Hope for the Future - Nature and Community - MOTHER EARTH NEWS
I read this article last night in the latest edition of Mother Earth News. I really needed to hear this, and I'll bet you do too!
Almost time!
Planting time is quickly approaching! Or maybe my big tomato transplants are just making me antsy. :) Seriously, though, they look awesome. I am proud!
On one of the charts I've looked at (Doug Welsh's Texas Garden Almanac), they list Austin's average last spring frost date as 2/24! That's in four days! That on top of the next week's weather report is really making me itch to plant more this weekend. I may sacrifice one of these big tomatoes... or two. Perhaps a couple of my new pepper transplants. I am fine with taking risks. I experiment with things so that I can learn. For instance, I learned that the plants who have mostly lived in the outdoor greenhouse for the past couple weeks have not done nearly as well as the one's still sitting indoors in windowsills. Some of those outside have fared better than others. Notes are jotted down in my paper journal. Lessons are being learned. Sometimes I feel like I am back in elementary school science class. :)
Speaking of which, I was finally able to make up and finish up my Citizen Gardener instruction on Saturday. It was raining and the place where it was held (an elementary school) was flooded in the (huge, impressive) garden area. We had to sit in the gym for instruction, but I didn't mind! It gave me the opportunity to write moe down. I learned a lot and also scored an old olive barrel for rain collection, cheap! Now to get it set up and going.
My favorite "tip" learned from class on Saturday was that you can use Christmas bulbs to scare birds off your plants! They hate shiny things.
On Sunday I built my 6'x3' bed out back and vowed to either have someone else build these, or buy them preassembled from now on! I tossed what was going of my compost pile (lots of decomposed leaves) in and watered it really well. I will fill it the rest of the way and plant soon. Just one thing on my long list of to-dos. Can't wait until my toddler is old enough to help!
On one of the charts I've looked at (Doug Welsh's Texas Garden Almanac), they list Austin's average last spring frost date as 2/24! That's in four days! That on top of the next week's weather report is really making me itch to plant more this weekend. I may sacrifice one of these big tomatoes... or two. Perhaps a couple of my new pepper transplants. I am fine with taking risks. I experiment with things so that I can learn. For instance, I learned that the plants who have mostly lived in the outdoor greenhouse for the past couple weeks have not done nearly as well as the one's still sitting indoors in windowsills. Some of those outside have fared better than others. Notes are jotted down in my paper journal. Lessons are being learned. Sometimes I feel like I am back in elementary school science class. :)
Speaking of which, I was finally able to make up and finish up my Citizen Gardener instruction on Saturday. It was raining and the place where it was held (an elementary school) was flooded in the (huge, impressive) garden area. We had to sit in the gym for instruction, but I didn't mind! It gave me the opportunity to write moe down. I learned a lot and also scored an old olive barrel for rain collection, cheap! Now to get it set up and going.
My favorite "tip" learned from class on Saturday was that you can use Christmas bulbs to scare birds off your plants! They hate shiny things.
On Sunday I built my 6'x3' bed out back and vowed to either have someone else build these, or buy them preassembled from now on! I tossed what was going of my compost pile (lots of decomposed leaves) in and watered it really well. I will fill it the rest of the way and plant soon. Just one thing on my long list of to-dos. Can't wait until my toddler is old enough to help!
Mint - Growing and Using the Fragrant Herb Mint
I bought an apple mint plant yesterday, among other things (margoram, oregano, dianthus, lavender, and peppers.) I am doing a small (2'x2') raised herb bed in the front yard this year. Excited!
I didn't know how wild mint got until I read this. I now envision a hanging plant by the front door! I probably could use a few larger containers, too. I foresee many more trips to the garden stores in my future!
root depth and plant height reference
Interplanting Vegetables: Root Depth, Plant Height | The Adventures of Thrive Farm
Great reference. Thanks, Alli!
rain rocks! pests suck!
Apparently the blogger app for android sucks. Every time I've made a post with it and specified this blog, it still posts to my other blog. Annoying! Anyway...
My makeshift rain collector took up quite the offering last night/this morning. :) Probably about 8 gallons. My greenhouse plants and indoor seedlings should be happy for the rainwater!
I know this isn't the best solution, but it works for now. I may buy a proper rain collection system with my tax return. This guy was $5 at Big Lots, and I actually bought it to store clothes in. :)
Something keeps digging up in one of my beds and is using it as a toilet! Could be a cat, could be a squirrel, could be a raccoon, or could be all of these things! I have tried laying coffee grounds and orange peels, but that hasn't deterred them. My fiance often pees around the bed, but that doesn't bother them either! Aside from getting some kind of fence, cage, or gun (which I'm very close to doing! the fence, anyway), how do you keep pests out of your garden?
My makeshift rain collector took up quite the offering last night/this morning. :) Probably about 8 gallons. My greenhouse plants and indoor seedlings should be happy for the rainwater!
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| Rainwater excites us here in central Texas |
Something keeps digging up in one of my beds and is using it as a toilet! Could be a cat, could be a squirrel, could be a raccoon, or could be all of these things! I have tried laying coffee grounds and orange peels, but that hasn't deterred them. My fiance often pees around the bed, but that doesn't bother them either! Aside from getting some kind of fence, cage, or gun (which I'm very close to doing! the fence, anyway), how do you keep pests out of your garden?
Tomato transplants 2/9/12
These guys (especially the two black princes on the left) are doing pretty great! I moved those two out into their own pots at least a week ahead of any others. That makes me think that moving them sooner is better (they were bigger than the others in the seed tray, though.)
Started from seed on 12/31/11. Getting close to planting out time! :)
Started from seed on 12/31/11. Getting close to planting out time! :)
upper respiratory bummer
I came down with a upper respiratory infection (aka cold) and had to miss Saturday's citizen gardener class. If that didn't make me disappointed enough, I wasn't able to do much in the garden either. Attempts ended with me feeling a bit winded and reclining on the couch. I eventually gave up and bought the Spring 2011 Heirloom Gardener for my iPad to make me feel better. It worked. ;) I read all about tomatoes and am starting to feel a bit more knowledgeable. I am a little nervous about growing tomatoes! I have had really bad results so far. Granted I've only gone two seasons, and had little to no clue what I was doing, but still!
One of my collard plants started a flower, so I decided they were done. As much as that plant (which was actually 2 kind of intertwined together, oops!) produced, I really am not a big fan of the flavor so I hardly harvested it. I need to make room for other things. :)
Like more sugar snap peas! I have 8-10 of those plants growing right now, and the plant that I had left from summer/fall decided to spit out 4 pods before it turned brown and wilted. Evie and I really enjoyed them as a snack on Saturday! She is actually quite nuts over those peas, so I am excited to have a ton more soon. We like them enough that I want to start another set of them for springtime.
I'm also thinking about more beans and peas. We love them in our house, now to find out how well they do in this climate! Also on the list now that wasn't before: melons, and perhaps a winter squash variety (I have 2 summer varieties planned for spring.) Ever since I found out that peppers, eggplants, and tomatoes are not too fond of the superhot weather we are prone to get, I have been on a mission to fill my gardens with stuff that may work better. I've got a lot of space to work with and want to make sure I am using it to its fullest potential!
I decided to raised-box the longer bed that I dug up in the back yard, again to help improve yields. We went to Home Depot and got some wood for that, so I now have a(nother) project for next weekend. The scrap wood ended up being two 1' and two 2' pieces, which I plant to assemble into a small box, possibly for an herb garden, probably for the front yard.
I may be a little bit obsessed with gardening. I can think of many worse things to be obsessed about. :) I love the peace it gives me, the usefulness and practicality, the connection with the earth. I appreciate food so much more now that I know all of the work that goes into producing it. And it definitely tastes better! Plus I like to know that I am learning such a vital skill. It gives me pride to go out to my own yard and harvest food that I cared for to feed my family. I picked some lettuce for lunch on Saturday and I swear it was the best lettuce I've ever tasted! I never knew how much I liked lettuce until I started eating it NOT from the grocery store. I plan on growing a ton of it! There's already quite a bit out there.
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| E checking out a few pepper, tomato, and eggplant starts in the greenhouse |
Like more sugar snap peas! I have 8-10 of those plants growing right now, and the plant that I had left from summer/fall decided to spit out 4 pods before it turned brown and wilted. Evie and I really enjoyed them as a snack on Saturday! She is actually quite nuts over those peas, so I am excited to have a ton more soon. We like them enough that I want to start another set of them for springtime.
I'm also thinking about more beans and peas. We love them in our house, now to find out how well they do in this climate! Also on the list now that wasn't before: melons, and perhaps a winter squash variety (I have 2 summer varieties planned for spring.) Ever since I found out that peppers, eggplants, and tomatoes are not too fond of the superhot weather we are prone to get, I have been on a mission to fill my gardens with stuff that may work better. I've got a lot of space to work with and want to make sure I am using it to its fullest potential!
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| Back yard (before we finished mulching the back on Saturday) |
I may be a little bit obsessed with gardening. I can think of many worse things to be obsessed about. :) I love the peace it gives me, the usefulness and practicality, the connection with the earth. I appreciate food so much more now that I know all of the work that goes into producing it. And it definitely tastes better! Plus I like to know that I am learning such a vital skill. It gives me pride to go out to my own yard and harvest food that I cared for to feed my family. I picked some lettuce for lunch on Saturday and I swear it was the best lettuce I've ever tasted! I never knew how much I liked lettuce until I started eating it NOT from the grocery store. I plan on growing a ton of it! There's already quite a bit out there.
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| E bringing kale in for dinner Thursday night |
Garden class #2
The big takeaways from gardening class tonight:
Add 30 to 45 days to the "days to harvest" if you are starting seeds because the days to harvest start from a transplant.
Don't try to grow tomato, eggplant, or pepper varieties in Texas that take over 65 days. (oops.)
Buy the book "Seed to Seed"
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