on the north wall of my house, because plants in pots can't handle as much sun as when in the ground if they are sensitive to too much sun at all. I was just out looking around and noticed that the vine that has crawled up the side of the house now has flowers. It has also traveled onto a trellis which holds an orange trumpet vine (another story). To my surprise there are about five flowers and more to come. Here is a picture I took of one of the passion flower blooms. I am a happy gardener!

So what do we know about Passiflora incarnata, commonly called passion flowers? Well, they don't like my west fence! They are also known as a maypop.

The maypop is a common roadside weed found throughout the Southeastern U.S and also Argentina and Brazil. It derived this early common name because it just seems to 'pop' out of the ground in May. They grow in USDA zones 5-9, but should be planted in protected locations and mulched heavily from severe cold. Top growth can be killed back from frost. They need partial to full sun (not full sun in Sacramento though), and will adapt themselves to most well-drained soils. During the growing season the soil should be kept evenly moist for better flowering and growth. The flowers range around 3" in diameter and are very unique and quite beautiful. We also know that they start blooming in May!

The vines can easily grow up to 15 feet in one season. (that is good because I want mine to end up along the railing of a two-story deck) They grow well on a fence or trellis, and they will scramble over shrubs and trees. They produce small fruits in the shape of an oval berry, similar to a kiwi fruit, called granadilla or water lemon. The fruit is edible, but it is pretty seedy. I have friends that eat them though. You can also make it into a jelly.

The passion flower fruit is also a food source for several species of butterfly and their larvae.

Best of all, the passion flower is a naturally grown medicinal herb, in the treatment of insomnia and nervousness. It is also used as a sedative in nervous disorders (including gastrointestional complaints of nervous origin), difficulties in sleeping, and anxiety or restlessness. Passion flower reduces spasms and depresses the central nervous system. The aerial parts of the plant are gathered during fruiting season and are dried for herbal uses.

Passion flower has a tranquilizing effect, including mild sedative and anti-anxiety effects. In studies conducted since the 1930's, its mode of action has been found to be different than that of most sedative drugs (sleeping pills), thus making it a non-addictive herb to promote relaxation.

The sedative effect of Passion flower has made it popular for treating a variety of ailments, including nervousness and insomnia. Research had indicated that passion flower has a complex activity on the central nervous system, which is responsible for its overall tranquilizing effects. Also, it has an antispasmodic effect on smooth muscles within the body, including the digestive system, promoting digestion.

Also, there are no reported side effects for passion flower. However, it is not recommended for use in pregnant women or children under the age of two.

(And in self protection - here is my disclaimer: This is not medical advice, but herbal information that you can acquire on the internet or from herbal practitioners. Anyone already taking a sedative or tranquilizer would need to consult a health care professional before using passion flower.

Spring has been very slow in coming . . .

2010-05-27T17:30:00.000-07:00

Here are some spring pictures.

The sky has looked much like this for much of our spring. There is a Kite in flight. He/she has a huge nest up in the top of that tree. At least we have gotten a normal years worth of rain. The problem is that it has been spread out over so many months that are normally warm with sunny blue skies. Yes, it rained again today.

Here is evidence of so much rain that it seems like fall with all the debris of leaves, flower petals and nature's prunings.

This year we have three colors of Swiss Chard growing in the garden. On the left is the white, with red in the center, and the yellowy-orange on the right. I love Swiss chard in steamed veggie dishes. They are new plants this year, but my last planting of it lasted at least four years. I called it grandfather chard!

WORM MOON - the First Full Moon of Northern Spring

2010-03-29T18:49:00.000-07:00

March 29, 2010 is the FIRST FULL MOON OF NORTHERN SPRING:

According to folklore, tonight's full Moon has a special name--the Worm Moon.

It signals the coming of northern spring, a thawing of the soil, and the first stirrings of earthworms in long-dormant gardens. Step outside tonight and behold the wakening landscape.

"Worm moonlight" is prettier than it sounds.

The White House Garden is thriving!

2010-03-27T15:51:00.000-07:00

Exclusive Video: White House Garden Survives, Thrives in Washington Winter
from the Daily Flotus by Lynn Sweet, 3-26-10

Despite a harsh Washington winter -- two blizzards and several feet of snow -- the recently harvested White House garden yielded a bounty of lettuce, spinach, and a lot of turnips.

"Nobody thought that the garden would survive," said Kass.

It not only survived, it thrived, making First Lady Michelle Obama's signature project a four-season source of fresh produce.

The plants grew over the winter covered by white plastic stretched over hoops, trapping the heat of the sun by day and keeping the plants warm at night. But even Kass was not sure the "hoop houses" would work. "The fact of the matter is we didn't know."

The video shows how the hoop houses exceeded expectations. The harvest included robust looking lettuce, spinach and arugula, Kass said leeks will be ready in the spring, garlic and peas will be picked later, as will carrots, planted but not harvested.

Ground for the 1,100-square-foot garden on the west side of the South Lawn was cleared on March 20, 2009 and first planted in April, with a "perfect" southern exposure.

"The planting of this garden was one of the first things I wanted to do as First Lady here at the White House," Mrs. Obama said at an earlier harvest on June 17. At the opening of a Farmers Market on Sept. 17 in Washington, Mrs. Obama said the garden was "one of the greatest things I've done in my life, so far."

The garden was been wildly successful, growing into Mrs. Obama's anti-childhood obesity campaign.

Kass, gesturing toward stakes already in the ground, says in the video "we are going to be expanding our garden this year, at the request of the First Lady." The plan is to "build a couple more rows of beds," Kass said.

In assessing the harvest, Kass said it was "more humble" than a summer picking, "but I think we did pretty great."

(link to article: http://www.politicsdaily.com/2010/03/26/exclusive-video-white-house-garden-survives-thrives-in-washing/)

Finally the garden beckons

2010-03-07T15:04:00.000-08:00

For some reason or many reasons, ;-)
I have spent very little time in my gardens during the month of February. Was it the cold weather? Was it the rain and wind? Was it my classes? Was it my work? I am not really sure, but the urge to get out there is back! Yea!!! I am on my way outside to prune. Yes, I know it is late, but all will survive.

The vegetable and fruit gardens are doing well for this time of the year. I do have less vegetables growing than usual though. I only have lettuce, onions, leeks, garlic, red potatoes, swiss chard and maybe spinach. Oh, I think I also have some bok choy growing too. I have many starter plants in the greenhouse waiting for me to get out there and give them the freedom of the 4 feet by 4 feet raised beds to spread their roots.

The lemons and grapefruit are providing us with a nice new crop. I have not gotten out there to check on my new fruit trees planted last year. So, hopefully off to the garden in 65° weather with an update and pictures to follow!

This ad is a little demonstration of some of what I have been working on inside on the computer this last month!

Click here to go to Sustainable Urban Gardens

What's so important about fresh locally grown produce?

2010-02-28T15:11:00.000-08:00

Tip of the week ...

From a nutritional standpoint:
Vegetables and fruits are rich in flavonoids and carotenoids with both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity, and both promote healthy digestion, can fill you up with few calories and little to no fat, and are among the healthiest snack options when on-the-go.

Dark leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables are especially good choices, as are berries and other low-glycemic fruits. Aim for 4-5 servings of vegetables and 3-4 servings of fruit per day - go for a wide range of colors, choose fruit and vegetables that are fresh in season, and buy organic whenever possible.

The best solution is to grow your own. It is the healthy choice on many levels!

Locally Grown Organic Food

2010-01-21T23:51:00.000-08:00

Making affordable, locally and regionally-grown organic food available to all, rich, middle-income and poor, must become a top priority for city and county governments across the nation. We are very pleased to say that we were able to change the front yard landscape ordinance in Sacramento CA to allow diverse plantings which can include fruits and vegetables.
More local organic food is beginning to be available with every new front and/or backyard home garden. New community gardens and local farmers markets are also supplying fresh local organic produce.

Making the transition to organic food and farming stimulates the local economy, improves public health, sequesters enormous amount of climate destabilizing greenhouse gases, and protects the environment. As global warming intensifies, scientists warn that a continuation of current "business as usual" practices will lead to a catastrophic 8.6 degree Fahrenheit temperature rise by 2100. Our only hope is to make energy-efficient and climate-stabilizing organic food and farming the norm rather than just the green alternative.

Tim LaSalle, Ph.D., CEO of the Rodale Institute, explains how organic farming techniques pull carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it as carbon in living soil—an overlooked, but significant, route to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate climate change. More at www.rodaleinstitute.org.

Gardening in 2009 and 2010

2010-01-11T02:28:00.000-08:00

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year with a great year of garden successes in 2010!!!

We had lots of successes this last year. Our raspberries are getting better and better every year. We added two new peach trees, a nectarine and an apricot to replace the big beautiful one we lost. We have added blueberries to the garden, but have not been gifted with a harvest yet.

Our peppers, tomatoes, broccoli, lettuce, zucchini, chard, basil, peas, beans, potatoes, onions and leeks did really well. The spinach did not provide a large crop this year, nor the garlic or the eggplant. I think the eggplant just did not get enough care (too little water). As usual we had an abundance of lemons, grapefruit, loquots, figs and blackberries. This year was our first year for tomatillos and we had them coming out of our ears. With only two plants, they provided much too much to process. I still have some sitting on the counter.

(I think I might try #4 this year if we continue to have a wet year)

The Amazing Cucumber

This information was in The New York Times several weeks ago as part of their "Spotlight on the Home" series that highlighted creative and fanciful ways to solve common problems.

1. Cucumbers contain most of the vitamins you need every day, just one cucumber contains Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Folic Acid, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium and Zinc.

2. Feeling tired in the afternoon, put down the caffeinated soda and pick up a cucumber. Cucumbers are a good source of B Vitamins and Carbohydrates that can provide that quick pick-me-up that can last for hours.

3. Tired of your bathroom mirror fogging up after a shower? Try rubbing a cucumber slice along the mirror, it will eliminate the fog and provide a soothing, spa-like fragrance.

4. Are grubs and slugs ruining your planting beds? Place a few slices in a small pie tin and your garden will be free of pests all season long. The chemicals in the cucumber react with the aluminum to give off a scent undetectable to humans but drive garden pests crazy and make them flee the area.

5. Looking for a fast and easy way to remove cellulite before going out or to the pool? Try rubbing a slice or two of cucumbers along your problem area for a few minutes, the phytochemicals in the cucumber cause the collagen in your skin to tighten, firming up the outer layer and reducing the visibility of cellulite. Works great on wrinkles too!!!

6. Want to avoid a hangover or terrible headache? Eat a few cucumber slices before going to bed and wake up refreshed and headache free. Cucumbers contain enough sugar, B vitamins and electrolytes to replenish essential nutrients the body lost, keeping everything in equilibrium, avoiding both a hangover and headache!!

7. Looking to fight off that afternoon or evening snacking binge? Cucumbers have been used for centuries and often used by European trappers, traders and explores for quick meals to thwart off starvation.

8. Have an important meeting or job interview and you realize that you don't have enough time to polish your shoes? Rub a freshly cut cucumber over the shoe, its chemicals will provide a quick and durable shine that not only looks great but also repels water.

9. Out of WD 40 and need to fix a squeaky hinge? Take a cucumber slice and rub it along the problematic hinge, and voila, the squeak is gone!

10. Stressed out and don't have time for massage, facial or visit to the spa? Cut up an entire cucumber and place it in a boiling pot of water, the chemicals and nutrients from the cucumber will react with the boiling water and be released in the steam, creating a soothing, relaxing aroma that has been shown the reduce stress in new mothers and college students during final exams.

11. Just finish a business lunch and realize you don't have gum or mints? Take a slice of cucumber and press it to the roof of your mouth with your tongue for 30 seconds to eliminate bad breath, the phytochemcials will kill the bacteria in your mouth responsible for causing bad breath.

12. Looking for a 'green' way to clean your faucets, sinks or stainless steel? Take a slice of cucumber and rub it on the surface you want to clean, not only will it remove years of tarnish and bring back the shine, but is won't leave streaks and won't harm you fingers or fingernails while you clean.

13. Using a pen and made a mistake? Take the outside of the cucumber and slowly use it to erase the pen writing, also works great on crayons and markers that the kids have used to decorate the walls!!

Late Fall Harvests!

2009-12-17T22:27:00.000-08:00

This is a late October/November harvest basket with lots of ripe tomatoes, tomatillos, eggplant, onions, zucchini, and even more of every type of pepper (from bell, anaheim, jalapeno, cayenne and everything in between.

This next picture shows more fruits and vegetables in our fall harvest. Basil was also still going strong.

This is also the time for harvesting Evening Primrose seed pods. Then the process of separating the seeds from the seed pods. A pinch of seeds a day is good as an alternative to taking commercial and intensively processed Evening Primrose oil. The seeds really don't have much taste, yet I think they taste good.

Also, this is the last of the fennel seed harvest for the year. Soon after this harvest the rain and strong winds strip the last of the seeds to the ground. A pinch of fennel after a meal is helpful for good digestion and also tastes refreshing. A nice ending to a great meal.

There is a real richness in fall harvests. The completion of so many life cycles are coming to fruition. Nature is showing her strength by making changes on many invigorating levels. It is a stimulating time of the year for many of us.

Dandelions

2009-11-14T20:10:00.000-08:00

I love my dandelions. Many are in my postage-stamp sized lawn. Many around the edges of several flower beds. I pick them and feed them to my cat and dog. They like it and it is good for them. Dandelions have wonderful healing qualities. I use dandelions in several herbal preparations I make.

Here is a nice video about all the things that dandelions have to offer.

Worm Composting - Fine Gardening Video

2009-11-12T03:55:00.001-08:00

Worm Composting

Worm castings can be even better than compost for you plants. I use it as an inoculant in my gardens. Wonderful stuff.

Click the link below to view video. Click your browser back arrow to return to this blog.

Worm Composting - Fine Gardening Video

Turn your kitchen scraps into nutrient-rich compos twith Jodie Colon
Length: 2:43

Vermicompost, or worm castings, are surprisingly simple to make. Give your worms a dark, cozy home with plenty of food, moisture, oxygen, and a comfortable temperature and you'll be rewarded with piles and piles of worm manure.
In this video, Jodie Colon of the New York Botanical Garden, demonstrates how to make a worm bin.
Shot by: Daryl Beyers; Edited by: Cari Delahanty

From the South Lawn, a Sweet smell of Honey

2009-11-06T17:22:00.000-08:00

First just a small White House Vegetable Garden.
Now the White House Garden is beginning to expand
into an even better example of sustainable urban gardening.
A key to a sustainable garden is an emphasis on diversity.

This is a fun Multimedia Audio Slide Show by the New York Times.
Click on the photo to jump to the New York Times page so you can play this show.

At the end of the show click on your browser's back arrow button twice
to return to this blog page. Enjoy!

by Viktor Koen
Multimedia
Audio Slide Show

Pale Blue Dot

2009-10-30T00:50:00.000-07:00

Wow! My words cannot do this justice.
Listen to Carl Sagan's words.

Pale Blue Dot
Source: www.youtube.com

This is taken from the book. Having him read to you is something else. Enough said. Take a listen and share this video. It is your moral duty.

Making a Strong Case for the Environment - The Future of this Planet

2009-10-30T00:06:00.000-07:00

The Girl Who Silenced The World For 5 Minutes

She addressed a UN Meeting on the issue of the environment.
I was so moved the first time I heard her speech and everytime since.

We need more than ever to learn and be inspired by the bravery and emotional maturity of this girl. She literally moved the world with her speech.

Probably the most representative of all environmental speeches.
Watch it.

Buried Treasures

2009-10-29T15:47:00.000-07:00

Our plant friends provide us with the best nutrition!

Energy Times - Health, Vitamins, Supplements and Nutrition

Source: http://www.energytimes.com/

Health Magazine, Vitamins, Supplements and Nutrition

This is just a reminder of all the good things that are so very easy to grow in our own back or front yards. There is no reason that anyone should go hungry if they have a piece of land to provide such wonderful gifts!

It is time to plant that fall garden. I have 5 six-packs of lettuce to plant, bok choy, and broccoli.

I also have a sack each of very healthy large onions and leeks from Peaceful Valley Farm to get into the ground. Oh, they smell sooooooooo good!

It is also time to plant potatoes. I have a lot - and I mean a LOT of sprouted potatoes ready to go.

I had a bunch of sweet potato starts and I planted them almost 2 weeks ago, before our 3" of rain. I know it is late to plant them, but we will see what they do; or if they do.

Well, it is time to steam some veggies for dinner tonight. What I have to steam are: leeks and garlic (of course! - the basis of everything great), broccoli, zucchini squash, carrots, eggplant, bell and anaheim peppers, and maybe one hot pepper, and maybe tomatoes and tomatillas. Over short grain brown rice, and a little pepperjack cheese sauce poured on top - well it makes my mouth water. It will warm your body. So very satisfying on a cold fall evening.

Fall is here!

2009-09-28T20:16:00.000-07:00

Today was the first day that has really felt like fall.
What a wonderful day.
Now if I could just clone today's weather!

The garden is still providing overwhelming amounts of tomatoes, zucchini, beans, onions, leeks, eggplant, tomatillos, herbs, and all sorts of peppers!

The grapes are still hanging thick from their trellis and the blackberries are still turning black. The raspberries are between crops now and the figs are just finishing up. The black elderberries are still hanging from their limbs and the rosehips are turning orange and red on many different plants.

Yet, with all this bounty, it is weighing on my mind that I have not started fall veggie seeds yet.

What should I grow this fall?
Well, of course, lettuce, spinach, green onions, swiss chard, potatoes and broccoli. Oh, and I must not forget peas. In fact I have one plant that volunteered about 2-3 weeks ago. Fresh raw peas from the garden are a delicacy that everyone should experience.

It is late I know, but I have a lot of sweet potato starts with a nice set of roots which will go into the garden this week. Yes, it is late, but if they don't develop fully in a few months, then they will be ready in early spring.

Then I am thinking about growing brussels sprouts again.
Oh, the choices are many!

In the ornamental arena, I am including more native plants into my landscape. Native plants strengthen and build diverse beneficials in the garden.

This is all part of sustainable gardening.

All is well!

2009-08-24T12:22:00.000-07:00

I am well aware of the effects of pesticides and herbicides on the land and all the life on this land.

Last year and a couple years before that, my neighbors had two chemical lawn care companies (Chemlawn and Scott's) come and spray chemicals weekly and even bi-weekly. What was especially disheartening was that both companies would spray during high winds (14mph sustained winds with gusts up to 25 and sometimes 35mph). I would have the heads-up that they were doing this because I would be knocked out by the smell coming into my house on the second story level. These same neighbors also had and still do have a chemical company come and spray poisons all around their home.

Small blessings, the neighbors do not have the two lawn care companies anymore. They came once this year, but I think that was the end of their contract. So, my roses in the front yard are beginning to have green leaves (instead of a brown-green color) and are starting to have typical growth and leaf shape again. But the most exciting part is that I have honey bees, bumble bees and other native bees of all sizes and shapes. I have seen lots of butterflies, ladybugs and praying mantis this summer and moths that are really pretty too. The birds are plentiful and life is just buzzing all around in a harmonious manner. My vegetables are full of flowers and the fruit is plentiful. My fig tree is loaded with huge figs and the Thompson Seedless grape is heavy with huge bunches of ripening fruit. All is well on my sustainable piece of land!

This is the trailer to a movie called "A Chemical Reaction." This is a documentary about making change for our future. One small step for mankind, one huge step for this earth!

I think they are entering the documentary in film festivals first before national release. It would be fun to go to a film festival again, but also it would be great to see this film come to my town and for all of us to get to see it. If change can take place in one town and spread to several others, it can spread all across North America and eventually the world. This is an important step in saving the health of this whole planet.

And now I am off to pour some compost tea on a few of my flower and vegetable beds. It is a glorious day with temperatures in the mid 80's!

Oh, life is beautiful!

A pretty good summer!

2009-08-17T14:56:00.000-07:00

Considering the fact that my gardens have been pretty much on their own for two months, it has been a good summer.

Why? My organic garden was mulched well in the spring and I have had time to keep up with watering mostly.

The other reason, and a very big one IMHO, is that I have insects. I have had many honeybees and other native bees, butterflies, and lots of beneficial helpers. I have seen butterflies that I can't identify, such as a very tiny (1/2") pretty black and tan shaped just like the stealth plane. This guy was in my vegetable garden and also in my frontyard mostly ornamental gardens. In fact, I saw a larger variety today with this stealth shape (1") with two very white distinctive shapes on each wing.

There are lots of birds this year. I have had hummers, mourning doves, lots of small birds, a couple hawks, crows, blue jays as usual, and nesting mocking birds with the juveniles bathing in the saucer of water on the deck and trying to jump from vine to vine in the climbing roses.

I have one young squirrel living on my deck. His mother used to be around, but for the last two-three months it has just been "little one" - his name.

So, as you can see, it has been fun watching the wildlife when I get a chance.

The harvest from the garden has been fun too! Fun to eat! Here is a fruit and veggie basket from last week. This is before the grapes were sweet enough to harvest yet and the grapefruit was a little high for me to reach. The herb in the basket is basil. Oh we love basil.

If you count tomatoes as a fruit. This is something that seems difficult for me to change my mind about - they would still be on my veggie list. But if you do, then this basket includes four types of fruit and four types of vegetables and basil to make everything taste even better!

By the way, I am feeding the neighborhood wildlife with my huge white fig tree. Actually, they are green in color. They are right ontop of the white eggplant in the basket.

The Jalapeno pepper is sitting on the figs and they are all sitting on the zucchini. I did sneak in a few blackberries in the very front of the basket. The raspberries are taking a rest and the blackberries have really come on big-time!

Now the bell peppers are starting to turn red and the tomatoes (mostly indeterminate) are ripening when I need them. The paste tomatoes (mostly determinates) are going to require processing to make sauce and then freezing within a couple weeks. And the lemons, well, I am nearing the end of the onslaught of lemons. I was getting approximately 20-25 lemons a day. Friends were finally saying, I still have plenty when I would offer more.

Since I am done with the "first" EcoLandscape California newsletter that took all of my time for two months, I am finally getting to update the various websites I have and care for and this blog.

And of course I am putting in time in the garden with some much needed maintenance, mainly pruning and volunteer and sucker removal. I am also getting a chance to feed several gardens with some newly brewed compost tea! A wonderful gift from a friend. In fact, I am going to say bye for now and get out there!

The health food wars

2009-07-06T16:22:00.000-07:00

Hope you enjoy this 5 minute video. This is probably the most creative youtube video I have ever seen.

Happy July

2009-07-06T03:18:00.000-07:00

Wow! was June a mixed bag or what? We had some unseasonal cool weather and then very hot weather near the end of the month. My plants didn't know what to think about it and the newly planted plants were not happy campers at the end of the month. It was wilt city during direct sun.

Yet, with all of these weather changes my plants grew and grew. Today I only had time to deadhead roses and prune back a tiny bit of my wild Wisteria. Well I did make time to harvest tomatoes, onions, raspberries, zucchini, plums, lemons and grapefruit.

Many things are in full bloom and I am thankful for everyday that I hear the buzzing of the bees. My Vitex tree is still electric with their sound. There are native bees flitting about and today I even saw a tiger swallowtail.

The bees are also covering my El Grosso Lavender in the front yard. The lavender is so happy that I will need to harvest it soon.

All another day!

Tour the White House Kitchen Garden with Sam Kass

2009-06-12T19:12:00.000-07:00

Finally, we get a good look at the White House garden, and it's looking fantastic. The cooks are using these wonderful organic vegetables and herbs every night. Yum! Yum! Can't wait to see their summer vegetables.

Time Flies When Working in the Garden

2009-05-02T14:41:00.000-07:00

For another week now I have spent non-stop in the garden. Well, I have seen clients with my two businesses. But that did not take more than three days away from the garden.

The only reason I have time to blog now is because it has been raining yesterday and all of today so far. We broke a record for the most rain on May 1st since 1905. We got .65 inch yesterday. Actually they had predicted more rain, but there still is today and tomorrow.

Yesterday I spent sometime in the greenhouse replanting some African Violets and today I just came in from the greenhouse starting some new African Violets from the leaves that snapped off in the transplanting. There was water in the greenhouse from a leak, but I have a pile of plastic containers that can be used for mini-greenhouses and they collected the bulk of the water. The floor will dry out. My 5 gal. container under the drain for the huge greenhouse sink/table (was a darkroom sink) is full and the excess is of course ending up on the concrete floor. I am really hoping we can get the polycarbonate siding install this spring/early summer. It will free up a large patio too when it happens.

So, back to the garden. Here is a sweet little color spot under my Crepe Myrtle tree in the front yard.

I have now installed three very large trellis structures along the west side of the front yard. It supports my Brother Cadfael, Cottage Rose, Mme. Alfred Carriere, and an Apple Rose. They are beautiful structures I think. I am pleased with my find. They are handcrafted by a guy in El Dorado Hills, therefore supporting local small businesses.

Here are three pictures of the trellis from left to right as it travels along the side of my property. They are hard to see in the photos, but each of the three sections has three sections with arched tops. I believe they are made of rusted steel. These pictures don't do them justice.

The second photo is of Mme. Alfred Carriere, who was a solid white blush all over with flowers.

The third photo is of Cottage Rose was almost covered with pink blooms. Then we had 35 mph winds for several days and then the rain yesterday and today have eliminated the beautiful show they were displaying.

I have put compost tea on my gardens two and three times for some parts. This all started when I transplanted a three year old Suncrest Peach that hadn't been doing well in its old home in Newcastle. I had been unable to find one anywhere this year for sale. A dear friend found this one for me. Here is a photo of the peach tree, still somewhat in shock.

Gardening is the art that uses flowers and plants as paint, and the soil and sky as canvas. ~ Elizabeth Murray

Today was Earth Day, and . . .

2009-04-23T02:11:00.000-07:00

Early this morning I started off with my hands in the dirt. First I had my gloves on to pull up some volunteers (like mint, blue vervain, a couple weeds). Then off went the gloves to plant a couple bell peppers. One round of watering in the veggie garden and my new fruit tree and herb bed the length of the backyard, a scattering of other watering spots and into the house I went as it started to warm-up to about 90 degrees. These last few days of summer have been a bit much for the beginning of spring here in Sacramento.

A week ago, I planted a Suncrest peach that was dug up from the foothills and donated to me. This weather has not been a friend to the peach tree. It was just too soon for this type of punishment. Many of the leaves are turning bright yellow and all the leaves feel very limp when I touch them. Tomorrow, I plan on spraying compost tea on my new peach tree. Hopefully that will help with this stress. But really, I think the cool breeze that came in tonight is going to be the saving grace in this situation.

Happy Earth Day!!! Bless this earth and all those organisms living on/above and below the earth's surface. I am loving my insects that are gracing my gardens with their activity. May we all live sustainably and in harmony.

Okay Mother Nature! I've had enough WIND!

2009-04-16T19:49:00.000-07:00

We have had too many days of wind. Thank goodness the worst of it is over.

I actually lost a few plants in pots that I overlooked during my watering regime.

Twenty-five to thirty-five mile an hour winds does not blend into my type of garden.

Poor Mme. Alfred Carriere, an 1879 old rose, who is a strong climber and tall rambler to 15’ and also in full bloom with large white blush pink flowers. Why? Her branches are spread all over the yard with blooms resting on the lawn. Tying up all of those very long branches will be a 3 hour job. I just purchased a couple trellis structures to help tie her up.

Wednesday, I planted a three year old Suncrest peach tree. I couldn't find one to buy during bare root time, so my friend Vicky enticed her friend to dig this tree out of his yard and donate it to me. The tree had not done well in its old home. In fact I found two small leaves with curly leaf. I soaked the root ball with a strong dose of compost tea and poured some over some of the leaves.

Thursday my new Suncrest peach looked okay. No leaves are hanging. The woodland perennials that I had to dig up so I could plant the peach don't look as perky.

So, Saturday will be the day I plant most of my vegetables. I have the rest of the tomatoes to plant, some of my peppers to plant, my eggplant and many more herbs. I still need to purchase a couple roma heirloom tomatoes. I need to see if my zucchini has sprouted in the greenhouse, because I would like to plant it soon.

Love this time of year. Just one problem. Sunday is supposed to be 94 degrees. Ugh!

"Gardening has compensations out of all proportions to its goals. It is creation in the pure sense."-Phillis McGinley (1805-1978)

Spring sunshine is back again!

2009-04-11T02:55:00.000-07:00

Yea! We got a very good soaking yesterday and especially last night. It was coming down hard for hours and hours. A much needed soaking too. I haven't checked to see how much precipitation we did get during this last storm. All the plants that are planted in the ground are feeling very perky today.

Here is a picture of my O'Henry peach tree that I planted last month and also a Fantasia nectarine tree planted at the same time.

Here is a surprise I found this morning.
Pretty little iris isn't it? It was a nice gift from Mother Nature.

Well, this is all for today. I plan on posting more pictures tomorrow.
Sweet dreams of April flowers from April showers!

It's Raining!!!

2009-04-07T20:13:00.000-07:00

Wow! This rain is perfect to settle in new plantings. I wish I had had time to get all of my new plants into the ground. But the dozen or more will be happy campers. This rain has been a gift from Mother Nature. It will just be tough not working on all outdoor projects for three to four days.

My Lilac is most beautiful this year and smells so heavenly! I can't walk by without getting a full whiff by putting my nose in a thick blossom.

Here are a few highlights of my gardens now -

Soon to be harvested: peas and romaine lettuce.

And this years Shichifukujin Tree Peony is just gorgeous!

This newcomer, Pacific Coast hybrid "Purple and White" Iris is pretty nice too!

Each flower is a soul opening out to nature. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Welcome Life . . . back to my garden

2009-04-06T01:08:00.000-07:00

The weather has been marvelous!!! Great for really working in the garden. And work in the garden I have done most days of the last two weeks. It is sooooooooo grounding to work with the plants, soil, earthworms and of course mother nature.

This hens and chicken is feeling spunky with beautiful delicate flowers.

The most exiting thing that I realized today is that the insects are slowly coming back to my gardens. There were several butterflies on my Lilac (in full bloom) yesterday and today. The honey bees and native bees are also showing up again and buzzing around me as I work. It feels so good to share space with them in the garden again. LIFE is coming back to the garden!!!

So, what I now need to do is talk to my neighbors about eliminating the chemical spraying that went on several days a week for most of last summer. That is when all the insects disappeared from my property. It just felt to dead!

"Where flowers bloom so does hope". ~ Lady Bird Johnson

Earth Hour is tonight for an hour, between 8:30pm - 9:30pm

2009-03-28T18:42:00.000-07:00

VOTE EARTH

YOUR LIGHT SWITCH IS YOUR VOTE

WWF is urging the world to VOTE EARTH and reach the target of 1 billion votes, which will be presented to world leaders at the Global Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, 2009.

This meeting will determine official government policies to take action against global warming, which will replace the Kyoto Protocol.

It is the chance for the people of the world to make their voice heard!

If you think that it's worth trying to make a difference for future generations, *please* take a moment to sign up at their site - and place your vote by turning off your lights for just an hour on Saturday, 28th March - 8.30 pm - 9.30 pm.

That's 8.30 pm - 9.30 pm local time - wherever you are on the planet...

To find out more, and sign up, please click below: http://www.earthhour.org/about/

Edible garden at California's Capitol Park

2009-03-25T13:31:00.000-07:00

Sacramento's Capitol Park may have an edible garden too. The details have not come out yet, but this article hit the Sac. Bee today.

Edible garden planned for Capitol Park

Days after first lady Michelle Obama broke ground on a White House garden, California first lady Maria Shriver announced Wednesday she plans to establish an edible garden at Capitol Park in Sacramento.

Shriver plans to grow fruits, vegetables and other edible plants on an 800-square-foot plot east of 13th Street between Capitol Avenue and L Street, said spokesman Francisco Castillo. The space currently holds a flower bed.

"This new garden will bring awareness to children, students and visitors about the important role of food, where it comes from, nutritional value, how it is grown and harvested and ultimately how it reaches the tables of those who need it most," Shriver said in a statement.

Shriver plans to work with the California School Garden Network and chef Alice Waters, who established The Edible Schoolyard organic gardening program at a Berkeley middle school.

"It's a project she's thought about for a while," Castillo said.

Little by little, spring garden plans come together

2009-03-22T19:33:00.000-07:00

In the class that I just finished teaching, my students planted all of their spring and summer vegetable seeds in little cardboard (recycled) pots. Unfortunately, I only planted seed for my spring vegetables in December and not the warm season vegetables.

In the vegetable garden, we are now growing swiss chard, two kinds of lettuce, spinach, onions, leeks, nasturtium and peas. I have not planted the parsley starts yet. Then there are the two tomato plants that are still in the greenhouse and a backup of lettuce starts.

This is a picture of my grandfather chard, which is either 4 or 4 1/2 years old. I haven't kept count. Notice how thick the main brown stem is. The leaves have always been very tender and have a nice mild flavor. This plant is obviously living the life of a perennial! ;-)

This afternoon I planted a few seeds. I planted bell peppers (from my saved seeds), sweet basil, thyme, scarlet nasturtium (Empress of India), and zucchini.

Well, I am going to have to buy some starters this year. I will probably purchase anaheim peppers and several varieties of chili peppers - cayenne, jalapeno, habanaro, etc. (Talini's nursery will have a nice organic selection). I will have to purchase all of my paste tomatoes and some favorite table tomatoes, since it is so late in the year to start the seed. I should have started them 5-7 weeks before our last frost which is tomorrow (March 23rd). Same for eggplants.

I will need to start carrots and beans from seed soon. Then there are the special vegetable varieties that I don't grow every year. I am not sure yet what they will be, but I am thinking spaghetti squash and pumpkin to start with.

Our little urban farm provides fresh, nutritious, wonderful tasting fruits and vegetables throughout the year. We are eating in harmony with the seasons and savoring the experience.

Right feeding is the biggest single factor in good health - but the food must be right in quality as well as quantity. ~ Organic Gardening -- Rodale Press

Even the White House is planting an organic vegetable garden this spring!

2009-03-22T13:59:00.000-07:00

Yes, we have been saying for months now that an organic vegetable garden at the White House would set a good example for the country. We are so pleased that Michelle Obama is starting the garden and Sam Kass, an assistant White House chef will oversee the garden. It demonstrates the importance of fresh, nutritious, good tasting fruits and vegetables that are free from chemicals and are also plentiful and economically available to many Americans where they live. (at their home, community garden or local farmer's market)

Watch this video and see it really beginning.

Life is SPRINGING up everywhere!

2009-03-20T00:57:00.000-07:00

This is one time when the actual jump into spring is happening in conjunction with a wonderful change in the weather. Wow! Hang-on, Spring is really really here!!! It is time to get my complete spring/summer garden into full production. As it stands now, I only have four beds growing vegetables. By April 1st I hope to have many more planted.

And I hear that other new gardens are in the planning stages of being developed. Maybe . . .

THIS LAWN IS YOUR LAWN

Early spring is a time for pruning in my yard this year!

2009-03-17T00:29:00.000-07:00

March has been a month spent in the garden pruning and pulling those aggressive Oxalis yellow flowers. It has been a better workout than going to the gym 5 days a week.

I now have three new fruit trees planted in my new fruit tree bed. I purchased an O'Henry peach, a Fantasia nectarine, and a Royal Blenheim apricot at Fowler nursery in Newcastle (up the hill). I am so excited to get these trees planted. I lost my huge apricot this last fall and it broke my heart. I am hoping this new apricot tastes as yummy as my old one did.

The last three years have not included the needed big time pruning on my property - so it is happening this year. The thornless blackberries were cleaned out and look great - ready to produce lots of blackberries. The huge plum tree in my front yard just lost a huge limb yesterday that was encroaching my neighbors drive-way. Wow - there is so much light under that tree now. I was able to severely prune the two roses on the trellis next to the tree too, so I am expecting a fantastic show later this spring. One is a peace climber rose and produces huge blooms.

Now, I have plum flowers in the house to spread their sweetness and bring the promise of spring.

And the pruning story continues . . . . To be continued this week.

It's January and new life is growing

2009-01-24T22:29:00.000-08:00

It has been a week and a half since the I took the pictures for my last blog entry and take a look at the gorgeous growth taking place in my little greenhouse. These pictures were taken tonight with the grow lights going.

This first picture is an overview of my little seed starting area in the greenhouse. You can see the light timer on the right and the heat mat sensor on the right of that. They are essential for making this system work.

The clay pot on the left and the blue pot behind are tomato starts. In this photo it is hard to see that the tomatoes are pretty happy campers. They are not on the heat pad but are sitting right next to it. Just the proximity of the heat pad and the overhead fluorescent lights must be giving them what they need. In this picture below it is easy to see the flowers developing on the tomatoes.

I have already planted out one six-pack of lettuce in the garden. I will plant out the six-plant of spinach and another six-pack of lettuce, some parsley and leeks later this next week.

A week ago I took this picture of the peas. They were planted about two weeks before this picture was taken. They look very good and were not bothered by our several freezing nights.

All in all, it is a joy to start your own seed and watch the little plants fight for the light and thrive. Soon, we will be enjoying these vegetables as we get to eat them. I don't know which part of this process is more fun.

There can be no other occupation like gardening in which, if you were to creep up behind someone at their work, you would find them smiling. ~ Mirabel Osler

More catching up in the garden . . .

2009-01-13T02:16:00.000-08:00

This is a picture of the little starts that just have been transplanted. They are not quite standing on their own strength yet. A few of the transplants from earlier in the week are in the back and they are feeling their strength.

There are two varieties of lettuce planted here. There is Batavia Laura lettuce, a rare hardy annual with wavy sweet green leaves. Also, there is Four Seasons lettuce, an incredible tasting red butterhead heirloom that the French introduced before 1885. There is spinach in one of the six-packs in the back on the right. The variety planted is called America spinach. It is a hardy annual introduced in 1952 that is slow-bolting, heat resistant, grows in spring and fall and overwinters with heavy mulch. The parsley is Italian Flat Leafed.

This is one of the lettuce starts that I planted out in a 4x4 raised bed about two weeks ago. Can you tell which variety it is? I have a lot of new babies coming on, so I may have to dedicate a second bed to lettuce.

Now we just need to get our winter rainfall so we don't have terrible drought conditions this summer. Also, I don't want to be hand watering in the middle of winter.

Harvesting should start in two weeks. Since we eat salads many nights a week, it is wonderful to have fresh, healthy, organic lettuce on hand, as well as other greens. It is everyone's right to have fresh and nutritious food to eat. Yet, for many, it is not readily available unless they grow it, shop at organic food stores or farmers markets, or join a CSA and get a box of fresh food weekly. The most economical choice it to grow it yourself and it is also the most rewarding.

"The moment one gives close attention to anything, even a blade of grass, it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself." ~Henry Miller

Catching-up in the garden . . .

2009-01-12T03:05:00.000-08:00

I know it has been a very long time since I have even visited my blog. It is time to catch-up. I had a very terrible summer garden year. My neighbor had two chemical companies spraying for weeks and even on very windy days. Many plants developed flowers, but did not fruit.

So, this fall I started a late garden. I have perennial swiss chard going on its fourth year. And then there is the onion bed, some new starts some older. In Nov. I started lettuce, leeks, spinach, swiss chard, and parsley in the greenhouse. The swiss chard did not make it but that is okay as I have two large plants in the garden.

I ended up getting a heat pad timer which has made the new seed propagation successful. I have transplanted the new little lettuce starts into 8 deep six-packs. The lettuce is Four Seasons, an heirloom red butterhead and Batavia Laura, a rare hardy annual-crisphead. They both do well in my garden.

I have planted one six-pack of spinach. I planted one six-pack of Italian flat leaf parsley and the rest are in a 4 in. pot. Tomorrow I will take pictures. It warms my heart to see the little guys doing so well!

I have two tomato plants (small, about a foot tall) going in the greenhouse too. I moved in one of my summer tomatoes that didn't start producing until Oct. in hopes of keeping it going. The problem is that it went through a night or two of freeze before I got Stephen to move the huge heavy pot into the greenhouse and the leaves went limp - it is not going to make it. Too bad as it is an organic grown early girl. The two little plants are from Cindy, my neighbor and I have no idea what they are. They are just an experiment! I have never tried growing tomatoes in the winter.

Oh, I forgot to say that I planted a row of peas in the garden and the little guys look really good. They are not phased by the freezing temps that we have gotten several nights. If planted in the right place they can grow for at least 10 months a year in my garden.

I will continue tomorrow and add photos!

“The past is our definition. We may strive, with good reason, to escape it, or to escape what is bad in it, but we will escape it only by adding something better to it.” ~ Wendell Berry

For the Next 7 Generations: The Grandmothers Speak

2007-09-24T19:30:00.001-07:00

This is a wonderful video about the 13 indigenous women elders, shamans and medicine women from around the world, who have been called together to share their sacred wisdom and practices. They are lighting the way for us to a peaceful and sustainable planet.

Summer is coming to an end

2007-09-08T00:30:00.000-07:00

Today the weather feels different. It is warm, 89 degrees, but it feels different. The squash are getting very large, very fast. The basil is blooming too fast. The tomatoes are not setting much new fruit. The peppers aren't turning red because they get picked too fast. We are still harvesting onions that are juicy and sweet. Tonight, I cooked dinner from the garden with the French white zucchini, Anaheim peppers, lots of basil, onions, lots of garlic, and Roma tomatoes. This was cooked with brown rice, some pepper jack cheese and yogurt. Very yummy, and the leftovers will be wonderful tomorrow night.

After dinner, Lucy (inside cat only) got outside. Searching the garden for her, I saw that we have pole beans to harvest. They will be great as this will be the first picking. This was a very late planting. And it is about time to plant peas and spinach, lettuce, leeks, and more onions. I still have chard plants growing amongst the huge zucchini leaves.

By the way, I found Lucy next door. She had gotten over the fence and couldn't get back. She listened to me call her for a full hour and never meowed to me. She is on my lap (in my way) right now, just purring away.

The garden is starting to respond to the earlier days. Many plants will start growing now. It is getting dark by 8:15 now. The loss of daylight is the only thing that I don't like about these autumn days.

It is time to get our firewood in for the winter. This is something that coincides with the grape leaves starting to turn yellow. And we have lots of juicy Thompson Seedless on the vine.

That's the garden today!

"The sun, with all those planets revolving around it and dependent upon it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as if it had nothing else in the universe to do."
~ Galileo

It's July and everything is bursting out

2007-07-02T20:11:00.000-07:00

Hi, The garden (all of them) are growing so fast that those that I don't want to be HUGE are in a race with me and my ability to deadhead, prune and weed; as well as mulch, mulch, mulch and water. I was going to get pictures up of the veggies in June. Where did June go?

I still have to get those pictures taken!!!

My mantra this year is Mulch, Mulch, Mulch or mulch 3 times (3 inches) and water once. Your plants will let you know that they really really like this technique. Everything is happy and growing so very well.

In the veggie garden we have eaten, peas, spinach, parsley, brocolli raab, lettuce, onions, zucchini, peppers (mostly anaheim), tomatoes (stupice, bush early girl & roma), nasturiums, eggplant and basil (lots of it).

We have been eating the lemons, grapefruit, loquots, plums, raspberries, and now what is left of the apricots. The figs are starting to fill out and the blackberries are getting close.

Lots going on. Oh, and I have potatoes to harvest and new ones to plant. The vitex tree is huge with bloom and full of honey and native bees. They have been a very loud hum for many weeks now.

And I forgot, the grapes are starting to fill out and crawling everywhere. I am taking an online class on how to control this monster this year. That will be really informative and exciting!

Have to run, but wanted to get an update online.

The world has enough for everyone's need, but not enough for everyone's greed. --attributed to Mahatma Gandhi

More spring planting and more pictures

2007-05-16T14:17:00.000-07:00

Hi, I am going to continue on from the last post three days ago.
I had been sharing the types of tomatoes planted. This is the continuation of those that are planted in individual pots, as the actual veggie garden is full. The tomatoes like the sunny spot where they are placed on the patio area.

Black Krim - Heirloom, dark brown-red, medium sized fruit. It is full flavored with a slight saltiness. 69 days to maturity.

I think this is my friend Laura's favorite tomato. This is my first time growing it. In this picture you can look closely and see the little yellow flowers, just as happy as anything!

All of the tomatoes are growing very fast right now. This one is just under two feet tall.

The last of the tomatoes is a Bush Early Girl that was also grown organic like all the other starts. This tomato, I am assuming, is much like the hybrid Early Girls that I used to grow before I decided to take the "high" road and really completely go organic with my seed and starters if I have to buy them. Well, this year I did not get to start hardly anything from seed myself, but thank goodness for organic starts from Talini's, the COOP, and Soil Born Farm. I even heard (have not checked it out myself) that Target is selling organic vegetable plants. I do wonder if they truly are certified organic.

This Bush Early Girl picture was taken four days ago. This tomato is a compact determinate that does not need trellising. It produces 6 oz. crimson, meaty firm fruit with fine flavor. At 65 days to maturity, the Bush Early Girl is also an early yielder and a reliable producer, even in cool temperatures. That means that it will still produce in the fall when the temps are cooler. Today I noticed that it has set three very small fruit. Wow! Gardening is so very exciting!

Yes, I did get the "snowy white" eggplant in the ground yesterday! So, the eggplant bed is complete.

Okay, I still need to plant the swiss chard, some purple basil, leeks, potatoes, a white zucchini, bush beans, pole beans, and ???

I have been spending time deadheading ornamentals, pulling up suckers, planting and transplanting in the front yard gardens today.

I am putting on a neighborhood garden tour next Saturday and I have sooooooo much to do to make the front yard look nice. Nine months of neglect to the whole yard is definitely visible. I will not be showing my backyard and the veggie garden this year. The two sides of the backyard have not even been weeded of volunteers and weeds. In fact, I am thinking that I might need some help in removing the ivy and blackberry brambles that have crossed the fence from my neighbors yard and rooted in my yard.

But first I need more mulch for the front yard gardens and for the veggie garden. So, the work goes on, but everyday is a pleasure and the results are a wonderful feeling of accomplishment and beauty.

Happy gardening days!

"There is more pleasure in making a garden than in contemplating a paradise."
-Ann Scott James

Planting a spring garden

2007-05-10T23:31:00.000-07:00

Spring is really here! It feels so good to spend time in the garden. To clear off mulch, sometimes large prunings and to find that the soil is so alive and healthy. One raised bed had about 6 inches of mulch covering more than off the bed and the other half had about 2 inches of mulch. The difference in the soil between the two halves of the bed was very evident. So it tells me that I need to mulch mulch mulch!!!

I have my eggplant bed planted with four starters, two Japanese long and two Rosa Bianca. There is also a catnip plant on one side of this bed.

My pepper bed is mostly planted. I have 5 green bells and 5 Anaheim peppers. I have one Ancho, one Jalapeno, one Habanaro and still have little paprika peppers to plant. I will probably squeeze in a couple basil plants too. I just can't get enough basil. We use it fresh in salads and cooking. I also dry it for later in the year when we don't have the fresh.

I planted half of the onion bed two months ago. Today, I planted out some Torpedo Red 1 lb. purple-red starts and California Red 4" late season slow to bolt onions.

The zucchini is doing well. Really growing fast, I could probably see it grow if I could sit there long enough. Who has time for that? Also planted in this bed is a row of sugar snap peas (in the light shade of the Elder tree), a broccoli raab and two Chinese cabbage plants. And a nastrutium and one basil. All doing well except the Chinese cabbages are very little - we will see on that one.

My paste tomato bed is doing well. They are all in flower. This year I planted 5 Roma paste tomatoes. Last year I tried Amish paste and they didn't do that well - but then again it was a bad year for tomatoes with two weeks of heat above 100 and up to 114 degree weather. Tomatoes won't set fruit above about 90 degrees. I also have basil planted amongst the tomatoes. They always do well together.

The rest of the tomatoes are planted in individual pots:

Stupice (heirloom indeterminate)-60-75 days potato leaf/good yielder with great flavor (tall, spindly 4’, 2-4oz.deep red, yellow on shoulder/dries well) -one of earliest tomatoes known/from Czechoslovakia

Cherokee Purple Tomato (heirloom indeterminate) 80 days, good producer & disease resistance (10-14 oz. maroon with green shoulders, excellent flavor)
-said to have originated with the Cherokee Nation

Jaune Flamme Tomato (French heirloom indeterminate) very productive, tangy flavor (2-3 oz. deep orange, apricot shaped fruit, great for drying) 75 days to maturity

More about tomatoes planted in my next post.
Also, my ideas for the rest of the spring planting.
Bush and pole beans, etc.

'Every one of us can do something to protect and care for our planet.We should live in a way that makes a future possible.'- Thich Nhat Hanh

Moving ahead! sustainability using organic principles

2007-04-22T18:31:00.000-07:00

The next step in educating our city as to the benefits of diverse and sustainable landscaping has fallen to the radio and our website for me. As Web Master I am continually growing as I am researching to put up informative articles, links and then writing about sustainable gardening in a way that is easily understandable. I love building websites so this is both fun and stimulating for me - but then, it is very time consuming.

I am now doing a weekly radio spot for approx. an hour. It is on how to grow an organic vegetable/fruit bed. This is focused on those who are new to organic gardening and/or new to gardening. The talk show is fun because Christine, the host is very interactive with me on the air, as she is an organic gardener also. She is a lot of fun which makes it easy to do for me.

There are so many wonderful reasons to garden and to grow your own food following organic principles.

Help provide proper nourishment and five-a-day fruits and vegetables.
Supplement food budgets.
Provide fresh food that has not been grown with pesticides and chemical fertilizers.
Provide a healthy family activity.
Provide an education in ecology, botany, and the cycle of life for the whole family.
Provide a fun activity that includes good exercise.
Provide a needed stress reducer in a fast-paced world.
Provide for the development of positive relationships with neighbors through communication as well as the sharing of produce.
Provide beauty and a place to practice being good stewards of the earth on your little piece of land.
Help lessen the impact of waste products in city dumps through composting of left over food.
Help lessen green waste by composting and mulching.
Help lessen chemical run-off into our streams and rivers by using environmentally friendly garden practices.
Help lessen air pollution created from conventional lawn yard-care equipment.
Provide diverse species of plants that provide habitat for beneficial insects and wildlife.
Digging in the dirt with your hands chemically provides the body with a natural antidepressant.

So, out to the garden I go! Happy Earth Day!

We did it! Democracy can actually work in America!

2007-04-06T00:14:00.000-07:00

We did it!!! After a full year of dedicated work, we were able to change the city front yard landscape code in our city. My own gardens are in a sad state, because every bit of my energy has gone into this effort. I have spent from as little as two hours a day to about 15 hours doing research, writing, and distributing our information to supporters and citizens of our city. Also, time spent finding and photographing gardens, editing and creating a website and creating three powerpoint presentations. Then the tasks of presenting to neighborhood associations, issuing media releases and talking with the media . I have never done anything political like this before. It has been a huge learning curve.

On April 3rd, we made a presentation to the full city council. focused on my powerpoint presentation, I believe that we "wowed" them with the depth of research and the far reaching implications that changing the existing and the city's proposed Front Yard Landscape ordinance language could have. It is all about sustainability and setting up our city to be in a better position to deal with an uncertain future.
The "Quality of Life" indicators that we focused on were:
economic impact
water conservation
water quality
green waste management
air pollution
energy
climate change
food security
hunger
ecological risks and benefits
neighborhood development
and cultural diversity

This is a big thing for the welfare of our city. It has been quite an experience!!!

Sustainable Front Yard Gardens

2007-02-11T23:12:00.000-08:00

Where have I been for more than 6 months?
I have been putting together a grassroots movement to change our city front yard landscape ordinance, which currently only allows for primarily low ground cover or turf. We are asking that the ordinance allow diverse front yard gardens, which are sustainable and can help address energy conservation, resource depletion, hunger, food security, and critical environmental issues. We have asked that they not put restrictions on the growing of annuals and perennials, which may include fruits and vegetables. The city has moved in our direction and we hope for full city council approval of our proposed ordinance amendment in the middle of March .

So this has taken my time and my energy. But I have saved some of myself for the garden. I had wonderful success with my perennial gardens. My veggie garden was a little more challenged because we had prolonged temperatures over 100 degrees (many up over 110 degrees) for over two weeks. It was miserable and my veggie garden felt the same. I had the worst year ever for tomatoes, zucchini, and eggplant. The peppers seemed to do fine and the luffa vine was extremely happy as it topped my elder tree with its hanging fruit.

Now this winter, we have had over two weeks of freezing temperatures. Mother Nature is striking out to say - STOP! YOU ARE KILLING ME!
So, I have lost ( I believe from the looks of them ) several perennials this winter. My lettuce decided to go back to the soil too.

Right now, I have onions waiting to be planted. I have pimento seeds from Laura that sprouted in transport from Alabama which are ready over an inch high. I have broccoli raab and chinese cabbage seeds in their sprout bag right on. I will start some peas this week too - and more lettuce. So, that is my update for now. Gardening is truly a stress reliever!

Wow! Where did the summer go?! Or where have I been?!

2006-08-12T13:45:00.000-07:00

It is August 12th and I cannot believe the time that has gone by. The gardens have been overwhelming. I started so many veggie seeds and flower seeds that the individual beds are packed.

Let's start in the front yard gardens. The roses have done well this year. The only one that I am concerned about is Heritage ( a David Austin rose ). It has some yellow leaves that don't look healthy, but then new growth is green. It gets the same amount of water as all the other healthy plants. We had such an intense heat wave for two weeks in July, that many plants didn't get to put on their flower show and are limping along just trying to survive. My friend and neighbor Kim, gave me some large perennials that have fit into the flower beds beautifully. Now, just making sure they make the transplant. Two of them are beautiful heathers, one peony, a varigated fushia and two others that I don't know the names of. By the way, the gardens in the front yard have expanded somewhat which looks really nice to me. I got more landscape rocks from the mountains to finish off the border edges.

For the back gardens, I do have to say that both shade gardens ( under the apricot tree and under the Eureka lemon tree ) are doing great! The one under the apricot tree is like a true woodland surprise.

The sunny perennial/annual bed is a bit overgrown and needs maintenance. Soon! The Vitex tree is so full of seeds that I keep cutting limbs ( hate to do that ) and still the limbs are close to the ground and even I have to bend parallel to the ground to walk under. Even then, my hair ends up being full of seeds and flower debris.

The veggie garden is HUGE! I think I planted too many Cuore di Bue in one bed as it is solid foliage. Even the Amish paste have had trouble setting fruit this year with the temps up to 113 degrees. Everything kinda sat there for more than a few weeks just trying to live through the heat! That is including me!!!

We are getting peppers, bell and chili peppers, as well as eggplant and some tomatoes. The pole beans are still coming on but I missed the harvest of the bush beans and they all dried up. I have been pulling up the onions -Rossa di Milano- they are very juicy and quite hot. My eyes cry the whole time that I am cutting them. We did have lettuce ( until the heat wave ), and enjoyed the Four Seasons leafy, Bronze Arrow leafy, and the Little Gem romaine. The spinach was good when we had it. The lettuce leaf basil is doing great. I have always had great success with this basil. The purple ( Red Rubin ) basil is doing okay. With the heat wave I lost all three of my squash, two zucchini types and one crooked neck. Very sad to lose them. I need to start new seed. But that is another story - next paragraph.

The heat did in my greenhouse. The plastic on the roof bubbled and then cracked and just has fallen off or is hanging from the roof. Very very sad. I am in the process of investigating the best course of action for getting double and triple polycarbonate panels to put on the greenhouse. Until then it is direct sun in there and nothing can be started for the garden. ;-(

The days are in the 90's now and that is warm, but nice. The grapes are ripening and the elder berries should be ready for harvest soon. Things are always happening in nature.

Quote for the day: Nature quiets the mind so you can hear your heart.

We skipped Spring and jumped right into Summer !!!

2006-05-17T23:13:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that it has been 16 days since I have posted. The garden is mostly all planted now, the peppers, tomatoes, basil, eggplant ( Japanese, Black Beauty and a White Japanese shaped one ), peas, bush and pole beans, carrots, luffa, green zucchini and golden zucchini are all planted. Earlier the leeks and onions, spinach and lettuce was planted. We have been eating salads every night from the Four Seasons lettuce, America spinach, some onion tops and nasturtium flowers. Yesterday I noticed the the Stupice ( an early 60 day ) tomato has flowers. That is exciting ! It is really stimulating to grow these heirloom tomatoes and other veggies. It is almost time to fill in some of the leek trench.

I got the drip system going again, but it isn't putting out much water. I really need to take apart the filter and regulator and flush the whole system, but haven't gotten to it yet. So, I hand water everyday. This next week I need to spray everything with maxicrop and fish emulsion or feed with compost tea. The heat is getting to everything, including me. I think the high has been between 96 and 98 degrees already.

In the greens bed, I have Little Gem lettuce that is ready to start being harvested. It is a romaine. I just planted some new starts of the Little Gem also. In the greenhouse I have two more Little Gem starts and one Bronze Arrow lettuce start to plant out soon. Two days ago I planted Jericho lettuce seeds inside in my herb room. It would have been too hot for it to germinate in the greenhouse, as it needs conditions between 45-80 degrees to germinate. This lettuce was bred to grow crisp and sweet in very hot temperatures. My plan is to keep lettuce coming all year. Our salads have been very wonderful!

In our front yard the old roses and David Austins have all had bursts of blooms. The Heritage David Austin climber is budded out and soon to start. I got a lot of blooms from the Louise Odier. Last year I got one bloom. The penstemon, salvia, carnations, foxgloves, lavenders, gardenias, shasta daisies, hebes, hibiscus, dianthus, oenothera, nemesia, stock, lithodora, phygelius, sweet peas, purple robe, margarita, scented geraniums, columbine are just finishing, mexican primrose, heucheras, spanish heather, agastache, astilbe, verbena, snapdragons, foam flower, heather, yesterday, today and tomorrow, begonias, pansies, forget-me-nots, bleeding hearts, persian shields, banana shrub, alyssum, Australian violets, dead nettle, calibrachoa, chamomile and elfin thyme as fillers and I can't remember what else is blooming.

Tomorrow I need to pick up some mulch from the utility district for the tea rose bed. Last year I mulched with wet cardboard, several inches of wet newspaper and mulch from our chipper/shredder. Stephen is too busy to make up more mulch right now. So far, knock on wood, this thick mulch has squelched the huge nutgrass problem in that bed. A few are starting to come up on the very edge where the mulch meets the concrete retaining walls. And maybe 5 have come up in the center of the pile. Of course I have pulled these immediately! So, I need to get another thick barrier layer down to keep a lid on the nutgrass. I also want to put some of this mulch down on some of my other ornamental beds in the front yard.

So, this is an update of the abundant life and activity in my cottage gardens.

"Queer things happen in the garden in May. Little faces forgotten appear, and plants thought to be dead suddenly wave a green hand to confound you." ~ W. E. Johns

Feels like we jumped into summer!

2006-05-01T00:03:00.000-07:00

Temperatures in the high 80's feel quite warm when we have been bundled up in sweatshirts for months. Today was 86 degrees and still was 81 degrees at 6pm. Tomorrow is supposed to be 87 degrees. This is hard on new transplants for sure!

Yesterday, Saturday the eggplants all got planted. Several other beds were prepped for planting. I went shopping for shade cloths but they are all sold out except for very small sizes.

Today was an all day event. The second tomato bed was prepped and it was a difficult one to pull out all the lemon balm that had taken hold. I planted four Cuore di Bue heirloom tomato starts in this bed. They are an oxheart tomato (with 12 oz. fruits ) and according to my friend Julia in England ( who shared the seeds with me ), they are supposed to be great for sauces, canning and fresh. I can't wait to try them. Thank you Julia for sharing your favorite tomato!

I also planted one Principe Borghese tomato in a half wine barrel in front of the greenhouse where it gets good southern sun. This tomato is a small tomato like a cherry tomato, but is supposed to by good for sun drying. A branch from the plant can be hung up in the sun until the fruit is leathery. I have another of these that I want to plant somewhere else. Just have to figure out that place.

In large redwood pots I planted two Pruden's Purple heirloom tomatoes. They are supposed to have great flavor, have huge fruit ( 1 lb. ) and never cracks. Then next to these I planted one Stupice tomato in a Chinese 1000 year old egg pot. This heirloom is an early tomato at 60 days, is a good yielder and has 2-4 oz. fruit. It is said that it dries well.

I also transplanted some german chamomile and goditia starts into larger containers. I did some pruning and of course watering, and figured out what to do with the bed that I put straw on two years ago that I assume had chemicals in it and killed all of my potatoes. I am going to plant a luffa gourd and ornamental flowers all around the gourd. The seeds for the gourd are soaking now. My little pea seeds have sprouted and I hope to get enough time to plant them tomorrow. The two zucchini types that I planted in pots in the greenhouse are up, but I am going to wait with them so they can develop into healty starts before I plant them. The large start that I bought will be planted tomorrow.

So the veggie garden is almost all planted. It is fun to see with all beds growing. Time to get some rest and another day is already here!

Sunny and warm in the garden!

2006-04-28T22:50:00.000-07:00

I was able to purchase new seeds of peas, bush beans, Italien bush beans and a luffa gourd. I also purchased a white eggplant start, a cayenne pepper start and an ancho pepper start. ( The ancho is the kind of chili pepper seed that I tried to start twice and failed to get it to germinate. So, all the peppers are planted. A row of bush beans and what would be a couple rows of scattered carrots.
I prepped another bed and planted five Amish Paste tomatoes and five lettuce leaf basil starts. Tomorrow I need to plant the eggplants and more of the tomatoes. I also bought Yukon Gold seed potatoes at the nursery. I have decided to plant them in one of my large green buckets that have a crack in the bottom. That way it can drain, yet will be in a very deep environment.
I have had to water the last three days because the sun is intense and the overhead trees haven't gotten all of their leaves. But the roses are breaking out all over and they are beautiful and big this year. All is well with nature!

Very Overcast Cool Day

2006-04-24T18:21:00.000-07:00

Today was one of those days where other things took me away from the garden. I kept the door to the greenhouse closed today because the sun never really came out. The birds are all out though and I am watching a hummingbird and many many small birds going for the dropped seed from a feeder and also going for the thistle seed in the hanging bag. I haven't seen my hummingbird friends that come to my picture window and look in and say hi everyday, for at least two months. I am surprised. I usually talk to them.

Well I did get to go to the COOP and buy some starters to fill in where I had gaps in my seed production. Today I purchased a Serrano pepper and a Scotch Bonnet pepper. These will be my hottest peppers. I have never grown a Scotch Bonnet, but they are supposed to be round puffy looking peppers. So these new peppers are planted and well mulched. I still want to get a Cayenne pepper though, so I can make ground Cayenne pepper.

I also purchased an eggplant start and a zucchini start. I had an eggplant that I grew die on me in the greenhouse -so I was short one. Last week I did find a large snail in my greenhouse and I feel it must have been the culprit to what I felt was not good germination of some seeds - now I wonder ???! The snail must have been transplanted in with a group of perennial plants I bought from a local grower last fall. He had the run of the place until I found him.

I started zucchini seeds, but buying this large healthy start will give me a headstart and I can add the new ones that I started later to the garden. Zucchini plants never seem to make it completely through our long season.

So, hopefully tomorrow I will get the carrots and some peas planted. I am going to have to buy a new packet of peas, as the ones I am trying to pre-sprout are doing nothing. I do try to stay away from those nurseries, because I don't want to buy plants anymore. I really do want to grow my own from seed.

Cannot wait to cook some of these good veggies in my soon to have, new kitchen. Stir frying all these greens will be something to write home about - or at least write in the blog! All for today.

Let food be thy medicine. - - -Hippocrates

Good working weather

2006-04-24T01:23:00.000-07:00

For the last four days, thunderstorms have been on the forecast. We only got rain one night. So, I have been working frantically to get the veggie garden planted this year. It isn't warm enough yet to plant the tomatoes and maybe not the eggplant. So far I have prepped 6 beds and one of these the pepper bed is 2 and 1/2 times larger than the rest. I have planted two kinds of lettuce: Four Seasons and Little Gem romaine. Also America spinach. I have half a planter each of Rossa di Milano onions and Giant Musselburg leeks. I have the CA wonder bell peppers, Anaheim, and Jalapeno peppers planted. I will want to buy a Cayenne starter and maybe another hot chilie pepper. Tomorrow I am going to plant carrots and I am trying to pre-sprout peas and beans, but the seed maybe too old.

There are saucers of beer all over to catch the slugs mostly. The snails don't seem to be attracted as much and I don't seem to have very many of them anyway.

I have been working on the flower bed under the Eureka lemon tree and it is starting to look pretty good. I think I will put a fern in the very back of it.

The shade flower bed under the apricot tree is really beginning to fill out and look very good; if I don't say myself. Can't wait for a couple of the other beds to do the same. I still have ground to tackle, so as they say: A gardener's job is never done!

More later!

Two glorious days of Spring !!

2006-04-15T00:21:00.000-07:00

Thursday and Friday ( today ) we were blessed with warm sunny days. The temps were in the low to mid 70's. It was wonderful. Yesterday, I did some hard labor pulling out volunteer herbs that thought the veggie beds were their homes. They had really dug their feet in and were very difficult to dig out. So, I dug with my wonderful tithing fork and pulled with my arms and whole body. I almost have two beds cleared. I want to clear two more beds so I may plant out many of my seedlings/starts this coming week when Spring is really supposed to start for a whole week. I also did some planting in the front yard as well as in the backyard. I am saving every blackberry volunteer that I find that doesn't have thorns. Most of my blackberries will be torn out when we start building the garage which will encroach on the veggie garden. Always preparing ahead in my mind.

We are going to have to get those two windows that open in the greenhouse made soon, because it is hard to keep it below 100 degrees when the sun is out. I put a shade cloth over one corner to cool it down, but it is not doing enough at this time of the year. I am going to purchase or find a very long pole ( over 10 feet ) and buy a larger shade cloth/screen which I will staple to the pole. I will set it up so that I can unroll and roll up the shade cloth around the pole as needed. It will be somewhat crude, but hope it does the trick.

I set up supports for many of my climbing roses today. I also set up netting supports for the sweet peas that I planted last year, that finally decided to grow - and wow they are growing -
they were trying to smother the roses. Now they have their own support to cling too and should be very happy and beautiful when they bloom.

Many plants are just now coming back or just beginning to bloom. I had been watching the two large buds on my peony plant for the last couple of weeks. Today I looked that way and saw nothing. My heart jumped into my stomach, but upon closer inspection I found it had fallen over. Why had it fallen over? Well, from the weight of one of the buds that had opened into full bloom and is spectacular! Here is a picture. The open flower is wider than my hand can spread. I took a picture of it because the rains are supposed to come back tonight and I was afraid that they would really damage the fine petals.

My lilac in the backyard has been blooming for almost a week and I noticed today that my banana bush is blooming because the best scent in the garden is flowing around the yard. The smells today were definitely something to write about.

With two days of sunny weather, I also noticed that several areas in the front yard were actually dry. The new wallflower that I planted looked pretty dry. So I had to water in the front yard. Next week I will want to get all those beds mulched soon. I will also want to spray with my maxi-crop/fish emulsion mixture to give everything a boost. They might need it since they are growing so fast.

Well, it is already Saturday, so goodnight.

And the storms keep coming!

2006-04-12T16:34:00.000-07:00

Now, I think we have broken rainfall records for April. Everyone in California is losing out on having a spring. I have only had a few breaks between storms to get things planted. Today I planted an Aquilegia, columbine under the overhang of the huge Eureka lemon tree. Cleaned up the area, and added many rotting lemons and grapefruits to the compost pile ( which is great for the compost ). Am planting an Astilbe, heurchera and forget-me-not in that area if there is a break in the rain tomorrow.

Actually it is forecast that sun ( Spring ) will start next week. I am ready. So, this next week may be my busiest week in the garden so far this year. I hope to get my onions, leeks, more lettuce in the ground and maybe some pepper and eggplant. Not sure if I can put tomatoes in yet as, if the soil drops below 55 degrees it will set back their growth dramatically. Definitely peas and carrots can be started and maybe even beans. I am slowly starting to clean up the veggie beds in ready for their guests.

And a very special thing. The Lilac blooms opened. They smell so incredible. I could stand there with my nose to the petals all day! What a smell!

So, that is what is going on in the garden for today.

A Little Bit of Sun!

2006-04-09T15:04:00.000-07:00

Well, the patch on the greenhouse is wonderful. No rain coming through the roof. No water to sweep out of the greenhouse. No heavy buckets to dump in an already saturated garden.

Yesterday I planted some calendula that I grew from seed. So exciting to plant my babies, that were getting pretty big. Planted some in the front yard planters and some around the Elder tree. It felt good to be cleaning up part of the veggie garden by the Elder tree. The veggie garden has been neglected since I didn't winter much over except some herbs and my walking stick collards. I also planted an "East Friesland" Salvia in the garden next to the Vitex. This is a perennial that grows to twenty-four inches tall and will help shade a heuchera and astilbe when the sun starts getting intense.

I started some new flowers from seed yesterday also. I started Blue Salvia. I like it for filling in spots in the sunny perennial beds. I also started Bachelor Buttons. They are annuals and make pretty nice filler plants. They have long stemmed double flowers, so should quite beautiful. Then I planted Carnations again. I had forgotten that I had started Carnations not long ago. I am sure that I can give away any plants that I don't use.

Well, it is a scattered cloudy day so the sun is here and then not. I plan on getting at least one more raised bed cleaned up in the veggie garden area. I love it when they are all cleaned up and growing. This means that I pull weeds, but mostly volunteer herbs that have taken over the beds. All of this green growth goes into the compost pile ( unless it is a wild blackberry or ivy from the neighbors yard - they go out in the street for city pickup along with oxalis and any bermuda grass, which I have very little of anymore ). I also break up the old dead foliage from last years veggies that hasn't broken down, to use as mulch in that bed. It was an easy one to accept that it is good to let the dead foliage from the veggies breakdown in the bed where it was grown. Makes gardening easier! I have learned so much in the last couple years from an international organic gardening web list ( OGL ) that I am part of. Well, off to the garden again today.

The sun smiles on those who tend her gardens! ;-)

New Growth Popping Up!

2006-04-07T19:03:00.000-07:00

I have been spending time in all parts of the garden. A little in the herb garden inside the veggie garden yard. A little time in the perennial gardens ( sunny and shady beds ). I am really loving the shady bed under the apricot tree and the sunny one on the west of the Vitex tree. The ferns, foam flowers, astilbes, forget-me-nots, heucheras are all growing big with vibrant new growth.

In the front yard my Louise Odier, a Bourbon old rose, (1851) is starting to fill out with much green growth on her limbs. She is supposed to produce regularly from June to Oct, with deep pink very double, softly shaded lilac flowers. They will have a pungently strong fragrance and are a good-keeping cut flower. Last year was her first year and I got one or two flowers on her sparse frame. This year she will really shine!

Today we put new plastic on the top part of the greenhouse where the old had failed. Too much stuff was getting wet and I had to have large buckets to catch some of the downpours. So today I cut the plastic to size and we hung it over the torn plastic. The old plastic had only stayed intact for about 6 months before failing. It became brittle and cracked. We also tied a rope across the bottom, top and two diagonal passes to insure that no air made its way under to tear it all apart. This is just a temporary patch to get us through the rest of this extended rainy season. Then we will be putting two windows that open in the areas that failed and the rest of the double walled polycarbonate panels will need to be installed. So tonight, as the rain is coming down, the greenhouse is protected again. This patch should also help keep the night temperatures warmer in the greenhouse which is really needed for the tomatoes, peppers and eggplants. Soon it will be time to plant squash seeds. And soon it will be time to start the rest of my veggie seeds outside in the garden's raised beds.

Quote for the day:
The ground's generosity takes in our compost
and grows beauty. Try to be more like the ground.
--Rumi

A Break in the Storms!

2006-04-06T00:03:00.000-07:00

This afternoon the skies opened for awhile and the sun came out, the flower buds raised their little plump heads to the warmth. Under the apricot tree and the Japanese Painted fern and Ghost fern are coming back and the columbine and bleeding hearts have new blooms. Of course the pansies, viola's, helleborus and fibrous begonias are in bloom. The beautiful double tulips have bloomed for four weeks now and the rain has made them pretty ratty now. I have some paper whites in bloom now and what a wonderful smell they have. This is all happening in one area of the backyard. Here are the pink double tulips before the last storm:

Unfortunately the rain is really flooding the greenhouse. The temporary 6ml. plastic that we wrapped it with has not lasted more than 6 months and these have not been the sunniest months of the year by far. The rain is coming in from the roof part in four places. I have strategically placed buckets below the tears, but much of it misses and splashes out of the containers.
So, we have learned in this last 6 months that it is harder to keep the greenhouse cool or at least not baking, than to keep it warm. We need a lot more ventilation than a dutch door. I think we need two automatic windows that open with a temperature sensitive lever ( which I have, by the way). We need a low window/vent that opens to draw in cool air. Then we need a fan and a vent opposite the fan. And it would be nice to get a swamp cooler. We want to run these things on solar generated electricity. It all takes time to research and learn about these things. Much to do!

It seems that all the veggies are doing really well in the greenhouse and are really wanting to get planted out. The peppers and tomatoes are getting to the size to plant in the garden. It just is not warm enough out there yet. The lettuce and spinach seem to have made the transplant okay, but no sign of new growth yet. Who could grow much in the pouring rain we have had lately? And to my surprise most all the annual and perennial flowers and herbs are coming up. All except the Russian Statice, Motherwort and marjoram. I will give them more time for sure.

Well, that is a backyard update for today. ;-)

APRIL SHOWERS and Daylight Savings Time!

2006-04-04T23:10:00.000-07:00

Even though we had 20 days of rain in March and broke the record for that many days in our town, I have been able to get out in the yard just alittle. Mostly it has been to do some weed pulling and detail pruning of dead branches and shaping. I am still waiting for many plants to come back. The David Austin roses are filling out nicely and my Eupatorium rugosum – snakeroot chocolate plant is coming back; I think it is 4 inches tall now! The garden thinks spring is here!

Too much rain, what is mother nature doing?

2006-03-25T23:18:00.000-08:00

I was off to a good start on Thursday. I planted seeds of Gypsophia ( babies breath), Sweet Allysum, Godetia, Carnation, Scabiosa columbaria, Nemesia and Heather ( saved from my neighbor Kim ). I even planted some viola's in bloom under my apricot tree which is a shady garden area. There are heuchera, astilbe, Athyrium niponicum Pictum ( Japanese Painted ferns); ghost painted ferns, fibrous begonia, bleeding hearts, aquilegia, azalea, hydrangea and helleborus, yesterday today and tomorrow plants, white ginger and forget-me- not in this bed along with some ground cover. I am not sure if my lacecap hydrangea is coming back. I just planted it last year and I haven't seen evidence of it yet this year. Of course there was more weeding of oxalis and cleavers. The sticky cleavers is going nuts in all my garden beds this year. It must be because I "let it be" last year and just harvested some to make an herbal tincture.

Then Friday after errands, I only was able to plant seeds of Celosia and red poppies before the rain started. The skies opened in the evening and dumped so much water that my veggie garden brick walkways were flooded. ( again -this has happened a couple times this winter )

The same weather for today. RAIN! In the afternoon the rain quit. Yea! The greenhouse did heat up to 90 degrees when the sun came out off and on, so I opened the door for a couple hours to bring the temperature down.

My little starters of tomatoes, peppers and eggplant ( they are still on the heating pad in the herb room ) are getting so big that I spent time in the greenhouse today setting up 4" pots to transplant them into. This way, when the greenhouse cools down at night there will be enough soil around the little roots as not to cool down much. They all like to be in soil 55 degrees and above, which is why they haven't been moved before now. So, I am looking forward to a dry day tomorrow so that I may make a significant difference in the garden. Thank you for dry days, mother nature!

Spring equinox

2006-03-22T23:39:00.000-08:00

Spring happened on a very rainy day. It had rained all night and day and in the afternoon we had a hail storm too. This was not the first day of spring that I had envisioned in my mind's eye.

Looking at my seed project, I see that my calendulas have sprouted, as well as the Starflower Everlastings - and the Starflowers are supposed to take 10 days to germinate, but these must be super seeds because they did it in 5-6 days!

In the greenhouse I now have planted seeds for Self-Heal (Prunella vulgaris), Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora), Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca), Sweet Marjoram (Origanum majorana), Russian Statice and Phlox.

My neighbor Cindy added to the greenhouse with many many pots of sweet peas and over half of them have sprouted already. Today, another neighbor Kim shared some of her seeds ( mostly ornamental annuals and perennials ) that she has saved and bought this year. I shall be planting many more 6 packs. The lettuce ( 4 Seasons ) is ready to plant out so I need to start working on a couple veggie beds soon. I have Walking Stick Collards in the greens bed, so need to give them some serious care. I have some copper pipes to use in that bed and will have to set up slug cups with beer because there could be a few of those slimy creatures.

The birds were making a racket today with all of their songs. It was wonderful to be in the middle of their concert. A hummingbird was around the Pineapple sage all day too - I think it was a Rufus, as it was such brilliant green.

Tomorrow is supposed to be nice, so other than doing errands, I hope to get many more seeds into pots!!! So, Spring is here!

Changes are Happening!

2006-03-18T11:54:00.000-08:00

Well, we had a fairly nice day yesterday. It was warm enough in the sun to work in the yard for awhile. I had other chores in the morning but the afternoon was spent with the flowers. There are so many things to do. Minor pruning and oxalis to pull. I was able to get a real start on it in the front yard, soon the back yard. The greenhouse is filling up with pots of seeds! This picture shows how I use the jugs of water to give some heat to the greenhouse on cold days and nights especially. They are sitting on the upper shelf. This photo was taken on 3-4-06. There are also many perennials that will be planted out when it gets nice and some annuals. Not many seedlings going at this point. Also, you can see the table I have, which used to be my darkroom table with drain holes and all. It works out really well.

Here is a picture taken
yesterday of the Four
Seasons lettuce which
is really getting bigger.
To the right is the
America Spinach. It looks good enough to eat right now.

You can also see the photo of the little starts of the Lettuce Leaf basil and the cute little purple starts of the Red Ruben basil, German chamomile, cilantro and Little Geman romaine lettuce taken yesterday also.
You can see the roundish leaves of the lettuce leaf basil where I spilled the seed into the German Chamomile 6 pack. That will be a challenge to separate when the time comes. Soon, I will have to start clearing the veggie garden beds. They have spent the winter with the remains of last years veggies putting nutrients back into the soil. I was so glad that I had been doing that all along when I learned about not being a neat freak and pulling out everything but leaving the beds and not taking away the plant material so it can decompose. My beds have old plants, leaves and some mulch, and some minor weeds. The pepper bed got lots of mulch because it is near the shredder. Here are two pictures taken yesterday of the inside of the greenhouse now that it is full of pots of seeds. I have some wire racks that I want to clean up and see if I can line the sides of the greenhouse with them for more space. It is filling up very fast, but then again, I will be planting outside soon !!! yea!!! I am ready to spend all my days in nature!!!

I took pictures of my peppers, tomatoes and eggplant that are under lights in the herb room. I need to upload them to my computer and I will post them next time. I need to get out of this freezing house and into the warmth of the garden and sunshine.

Little seedlings and cold weather

2006-03-14T22:39:00.000-08:00

Well, I wanted to put my tomatoes, peppers and eggplant seedlings into the greenhouse. No way ! Rainy and windy all day! The greenhouse was the warmest place around, except in my seed starting area under fluorescent lights and on a heating pad, all in my herb room.

I did take a risk. I put out 1/2 flat of new seedlings - some with just the first two leaves- into the greenhouse this morning and they are staying there until planted. They include the Little Gem romaine lettuce, basil (Lettuce Leaf and Red Ruben), cilantro and German chamomile. I left the 6 pack of parsley out there too. I hope they can handle the changes from lower 40's to the 80's in temperature daily. We still need to install windows that open with the temperature regulated mechanical lever in the greenhouse. Thank goodness for the temperature sensor that I read inside the house for monitoring the greenhouse. I would be crazy at this point without it.

My tulips, that I planted in pots, are opening their precious flower heads! I have forgotten what they are going to look like, but it seems a delicate white with some pink. I was hoping that they would wait for two weeks until we have our local garden tour. I don't really have a lot blooming right now!

This is definitely a transition time of the year in my garden. The English Daisies that neighbor David gave to me last summer have finally decided they want to stay. They look really healthy, blooms and all, and are showing signs of wanting to spread. The idea is to have them spread through the whole lawn area, which eventually won't need to be mowed at all.

Tomorrow it is not supposed to rain, but wouldn't you guess it - I am working and not at home. So, I guess there is always another day. The work will still be there waiting for me. ;-)

Quote for the day:
A flower cannot blossom without sunshine
Nor a garden without love
- unknown

The Cold Days of March

2006-03-13T19:44:00.000-08:00

I cannot believe how cold it is and it is March! This is my first year doing this, but I have started my own seedlings of Four Seasons lettuce, America spinach, Italian parsley and Rossa di Milano onions which are now developing in the greenhouse. In the house, I have starts of German Chamomile, Lettuce Leaf basil, cilantro, Giant Musselburg leeks, Cal Wonder Bell Sweet Peppers, Anaheim chile peppers, Jalapeno chile peppers, Ancho chile peppers, Black Beauty eggplant, and Japanese Pickling eggplant. I have seedlings going of Slow Bolt cilantro, Red Rubin basil, Little Gem romaine lettuce, Amish Paste tomatoes, Cuore di Bue and Pruden's Purple tomatoes. I also have planted Stupice, Arkansas Traveler, and Principe Borghese heirloom tomato seeds. The Cuore di Bue tomato seeds are from my dear friend Julia in England. They are supposed to be wonderful for cooking and canning! I am excited to try them. The Principe Borghese tomatoes are great for drying. They say you can just cut off a branch and hang it somewhere to dry. I love sundried tomatoes, they make sauces so rich and flavorful.

I have also planted sweet peas, after soaking them in a jar of warm water for more than 24 hours on the seedling heating pad.

I am attaching a photo of my first two six packs of little seeds that I grew. They are lettuce ( Four Seasons ) on the left and spinach (America ) on the right. They are really filling out now since this picture was taken. They are now living in the greenhouse full time. Since this very small start I now have several individual 4" pots, many 6 packs and three 72 cell flats of seedlings. They are sooooo cute when they pop out of the soilless seed mix.

I splurged today and bought a deep purple Wall flower - Erysimum. I have just the place to plant it - in my front yard bed by the stone retaining wall, where I had 4 o'clocks growing last year.

Well, the rain has started again. We have reached our limit for the year, I have heard. And it sure seems like it.

I came across this quote today and it seems a nice way to end for today.

But, we should first learn the winds and the nature of the sky,

the customary cultivation and the ways of place,

what each region bears and rejects.

Here corn shoots up, and there grapes do.

Elsewhere young trees grow strong and the wild grasses.

-Virgil, The Georgics, Book I, 29 B.C.

Spring was here!

2006-02-27T19:05:00.000-08:00

Spring is here! Actually, spring was here last week. I am not so sure right now. The wind is blowing very hard and the rain has been coming down for two days now. Last week I enjoyed seeing my daffodils in full bloom and my tulips bulging but not yet opening. The primroses, pansies, stock, nemesia, verbena, carnations and pineapple sage are all blooming. And I know I am forgetting some others - oh yes, English roses are blooming as well as the English daisies. The freezing temps ( or close to freezing ) took out the nasturtium two weeks ago. But all is well in the garden!